IRAQ JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH

An experiment was conducted during 2001 and 2002 growing season, to study the effect of the location of seed beds on cotton yield as a managing practice to livable with soil salinity. Four seed beds locations were used for sowing the cotton seeds (Coker var.) in furrow irrigated row at Al- Radhwani area. They were topped bed, upper third part, lower third part, and bottom of furrow in Randomized Completely Block Design with three replications.
The results indicated that the sowing of cotton seed in topped bed gave a significant increase on yield of seed cotton, weight of boll / plan, plants length, dry shoots and dry roots.
Increasing of yield of seed cotton follow up the sequence from high to low topped bed > upper third part > lower third part > bottom of furrow. Mean while the results tended to a possibility to use topped bed practice as a one of satisfactory stand of furrow irrigated row on livable with salinity through reducing of salt accumulation near the seeds and roots. Since most of the salts move into the centre of the bed and the shoulders leaving relatively low quantity of salts.

Field study was conducted in salinity experiments station in Al-Tuwetha region, 30 km south east of Baghdad, to evaluate the effect of addition of different sources of organic matter on soil reclamation and redistribution of salts in salt affected soils. Saline ground water and Tigris River fresh water were used for leaching the soils. Results showed that when 10 cm depth of fresh water passed through soil profile, the salinity of the upper 20 cm of soil were decreased by55%. Upon Addition of Corn cob, Peat, or Sheep manure at a level of 2% of the weight of the soil, salinity of soil was reduced by 74%, 78%, 67% respectively. However, Soil salinity was reduced by 61.2%, 56.8%, 55.1% when saline ground water were used for leaching under the same rates of addition of organic compounds. Mathematical equations showed the same trend of salinity decrease when 120 cm depth of fresh water passed through the soil profile. At which the rate of decrease in salinity was the highest (14.35X0.06) under the peat addition, reduced to 14.07X0.060 under addition of Corn cob and it was the least (11.89X0.093) under the manure treatment. However, when 120 cm depth of saline water passed through the soil profile, lowest rate (6.12X0.12) of salinity decrease was found under manure treatment. It increased to 10.77X0.074 under the peat treatment, while the highest rate of decrease in salinity (10.53X0.083) was under the Corn cob treatment. Salts redistribution along soil profile after 120 cm depth of either type of water was more evident under the organic matter treatments irrespective of the type. Amount of salts removed when 0.5%, 1%, and 2% of organic matter addition was 14.2%, 24.6% and 36.0% as an average over the three type of organic matters compared to those of no addition (control ) respectively.