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Journal of Water and Soil
  • College of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran.
  • jswa3@um.ac.ir
Introduction Due to global warming and climate change, droughts and extreme precipitation events are increasing. Therefore, it is of special importance to know the characteristics of precipitation in the region in order to manage water... more
Introduction
Due to global warming and climate change, droughts and extreme precipitation events are increasing. Therefore, it is of special importance to know the characteristics of precipitation in the region in order to manage water resources effectively especially during torrential rainfall events. This can help to reduce the risk of these events and increase water reserves with proper management. These precipitation characteristics which are the objectives of the present study, include the temporal-spatial distribution of precipitation in different parts of the study area, as well as the number of days with and without precipitation and the maximum precipitation occurring in the region. Also, these precipitation characteristics should give us information about extreme precipitation events.

Materials and Methods
This research analyzed the characteristics of precipitation in Markazi province over a 30-year period (from the crop year 1991-1992 to 2020-2021) using statistical methods and the spatial distribution was drawn and analyzed with ArcGIS software. This province includes the 12 meteorological stations of Arak, Mahalat, Saveh, Tafresh, Ashtiyan, Komeijan, Khondab, Shazand, Khomein, Delijan, Farmahin and Gharqabad, which the precipitation data of these stations were investigated. The trend of precipitation changes in monthly, seasonal, and annual time scales were also examined using the Mann-Kendall test. Moreover, extreme precipitation was assessed using four indices: total extreme precipitation (R95p), number of days with precipitation above the station’s extreme precipitation threshold (R95d), absolute intensity of extreme precipitation (AEPI) and the fraction of total rainfall from events exceeding the extreme threshold (R95pT). The latter index represents the ratio of extreme precipitation to annual precipitation in rainy days (daily rainfall above 1 mm).

Results and Discussion
This study reveals that, on average, 53% of the annual precipitation is accounted for by the maximum index of R95pT, which indicates the percentage of extreme precipitation that occurred at each station relative to its the precipitation of the corresponding year. Knowing the timing of these extreme events can help to manage floods and optimize water resources. More than 20% of these precipitations occurred in March. The spatial distribution of rainfall in Markazi province shows that the south-west regions have the highest average annual and seasonal rainfall, except for the summer season, while the eastern regions have the lowest. The winter season has the highest rainfall on average, followed by spring and autumn. March is the rainiest month with a coefficient of variation of 0.8 and an average monthly rainfall of 55.6 mm during the studied period. Due to most extreme precipitation events occurring in this month, it has the highest importance for water storage and management throughout the year. The average precipitation in March ranges from 32.6 mm (Saveh station) to 91.6 mm (Shazand station) across the stations of the province. The maximum rainfall in this month varies from 124.4 to 254.6 mm among the stations of the Markazi province, which is a considerable amount compared to the provincial average crop year. The standard deviation of precipitation in this month is between 28.7 and 61.3 mm, and the coefficient of variation at the stations of the province is between 0.6 and 0.9. Moreover, in terms of average monthly rainfall 22Nov-21Dec, 20Feb-19Mar, and 23Oct-21Nov are the next priority months for water storage management after 20Mar-19Apr, with average monthly rainfall of 39.3, 38.2, and 36.3 mm, respectively. The Mann-Kendall non-parametric test results did not reveal a consistent trend, but it showed that most of the meteorology stations in Markazi province had a significant decreasing trend in the rainfall in 21Jan-19Feb at a 90% confidence level. The analysis of extreme precipitation indices indicated that Shazand station had the highest extreme precipitation threshold value (28 mm), while Saveh and Delijan stations had the lowest (15 mm). The extreme precipitation threshold average of 30 years in other meteorological stations of Markazi province are 21mm in Arak, 17mm in Tafresh, 21mm in Khomeyn, 19mm in Mahallat, 17mm in Komeijan, 16mm in Farmahin, 21mm in Khondab, 17mm Gharqabad and 18mm in Ashtiyan.

Conclusion
The spatial distribution of rainfall in Markazi Province shows that the southwest regions have the highest average annual and seasonal precipitation, except for summer, while the east regions have the lowest. The average monthly rainfall also indicates that March has the highest rainfall among all months of the year, and that about 20% of the annual extreme precipitation occurs in this month.
Introduction Drought is one of the greatest challenges of our time due to the dangers it poses to the world. In arid and semi-arid regions, it is necessary to continuously monitor agricultural systems that face water shortages and... more
Introduction
Drought is one of the greatest challenges of our time due to the dangers it poses to the world. In arid and semi-arid regions, it is necessary to continuously monitor agricultural systems that face water shortages and frequent droughts. Therefore, it is necessary to have large-scale information about agricultural systems and land use for managing and making decisions for the sustainability of food security. Continuous monitoring of drought requires a large amount of information to be processed with great speed and accuracy. Due to the complexity and impact of various factors on drought, in recent years, the methods of combining several factors to create a comprehensive drought index have received much attention. Machine learning and deep learning methods can provide a more accurate and efficient tool to predict droughts and be used in drought risk management. The review of sources shows that until now no studies have been conducted in the field of drought monitoring using deep learning approach and satellite images in the catchment area of Lake Urmia in Iran. A large part of its economic activities is dedicated to agriculture. The increase in temperature, the increase in evaporation-transpiration and the excessive use of water resources for agriculture have caused an upward trend in the frequency of droughts in this basin during consecutive years, one of the harmful effects of which is a significant decrease in the lake level. Therefore, for drought management in this basin, it is very important to identify drought behavior so It is very important to determine appropriate and reliable indicators to measure and predict the effects of droughts. According to the investigations, it was observed that most of the studies in the field of drought in this basin have been carried out from the meteorological point of view, or by individual plant indicators, so in this study, using the approach of principal component analysis, we tried to provide a composite drought index for drought modeling and forecasting.

Materials and Methods
In this research, satellite images and deep learning and machine learning methods have been used to predict the Combined Drought Index. For this purpose, satellite images were first obtained for the study area and pre-processing was done on the data. Then, all the data were converted to a scale with a spatial resolution of 500 meters, and the VCI index was calculated using NDVI data, the TCI index using the land surface temperature product, and the CWSI index using the Modis evapotranspiration product, and finally, CDI drought index was calculated using principal component analysis method. Then the correlation between CDI data and other meteorological variables including evapotranspiration, potential evapotranspiration, land surface temperature during the day, and land surface temperature at night was calculated. Finally, the CDI index is modeled using deep learning and machine learning methods.

Results and Discussion
This study modeled the Combined Drought Index based on a different combination of input variables and deep learning and machine learning methods. Examining the results showed that the variables of the normalized difference vegetation index, the land surface temperature during the day and at night, evapotranspiration, and potential evapotranspiration were the most influential parameters for modeling the CDI index, and all four methods with acceptable accuracy and error have been able to model the combined drought index. The CART model with a correlation coefficient of 0.96, RMSE equal to 0.029, and Nash Sutcliffe coefficient of 0.92 was chosen as the best model among the methods.

Conclusion
In this research, different combinations of input variables extracted from satellite image products were evaluated in the form of 6 independent scenarios to predict the Combined Drought Index. By examining the evaluation parameters including correlation coefficient, Nash Sutcliffe coefficient, and root mean square error, it was found that all four methods can estimate the combined drought index with acceptable accuracy and error. Among all the methods, the CART method performed better (R=0.96 and RMSE=0.029) than the other methods for predicting the time series of the Combined Drought Index. On the other hand, the SVM method has been able to model the combined drought index with acceptable accuracy (R=0.94 and RMSE=0.034). However, contrary to expectations, two deep learning methods were able to model the combined drought index with less accuracy than machine learning methods. In general, by examining the results, it was found that with the method presented in this research, it is possible to accurately predict the CDI combined drought index time series and predict drought in different periods of plant growth, and use its results for regional drought management and policies, especially in Basins without statistics.
Introduction Climate change has led to changes in the frequency, intensity, duration, and spatial distribution of climate extremes. During the last decade (2011-2020), the average global temperature was 0.1 ± 1.1 oC higher than in the... more
Introduction
Climate change has led to changes in the frequency, intensity, duration, and spatial distribution of climate extremes. During the last decade (2011-2020), the average global temperature was 0.1 ± 1.1 oC higher than in the preindustrial era. Iran and especially the Urmia Lake basin is one of the most vulnerable areas to climate change. Urmia lake basin has received the special attention of policymakers and planners since it is the location of Lake Urmia, and it also holds nearly 7% of Iran's water resources. A huge program of dam construction and irrigation networks has been started in this basin in the northwest of Iran since the late 1960s. Despite the increasing attention to Lake Urmia since 1995, the water level of this lake has decreased. During the drought of 1990-2001, Lake Urmia experienced a decrease in its level without any recovery and is decreasing at an alarming rate. Therefore, it is necessary to project the future climate of the Urmia Lake basin and especially extreme precipitation based on the latest climate change models.

Materials and Methods
The CMIP6 models were used to investigate the future projection of extreme precipitation in the Lake Urmia basin. Considering the horizontal resolution, availability of daily data, and climate sensitivity, we selected five models including GFDL-ESM4, IPSL-CM6A-LR, MPI-ESM1-2-HR, MRI-ESM2-0, and UKESM1-0-LL. The horizontal resolution of all five models is 0.5o. The 25-year historical period (1990-2014) and the 25-year projection period for the near future (2026-2050) were chosen to analyze the extreme precipitation in the Urmia Lake Basin. The future projection was considered under three shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs) scenarios. These scenarios include SSP1-2.6, SSP3-7.0, and SSP5-8.5 scenarios. Mean bias error (MBE) and Normalized Root Mean Square Error (NRMSE) were computed to evaluate the individual models and the multi-model ensemble generated by Bayesian Model Average (BMA) method. To assess extreme precipitation, we used four indices including the Number of heavy precipitation days (R10mm), the number of very heavy precipitation days (R20mm), the Maximum 1-day total precipitation (Rx1day), and the Simple Daily Intensity Index (SDII).

Results and Discussion
The performance of five CMIP6 individual models and the multi-model ensemble in the Lake Urmia basin during the period of 1990 to 2014 was evaluated against eight ground stations. The investigation of the annual precipitation showed that this variable is underestimated in CMIP6 models in the basin averaged. The maximum and minimum bias values model was seen in Saqez station by -9.64 mm for the MRI-ESM2-0 and -0.43 mm for the UKESM1-0-LL, respectively. The highest average MBE in the Urmia Lake basin was respectively obtained for GFDL-ESM4, IPSL-CM6A-LR, MPI-ESM1-2-HR, MRI-ESM2-0, and UKESM1-0-LL models. Among the examined models, MPI-ESM1-2-HR has shown the highest efficiency among the examined individual models.
Variations in the number of heavy precipitation days during the historical period (1990-2014) have distinguished three main areas for the Lake Urmia basin. The main hotspot of heavy precipitations in the Urmia Lake basin is located in the southwest of Kurdistan province with a long-term average of 25.4 days. The next hotspots are the northwest and the northeast of the basin. In the historical period (1990-2014), the precipitation intensity index Rx1day experienced considerable variability. Based on CMIP6-MME, the value of the Rx1day index in the Urmia Lake basin is estimated between a minimum of 16.3 mm and a maximum of 63.3 mm. The maximum variation of this index is seen in the southern areas of the basin, especially on the border with Iraq.

