Effectiveness of Wick Irrigation Method on Yield and Water Use Efficiency on Maize in Semi-Arid Area

Wick irrigation is a combination of subsurface and pot irrigation methods that provides water to the plant roots through the wick by means of capillary ascent. The salient features of this method are the elimination of evaporation losses and deep penetration, and thus increase plant yield and water use efficiency. The purpose of this study was to investigate the performance and water use efficiency of a wick system designed for corn cultivation in comparison with surface-furrow irrigation method. In this study, after reviewing and selecting the most suitable wick, field studies with two treatments of wick irrigation and furrow irrigation were performed in the summer of 2017 in one crop season and the wick system was prepared and implemented. Based on the results obtained, the total volume of water consumed in the wick system has decreased by about 30% on average compared with the surface system and its wet and dry performance has increased by about 1.4 and 1.7 times, respectively. Therefore, water use efficiency for maize plant in wick irrigation method increased by 2.5 times compared with surface method. The results show the effectiveness of wick irrigation method on yield and water use efficiency for corn cultivation in semi-arid areas compared with surface-furrow irrigation method.