Effect of irrigation type and interval on soil salinity in clay soils in Ahvaz, Iran

The current research was carried out at the Agricultural Research and Education Center for Agrarian and Natural Resources of the Khuzestan Province, Ahvaz, Iran, in an area of approximately 1.5 ha in 2016. The research was aimed at the comparing of the efficiency of the effects of sprinkler and surface irrigation systems in heavy soil texture and their effect on soil salinity and alkalinity. The irrigation systems utilized were sprinkler irrigation systems (irrigation intervals of 3, 5, and 7 days) and surface irrigation systems (furrow and basin) with 7–8-day intervals. The results showed that the electrical conductivity of the soil saturation extract (ECe) decreased by irrigation, whether in sprinkler irrigation or in surface irrigation, except for 7-day irrigation with irrigation intervals due to irrigation system and increasing the capillary rise of the material to high levels of soil has led to constant soil electrical conductivity and in some cases increased. Also, it should be noted that none of the studied irrigation systems (sprinkler and surface irrigation) had a significant positive effect on the sodium content of the soil and, as observed, sodium values at all irrigation systems have passed the same process.