Conclusion
Evaluation of individual CMIP6 models showed that these models underestimated precipitation in the Lake Urmia basin during the historical period (1990-2014). The CMIP6-MME has significantly improved precipitation estimation. The results of the investigation of days with heavy and very heavy precipitation showed that the two indices R10mm and R20mm are increasing in most areas of the Lake Urmia basin by the middle of the 21st century. Trend analysis showed that the days with heavy and very heavy precipitation will increase under different SSP scenarios in most areas of the Lake Urmia basin, especially in the northern and western regions. Also, days with heavy and very heavy precipitation will have a greater contribution than normal precipitation days in the future. It is expected that the intensity of precipitation will increase in the coming decades in the Lake Urmia basin, and this increase is more for the western and northern regions than for other regions of the basin. This result may potentially increase the flood risk in Lake Urmia.
Introduction The gradual decrease in the fertile soils surface due to environmental pollution and urbanization phenomena has reduced the possibility of sufficient fodder production. In addition, the strict dependency of the agricultural... more
Introduction
The gradual decrease in the fertile soils surface due to environmental pollution and urbanization phenomena has reduced the possibility of sufficient fodder production. In addition, the strict dependency of the agricultural sector on water resources in an age of drastic climate change necessitates providing novel solutions for agricultural production. One of the methods that has gained attention for providing fodder is its production through soilless culture techniques.  Maize can be a suitable option for fodder production in soilless culture due to high starch and sugar content, low seed cost, high biomass production, and rapid growth. Proper nutritional management of maize in soilless culture is highly important for increasing the quantity and quality of forage greenery. Little information is available regarding the impact of nitrogen form on the growth, yield and chemical composition of forage plants including maize in soilless culture. This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of nitrogen form on the chemical composition, leaf photosynthetic pigments concentration and yield of two fodder maize (Zea mays L.) cultivars in soilless culture.

Materials and Methods
A factorial experiment based on randomized complete block design was conducted with the two factors of ammonium to nitrate ratio in the nutrient solution (0:100, 12.5:87.5, 25:75, 37.5:62.5 and 50:50) and maize cultivars (i.e., single cross hybrid 704 and single cross 410) and four replications in hydroponic culture at the greenhouse of Shahrekord University. After seed germination and emergence of the first two leaves, the maize seedlings were transferred to 10-liter plastic pots containing perlite (0.5-5 mm) and were manually fertigated with different ammonium to nitrate ratios on a daily basis. Before harvesting, chlorophyll a, b and (a+b), and carotenoids were quantified in leaves of plants. At the end of the tasseling stage, the plants were harvested. After harvesting, the root, stem, and leaf parts were separated, and the fresh weights of the samples were measured. Plant samples were dried in an oven at 60 °C. Then, dry weights of samples were measured and samples (root and leaf + stem) were ground for nutrient analysis including of N, P and K. Analysis of variance was performed using SAS software version 9.4. Means comparison was conducted using Duncan's multi-range test at p <0.05.

Results and Discussion
The results showed that in single-cross hybrid 704 and single-cross 410 cultivars, respectively, increasing the applied ammonium to 37.5% and 50% in the nutrient solution caused a significant increase in the shoot nitrogen concentration. Application of ammonium in the nutrient solution led to an increase in shoot and root phosphorus concentration in both maize cultivars compared to the nutrient solution without ammonium. The highest concentration of phosphorus in shoot (18.02 g.kg-1) was observed in the single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar when maize plants fed with a nutrient solution containing 50 percent ammonium, which was 3.2 times higher than the shoot phosphorus concentration in plants fed with nutrient solution without ammonium. Furthermore, at the 50:50 ammonium to nitrate ratio in the nutrient solution, the lowest root potassium concentration was recorded in both maize cultivars. In single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar, application of nutrient solution with ammonium to nitrate ratio of 50:50 resulted in a significant 31% decrease in leaf chlorophyll a concentration compared to plants fed with a nutrient solution containing 25% ammonium (with the highest chlorophyll content). The leaf chlorophyll a concentration in single-cross 410 cultivar showed an increasing trend with increasing ammonium in the nutrient solution up to 25 percent, and then a decreasing trend with further increase in the ammonium proportion. Moreover, a 31.4% significant decrease in chlorophyll b concentration was observed in plants fed with a 50:50 ammonium to nitrate ratio compared to plants fed with a 37.5: 62.5 ammonium to nitrate ratio. The highest leaf carotenoid concentration was recorded in single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar and at 25:75 ammonium to nitrate ratio, which was 1.4 times higher than the leaf carotenoid concentration compared to plants fed with nutrient solution without ammonium. The highest relative leaf moisture content was observed in the plants nourished with ammonium to nitrate ratio of 25:75, which showed a significant 20% increase compared to the ammonium-free nutrient solution. The results also indicated that the application of 50% of nitrogen in the form of ammonium in the nutrient solution led to a significant decrease in the leaf surface area of maize. The highest shoot and root fresh weights were obtained in the plants nourished with 25:75 ammonium to nitrate ratio and in the single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar. The results showed that the highest water (solution) use efficiency based on fresh weight was recorded in plants fed with 25:75 ammonium to nitrate ratio and in the single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar.

Conclusion
Based on the results of the present study, the highest shoot and root fresh weights of both maize cultivars were obtained in plants fed with 25:75 ammonium to nitrate ratio. Given the limitations of water resources and rainfall, optimal use of minimum water to produce maximum agricultural crops must be cnsidered. According to the results of this research, application of nutrient solution with ammonium to nitrate ratio of 50:50 led to ammonium toxicity and a reduction in forage yield in both maize cultivars. Therefore, replacing 25% nitrate in the nutrient solution with ammonium and selecting the single-cross hybrid 704 cultivar (due to higher yield compared to single cross 410 cultivar) is recommended to achieve maximum fodder yield in soilless culture under conditions similar to this study.
Introduction Soils and landforms have a strong relationship and archive evidence of climatic and environmental changes. Alluvial fans are one of the most important landforms in arid and semi-arid regions of Iran. Climate changes in the... more
Introduction
Soils and landforms have a strong relationship and archive evidence of climatic and environmental changes. Alluvial fans are one of the most important landforms in arid and semi-arid regions of Iran. Climate changes in the Quaternary, especially in the late Pleistocene, had a significant effect on the evolutions of alluvial fans in arid and semi-arid regions. Alternate of sedimentation and soil formation in alluvial are the consequences of periodic climate change. Organisms are one of the main factors of soil formation. Biological crusts are part of organisms that are abundant in dry lands and especially in alluvial fans; however, their role in soil formation has been less studied. Biological soil crusts by providing the suitable biological activity, effect on trapping of aeoilian materials and hydrological processes affect the soil formation processes. The chemical properties of the soil affect the catabolic capacity of the soil and it is very different among the different layers of the soil. However, few studies have addressed the effect of processes on soil microbial respiration during change and evolution and pedogenic state. The objectives of this research were to 1) investigate the evolution of soils along the gradient from upstream to downstream of the alluvial fan and 2) investigate the changes in microbial respiration in different layers of soil and the factors affecting it.

Materials and Methods
The studied area is an alluvial fan in Razavi Khorasan province, in the southern slopes of the Binaloud mountain range. The climate of the region is semi-arid and the soil moisture and temperature regimes are Aridic border on Xeric and mesic, respectively. Three soil profile in the upper, middle, and base part of the alluvial fan were described. Bulk and undisturbed soil samples were collected from various soil horizons for subsequent physical, chemical, and micromorphological analyses. In addition, the microbial soil respiration was measured in all horizons. The soils were classified according to Soil Taxonomy and World Reference Base ‎methods. ‎

Results and Discussion
Sequences of sedimentation and soil formation were observed in the soil profiles. Vesicular (V), argillic (Bt), argillic-calcic (Btk), calcic (BCk) and cambic (Bw) horizons were the diagnostic soil horizons of the studied soils. Soil profiles of the middle and base were Xeric Calciargids in the subgroup category of Soil Taxonomy; while soil profile of the apex soil was Xeric Haplocambids. In the profiles, a thin vesicular horizon (V) was formed under the desert pavement. Below the vesicular horizon, evidence of clay illuviation, pedogenic carbonate nodules, and calcium oxalates in roots were observed in thin sections. This evidence shows the role of biological crusts in the formation of these features. In the lower horizons of the profiles, pedogenic carbonate nodules, carbonates pendants and clay coatings were observed. It seems that the upper soil (vesicular and underlying Bt horizons) were developed in the more humid periods of the Holocene, and biological crusts also played a key role in the processes of calcification and clay illuviation. The argillic horizons in the lower layers were formed during the stable periods of the late Pleistocene. The irregular microbial respiration mainly indicated difference in microbial activities labile organic matter content. The argillic horizons had the lowest microbial respiration, due to decomposition of organic materials during soil formation. In contrast, soil respiration was the highest in surface and calcic horizons. It seems that preservation of organic materials by carbonate complication. However, it is suggested to investigate the carbon fractions in relation to microbial biomass in the studied horizons.

Conclusion
In this area, biological crusts and vegetation affected the formation of soil in the aeolian sediments of the Vk and AVk horizons and played a significant role in creating the Bt horizon in profiles 2 and 3. The study of landform profiles showed the formation of calcic and argillic horizons in the past climate, while the Bt horizon of the upper layers was formed in the current Holocene period. This form of the argillic horizon is slightly different from the soils of the Iranian region because these horizons have not been reported so far. It has been proven that there were humid periods in the Holocene, and it needs more studies at present. The study of soil microbial respiration in landform horizons showed that argillic horizons decreased the amount of microbial respiration, while it increased in classical horizons.
Introduction Soil pore size distribution curve and using the optimal ranges of the location and shape parameters of this curve can be used to evaluate the soil physical quality. This research was carried out in an area of about 220... more
Introduction
Soil pore size distribution curve and using the optimal ranges of the location and shape parameters of this curve can be used to evaluate the soil physical quality. This research was carried out in an area of about 220 hectares of Torogh Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Station, to determine the optimal ranges for soil pore size distribution curve parameters using the soil physical quality index. Different soil textures and the diversity in soil properties are the distinct features of this research station.

Materials and Methods
Torogh Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Station of Khorasan-Razavi province, with a semiarid climate, is located in south-east of Mashhad city. For the field measurements and laboratory analysis to determine the soil physical properties and indices, 30 points with different soil textures and structures were selected. Intact soil cores (5 cm diameter by 5.3 cm length) and disturbed soil samples were collected from 0-30 cm depth of each point. After the laboratory analysis and field measurements, 35 soil physical properties were measured and calculated. Soil particle size distribution and five size classes of sand particles, soil bulk, and particle density, dry aggregates mean weight diameter (MWD) and stability index (SI), soil moisture release curve (SMRC) parameters, S-index, soil porosity (POR) and air capacity (AC), soil pore size distribution (SPSD) curves, relative field capacity (RFC), plant available water measured in matric pressure heads of 100 and 330 hPa for the field capacity (PAW100 and PAW330), least limiting water range measured in matric pressure heads of 100 and 330 hPa for the field capacity (LLWR100 and LLWR330), integral water capacity (IWC) and integral energy (EI) of different soil water ranges, were the soil physical properties and indices which were determined in this study. Three parameters of modal, median, and mean pore sizes of the SPSD curves were considered as the location (central tendency), and three parameters of standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis of the SPSD curves were considered as the shape parameters. Selection of the most important soil physical characteristics using principal component analysis (PCA) method by JMP software (ver. 9.02), weighting and scoring of the selected characteristics using PCA and scoring functions, respectively, and the summation of multiplied characteristics weights by their scores for each soil sample, were the four steps of calculation of the 0-1 value of soil physical quality index (SPQI). Soil samples were classified into four soil physical quality classes by SPQI values. The soils of the first class with the highest SPQIs (> 0.78) were considered to determine the optimal ranges of SPSD curves location and shape parameters.

