Layering smart management practices to sustainably maintain rice yields and improve water use efficiency in eastern India

There is a perception in the farming and research communities that annual pastures have low produc- tivity and water use, and contribute disproportionately to problems of rising watertables and dryland salinity. Our aim was to determine potential pasture production in relation to water use and the influence of management factors on this relationship. Experiments were initiated at 4 locations along a gradient of 300–1100 mm annual rainfall across the Western Australian agricultural zone. At each site a high input treatment was compared with a low input control. There was a strong linear relationship between water use and pasture production up to 440 mm of growing- season water use. After 30 mm of water use the potential pasture production was 30 kg/ha.mm. An upper limit to pasture production may be reached at about 12 000 kg/ha in this environment due to rainfall distribution patterns and soil water holding capacity in the root-zone. Although pasture production was increased by as much as 3500 kg/ha, water use was generally similar or only slightly more for high input compared with control plots. The marginally higher water use by the high input pastures resulted in an extra 18 mm of water extracted from the subsoil at one location by the end of the third season. A drier subsoil may provide a buffer for storing excess rainfall and reduce deep drainage. Estimated drainage was small at low rainfall sites so even marginal increases in water use by highly productive annual pastures could play a significant role in reducing water loss to deep drainage and mitigating water-table rise and secondary salinisation in low rainfall regions. Management practices aimed at promoting early growth and adequate leaf area should maximise water use, water use efficiency, and yield. The linear relationship defining potential pasture production provides a useful benchmark to farmers.

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Stretching water – Queensland's water use efficiency cotton and grains adoption program

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.2003.0440 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 48 (7) ◽

pp. 191-196 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

P.J. Goyne ◽

G.T. McIntyre

Keyword(s):

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use ◽

Best Management Practices ◽

Management Practices ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Public Image ◽

Best Management ◽

Irrigation Water Use ◽

Use Efficiency ◽

On Farm

The Cotton and Grains Adoption Program of the Queensland Rural Water Use Efficiency Initiative is targeting five major irrigation regions in the state with the objective to develop better irrigation water use efficiency (WUE) through the adoption of best management practices in irrigation. The major beneficiaries of the program will be industries, irrigators and local communities. The benefits will flow via two avenues: increased production and profit resulting from improved WUE and improved environmental health as a consequence of greatly reduced runoff of irrigation tailwater into rivers and streams. This in turn will reduce the risk of nutrient and pesticide contamination of waterways. As a side effect, the work is likely to contribute to an improved public image of the cotton and grain industries. In each of the five regions, WUE officers have established grower groups to assist in providing local input into the specific objectives of extension and demonstration activities. The groups also assist in developing growersÕ perceptions of ownership of the work. Activities are based around four on-farm demonstration sites in each region where irrigation management techniques and hardware are showcased. A key theme of the program is monitoring water use. This is applied both to on-farm storage and distribution as well as to application methods and in-field management. This paper describes the project, its activities and successes.

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Using market research to understand the adoption of irrigation management strategies in the stone and pome fruit industry

Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture ◽

10.1071/ea01183 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 45 (9) ◽

pp. 1181 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

G. Kaine ◽

D. Bewsell ◽

A. Boland ◽

C. Linehan

Keyword(s):

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use ◽

Market Research ◽

Management Practices ◽

Irrigation Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Pome Fruit ◽

Managerial Flexibility ◽

Use Efficiency ◽

Extension Program

Market research was conducted to develop an extension program targeting the specific irrigation management needs of growers in the stone and pome fruit industry within the Goulburn Valley, Victoria. The process of integrating market research with extension practice proved challenging, as it required the development of an extension program that was fundamentally different from what was originally envisaged. However, it was essential to achieve this integration in order to meet the original objectives for the extension program as set by the funding body. We found, in most cases, that the motivation for stone and pome fruit growers in the Goulburn Valley to change orchard irrigation management practices was not because they needed to save water, or to increase water use efficiency. Instead, growers were changing practices in order to save time irrigating, improve the scope for managerial flexibility in the orchard, or when redeveloping their orchard to a closer planting design. These findings suggest that growers in the Goulburn Valley are more likely to respond to an extension program consistent with these motivations rather than a program promoting water use efficiency.

