Agricultural Water Management 101 (2011) 71–80 Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Agricultural Water Management j ourna l ho me page: www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat Effects of fixed partial root-zone drying irrigation and soil texture on water and solute dynamics in calcareous soils and corn yield E.H. Lekakis, P.E. Georgiou, A. Pavlatou-Ve, V.Z. Antonopoulos ∗ School of Agriculture, Department of Hydraulics, Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering, Aristotle University, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 9 February 2011 Accepted 9 September 2011 Available online 2 October 2011 Keywords: Drip irrigation Fixed partial root zone drying Soil water content Soil texture Salinity Solute dynamics a b s t r a c t Water dynamics and salt distribution in the soil were studied under Fixed Partial Root zone Drying irrigation (FPRD) conditions in corn fields in Northern Greece. FPRD irrigation technique was applied without deficit treatment in two calcareous soils, a sandy clay loam and a sandy loam. Soil water content was recorded in the vertical profile of 0.6 m with the use of capacitance sensors in the row and interrow positions of plants. Salt built-up was monitored to the depth of the root zone, bi-weekly, by measuring electrical conductivity (EC e ) and the concentrations of soluble cations Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Na + and K + of the saturation extract on irrigated and non irrigated interrow positions. Soil moisture distribution and salt built-up in soil were used to evaluate the potentials and constraints of FPRD efficiency to sustain plant growth and crop production as a low cost drip irrigation technique. The results indicated that FPRD application on both soils was capable of supplying sufficient amounts of water on plant row. Soil analyses showed that salts accumulated to high levels in the soil surface and decreased in depth at the non irrigated interrow positions. Spatial and temporal variability of salt movement and distribution in the soil profile of 0.6 m were ascribed to soil textural differences. The development and yield of corn plants for both soils reached the usual standards for the area with a minor decrease in the sandy loam soil. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Drip irrigation is one of the most efficient methods of watering crops. This technique offers improved yields, requires less water, decreases the cost of tillage, and reduces the amount of fertiliz- ers applied to the crop. Because drip irrigation makes it possible to place water precisely where it is needed and to apply it with a high degree of uniformity at very low flow rates, it lessens both surface runoff and deep percolation. These features make drip irrigation potentially much more efficient than other irrigation methods and that is translated to significant water savings (Hanson et al., 1994). Field application efficiency of drip irrigation technique can be as high as 90% compared to 60–80% for sprinkler and 50–60% for sur- face irrigation (Dasberg and Or, 1999). A rational management of drip irrigation needs a judicious com- bination of driplines and dripper spacing, discharge rate, irrigation duration and the time interval between two successive irrigations (Ould Mohamed El-Hafedh et al., 2001). Since the initial installa- tion costs for drip irrigation are high, it has not been considered a viable economic option for field row crops such as corn. However, increasing the spacing of dripline laterals would be one of the most ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +30 2310 998745; fax: +30 2310 998767. E-mail address: vasanton@agro.auth.gr (V.Z. Antonopoulos). significant factors in reducing the high overall investment costs of drip irrigation (Lamm et al., 1997). Partial root zone drying (PRD) is an irrigation technique which requires that approximately half of the root system is always exposed to drying soil while the remaining half is irrigated as in full irrigation. This technique has the potential to reduce field-crop water use significantly, increase canopy vigour, and maintain yields when compared with normal irrigation methods (Kang and Zhang, 2004; Ahmadi et al., 2010). FPRD is one form of this irrigation tech- nique where water is applied only from one side of the root system while the other part is exposed to continuous dry conditions. The use of FPRD in row crops in past studies (Kang et al., 2000) resulted in substantial yield reductions. FPRD was used as a water-saving irrigation strategy compared to alternate PRD and conventional irrigation. Full FPRD can also be used without reducing the amounts of irrigation water in order to fully meet evapotranspiration demands. Rhoads and Bennett (1990) reported that it is difficult to plan for deficit irrigation for corn without simultaneously causing yield reduction. Corn plants are especially sensitive to water stress because their root system is relatively sparse (El-Hendawy et al., 2008). Full FPRD can be employed in row crops as a cost effective and less energy consuming method in areas where water is not a limiting factor of agricultural produc- tion. It can enhance farmers’ income since it requires half of the irrigation equipment and does not involve complexities compared to typical PRD. PRD irrigation technique is based in alternating 0378-3774/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.agwat.2011.09.004