Results and Discussion
The texture of soil samples were loam (40 %), silt loam (23 %), silty clay loam (17 %), clay loam (13 %), and sandy loam (7 %). Soil organic carbon was between 0.26-1.05 (%), and the average soil bulk density was 1.45 (gr.cm-3). The MWD values of studied soil samples were between 0.94-2.88 (mm), an average of 1.93 (mm). The average modal, median, and mean pore sizes as the location parameters of the SPSD curves were 60.3 (μm), 12.4 (μm), and 6.5 (μm), respectively. The average of standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis as the shape parameters of the SPSD curves were 71.56 (μm), -0.36 and 1.15, respectively. The average modal pore sizes showed that the pores with a size of 60 (μm) had the highest frequency in soil samples. The range of calculated standard deviation of SPSD curves, along with the difference between the minimum and maximum mean pore sizes (24.6 μm), implied the diversity of pore sizes in the studied soils. The results of PCA showed that the four soil physical properties of PAW330 (0.1-0.2 cm3.cm-3), PORt (0.40-0.51 cm3.cm-3), LLWR100 (0.12-0.22 cm3.cm-3) and SI (0.76-2.61 %) accounted for about 88% of the variance between soil samples and were selected to calculate the SPQIs. The PAW330, PORt, LLWR100, and SI were entered into the calculation of SPQIs with weights of 0.46, 0.31, 0.15, and 0.08, respectively. All the selected physical properties were scored using the scoring function of more is better. The maximum and minimum values of SPQIs for the studied soils were 0.84 and 0.14, respectively. Five soil samples with SPQIs greater than 0.78 were classified as class 1 with the highest physical quality. The ranges between the minimum and maximum values of the SPSD curves, location, and shape parameters of these five soils were proposed as the optimal ranges. In this regard, the ranges of 29-92 (μm), 5-16 (μm), and 2-7 (μm) were suggested for optimal ranges of modal, median, and mean pore sizes, respectively. The optimal ranges of standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis of the SPSD curves were proposed as 22-81 (μm), (-0.38)-(-0.33), and 1.14-1.15, respectively.

Conclusion
The optimal ranges of SPSD curves location and shape parameters suggested in the literature may probably not apply to a wide range of agricultural soils. They must be evaluated in a more extensive range of land uses, soil management, and soil textures. In this research, the soils with the relatively higher physical quality had larger mean pore size and less SPSD curves standard deviation (less diversity of pore size) than the optimal ranges suggested in the literature. The optimal ranges of SPSD curves location and shape parameters proposed in this research are appropriate for medium to coarse-textured soils of regions with the semiarid climate in Iran.
Introduction Soil, as habitat substrate, helps to regulate important ecosystem processes, including nutrient absorption, organic matter decomposition. Water availability and the well-being of humanity are directly linked to soil... more
Introduction
Soil, as habitat substrate, helps to regulate important ecosystem processes, including nutrient absorption, organic matter decomposition. Water availability and the well-being of humanity are directly linked to soil functions. On the other hand, vegetation with different species and ages have significant effects on the status of the surface soil layer through the creation of diverse environmental conditions and the production of different organic substances. However, few studies have been conducted in relation to the effect of the age of afforestation and the type of vegetation on the soil status. Considering that a practical, complete and effective assessment of soil condition should be the result of simultaneous measurement of physical, chemical and biological indicators, hereupon, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of 20-year old poplar stand, 20-year old maple stand, 10-year old poplar stand, 10-year old maple stand and rangeland cover, in plot 3 of Delak-Khil series of wood and paper forests in Mazandaran province, on the organic layer properties and physical, chemical and biological (including microbial activities, enzyme activity, earthworm population and biomass, the number of soil nematodes and root biomass) properties of the surface soil layer. 

Materials and Methods
For this purpose, some parts of the study area were selected which are continuous with each other and have minimum height difference from the sea level, minimum change in percentage and direction of slope. Then, in order to take samples from the organic and surface layer of the soil, three one-hectare plots with distances of at least 600 meters were selected in each study habitats. From each of the one-hectare plots, 5 leaf litter samples and 5 soil samples (30 cm × 30 cm by 10 cm depth) were taken to the laboratory for analysis . In total, 15 litter samples and 15 soil samples were collected from each of the habitats under study. One part of the soil samples was passed through a 2 mm sieve after air-drying to perform physical and chemical tests, and the second part of the samples was kept at 4 °C for biological tests. One-way analysis of variance tests was used to compare the characteristics of organic layer and soil between the studied habitats. In the following, Duncan's test (P>0.05) was used to compare the average parameters that had significant differences among different habitats.
Results and Discussion
The results of this research showed that afforested stands with different ages and pasture cover had a significant effect on the characteristics of the organic and surface soil layers. The results indicated the improvement of most of the characteristics of the organic and surface soil layer in the afforested stands, especially the 20-year old afforestation compared to the rangeland cover. The organic matter produced in 20-year old afforestation, especially with poplar species, had a higher quality (high nitrogen and carbon content and low carbon-to-nitrogen ratio) compared to organic matter produced in 10-year old afforestation and pasture cover. Most of the physicochemical characteristics of the soil under 20-year old afforestation were in a better condition than the other studied habitats. Also, according to the results of this research, the highest values of biological characteristics such as microbial activity, enzyme activity, and the population of earthworms and nematodes were observed in the subsoil of 20-year old afforestation especially with poplar species. Based on the results obtained from the principal component analysis, the higher values of nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and potassium content of the organic layer led to the improvement of soil fertility characteristics, microbial activities, enzyme activity, earthworm population, the number of soil nematodes and root biomass, respectively, under poplar and maple plantation for 20 years, meanwhile, 10-year old plantation, especially with maple species, and rangeland with the production of organic materials with high carbon content and carbon to nitrogen ratio, resulted in the reduction of organic matter decomposition (greater thickness of organic layer), and consequently the reduction of the mentioned properties of the surface soil layer.

Conclusion
According to the findings of this research, it can be concluded that plantation with poplar species, especially after 20 years, had a higher ability to improve the soil condition compared to maple, which can be considered by managers in future afforestation. Also, with the passage of time, the presence of tree covers (poplar and maple) had a higher priority than rangeland cover in improving the fertility status and suitable edaphological conditions of the soil.
Introduction Oil contamination affects the biological, physical, and chemical properties of soil. The abundance and diversity of soil microbial communities can significantly be influenced by petroleum hydrocarbons. Soil biological... more
Introduction
Oil contamination affects the biological, physical, and chemical properties of soil. The abundance and diversity of soil microbial communities can significantly be influenced by petroleum hydrocarbons. Soil biological indicators including microbial population and enzyme activity, are highly sensitive to environmental stresses and respond to them quickly. Measuring the microbial population is one of the most common biological indicators which is used to study the quality and health of the soil. Also, measuring the activity of enzymes such as urease is one of the most sensitive indicators of oil-contaminated soils. There are some studies on the effects of oil contamination on microbial population and soil enzyme activity. Most of the studies have tested non-natural and short-term oil pollution and reported the adverse effects of oil hydrocarbons on microbial activities in soil. While the soil sample used in this research had natural and long-term contamination and the microorganisms are compatible with polluted conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in the microbial population and urease activity in the presence of different levels of oil contamination, and how petroleum hydrocarbons can affect them. Petroleum hydrocarbons are toxic and persistent in soil, so it is necessary to study the pattern of changes in soil biological characteristics in effective soil management.

Material and Methods
In this study, 120 samples of oil-contaminated soils were collected from the oil-rich area of Naft-Shahr (located in the west of Kermanshah province) which had natural and long-term oil pollution. A nested design was used to analysis data in this research. The test factors included locations (4 locations) and 3 different levels of oil pollution: low (L), moderate (M), and high (H). Also, 10 replications were considered in the three levels of oil contamination. The collected soils were analyzed for physico-chemical (pH, EC, Ɵm, CCE, OC, soil texture) and biological properties (including urease activity, BR and SIR) using standard methods, and the concentration of oil pollutants was determined by the Soxhlet extractor. To determine the abundance of the culturable microbial population, bacterial counting was performed using nutrient agar (NA) and carbon-free minimal medium (CFMM) supplemented with crude oil as the media. Urease activity was measured by the indophenol blue method and finally, the results of measuring chemical, physical and biological properties were analyzed using principal component analysis (PCA).

Results and Discussion
The average percentage of oil measured by Soxhlet method was 4.03%, 9.95% and 22.50% respectively for L, M and H levels. The results showed that the microbial population increased with the increase of contamination intensity. The highest microbial population counted in NA culture medium was 9.54 ×105 CFU/g in H soils and the lowest population was 3.25 × 105 CFU/g in L soils. In the CFMM culture medium, the highest population in H soils was 11.3 × 105 CFU/g and the lowest population in L soils was 11.8 × 104 CFU/g. For both NA and CFMM mediums, location 1 had the highest population and location 4 had the lowest microbial population. Oil contamination of soil samples led to a decrease in urease activity in such a way that the highest enzyme activity in soils was obtained with low contamination (594.90 µgNH4/g.h) and the lowest activity in heavily contaminated soils (176.11 µgNH4/g.h). Also, the lowest urease activity was observed in location 1 and the highest in location 4. Principal components analysis (PCA) was also performed and 71% of the variance of the samples could be explained by the first two components (biochemical component and physical component). The results of this research indicated an increase in the microbial population with an increasing of the intensity of oil pollution. It seems that the results obtained from the studies conducted on man-made pollution and natural pollution have differences in terms of the type of biological responses. Aged, long-term and natural oil pollution has caused the selection of oil-resistant microbial community, and therefore we see their positive response to the presence of oil compounds. Conversely, urease enzyme activity was found to be higher in soils with low pollution. This suggests that microbial activity, while influential, is not the sole determinant of urease activity, and various factors contribute to Soil Enzyme Activity (SEA). The type of petroleum pollutant, the direct effect of petroleum compounds on urease-producing microorganisms, as well as the non-microbial origin of urease in soil can be possible reasons for reducing urease activity in contaminated soils.

