Land suitability of Golfaraj region for Sugarbeet cultivation using Mediterranean system

Sugar beets are used primarily for production of sucrose, a high energy pure food. The identification of suitable locations for the production of this valuable plant is of crucial importance. In this regard, land evaluation suitability determination spatial Mediterranean land evaluation method is one of the main management procedures in sustainable agriculture for planning. The purpose of this research is using Mediterranean land evaluation to land suitability evaluation for sugar beet in an area with 7990 ha extension, which is located in North of East Azerbaijan province (Golfaraj-Jolfa). The goal of this study is land planning of Golfaraj (Jolfa), thus soil morphological and analytical data were carried out for 17 land units. Based on each model effective parameters, bioclimatic deficiency, land capability and qualitative land suitability were determined using above mentioned models. The result of Terraza model showed that rainfed cultivation is possible with 20-40 percentages in yield for sugar beet. Also, considering some of the management recommendation such as identifying the sensitive time of crops for irrigation, reduce the water consumption without any negative impacts on annual yield. According to Cervatana model results, total area was distinguished as good. Therefore, qualitative land suitability evaluation of susceptible lands using Almagra model revealed that 24.3, 39.9, 8.1 and 27.7 of total area can take place in excellent (S1), suitable (S2), moderately suitable (S3) and unsuitable (S4,S5) respectively by soil texture and carbonate. In summary, MicroLEIS DSS tool appears to be useful in semi-arid regions, such as Golfaraj area located in East Azerbaijan (Iran), to formulate sustaining agro-ecological systems.