Agronomy · 2025
Effects of Continuous Saline Water Irrigation on Soil Salinization Characteristics and Dryland Jujube Tree
Zhao, Q., Xin, M., Ai, P., Ma, Y.
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Effects of Continuous Saline Water Irrigation on Soil Salini…
Abstract
The sustainable utilization of saline water resources represents an effective strategy for alleviating water scarcity in arid regions. However, the mechanisms by which prolonged saline water irrigation influences soil salinization and dryland crop growth are not yet fully understood. This study examined the effects of six irrigation water salinity levels (CK: 0.87 g·L−1, S1: 2 g·L−1, S2: 4 g·L−1, S3: 6 g·L−1, S4: 8 g·L−1, S5: 10 g·L−1) on soil salinization dynamics and jujube growth during a three-year field experiment (2020–2022). The results showed that soil salinity within the 0–1 m profile significantly increased with rising irrigation water salinity and prolonged irrigation duration, with the 0–0.4 m layer accounting for 50.27–74.95% of the total salt accumulation. A distinct unimodal salt distribution was observed in the 0.3–0.6 m soil zone, with the salinity peak shifting downward from 0.4 to 0.5 m over time. Meanwhile, soil pH and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) increased steadily over the study period. The dominant hydrochemical type shifted from SO42−-Ca2+·Mg2+ to Cl−-Na+·Mg2+. Crop performance exhibited a nonlinear response to irrigation salinity levels. Low salinity (2 g·L−1) significantly enhanced plant height, stem diameter, leaf area index (LAI), vitamin C content, and yield, with improvements of up to 12.11%, 3.96%, 16.67%, 16.24%, and 16.52% in the early years. However, prolonged exposure to saline irrigation led to significant declines in both plant growth and water productivity (WP) by 2022. Under high-salinity conditions (S5), yield decreased by 16.75%, while WP declined by more than 30%. To comprehensively evaluate the trade-off between economic effects and soil environment, the entropy weight TOPSIS method was employed to identify S1 as the optimal irrigation treatment for the 2020–2021 period and control (CK) as the optimal treatment for 2022. Through fitting analysis, the optimal irrigation water salinity levels over 3 years were determined to be 2.75 g·L−1, 2.49 g·L−1, and 0.87 g·L−1, respectively. These findings suggest that short-term irrigation of jujube trees with saline water at concentrations ≤ 3 g·L−1 is agronomically feasible.
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The sustainable utilization of saline water resources represents an effective strategy for alleviating water scarcity in arid regions. However, the mechanisms by which prolonged saline water irrigation influences soil salinization and dryland crop growth are not yet fully understood. This study examined the effects of six irrigation water salinity levels (CK: 0.87 g·L−1, S1: 2 g·L−1, S2: 4 g·L−1, S3: 6 g·L−1, S4: 8 g·L−1, S5: 10 g·L−1) on soil salinization dynamics and jujube growth during a three-year field experiment (2020–2022). The results showed that soil salinity within the 0–1 m profile significantly increased with rising irrigation water salinity and prolonged irrigation duration, with the 0–0.4 m layer accounting for 50.27–74.95% of the total salt accumulation. A distinct unimodal salt distribution was observed in the 0.3–0.6 m soil zone, with the salinity peak shifting downward from 0.4 to 0.5 m over time. Meanwhile, soil pH and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) increased steadily over the study period. The dominant hydrochemical type shifted from SO42−-Ca2+·Mg2+ to Cl−-Na+·Mg2+. Crop performance exhibited a nonlinear response to irrigation salinity levels. Low salinity (2 g·L−1) significantly enhanced plant height, stem diameter, leaf area index (LAI), vitamin C content, and yield, with improvements of up to 12.11%, 3.96%, 16.67%, 16.24%, and 16.52% in the early years. However, prolonged exposure to saline irrigation led to significant declines in both plant growth and water productivity (WP) by 2022. Under high-salinity conditions (S5), yield decreased by 16.75%, while WP declined by more than 30%. To comprehensively evaluate the trade-off between economic effects and soil environment, the entropy weight TOPSIS method was employed to identify S1 as the optimal irrigation treatment for the 2020–2021 period and control (CK) as the optimal treatment for 2022. Through fitting analysis, the optimal irrigation water salinity levels over 3 years were determined to be 2.75 g·L−1, 2.49 g·L−1, and 0.87 g·L−1, respectively. These findings suggest that short-term irrigation of jujube trees with saline water at concentrations ≤ 3 g·L−1 is agronomically feasible.
The sustainable utilization of saline water resources represents an effective strategy for alleviating water scarcity in arid regions. However, the mechanisms by which prolonged saline water irrigation influences soil salinization and dryland crop growth are not yet fully understood. This study examined the effects of six irrigation water salinity levels (CK: 0.87 g·L−1, S1: 2 g·L−1, S2: 4 g·L−1, S3: 6 g·L−1, S4: 8 g·L−1, S5: 10 g·L−1) on soil salinization dynamics and jujube growth during a three-year field experiment (2020–2022). The results showed that soil salinity within the 0–1 m profile significantly increased with rising irrigation water salinity and prolonged irrigation duration, with the 0–0.4 m layer accounting for 50.27–74.95% of the total salt accumulation. A distinct unimodal salt distribution was observed in the 0.3–0.6 m soil zone, with the salinity peak shifting downward from 0.4 to 0.5 m over time. Meanwhile, soil pH and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) increased steadily over the study period. The dominant hydrochemical type shifted from SO42−-Ca2+·Mg2+ to Cl−-Na+·Mg2+. Crop performance exhibited a nonlinear response to irrigation salinity levels. Low salinity (2 g·L−1) significantly enhanced plant height, stem diameter, leaf area index (LAI), vitamin C content, and yield, with improvements of up to 12.11%, 3.96%, 16.67%, 16.24%, and 16.52% in the early years. However, prolonged exposure to saline irrigation led to significant declines in both plant growth and water productivity (WP) by 2022. Under high-salinity conditions (S5), yield decreased by 16.75%, while WP declined by more than 30%. To comprehensively evaluate the trade-off between economic effects and soil environment, the entropy weight TOPSIS method was employed to identify S1 as the optimal irrigation treatment for the 2020–2021 period and control (CK) as the optimal treatment for 2022. Through fitting analysis, the optimal irrigation water salinity levels over 3 years were determined to be 2.75 g·L−1, 2.49 g·L−1, and 0.87 g·L−1, respectively. These findings suggest that short-term irrigation of jujube trees with saline water at concentrations ≤ 3 g·L−1 is agronomically feasible.
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