Conclusion
In areas where petroleum pollutants are naturally and long-term present in the soil, some oil-decomposing microbial groups use petroleum hydrocarbons as a source of carbon for their nutrition, so the abundance of oil-decomposing communities increases. The results showed an increase in the microbial population with an increase in the intensity of oil pollution. On the other hand, the activity of urease enzyme measured in soils with low pollution was higher because non-microbial factors may affect the activity of this enzyme and the increase in the microbial population is not related to the increase in the population of urease-producing microbes.
Introduction Climatic changes and human activities are among the important factors that affect the flow of rivers and it is very important to determine the contribution of these factors in order to better manage water resources. In... more
Introduction
Climatic changes and human activities are among the important factors that affect the flow of rivers and it is very important to determine the contribution of these factors in order to better manage water resources. In recent years, there have been major changes in the watersheds, and the amount of runoff and river flow has decreased, or in some cases, the flow has increased due to the occurrence of floods. The issue of reducing the amount of runoff, especially in the arid and semi-arid regions of Iran, is one of the basic challenges related to the management of water resources. Hydrological changes primarily result from a combination of natural or climatic factors, including precipitation levels, air temperature, and overall warming of the Earth. Additionally, human activities, such as the construction of dams, creation of reservoirs, urbanization expansion, and indiscriminate harvesting, play a significant role. It is important to note that these factors are interconnected, and alterations in one can impact the others. The increase of greenhouse gases and climate change has caused a change in the hydrological cycle and the amount of runoff in the watersheds and has increased the number of climatic extreme events. The main purpose of this study is to determine the contribution of each of these factors on the discharge changes of the Gharehsoo River, one of the most important rivers of Ardabil province, using elasticity-based methods (non-parametric and Bodiko-based methods).

Materials and Methods
In this research, firstly, in order to determine the point of change in the amount of river runoff and to divide the base and change period, Petit's test was used during the statistical period of 1984-2019. This test was done using Xlstat software. According to the results of this test, there was a change in the annual flow time series in 1997, which was considered as the base period from 1984 to 1997 and from 1998 to 2019 as the period of changes. Then, the contribution of each of these factors was determined using elasticity-based methods.

Results and Discussion
In the elasticity-oriented method, the non-parametric method and the methods based on Bodiko's assumptions were used to calculate the elasticity coefficient.The results showed that in Samyan station, in the non-parametric method, the contribution of human activities is 88.26% and the contribution of climate change is 11.74%. The contribution of human activities and the contribution of climate change for the methods of Schreiber, Aldekap, Bodiko, Peek and Zhang, respectively 91.98 and 8.02, 90.02 and 9.97, 91.98 and 8.02, 90.80 and 9.20, 92.37 and 7.62 are estimated. In general, in the elasticity method, the contribution of human activities is 88.26 to 92.37 percent and the contribution of climate change is from 7.63 to 11.74 percent, depending on the non-parametric and Bodiko method. At the Dost-Beiglo station, employing the non-parametric method reveals that human activities account for 96.13% of the observed changes, while the remaining 3.87% is attributed to climate change. The contribution of human activities and the contribution of climate change for the methods of Schreiber, Eldekap, Bodiko, Pick and Zhang are 97.71 and 2.29, 97.42 and 2.58, 97.56 and 2.44, 97.48 and 2.52, 97.71 and 2.29 are estimated. In general, in the elasticity-oriented method, the contribution of human activities between 96.13 and 97.71 percent and the contribution of climate change from 2.29 to 3.87 percent, depending on the non-parametric and Boudico-oriented method, have been met.

Conclusion
In this research, different hydrometeorological data such as precipitation, evaporation and transpiration and monthly discharge from the Samyan and Dost Beiglo stations were used for the statistical period of 1982-2019. First, by using Pettitt's test, it was determined that the river flow rate has changed abruptly since 2016. Therefore, the entire statistical period was divided into two natural and change periods, and then, using elasticity-based methods, the contribution of human activities and the contribution of climate change were determined. According to the results obtained in both stations, the impact of human activities (more than 88%) on the basin's runoff is far more than climate change (less than 11%). Therefore, it seems necessary to prevent the effective human activities on reducing the river flow in solving and managing water problems in the basin.
Introduction The basic strategy to mitigate water crisis is to save agricultural water consumption by increasing productivity, which will result in more income for farmers and sustainable production. Due to the economic importance of... more
Introduction
The basic strategy to mitigate water crisis is to save agricultural water consumption by increasing productivity, which will result in more income for farmers and sustainable production. Due to the economic importance of barley production in the country, it is necessary to study the volume of irrigation water and water productivity to produce this strategic product. Based on extensive field research on irrigation water management and application of different irrigation methods in barley farms, the innovations of this research were: a) measuring water consumed and determining water use efficiency in barley production, b) the up-to-date of the measurements and research findings, c) findings applicability for application in agricultural planning at the national and regional levels, d) the ability to development the findings in barley farms at the national level to improve water use efficiency. The hypotheses of this research are: a) barley irrigation water is various in different regions, b) water applied in barley farms is more than the required one, c) the water use efficiency of barley is different in the main production areas, and d) The applied water of barley is not the same in different irrigation methods. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to determine the water consumed and water use efficiency in barley production; to measure the water applied to barley farms in the main production areas; to compare the water measured in the production areas with the net irrigation requirement; and finally to determine water use efficiency of the barley in the main production areas in the Iran.

Materials and Methods
For this purpose, the volume of irrigation water and barley yield in 296 selected farms in 12 provinces (about 75% of the area under cultivation and production of barley in Iran) including Khuzestan, East Azerbaijan, Ardabil, North Khorasan, Fars, Khorasan Razavi, Tehran, Semnan, Markazi, Isfahan, Hamedan and Qazvin were measured directly. Farms in the mentioned provinces were selected to cover various factors such as irrigation method, level of ownership, proper distribution and quality of irrigation water. By carefully monitoring the irrigation program of selected farms during the growing season, the amount of irrigation water for barley during one year was measured. At the end of the season and after determining the average yield of barley during the 2020-2021 year, the values of irrigation water productivity and total water productivity (irrigation+effective rainfall) were determined in selected barley farms in each region. The volume of water supplied was compared with the gross irrigation requirements estimated by the Penman-Monteith method using meteorological data from the last ten years, and compared with the values of the National Water Document. Analysis of variance was used to investigate the possible differences in yield, irrigation water and water productivity in barley production.

Results and Discussion
To assess the reliability of statistical analysis, we evaluated the sufficiency of the number of measurements needed for both the quantity of irrigation water and the ley yield on the farms. Subsequently, we computed statistical indices, such as the mean and standard deviation. The results showed that the number of measurements of irrigation water and barley yield was to be 296 and 283, respectively, which was more than the number of measurements required for irrigation water (41 dataset) and yield (50 dataset). Therefore, the sufficiency of the data for the statistical analysis was reliable. The results showed that the difference in yield, volume of irrigation water and water productivity indices were significant in the mentioned provinces. The volume of barley irrigation water in the studied areas varied from 1900 to 9300 cubic meters per hectare and its average weight was 4875 cubic meters per hectare. The average barley yield in selected farms varied from 1630 to 7050 kg ha-1 and the average was 3985 kg ha-1. Irrigation water productivity in selected provinces ranged from 0.22 to 1.53 and its weight average was 0.90 kg m-3. Average gross irrigation water requirement in the study areas by the Penman-Monteith method using meteorological data of the last ten years and the national water document were 4710 and 4950 cubic meters per hectare, respectively. Irrigation efficiency of barley fields in the country is estimated at 62-65% without deficit irrigation.

Conclusion
In order to reduce water consumption and improve water productivity, it is suggested to manage water delivery to farms during the season and deliver water rights to them according to crops water requirements. To reduce water losses and enhance productivity in the barley farms, it is suggested the application of modern irrigation systems according to the farms conditions with the suitable operation; and modification and improvement of surface and traditional irrigation methods. Note that, water is only one of several necessary and effective inputs in the optimal and economic production of barley. On the other hand, attention should be paid to the optimal application of other inputs including: seeds, fertilizers, equipment and tools etc.
Introduction Evapotranspiration is the combination of two separate processes, soil moisture evaporation, and plant transpiration, which amount depends on various meteorological elements. Therefore, identifying the effective factors and... more
Introduction
Evapotranspiration is the combination of two separate processes, soil moisture evaporation, and plant transpiration, which amount depends on various meteorological elements. Therefore, identifying the effective factors and the amount of their impact on reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is important. This component plays an important role in various agricultural studies, including the design of irrigation and drainage systems, reservoir design, and irrigation planning (Ahmadyan et al., 2023). Accurate estimates of evaporation and transpiration play an important role in studies such as global climate change, and environmental evolution, and in various scientific fields such as hydrology, agriculture, forest and pasture management, and water resources management (Kazemi, 2020).

Materials and Methods
The research was conducted in Iran, and the data analyzed encompass various meteorological parameters, including maximum, average, and minimum temperatures, average relative humidity, wind speed, and sunshine hours. These data were collected on a daily basis from 40 synoptic stations across the country. The dataset spans from 1976 to 2020 and was sourced from the Meteorological Organization of the country (IMO, 2022).The research employed the FAO Penman-Monteith method, specifically the 56th version, to estimate seasonal ET0 (evapotranspiration) values.In this research, for statistical evaluations of ET0 and revealing the trend of time series on a seasonal scale, the non-parametric Mann-Kendall (M-K) test; (Kendall, 1948; Mann, 1945) was used. To identify the changing trend of the ET0 time series, the ITA method was used on a seasonal scale. Four meteorological stations and the 45-year time scale (1976-2020) used in the current research, it had a better performance than other interpolation methods, which was used as the superior method. To understand the possible changes of one or more meteorological variables in ET0, the sensitivity of Reference Evapotranspiration to six meteorological variables (relative humidity, hours of sunshine, average temperature, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, and wind speed) was estimated. For this purpose, Sobol's method (Sobol, 1993). Sensitivity analysis was used.

Results and Discussion
According to the ET0 survey results, the highest amount of ET0 was observed in the spring season in the south and south-eastern parts, and the highest average value was 1050 mm/year in Zabul station. The increase of ET0 in these areas can be due to the sun's radiation and more warming of the earth's surface in the southern latitudes of the country. In summer due to the length of the day and higher temperature, we saw an increase in ET0, especially in the southern and southeastern regions of the country. In autumn, due to the decrease in the length of the day and the decrease in temperature, the amount of ET0 has also decreased significantly in the northern parts of the country. In winter, with a decrease in temperature and an increase in relative humidity, which is more noticeable in northern than southern regions.
In the summer season, all stations generally showed an increasing trend in ET0. In most of the stations, the significance level was 5% and it did not follow a specific pattern. In the autumn season, an increasing trend of ET0 was observed at a significant level of 5% in Khoy and Saqez stations, and a significant decreasing trend was observed in Qazvin and Shiraz stations. In the winter season, in the western and northwestern regions, all study stations showed an increasing trend of ET0. Finally, the overall results indicate that there is a significant increasing trend of ET0 during the summer in Iran. The graphical results of the ET0 trend by the four seasons on a scale of 44 showed that, in general, there was an increasing trend in ET0 in both high and low areas in all seasons. The values of meteorological variables have been changed by the Sobol method in the range of 40% to investigate the effect of meteorological elements on ET0 in different seasons of the year. The ranking of the sensitivity coefficient of the most effective meteorological parameter on the increase of the seasonal ET0 using Sobol's method showed that, in general, in the spring season, the minimum temperature had the greatest effect on the reference evaporation and transpiration rate. Also, the ratings obtained in the summer season indicate that wind speed has the greatest effect on the ET0 amount. In the autumn season, wind speed is still the first rank in affecting the rate of evaporation and transpiration. Finally, in the winter, the maximum temperature is the most important influencing factor among the other meteorological parameters.

