Response of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) to conjunctive use of saline water in Vertisols of Tungabhadra irrigation command

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Station, Gangavathi during 1999-2002 to evaluate the feasibility ofadvancing the date of sowing to June with available saline ground water and switching over to canal water irrigation when canal water is made available during August in cotton ( Gossypium hirsutuln L. ). Crop sown during first week ofJune with.4 saline water irrigations before switching over to the canal water during first week ofAugust recorded a highest seed cotton yield (2.21 tonnes/ha) and the lowest yield (1.27 tonnes/ha) was recorded with first week of August sowing with only canal water indicating the importance ofearly sowing. Soil salinity monitored over years was within the threshold !imit set for the crop.