Investigating the effect of irrigation water salinity on wheat irrigation scheduling using CWSI and WDI indices (Case study of Iranshahr)

The presence of salts in irrigation water and high evapotranspiration rate in Sistan and Baluchestan cause the accumulation of salt in the soil and as a result increases the osmotic force in soil. One method for crop irrigation planning is the use of Idso crop water stress index (CWSI) and Moran water deficit index (WDI). In order to investigate the effect of irrigation water salinity on CWSI and WDI and also wheat irrigation planning, an experiment was performed with three different irrigation water quality in Iranshahr, through the 1398-99 crop year. The experiment was performed as a randomized complete block design with 4 replications and 3 treatments including (1) irrigation water with salinity of 0.7, (2) irrigation water with salinity of 2.5 and (3) irrigation water with salinity of 5.2 dSm-1. The results showed that irrigation water with salinity of 0.7 and 2.5 dSm-1 have no significant difference in terms of yield and water use efficiency. However, the use of irrigation water with a salinity of 5.2 dSm-1 caused a significant reduction in yield and water use efficiency at a 1% level. Moreover, the salinity of irrigation water increased the upper baseline in the Idso diagram and the upper side of the proposed trapezoid of Moran, but it had no effect on the baseline (plant transpiration limit under standard conditions). As a result, according to the definition of CWSI and WDI indices, these two indices decreased by 19% and 22%, respectively compared to the control treatment. The average optimal CWSI and WDI in the first (non-saline) treatment were 0.39 and 0.38, respectively, and they were 0.33 and 0.32 in the very saline treatment, respectively. This showed a decreasing trend of irrigation frequency with increasing salinity of irrigation water.