Journal of Agronomy and Field Innovations

Background: Rice (Oryza sativa L.) represents 50% of the total amount of freshwater that is extracted for irrigation at the global level, thus, creating the necessity for the development of sustainable approaches in water management. Using Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) in combination with deficit irrigation may help in lowering water expenditure and maintaining the productivity of crops.
Objective: The present research aimed at exploring the results of the use of deficit irrigation methods combined with scheduling of Alternate Wetting and Drying regarding water productivity, physiological performance of crops and grain yield.
Strategy: The field experiment involved four irrigation treatments: continuous flooding (CF, control treatment), AWD with 100% water requirement (AWD-100%), AWD with 80% water requirement (AWD-80%), and AWD with 60% water requirement (AWD-60%). The treatments were laid down according to randomized complete block design and repeated four times.
Methods: To establish soil moisture dynamics, apply irrigation water, and define the physiological parameters (e.g., plant height, leaf area index, chlorophyll content, relative water content), biomass accumulation, grain yield, and measure the indicators of water-use efficiency, the study should be carried out throughout the entire growing season.
Key Findings: The implementation of AWD-80% in rice cultivation realized 89.7% of yield potential (7.24 t·ha⁻¹ compared to 8.06 t·ha⁻¹ obtained through conventional flooding technique) with 28.4% of the water being saved. Water productivity increased by 42.3% due to AWD-80% (1.82 kg·m⁻³). In addition, physiological parameters indicated that plants react physiologically to stress conditions by increasing relative water content and photosynthetic efficiency.
Summary: The study proves that the application of deficit irrigation approach supplemented with AWD technology leads to higher water-use efficiency in rice cultivation, which enables climate-resilient agriculture in areas with scarce water resources.