Management of Water-Logged Soils: 9 Ways

This article throws light upon the nine main ways for the management of water-logged soils. Some of the ways are: 1. Leveling of land 2. Drainage 3. Controlled irrigation 4. To check the seepage in the canals and irrigation channels 5. Flood control measures 6. Plantation of trees having high transpiration rate 7. Selection of crops and their proper varieties and Others.

Way # 1. Leveling of land:

Leveling of land in many wetlands removes water by run off.

Way # 2. Drainage:

Drainage removes excess water from the root zone that is harmful for plant growth. Land can be drained by surface drainage, sub-surface drainage and drainage well methods.

Way # 3. Controlled irrigation:

Excess use of water in the irrigation results in water­logged area.

Way # 4. To check the seepage in the canals and irrigation channels:

Due to seepage, land becomes water-logged.

Way # 5. Flood control measures:

Construction of bunds may check water flow from the rivers to the cultivable lands.

Way # 6. Plantation of trees having high transpiration rate:

Transpiration rate in certain trees like Eucalyptus, Accacia, Zyzyphus is very high. In transpiration process the underground water is consumed by trees, thus, lowering the ground water table.

Way # 7. Selection of crops and their proper varieties:

Certain crops like rice, water-nut, jute and sesbania (dhaincha) can tolerate water-logging up to some extent. In rice crop, submergence tolerance varies from one variety to another. Generally, lowland and deep-water varieties can tolerate water logging but upland rice varieties do not have this capacity (Table 12.1).

Way # 8. Sowing on the bunds or ridges:

In the water-logged areas, sowing should be done on bunds or ridges. In this method, there is scope of good aeration near the roots.

Way # 9. Nutrient management in water-logged soils:

Low fertility is an important constraint in the water-logged area. The predominant form of inorganic N in lowland soils is NH₄+.

The following concept may increase N-use efficiency in lowland rice:

(a) Deep placement:

Deep placement of N fertilizer increases the N-use efficiency. Band placement (deep placement) of urea with spring auger machine or other machine increases the nitrogen use efficiency in comparison to hand point placement.

(b) Slow and controlled release fertilizers:

Fertilizers that release their plant nutrients slowly throughout the growing season or longer period have a number of potential advantages. Slow release fertilizers such as Sulphur-coated urea (SCU) greatly reduce NH₃ volatilization loss and sustain the crop with adequate N nutrition throughout the growing season.

(c) Use of nitrification and urease inhibitors:

Nitrification inhibitors. The inhibitor is intended to block the conversion of NH₄+ -N to NO₃^–-N by inhibiting Nitrosamines bacteria growth or activity. Acetone extract of neem (Azadirachata indica) is an effective indigenous nitrification inhibitor.