Conclusion
According to the results, the amount of ET0 was increasing and it has been noteworthy in the eastern half of Iran in recent years. The trend of changes in ET0 showed that most stations had a positive value. The ET0 seasonal time series analysis with the ITA method indicated that in Kerman station; ET0 increased in all seasons and these results were at Bandar Anzali station. It was also observed that the seasonal trend of ET0 was increasing. The results of the sensitivity analysis graphs showed that relative humidity generally had a negative effect, and the other parameters indicates a positive effect in increasing the ET0. Also, the results explained that in spring, summer, autumn, and winter, meteorological variables of minimum temperature, wind speed, and maximum temperature played a greater role in increasing ET0. The findings of the present research and the results of the ranking of the sensitivity of factors affecting the ET0 rate showed that in each period, different conditions prevail in terms of the influence of meteorological elements on the ET0 rate.
Introduction Clouds can be considered as one of the most complex and influential variables of the atmosphere system in forming of the climate structure of the earth. When the condensation process takes place at a higher altitude than the... more
Introduction
Clouds can be considered as one of the most complex and influential variables of the atmosphere system in forming of the climate structure of the earth. When the condensation process takes place at a higher altitude than the earth's surface, it creates clouds. Cloudiness represents the percentage of the atmosphere that is covered by clouds. Clouds, as one of the most complex variables of the climate system, besides changing the energy balance, are also effective in the spatial and temporal distribution of many climate variables. Clouds have a lot of temporal and spatial variability and can affect the climate through many complex relationships and affect the water cycle. The investigation of clouds holds great significance as they serve as the bridge between synoptic systems and the Earth's surface climatic conditions. Any alteration in cloud-related parameters can trigger a domino effect, influencing various other climatic variables. It's worth noting that Iran exhibits a lower average cloud cover of 26%, notably less than the global average of 50%. This places Iran in the category of countries with relatively minimal cloud cover.Hence, possessing insights into the atmospheric cloud cover conditions in Iran becomes imperative for early detection and management of hydroclimatic crises, particularly in the context of water scarcity and drought-related challenges.

Data and Methods
In the current research, the cloud data of 93 synoptic meteorological stations of Iran have been used in the daily time period during the statistical period of 1991-2021. The amount of cloudiness is an estimate of the nearest octa (eighth) and values 0 and 8 are completely clear and completely cloudy, respectively. In the present study, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Anderson-Darling and Lilliefors test were used to determine the normality of the data at the 95% confidence level for annual, monthly and seasonal scales.
In the subsequent phase, we employed both parametric and nonparametric methods to discern trends within the cloudiness time series. The parametric approach involved a linear regression test based on the least squared error method, while the nonparametric method employed the Mann-Kendall test. These tests allowed us to identify data trends, accounting for both normal and non-normal distributions of cloudiness. Furthermore, we explored the interplay between cloud cover and spatial factors, namely latitude and longitude, employing Pearson's correlation coefficient. This analysis shed light on the relationships between these variables. Conclusively, we created a spatial distribution map depicting the extent of cloudiness across various stations. This mapping allowed us to dissect the temporal-spatial distribution of cloudiness, comprehend alterations in cloud cover, and investigate the contributing factors behind these changes.

Results and Discussion
The results of Normality Tests according to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test showed that all the stations did not have a normal distribution however, during the other two tests, except Arak, Kashan, Sarakhs, Takab, Kahnuj, Ramhormoz and Ramsar, other stations had normal distribution. The tests to determine the trend based on the parametric linear regression test based on the least squares error method showed a decreasing trend in 44 stations and an increasing trend in 3 stations of Ardabil, Qom and Sarab. According to the non-parametric Mann-Kendall test, among the stations without normal distribution, Kahnuj, Ramhormoz and Sarakhs stations have a decreasing trend, and no special trend was observed in other stations. The relationship between the two factors of latitude and longitude with the cloudiness variable using the Pearson correlation coefficient indicates a negative relationship (-0.42) between the cloudiness variable and the longitude factor as the amount of cloudiness in Iran's atmosphere decreases with the increase of latitude. Hwoever, the relationship between cloudiness variable and latitude, a positive relationship (0.75) was obtained as the amount of cloudiness increases with the increase of latitude. The survey of the annual cloudiness map of the stations shows the highest amount of cloudiness is in the South, Southwest and East of Caspian Sea. The lowest amount of annual rainfall was in South and Southeast of Iran. The statistical analysis of annual cloudiness data in Iran showed that the amount of cloudiness in Iran is 27.5%. Examining the normal distribution of monthly and seasonal values indicates the non-normality of the data with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, but based on the Lilliefors and Anderson-Darling tests, the winter and spring seasons and the months of December, January, February, April and May had a normal distribution and the autumn and summer seasons and the months of June, July, August, September and October did not have normal distribution. Seasonal and monthly trend with linear regression method shows a decreasing trend in winter and spring seasons and cold months of the year. According to the Mann-Kendall method, there was a decreasing trend in the fall season and no significant trend was observed in the summer season.

Conclusion
The purpose of this research was to investigate the temporal and spatial changes of cloudiness in Iran. The results showed a decreasing trend in 47 stations and an increasing trend in only 3 stations and no significant trend was observed in other stations. Also, in monthly and seasonal scales results indicated a decreasing trend in all stations in the cold months of the year and winter, spring and autumn seasons. Examining the relationship between the spatial factors of longitude and latitude with the cloudiness variable using Pearson's correlation coefficient also indicates a negative correlation with longitude and a positive correlation with latitude, and this indicates a large spatial difference in the amount of cloudiness in the country. In general, it can be said that spatial factors (longitude and latitude) were internal factors in the spatial changes of clouds and climatic systems such as Siberian high pressure, sub-tropical high pressure, westerlies system and moisture from the seas of Oman, India and the Persian Gulf and sometimes the Red Sea as external factors were in the temporal changes of clouds. So, cloudiness was a variable that was directly related to other climate variables. Thus, cloud cover was a variable that was directly related to other climatic variables, and its decrease or increase causes the values of elements such as temperature, precipitation, and humidity to change. Therefore, studying this important climate variable and investigating its changes is very important and especially in the discussions of droughts and water crises, it has a special place.
Introduction Soil classification is the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing soil characteristics, aiding in the comprehension of soil properties through soil surveys, and establishing suitable strategies for... more
Introduction
Soil classification is the systematic categorization of soils based on distinguishing soil characteristics, aiding in the comprehension of soil properties through soil surveys, and establishing suitable strategies for effective soil utilization and management. One of the main reasons for creating soil classification systems is to identify the differences in important soil characteristics for management purposes. Globally, Soil Taxonomy (ST) and the World Reference Base for soil resources (WRB) are widely used for soil classification. However, these two classification systems have varying criteria which can pose difficulties when exchanging classification results. After years of intensive worldwide testing and data collection, new versions of the ST and WRB systems have been released. In its current state, ST has a strong hierarchy with six categorical levels: order, suborder, great group, subgroup, family, and series (Soil Survey Staff, 2022), while the WRB has a flat hierarchy with only two categorical levels: reference soil groups and soil units (IUSS Working Group WRB, 2022). Several scientists have endeavored to evaluate the merits and demerits of these soil classification systems and offer recommendations for their enhancement. The arid and semi-arid regions located in the western and southwestern parts of Kohgiluyeh and Boyerahmad Province, distinguished by their considerable diversity in parent materials, topography, climate, and land use, present an excellent opportunity for scrutinizing and contrasting the effectiveness of soil classification systems. Remarkably, no prior research has delved into this subject in this specific geographical area. Consequently, this research aims to compare the effectiveness of the ST and WRB systems in characterizing soil attributes. Furthermore, it seeks to analyze the alterations that these two systems have undergone during an eight-year period, spanning from 2014 to 2022.

Materials and Methods
This study was conducted in the western and southwestern regions of Kohgiluyeh and Boyerahmad Province, specifically in the divisions of Gachsaran, Basht, Choram and Kohgiluyeh. A total of 26 soil profiles were excavated, described, and sampled based on aerial photos, satellite images, topographical and geological maps, as well as field observations. These profiles were selected following the soil description guide provided by the Department of Soil Conservation of the US Department of Agriculture. Subsequently, after reviewing the preliminary results and aligning with the research objectives, 12 representative soil profiles were chosen for further analysis. Soil samples were collected from all genetic horizons and transferred to the laboratory. After air-drying, the samples were passed through a two-millimeter sieve and the routine physical and chemical analyses were conducted, including soil texture, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), calcium carbonate equivalent (CCE), organic carbon, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and gypsum analyses. For mineralogical studies, soil clay minerals were separated and identified using standard methods. Additionally, soil thin sections were prepared from intact soil samples of selected soil horizons and examined under a polarizing microscope. Finally, the soil profiles were classified based on the criteria outlined in Soil Taxonomy (2022) and WRB (2022).

Results and Discussion
Soil Taxonomy and WRB, as the two most popular classification systems, aim to encompass as many
soil characteristics as possible. According to the ST classification, the soils were classified into four orders: Entisols, Inceptisols, Alfisols, and Mollisols. In the WRB system, they were grouped into seven reference soil groups: Regosols, Flovisols, Luvisols, Cambisols, Kastanosems, Gypsysols and Glysols. The results revealed that WRB was significantly more effective in describing the characteristics of the studied soils. One of the key advantages of this two-level system is its flexibility, allowing for the inclusion of additional principal and supplementary qualifiers to cover all essential soil characteristics. Moreover, in many cases, WRB exhibits better prioritization compared to ST. For example, the presence of gypsic, combic, calcic horizons, as well as fluvic and gley properties, can allocate the soil to the reference groups of Gypsisols, Cambisols, Calsisols, Fluvisols, and Gleysols, respectively. However, a limitation of the WRB system is the absence of mineralogical information in soil classification. Enhancing this classification system's quality and making it more appealing to planners could be achieved by incorporating suitable mineralogical attributes for the reference groups or criteria that express soil fertility conditions with relatively straightforward measurements. In addition, it is proposed to add three subgroups to ST: Gypsic Haplustalfs, Fluventic Gypsiustepts and Cambic Haplustolls. Similarly, following the WRB model, it is recommended to introduce a qualifier in ST to indicate the presence of lithological discontinuity. Regarding the WRB system, suggestions include adding qualifiers such as "Cutanic" to gypsisols with clay films, "hypercalcic" to reference groups of Kastanozems and Luvisols with a calcic horizon comprising more than 50% of calcium carbonate, and "aridic" for better expression of soil characteristics with Aridic-Ustic moisture regimes.

Conclusion
The results of this research demonstrated that WRB is more effective in describing the conditions and characteristics of the studied soils. The WRB system, through its diverse set of qualifiers, is capable of representing field conditions more efficiently. However, it is suggested that the surveyors have the freedom to select an appropriate qualifier from the list provided by WRB without limitation, which can enhance its success in practical applications. Furthermore, it is recommended that both classification systems be used to categorize soils, not only to evaluate their efficiency for the soils in other regions but also to gain a comprehensive understanding of their suitability for different contexts.
Introduction Organic matter and alkaline pH are the main causes of nutrient deficiencies in calcareous soils of arid and semi-arid regions. The availability of some nutritional elements, including the micronutrients such as iron, zinc,... more
Introduction
Organic matter and alkaline pH are the main causes of nutrient deficiencies in calcareous soils of arid and semi-arid regions. The availability of some nutritional elements, including the micronutrients such as iron, zinc, copper, and manganese is very low in calcareous soils, although the total concentration of these elements may be relatively high.  Burning crop residues results in substantial loss of nutrients, and may lead to air pollution and human health problems. An alternative approach is to apply crop residues to soil in the form of biochar. The biochar modification with acid may increase the solubility of nutrients (P, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn) present in biochar, thereby significant improvement in mineral nutrition of plants grown in calcareous soils. Therefore, the object of this study is to investigate the effect of acid-modified biochar from rice residues on the amount of chlorophyll and the micronutrient concentration of quinoa plant (Chenopodium quinoa) in a calcareous soil.

