INFLUENCE OF HYDROGEL ON WATER CONSERVATION AND N UPTAKE BY BARLEY IRRIGATED WITH SALINE WATER: A POT STUDY

摘要

In Serbia barley is sown in more than 90000 ha, and there is great potential for developmentrnof barley production. Due to the global climatic change, there is a shortage of clean irrigationrnwater in Serbia so in Vojvodina, which is the most important agricultural region in Serbia,rnsaline water present in that area are often used for irrigation.rnThe aim of this paper is to determine in a pot experiment the influence of applied polymersrn(hydrogels) on water consumption by the plants, as well as the influence of hydrogel on the soilrnand the biomass yield under saline water irrigation at various levels of nitrogen nourishment.rnThe added hydrogel (potassium acrylate) in the dosage of 0.5% significantly influenced thernchange of water-physical properties of the sand, above all the quantity of available water.rnHydrogel has considerable influence on reduction in water consumption during the testingrnperiod, as well as on better rooting and development of the barley root system. Level ofrnnitrogen supply has not significantly influenced water consumption in different varieties but itrnhas shown an influence on the production of biomass above the ground, while the influencernof the irrigation water quality was statistically significant both with the quantity of irrigationrnwater and with the production of above-ground biomass and the root.