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Irrigated sugarbeet yield, water use and water use efficiency responses to tillage practices

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-1259 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jay Jabro ◽

Bart Stevens ◽

bill Iversen ◽

brett Allen ◽

Upendra Sainju

Keyword(s):

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use ◽

Management Practices ◽

Block Design ◽

Soil Water Storage ◽

Irrigated Agriculture ◽

Promising Alternative ◽

Tillage Practices ◽

Growing Seasons ◽

Use Efficiency

<p>Better management practices have been used to increase soil water storage and reduce evaporation from the soil surface to optimize crop water use efficiency (WUE) in irrigated agriculture. A field study was conducted to evaluate the effect of &#160;conventional tillage (CT), No-till (NT) and strip tillage (ST) practices on yield, water use (WU) and WUE of sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.) on a clay loam soil under over-head sprinkler irrigation system in the northern Great Plains. Tillage treatments were replicated five times in a randomized block design. Seasonal WU and WUE for sugarbeet root and sucrose yield were determined for the 2018 and 2019 growing seasons according to the water balance and WUE equations under three tillage practices. Results showed that no significant differences due to tillage treatment were found for crop WU, root yield, sucrose yield, and WUE for sugarbeet root and sucrose in 2018 and 2019 growing seasons. In 2019, the average value of WU across three tillage systems (616 mm) was significantly greater relative to 2018 (468 mm) due to atypical large rainfalls (218mm) occurred in September of 2019. Consequently, WUE values for both root and sucrose yield in 2019 under CT, NT, and ST were significantly greater than those in 2018. While NT and ST practices are promising alternative to CT for agricultural production in this region, further research is needed prior to making any recommendation.</p>

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Soil water regimes of rotationally grazed perennial and annual forages

Canadian Journal of Soil Science ◽

10.4141/s99-027 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 79 (4) ◽

pp. 627-637 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

D. A. Twerdoff ◽

D. S. Chanasyk ◽

M. A. Naeth ◽

V. S. Baron ◽

E. Mapfumo

Keyword(s):

Plant Growth ◽

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Soil Water ◽

Water Use ◽

Management Practices ◽

Grazing Intensity ◽

Water Dynamics ◽

Research Station ◽

Grazing Intensities ◽

Use Efficiency

To maintain a sustainable agricultural system, management practices such as grazing must ensure adequate soil water for plant growth, yet minimize the risk of soil erosion. The objective of this study was to characterize the soil water regime of perennial and annual forages under three grazing intensities (heavy, medium and light). The study was conducted at the Lacombe Research Station, Alberta, on an Orthic Black Chernozem of loam to silt loam texture. The forages used were smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis L. 'Carlton'), meadow bromegrass (Bromus riparius L. 'Paddock'), a mixture of triticale (X Triticosecale Wittmack 'Pika') and barley (Hordeum vulgare L. 'AC Lacombe') and triticale. Soil water measurements were conducted between April and October of 1994 and 1995 using a neutron scattering hydroprobe to a depth of 90 cm. Surface (0–7.5 cm) soil water was more responsive to grazing intensity than soil water accumulated to various depths. For all grazing treatments and forages, both surface soil water and accumulated soil water generally fluctuated between field capacity and wilting point during the growing season. Although plant water status was not determined, no visual permanent wilting of forages was observed during the study. Differences in evapotranspiration (ET), as determined by differences in soil water were evident among forage species but not grazing intensities, with perennials having high ET in spring and annuals having high ET in summer. Estimated values of water-use efficiency (WUE) were greater for perennials than for annuals and grazing effects on WUE were minimal. From a management perspective, grazing of annuals and perennials altered soil water dynamics but still maintained adequate soil water for plant growth. Key words: Evapotranspiration, forages, grazing intensity, water-use efficiency

