EFFECT OF PHOSPHORIC ACID SPRAY ON RICE GROWTH AND YIELD UNDER SALINE SODIC SOILS

The present study was carried out at the farm of El-Sirw Agricultural Research Station Dommitta province during 2018 and 2019 seasons. The main objective of this attempt to finding out the response of Giza 179 rice variety to phosphorous foliar spray at various concentrations and growth stages using phosphoric acid (PA) under saline sodic soil. The experiments were performed in randomized complete block with four replications for each soil. The treatments involved the application of control, 1.5%PA once at mid tillering stage(MT),twicc at MT+ panicle initiation stage(PI), thrice at MT+Pl+mid booting stage (BT), 2.5% PA once, twice, thrice and 3.5% PA ,once, twice and thrice, basal application of recommended phosphorous in form of calcium superphosphate (P2O5) at the rate of 36kg ha-1. The obtained results could be summarized as follows; the tested phosphorous treatments significantly influenced the studied growth characteristics, phosphors uptake kg P, leaf phosphorus content, grain yield and its attributes, in the two seasons of study under both soils. Elevating concentration of PA applied more than one fold up to three folds including mid booting stage showed high efficient effective to improve rice growth, yield attributes and grain yield under saline sodic soil. Calcium superphosphate as a basal application and 3.5% PA as a foliar spray applied three times at mid tillcring+ panicle initiation+ mid booting stage were at apar and significantly introduced the highest value of the most studied characteristics under normal and salinity soil during the study seasons. It could be concluded that phosphoric acid applied at the rate of 3.5%PA applied thrice could be equivalent to the recommended dose of calcium superphosphate under saline sodic soil.