Methods and Materials
The soil was air-dried and ground to pass through a 2-mm sieve then was analyzed to determine various soil physico-chemical properties using standard methods. To achieve the aim of this study the factorial experiment was carried out based on a completely randomized design in 4 replications. Factors include 3 types of biochar (unmodified, modified by pre-acidic method and modified by post-acidic method) and different levels of biochar (0, 2, and 5% by weight). Then 10 quinoa seeds were planted in each pot at 2-cm depth which after emergence, declined to 3 plants in each pot. The pots were randomly moved twice a week during the growth period to eliminate environmental effects. Irrigation and weeding operations were performed by hand. Determination of chlorophyll content (a, b, and ab) and carotenoids were measured precisely before harvesting in fresh plants using Arnon method.  Plants were harvested at 187 days after planting, washed with distilled water and dry with tissue paper. The samples were air-dried and then oven dried at 65˚C to a constant weight in a forced air-driven oven. Then the total micronutrient content of the plant was determined after dry ashing. The statistical results of the data were analyzed using SAS software (9.4) and LSD test (at 5% level) was used for comparing the mean values.

Results and Discussion
Based on the variance analysis, all attributes responded positively to different types and levels of biochar and modified biochar (p<0.01). The comparison of the average effect of the studied treatments showed that with the increase in the levels of all three types of biochar, the amount of chlorophyll a, b, total, and carotenoid increased so the highest amount of chlorophyll a, b, total, and carotenoid respectively, with an average of 2.58 and 1.54, 4.13 and 1.36 mg g-1 were obtained from the treatment of 5% post-acidic biochar. The results showed that the highest amount of Fe concentration in shoots with an average of 229.48 mg kg-1 was obtained from the treatment of 5% post-acidic biochar, although there was no statistically significant difference with the treatment of 5% pre-acidic biochar with an average of 220.48 mg kg-1 and its lowest value with an average of 95.95 mg kg-1 was related to unmodified biochar. The highest amount of Zn concentration in shoots with an average of 13.42 mg kg-1 was related to the treatment of 5% post-acidic biochar which showed an increase of 13.24 and 33.26% compared to the treatment of 5% pre-acidic and unmodified biochar, respectively. Also, the highest concentrations of Cu and Mn in shoots were obtained with an average of 3.85 and 23.37 mg kg-1 respectively, from the treatment of 5% post-acidic biochar.

Conclusion
Post-acidic biochar had better results in terms of physiological indices and the concentration of micronutrients (Fe, Zn, Cu, and Mn) than unmodified biochar in quinoa. The increase of nutrients in quinoa can be attributed to the dissolution of biochar nutrients after being modified with acid and the reduction of pH and the availability of these elements in the soil. Therefore, biochar modified with acid or biochar produced from sources that have acidic properties can be recommended as a suitable method for improving fertility and increasing micronutrients in calcareous soils affected by salt.
Introduction Phosphorus (P) is one of the most important elements necessary for plant growth and production of agricultural products. In calcareous soils, phosphorus deficiency is a general issue due to high pH, high soil calcium... more
Introduction
Phosphorus (P) is one of the most important elements necessary for plant growth and production of agricultural products. In calcareous soils, phosphorus deficiency is a general issue due to high pH, high soil calcium carbonate content, lack of organic matter and moisture. Phosphorus absorption capacity depends on different soil reactions such as: adsorption, sedimentation, stabilization and release. The speed and amount of plant available P depends on the soil reactions. Studying the kinetics of P release from soil is a good indicator to check the status of P uptake by plant. The kinetics of P release in soils is a subject of importance in soil and environmental sciences. The aim of this research was to investigate the kinetics of P release and derive the most suitable equation to describe the release of P from a calcareous soil when subjected to the acidification of rock phosphate and the addition of vermicompost.

Materials and Methods
In order to investigate the ability of acidified rock phosphate and vermicompost in P release, an experiment was conducted with 2 replications on a light-textured soil with low OC and Olsen-P (1.2 mg/kg). One hundred grams air dried calcareous soil was transferred into special containers and 5 treatments including: 1- control (soil), 2- rock phosphate, 3- acidified rock phosphate (20 CC nitric acid 0.1 N and 5 g rock phosphate), 4- vermicompost, and 5- acidified vermicompost (20 CC nitric acid 0.1 N and 5 g vermicompost) were applied. The treatments incubated two weeks in 20±2℃ temperature. The Kinetics of P release was studied by adding 20 mL of 0.5N NaHCO3 to, one gram of air dried treatments. Extraction times were considered to be 0.25 h to 256 h (in 11 times) based on the time of adding the NaHCO3 extractant until filtering. After adding the extractant, the samples were shaken and centrifuged. After filtering, the concentration of released P in samples were determined by spectrophotometer (Model: CE 292 Series2, ultraviolet). For higher accuracy in the measurements, acid-washed containers were adjusted based on the amount of soil moisture which was dried in the oven (105℃). Finally, the P release data were fitted to different kinetic equations. The effect of different fertilizer treatments on P release in specified times and then kinetics parameters were investigated and compared with the control.

Results and Discussion
Addition of acidified and non acidified rock phosphate and vermicompost increased the amount and speed of P release in the calcareous soil. Six kinetic equations were fitted to describe the release of P in the period of 0.25 h to 256 h from the soil to evaluate the effect of the treatments. The highest release of P was in vermicompost and acidified rock phosphate treatment, which were an organic fertilizer and a source for preparing phosphate fertilizers. To describe the release rate, kinetic equations were used. The best equations were chosen by highest coefficient of determination (R2) and the least of standard error (SE). The zero, first, second order equations could not describe the release of P in the studied calcareous soil. The R2 value decreased from the zero to second order equation. The simplified Elovich equation described well the release of P from the soil with the average R2 of 0.79 and with the average SE of 0.4. Comparison of the average effect of the studied treatments with the control showed that the acidifed vermicompost and rock phosphate treatments increased the capacity and speed of P release compared to the control. On the other hand, acid addition has increased the capacity and speed of P release in the calcareous soil.

Conclusion
The findings indicated an initial rapid release of P, which then decreased over time. Notably, the application of vermicompost and the acidification of the soil with rock phosphate resulted in a pronounced and accelerated release of P. Generally, organic fertilizer treatments exhibited a higher release of P compared to chemical fertilizer treatments. This observation is in accordnce with the findings of the data presented by Ghorbanzadeh et al. (2009), who explored the P release potential of bone meal. Their data demonstrated that the acidification of bone meal accelerated and enhanced P release. To further enhance the practical relevance of these results, it is recommended to conduct this research in the presence of plants.
Introduction Iranian shallot, scientifically known as Allium hirtifolium Boiss. is a perennial plant of the Allium genus and native to Iran. The Allium genus has many antioxidant properties due to its being rich in organic compounds of... more
Introduction
Iranian shallot, scientifically known as Allium hirtifolium Boiss. is a perennial plant of the Allium genus and native to Iran. The Allium genus has many antioxidant properties due to its being rich in organic compounds of sulfur and phenol. The shallot is used to treat rheumatic and inflammatory pains, soothe superficial wounds, treat some stomach diseases, be antispasmodic, and also as a spice and flavoring in some foods. Considering the health benefits of shallot and its application in the food industry, shallot corms are harvested from the natural resources in different stages of growth. Therefore, it is necessary to preserve the natural habitats of shallot and also supply the market demand for this plant. It appears that the cultivation of shallots within agricultural systems could serve as a significant strategy for meeting the demands of the expanding global market. Furthermore, shallots are known for their low water requirements, making their cultivation a focal point in Isfahan province in recent years. Additionally, this crop stands out as a high-income generator in the region. Despite its economic potential, there has been limited research into optimizing the growth conditions for this valuable plant. Hence, this study aimed to explore the impact of urea and cow compost on the yield of Iranian shallots in the Fereydun Shahr region, focusing on the uptake of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and nitrates.

Materials and Methods
This research was carried out in the crop year of 1400-1401 in a field with an area of 300 square meters (32° 55' 53" N, 49° 56' 43" E) located in Fereydunshahr city of Isfahan province. The experiment was conducted according to a completely randomized design. Factorial arrangement of experimental treatments including two fertilization factors (urea and cow compost) was used. Plots with dimensions of 2 × 3 meters were created with a distance of 50 cm between the rows. The treatments were considered as urea fertilization at four levels (0, 120, 240 and, 360 kg ha-1) and cow compost treatment at three levels (0, 40 and, 60 tons ha-1). After plotting and applying cow compost treatments, shallot corms were planted at a depth of 10 to 15 cm in November 1400. Urea fertilizer treatment was applied in two stages, the first stage when the plant germinated (mid-April) and the second stage before flowering (second half of May). All treatments were applied in 3 replications. It should be noted that the treatments in this research are shown as 0-0 (control), 0-40, 0-60, 120-0, 120-40, 120-60, 240-0, 240-40, 240-60, 360-0, 360-40 and 360-60. The corms were harvested in June 1401 and the fresh and dry yield of the shallots was determined. The amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and, potassium in shallots was measured. Nitrate concentration was also measured in the harvested corms based on the Iranian national standard No. 4106. The nitrogen, phosphorus and, potassium uptake by shallots was obtained from the product of yield and the concentration of these elements. Results were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) procedure and the means were compared using the protected least significant difference (LSD) test at р < 0.05 probability level using SAS 9.3 software.

Results and Discussion
The results showed that the combined use of chemical fertilizer (urea) and cow compost has a significant effect on the shallot yield increment, as the highest yield was obtained in the combined treatment of urea fertilizer 240 (kg ha-1) and cow compost 40 (ton ha-1) application. Although the highest nitrogen concentration and uptake were observed in the treatment of 360 (kg ha-1) of urea along with 60 (ton ha-1) of cow compost, it was not significantly different from the treatment of 240-40 (the treatment with the highest yield). In general, the concentration of shallots nitrate was much lower than the permissible limit according to the national standard of Iran No. 16596. The highest nitrate concentration (24.63 mg kg-1 of fresh weight) was observed in the combined treatment of 120 (kg ha-1) of urea and 60 (ton ha-1) of cow compost application (120-60), which was significantly higher than other treatments. On the other hand, the concentration of shallots nitrate in the 240-40 treatment was significantly lower than the treatments of 360 kg of urea per hectare along with 40 or 60 (ton ha-1) of cow compost.