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Nitrogen and Light Affect Water Use and Water Use Efficiency of Zoysiagrass Genotypes Differing in Canopy Structure

HortScience ◽

10.21273/hortsci.46.4.643 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 46 (4) ◽

pp. 643-647 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

John E. Erickson ◽

Kevin E. Kenworthy

Keyword(s):

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Management Practices ◽

Canopy Structure ◽

N Fertilization ◽

Unit Leaf ◽

Daily Evapotranspiration ◽

Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use Rates

Irrigation of residential lawns represents one of the major uses of potable water in many regions. An increased understanding of physiological responses underlying effects of turfgrass genotypes and management practices on water use rates and water use efficiencies could contribute to water conservation. Thus, we evaluated the effects of nitrogen (N) fertilization (0.0 and 2.5 g·m−2) and light environment (full sun and 50% shade) on average daily evapotranspiration (ETAVE), daily ET per unit leaf area (ETLA), carbon exchange rate (CER), and water use efficiency (WUE) in upright (experimental TAES 5343-22) and prostrate (‘Empire’) zoysiagrasses (Zoysia japonica Steud.) during two repeated trials. Across all treatments, ETAVE was 4.0 and 5.4 mm·d−1 during Trials 1 and 2, respectively. In the upright-growing genotype, ETAVE was ≈10% greater than the prostrate genotype during Trial 1. Nitrogen fertilization increased water use by ≈20% compared with non-fertilized pots. However, N fertilization reduced ETLA and increased WUE. Thus, ETAVE was positively related with WUE. As a result, there was a tradeoff between ETAVE and WUE, indicating that efforts to achieve reductions in water use through low N fertilization or genotypes can be accomplished, but in some cases at the expense of using water less efficiently to assimilate carbon for plant growth processes. In turfgrass, reductions in growth and WUE might be acceptable to minimize water use, but vigor and quality need to be maintained.

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Inoculant, nitrogen and phosphorus improves photosynthesis and water-use efficiency in soybean production

The Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.1017/s0021859621000617 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-14

Author(s):

C. E. N. Savala ◽

A. N. Wiredu ◽

J. O. Okoth ◽

S. Kyei-Boahen

Keyword(s):

Water Use Efficiency ◽

Water Use ◽

Management Practices ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Growth Stages ◽

Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽

Area Index ◽

Physiological Processes ◽

Wide Range ◽

Use Efficiency

Abstract Soybean yield within the Southern Africa falls below its potential despite similar climatic conditions across some agroecologies, replicable agronomic management practices and introduced improved varieties. Understanding physiological processes and water-use efficiency (WUE) of soybean offer information on bridging this yield gap. A field study was conducted in 2017 and 2018 seasons in two agroecologies (Angonia and Ruace) in Mozambique to evaluate the effects of Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens strain USDA110 formerly known as Bradyrhizobium japonicum inoculant, nitrogen and phosphorus on nodulation, physiology and yield of non-promiscuous (Safari) and promiscuous (TGx 1740-2F) soybean varieties. Data on transpiration, photosynthesis, leaf area index, radiation interception and WUE from the beginning of flowering to maturity were collected. Transpiration rate varied considerably with interaction between locations, growth stages, varieties and treatments. At podding, phosphorus-treated soybean at Angonia transpired less (6.3 mmol/m2/s) than check plants (6.6 mmol/m2/s). Photosynthesis rate and WUE were distinct with variety, growth stages and inputs within agroecologies. For instance, in Angonia 2018 season, phosphorus fertilized TGx 1740-2F photosynthesized more at flowering (25.3 μmol/m2/s) while the lowest was phosphorus-treated Safari at podding with 17.2 μmol/m2/s. At the same site in 2017, inoculated soybean photosynthesized more at 22.8 μmol/m2/s leading to better WUE of 3.6 that corresponded to 2894 kg/ha yield. Overall, soybean WUE was higher when inoculated than N-treated, while P application yielded better. Results from this study will complement breeders’ effort in developing phosphorus efficient varieties suited for a wide range of changing climatical conditions.

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