Effect of Irrigation Management and Water Quality on Soil and Sorghum bicolor Payenne Yield in Cape Verde

María del Pino Palacios-Diaz, Juan Ramón Fernández-Vera, Jose Manuel Hernández-Moreno, Regla Amorós and Vanessa Mendoza-Grimón ()
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María del Pino Palacios-Diaz: Instituto de Investigación IUNAT, Grupo GEOVOL, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Juan Ramón Fernández-Vera: Laboratorio Agroalimentario y Fitopatológico del Cabildo de Gran Canaria, 35413 Arucas, Spain
Jose Manuel Hernández-Moreno: Instituto de Investigación IUNAT, Grupo GEOVOL, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
Regla Amorós: Instituto Nacional de Investigação e Desenvolvimento Agrário (INIDA), Cidade da Praia 84, Cape Verde
Vanessa Mendoza-Grimón: Instituto de Investigación IUNAT, Grupo GEOVOL, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

Agriculture, 2023, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-18

Abstract: Treated water use for agriculture will promote sustainable irrigation development and food sovereignty. The aim of this study is to assess the feasibility of subsurface drip irrigation (SDI) compared to drip irrigation (DI) and of reclaimed water (RW) versus conventional groundwater (CW), to produce forage sustainably in a warm arid region. A sorghum experiment was conducted in a field on Santiago Island (Cape Verde). A forage yield of 200 t fresh matter·ha −1 ·year −1 , irrigated by RW, was obtained. Considering Cape Verde regulations, it is possible to irrigate sorghum using a drip system and RW without adding fertilizers. Soil fertility (OM and Ntot) increased, while risk parameters (EC, nitrate, and Na) returned to their initial values after the rainy season. The best irrigation water use efficiency was obtained by RWSDI (200 L·kg −1 DM) compared to RWDI, which needed 34% more water. According to the results, a high nitrate elimination rate in treatment plants might not be desirable if agricultural reuse is planned to irrigate high-N-demanding species. Establishing new salinity tolerance levels under reuse conditions with SDI, and irrigating in rainy months to promote the lixiviation of salts in arid regions are also necessary.

Keywords: subsurface drip irrigation; reclaimed water; forage; water use efficiency; soil; sustainability; water management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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