Conclusion
According to the results, to achieve the best yield, the most suitable level of urea application was 240 kg ha-1 and the best level of cow compost was 40 ton ha-1. It seems, utilization more amounts of urea or cow compost will only cause additional costs to the farmer and a waste of capital. Moreover, it can increase environmental pollution and nitrate concentration of product, which cause to quality decrement.
Intruduction Increasing industrial activities with the production of pollutants, including heavy metals, is one of the serious problems of modern communities, which has led to their accumulation in the environment. Heavy metals are also... more
Intruduction
Increasing industrial activities with the production of pollutants, including heavy metals, is one of the serious problems of modern communities, which has led to their accumulation in the environment. Heavy metals are also one of the important pollutants in landfill leachate. Plants and soil near the landfill may be contaminated by the leachate. Landfilling is the oldest method of solid waste disposal which can be a threat to the environment and health. Due to its easy operation and cost-effective, landfill is the most widely used method of municipal solid waste disposal in the world. Pollution cleaning technologies to reduce the harmful effects in the locations contaminated with heavy metals can be done by physical, chemical and biological methods. Phytoremediation, as a biological method, uses the green plants to extract, sequester, and detoxify pollutants. This method is a low-cost technique, environmentally friendly, and due to the non-production of by-products, is non-destructive for natural ecosystems. Considering the high moisture of wastes in Iran and their potential to produce leachate, as well as the possibility of contamination of water and soil in the landfill, especially with heavy metals, this study was conducted with the aim of evaluating the accumulation of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) heavy metals in the soil, shoots and roots of artiplex (Atriplex sp.) and oleander (Nerium olander) plants in Aradkooh landfill of Tehran.

Materials and Methods
This study was conducted in Aradkooh landfill which is located in the south of Tehran in the Kahrizak region. About 5200 tons of municipal solid waste were sent to this landfill every day. A part of the solid waste in Aradkoh was placed in various processes to energy and compost, and about 2500 tons of the solid waste was landfilled. According to previous reports, it is estimated that 250 cubic meters of leachate are produced daily in the Aradkoh landfill. In the studied landfill, there is an atriplex plant in four areas and a hand-planted oleander in one area. Ten samples of soil, root, and shoot, totaling 120 total were randomly selected from each growing area of the atriplex plant. Oleander shoots and soil were also tested from 10 different plants for a total of 40 samples. Then the levels of Cd and Pb in the soil, roots, and shoots were assessed. In this study, the outcomes were analyzed employing four key indices: the bioconcentration factor (BCF), the translocation factor (TF), the pollution index (PI), and PINemerow. The BCF and TF indices were employed to assess the phytoextraction and phytostabilization capabilities of plants, while the PI and PINemerow methods were used to pinpoint the most environmentally hazardous heavy metal in the soil.Results and Discussion
According to the results, the concentration of Pb and Cd in  shoots of atriplex  area 2 (with an average of 19.7 and 5.75 mg/kg, respectively) were significantly higher than in other areas, while the concentration of these metals in root of oleander (with an average of 8.17 and 1.06 for Pb and Cd, respectively) were higher than the shoot. The amount of Pb element in soil of the oleander plant (with an average of 35.13 mg/kg) and Cd in soil of the atriplex area 2 (with an average of 3.78 mg/kg) were significantly higher than other areas. Additionally, the levels of heavy metals in the soil of two plants were higher than the Nemerow index, which indicated high levels of pollution in the sampling areas, but still below the safe levels that was set by national standards (3.9 and 300 mg/kg for Cd and Pb respectively) and the World Health Organization (5 and 40 mg/kg for Cd and Pb, respectively). In addition, bioaccumulation factor of shoot in all growth atriplex areas for Pb and Cd (with an average of 1.44 and 1.3, respectively) were higher than 1.0 while, the root bioaccumulation factors of this plant in any of the growth areas, were not higher than 1.0. In the case of oleander, the shoot and root bioconcentration factors  for Pb and Cd were not reported more than one.

Conclusion
In general, it appears that atriplex, a native plant in the Aradkooh landfill, exhibits superior capabilities for absorbing heavy elements compared to oleander. Therefore, atriplex seems well-suited for the extraction of Pb and Cd from the soil, as it can accumulate these metals in its shoots. In contrast, oleander is not well-suited for phytostabilization or phytoextraction of these elements, as it exhibits limited ability to accumulate these heavy metals in its roots and shoots. Consequently, atriplex can be a valuable choice as a resilient species for phytoremediation projects in landfills and areas near mines. It is worth noting that the Pb content in the soil is higher than that of Cd. Although both metals fall within the permissible limits of national and WHO standards, the soil in the Aradkooh landfill is considered to be significantly polluted based on the Nemerow index.
Introduction Land-use changes and development of irrigated agricultural lands are very important factors that affect natural resources such as the quantity and quality of water resources and the environment. Land use change is attributed... more
Introduction
Land-use changes and development of irrigated agricultural lands are very important factors that affect natural resources such as the quantity and quality of water resources and the environment. Land use change is attributed to two major processes. The first process is the change in land cover, which is related to the expansion or limitation of the area of land used (such as pasture, agricultural or urban land). The second process is a change in land cover management type (for example, changes in irrigation, fertilizer use, crop type, harvesting methods or surface impermeability). Recently the Urmia lake has been accompanied by a reduction in water resources and the continuation of this process can completely cause to dry Urmia Lake. One of the approvals of the Iranian government after the formation of the National Working Group for the Lake Urmia restoration program was to prevent the development of agricultural lands in this watershed since 2014. Unfortunately, no serious and effective action has been taken in this case yet, and this process has progressed to cause conflicts in this region. Game theory is one of the most important methods used in modeling and analyzing water and environmental resources conflicts.
Materials and Methods
In the present study, using GMCR + software, the water resources conflicts arising from agricultural land development has been analyzed. In this conflict, by accurately identifying the set of decision-makers and their strategies in the conflict process (Regional Water Company, Agriculture Organization, Justice, and Profiteering Farmers), the model was executed with 4 players, 6 options, and 64 states. Players' performance was assessed once as ideal behavior (importance to the environment, sustainable development, and preference of long-term over short-term interests) and then as the use of completing a questionnaire. Then 4 states in the ideal behavior as equilibrium states and 7 states in the condition of using the questionnaire results were extracted as equilibrium states. The conflict was also examined in the coalition state of 3 government organizations (Regional Water Company, Agriculture Organization, and Justice Organization). Finally, the most probable states of equilibrium in the game results were identified.
Results and Discussion
In the discussion concerning equilibrium points, it is crucial to consider that for resolving the dispute and the proposed solution, we need to examine not only the stability of these points but also the state's priority from the perspective of stakeholders. Based on the discussions and the output results of the conflict model using the GMCR+ model, the optimal response and conflict resolution can be found in scenario 12. This scenario holds a high priority for three key players: the Agricultural Organization, the Regional Water Company, and the Justice Department. However, it doesn't share the same level of priority with the Profiteering Farmers. The reason for this divergence lies in the preference for personal gain and profit pursuit over the broader interests of the entire catchment area.
Conclusion
In recent years, despite the imposed restrictions, the Urmia Lake Basin has witnessed a notable increase in the cultivation of water-intensive crops. This shift has transformed arid lands into irrigated ones and altered agricultural areas into residential zones. According to the principles of the tax evasion game, when land development carries no moral or financial consequences for profit-driven farmers, and they are aware that regulatory institutions will not commit excessive resources to prevent and effectively combat the expansion of illegal farmlands, Profiteering Farmers will consistently engage in unauthorized development under any conflict scenario. In light of the revenue potential of this situation and the opportunity to enhance one's social standing, Profiteering Farmers will persist in unauthorized development regardless of the prevailing conflict circumstances. The findings underscore the critical role of the Regional Water Company and the Agricultural Organization. These entities must proactively employ their legal capacities to impede and deter the expansion of agricultural lands. Additionally, the Justice Organization assumes primary responsibility as a crime prevention factor, while its secondary role as a judicial enforcer within this conflict situation appears fitting. Therefore, all situations are stable for Profiteering Farmers. It seems that creating a platform and conditions in which Profiteering Farmers do not develop agricultural land themselves or do not develop land due to the protection of government institutions, can be very thoughtful and effective.
Introduction Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) is an annual and herbaceous plant, with a vertical, round, narrow and branched stem, with a height of approximately 30-60 cm. This plant belongs to the Apiaceae family. This family is known for... more
Introduction
Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.) is an annual and herbaceous plant, with a vertical, round, narrow and branched stem, with a height of approximately 30-60 cm. This plant belongs to the Apiaceae family. This family is known for having plants with aromatic taste. Iran and some countries along the Mediterranean Sea are known as the primary origin for the cumin plant. In addition to Iran, cumin is cultivated in many countries such as Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Morocco, India, Syria, Mexico and Chile. About 300,000 tons of cumin seeds are produced in the world annually, of which China and Asian countries produce 70% and consume 90%. Short growing season (100 to 120 days), low water requirement and the possibility of rained cultivation, non-interference between cultivation and harvesting with other crops and no price fluctuation and proper economic justification are among the factors that interest farmers in cultivating this plant. In different regions, yields of 350 to more than 1000 kg of seeds are obtained from this plant, and 3350 cubic meters of pure water are needed for production.

Materials and Methods
This research was conducted in 2015 to 2017. The first year of the study included the collection and analysis of long-term climatic data of the region, and the second year included the implementation phase of the research. Analyzing meteorological data on the scale of decades and the cases of temperature, precipitation, wind speed, sunshine hours, relative humidity and evaporation from the pan were considered as criteria and by preparing the gradient equations, the rate of reference evaporation and transpiration was calculated. The required statistical information was obtained from 28 synoptic meteorological and climatology stations in Isfahan and some neighboring provinces. In the studies related to soil, apparent specific gravity and volumetric moisture content (field capacity and wilting point), soil salinity, soil texture and agricultural ability class of land in cultivation areas were considered. Soil-related information was used to calculate the soil evaporation coefficient (Ke), which describes the evaporation component in the trait (ETc). In fact, Ke is the basis for calculating the coefficient of reduction of evaporation from the surface layer (Kr) and the fraction of soil wet and exposed to air (few), and for its calculation, the presence of information related to soil characteristics is necessary. To calculate the soil characteristics, in addition to sampling from the fields in the research, the database of 1600 soil profiles in the soil and water research department of Isfahan province was also used.

Results and Discussion
The results showed that 18 cities in Isfahan province had cumin cultivation potential, which had a significant difference in terms of pure water requirement per hectare (5% level) and water consumption at different phenological stages (1% statistical level). In terms of water requirement per hectare, the cities of Isfahan province can be divided into three groups. Average water requirement per hectare in the first group (the cities of Golpayegan, Lenjan, Tiran and Karvan, Shahin and Shahr and Mime), the second group (the cities of Isfahan, Khomeini Shahr, Falavarjan, Shahreza, Kashan, Najaf Abad, Natanz), Mobarake, Dehaghan and Borkhar), and the third group (Aran and Bidgol, Ardestan, Khoor and Biabanak and Nain) were equal to 3000, 3240 and 3770 m-3 ha-1, respectively. The water requirement of the growth development stage in the cities of the third group was equal to 2029 m-3 ha-1, which was significantly different from the cities of the first and second groups (p < 1% level). According to the results, cumin might be a suitable plant for crop rotations in Isfahan province due to its low water requirement and tolerance to moisture stress.

