The effect of irrigation systems on yield, yield components and water use efficiency in three wheat genotypes in Kermanshah province

Iran is the thirteenth country in terms of wheat production in the world. Kermanshah Province is known as the west agricultural pole of the country. It has about 700,000 hectares of agricultural land, and more than 173,000 hectares of high quality water land. Irrigation is one of the most important effective factors in grain production in hot and dry climates. Research has shown that the use of modern pressurized irrigation systems reduces water consumption and increases the water use efficiency. Considering the issue of water shortage that has been raised in the country in recent years, The simultaneous investigation of the effects of sprinkler and strip drip irrigation systems in three wheat cultivars including Baharan, Rakhshan and Heydari cultivars on yield, yield components and water use efficiency in this province seemed necessary.This research was carried out in the research farm of ACECR, Kermanshah province unit during 2021. Wheat seeds of Baharan, Rakhshan and Heydari cultivars were cultivated on 08/30/2020 after health control and detoxification. This study was conducted in the form of a split plot in a randomized complete block design with three replications. In the main plots, the irrigation methods including sprinkler and strip drip irrigation were evaluated and in the sub-plots, wheat cultivars including Baharan, Rakhshan and Heidari were evaluated. From each treatment, one square meter of samples was taken from the middle of the plot. These samples were placed separately in special bags (by installing specifications on each sample) and were immediately transferred to the laboratory. According to the dimensions of the plots (60 m2), during the growth period of the wheat plant, the irrigation amount was 633.50 mm in sprinkler irrigation method and 436 mm in strip drip irrigation method. Finally, after data collection, statistical analysis, including an analysis of variance and comparison of means, was performed using Duncan's multi-range test at a five percent probability level with SAS Ver 9.4 software.Based on the results of the statistical analysis of the irrigation method, there was a significant effect on the characteristics of plant height, number of seeds per spike, seed yield, biomass yield, and water use efficiency of the crop. Additionally, the effect of cultivars was significant in plant height, number of seeds per spike, seed yield, biomass yield, and water use efficiency. The results of the analysis of variance showed significant effects of irrigation method and cultivars for crop yield traits and water use efficiency. The comparison of means revealed that the highest yield of 9458 kg/ha was observed in the strip drip irrigation treatment in Baharan cultivar, which had a statistical difference with the sprinkler irrigation treatment in similar cultivars. Furthermore, the sprinkler irrigation treatment in Heydari cultivar with a yield of 6539 kg/ha had the lowest yield. Based on the obtained results, the highest and lowest water use efficiency productivity with values of 2.13 and 1.03 kg/m3 were observed in the strip drip irrigation treatments of Baharan variety and sprinkler irrigation of Heydari variety, respectively. The results of the research showed that the use of strip drip irrigation method compared to the sprinkler irrigation method in Baharan, Rakhshan, and Heydari cultivars resulted in an increase of 20.07%, 29.76%, and 20.50% in crop yield, respectively.Optimum use of water seems necessary considering the climatic conditions of the country and the recent droughts. One of the important and effective solutions is to use modern irrigation systems. The results revealed that the use of different irrigation systems caused a significant difference at the levels of 1% and 5% on the yield and yield components of wheat in investigated cultivars. Based on the results in the tape irrigation method, the yield increased in most of the analyzed parameters compared to the sprinkler irrigation method. The results exhibited that, the use of tape method saved water consumption by 31% and increased the yield of the product and finally increased the water efficiency compared to the sprinkler irrigation method.