Conclusion
The water requirement for cultivating cumin in various regions of the province is notably lower compared to many common crops, such as wheat, barley, and safflower. In 10 out of the 18 cities included in the study, significant water savings of up to 3,240 cubic meters per hectare can be achieved by optimizing water transfer efficiency. For cumin cultivation, this water conservation can even reach 3,000 cubic meters in cities with cooler climates. Surprisingly, in the hot areas of Isfahan province, including Ardestan, Nain, Khoor, Biabanak, Aran, and Bidgol, it is feasible to grow cumin with a water consumption of just 3,770 cubic meters per hectare.
Introduction The lack of water resources and increase in water demand are among the effective factors in the imbalance of the water resources in each region, and it is necessary to manage the proper use of available water resources in all... more
Introduction
The lack of water resources and increase in water demand are among the effective factors in the imbalance of the water resources in each region, and it is necessary to manage the proper use of available water resources in all activities. Water in the agricultural sector is one of the main factors of production, which should be conveyed by irrigation systems to the field level and made available for the plant roots. The necessity of macro-planning in water management and consumption imposes a comprehensive study of the amount of water consumed in the agricultural sector. Hence, this study was conducted with the objective of directly measuring and field-assessing the applied water, water productivity, and water footprint associated with the primary crops cultivated in Markazi Province, all managed by local farmers.
Methodology
For this purpose, 141 farms were selected in the major production areas of the main agricultural and horticultural crops of Markazi province with the coordination of the Agricultural Jihad centers. Then, the volume of water applied was measured without interfering in the irrigation scheduling of the users. To do so, first, the flow rate of the water source (canal, well, aqueduct or spring) was measured with a suitable device (flume and meter) in each of the selected farms. Then, by carefully monitoring the irrigation schedule of the farm, including the time of each irrigation, the number of irrigation throughout the year, as well as measuring the area under crop cultivation, the amount of water used by the crop was measured for each of the selected farms during the season. Also, based on the measured data, the amounts of blue, green and gray water footprints were determined for each of the examined crops. For this purpose, the blue, green and gray water footprints of different crops were calculated using the framework provided by Hoekstra and Chapagain (2008), and Hoekstra et al., (2011).
Results and Discussion
The irrigation intervals in the studied fields varied between 3 and 15 days with an average of 8 days and the average irrigation depth varied between 26.2 and 99 mm with an average of 67.8 mm in different crops. The results showed that the average volume of applied water for the studied crops in Markazi province was 10782 cubic meters per hectare. Also, the minimum and maximum amount of applied water for the evaluated crops was as follows: barley 3783 and 7232, alfalfa 10382 and 19797, beans 8280 and 17840, watermelon 5333 and 7174, walnuts 4420 and 29600, almonds 3850 and 13932, peaches 6872 and 17727, cherries 7050 and 14645, pomegranates 7156 and 20790, and grapes 5937 and 18168 cubic meters per hectare. Furthermore, the average value of irrigation water efficiency index and water footprint was as follows: barley 0.46 and 1642, alfalfa 0.92 and 700, bean 2924 and 0.24, watermelon 9.37 and 117, walnut 0.1 and 6706, almonds 0.16 and 6857, peach 2.48 and 242, cherries 0.73 and 875, pomegranates 1.33 and 636, and grapes 11.2 and 322. Based on the obtained results, the average total water footprint index was equal to 2102 cubic meters per ton. On average, the almond with a water footprint of 6857 cubic meters per ton had the highest share in allocating the water footprint in the crop production of the province. Whereas, the lowest water footprint related to the watermelon with a water footprint of 117 cubic meters per ton. he average values of the irrigation application efficiency index, irrigation water productivity, and water footprint for the examined farms were 72.5%, 1.79 kg/m3, and 2,102 m3/ton, respectively. In summary, the results indicate that the combined volume of irrigation water and beneficial rainfall in the irrigated fields within Markazi Province surpasses the actual water demand of the crops. This underscores the substantial impact of irrigation management on water utilization in the region.
Conclusion
On average, the total volume of irrigation water and effective rainfall in irrigated fields and gardens in Markazi Province is more than the actual water requirement of the plant. In general, the results showed that irrigation management has a great impact on the amount of water use in the region. Based on the obtained results, considering that most of the farms and gardens receive water in an intermittent manner, in principle, no special attention is paid to the need for water and even effective rainfall, and the amount of water availability has the greatest impact on water consumption. Therefore, in order to reduce water consumption and improve water efficiency, it is suggested to manage the delivery of water to farmers during the season and according to their crop water needs. Also, the results of the water footprint can be used to improve water resource policies at the province level, land use studies, cropping pattern modification, and environmental sector policies.
Introduction Drought is a costly natural hazard with wide-ranging consequences for agriculture, ecosystems, and water resources. The purpose of this research is to determine the characteristics of drought and its types in Iran during the... more
Introduction
Drought is a costly natural hazard with wide-ranging consequences for agriculture, ecosystems, and water resources. The purpose of this research is to determine the characteristics of drought and its types in Iran during the last four decades. Drought turns into different types in the water cycle and imposes many negative consequences on natural ecosystems and different socio-economic sectors. According to International Disaster Database (EM-DAT), drought accounts for 59% of the economic losses caused by climate change. Many parts of the world have experienced extensive and severe droughts in recent decades. In Iran, droughts have occurred frequently during the last four decades and have become more severe in the last decade.
Materials and Methods
In this research, we used precipitation, temperature, wind speed, and sunshine hours of 49 synoptic meteorological stations during 1981-2020. Drought has been investigated with The Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) in four scales of 3, 6, 12, and 24 months, which represent meteorological, agricultural, hydrological, and socio-economic droughts. To calculate the SPEI, the precipitation variable (P) is analyzed with the cumulative difference between P and potential evapotranspiration (PET). In other words, surplus/deficit climate water balance (CWB) is considered. The FAO Penman-Monteith method was used to calculate PET. Then, using the RUN theory, the characteristics of drought, including its magnitude, duration, intensity, and frequency, were determined for all four investigated scales.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the frequency of drought events fluctuates from a minimum of 12.13% to a maximum of 18.13% in different regions of the country during 1981-2020. The climatological study of drought characteristics shows that the most frequent drought events occurred in the west, southwest, and southern coasts of the Persian Gulf and northwest of Iran compare to other regions of the country. This is while the duration of the drought period is longer in the eastern and interior regions of Iran. Examining the types of droughts shows that more than 60% of the droughts occurring in Iran are moderate droughts. Moderate and severe droughts are mostly seen in the west, southwest, and northwest of Iran. The duration of Iran's drought varies from at least 3 months in meteorological drought to more than 8 months in socio-economic drought. Therefore, droughts are more frequent in the western regions and longer in the eastern regions. The intensity of drought is also higher in the eastern and interior regions than in the western and northwestern regions of Iran. The decadal changes of drought show that the duration and magnitude of drought in Iran have increased and the severity of the drought has decreased during recent decades.
Conclusion
The intensity, magnitude, and duration of the drought period in Iran increased with the increase of the investigated scales from 3 months to 24 months. Examining the average frequency of drought showed that as we move from meteorological drought to socio-economic drought, the frequency of drought increases, which confirms the previous findings. The eastern and southeastern parts of Iran have experienced a longer duration and larger magnitude of drought than the western and northwestern Iran, which can be caused by the climate conditions of this region, i.e., high temperature and evapotranspiration and less precipitation, and seasonality.
The maximum magnitude of drought in Iran is related to socio-economic drought (SPEI-24) followed by hydrological drought (SPEI-12). This characteristic has increased especially in the last two decades (2001-2020) compared to the previous decades (1981-2000). This is while the magnitude of meteorological (SPEI-3) and agricultural (SPEI-12) droughts do not increase much in the last two decades compared to the previous decades.
Anthropogenic activities play a more prominent role in increasing the magnitude of socio-economic (SPEI-24) and hydrological (SPEI-12) droughts than natural forcing. With the construction of many dams and the digging of countless deep wells, as well as changing the direction of rivers, the water cycle has been completely affected by human activities during the last four decades in Iran. Obviously, anthropogenic activities play an important role in increasing the magnitude of hydrological and socio-economic droughts. In contrast, meteorological and agricultural droughts have not shown many changes in Iran.
The results of the decadal average of drought intensity showed that this characteristic of drought in the last decade (2011-2020) has decreased compared to previous decades (1981-2010). On the other hand, as mentioned earlier, the magnitude and duration of drought, especially for hydrological and socio-economic droughts, have increased in the last two decades (2001-2020). Therefore, the reason for the decrease in the severity of the drought has a statistical explanation before it has a climatic reason because the severity of the drought is calculated by dividing the magnitude of the drought by its duration.
Introduction Achieving food security in the future with sustainable use of water resources will be a big challenge for the current and future generations. Population increase, economic growth and climate change intensifythe pressure on... more
Introduction
Achieving food security in the future with sustainable use of water resources will be a big challenge for the current and future generations. Population increase, economic growth and climate change intensifythe pressure on existing resources. Agriculture is a key consumer of water, and it is necessary to closely monitor water productivity for it and explore opportunities to increase its productivity. Systematic monitoring of water productivity through the use of remote sensing techniques can help identifying the gaps in water productivity and evaluate appropriate solutions to address these gaps.

Materials and Methods
Qazvin plain is known as a hub of modern agriculture by providing about 5% of the country's agricultural products. Therefore, estimating water demand and water productivity in agricultural management in the region is considered important and necessary. In order to monitor water productivity through access to various data across Africa and the Middle East, the WaPOR database provides the possibility to examine the rate of evapotranspiration, biomass and gross and net biomass volume productivity based on the land use map in the period of years 2009 to 2021. In this database, it is possible to check the mentioned items at three levels with different spatial resolution, which according to the scope of the study, it is possible to check values with a spatial resolution of 250(m). In order to determine the efficiency and accuracy of the land cover classification map of the WaPOR database, the results obtained are examined and compared with the Dynamic World model, which represents a global model with high accuracy. For this purpose, the latest land use map related to 2021 Using the WaPOR database and Dynamic World in the GEE system, it was prepared and based on the classification of the region in order to check the accuracy of the user map of the WaPOR database and to determine the percentage of each class compared to each other. Finally, all estimable indicators were calculated and checked by the WaPOR database during the years 2009 to 2022.

Results and Discussion
The amount of evapotranspiration of the plants covered by the irrigation network in the period of 2009 to 2016 has been associated with a relatively stable trend, but this trend has decreased in 2017 onwards, which is one of the reasons for the decrease in the amount of evapotranspiration in this the period of time and can refer to the lack of water available to the plant due to the limited water resources in recent years. The investigation of the total amount of biomass in different lands shows that during the years 2009 to 2022, this index has been accompanied by a gradual increase in all uses, so that the amount of TBP index in 2020 was 17% more than in 2009. It shows the amount of biomass in different lands. The amount of biomass in the lands covered by the water network is 5 to 6 times higher than that of the rainfed lands. Among the influential parameters in estimating the TBP index, we can mention the amount of evaporation, transpiration, and transpiration, the increase or decrease of each of these parameters will have a significant impact on the estimated amount of biomass. The results showed that the amount of biomass production in the areas covered by the irrigation network largely depends on the high transpiration rate in these areas. From the beginning of 2009 to 2016, the gross amount of biomass water in the lands covered by the irrigation network has been accompanied by an increase, but in 2017, drastic changes in the process of underground changes will decrease the area of the lands covered by the network and many of these lands. It has been turned into fallow and rainfed lands. The analysis of NBWP index also showed that the amount of net productivity in rainfed lands is strongly dependent on the annual increase rate, and much of the crop yield in rainfed lands is dependent on the amount received. Among the influential parameters in estimating the total amount of biomass, we can mention the amount of evaporation, transpiration and transpiration, the increase or decrease of each of these parameters will have a significant impact on the amount of estimated biomass.

Conclusion
WaPOR database data can play an important role in estimating the rate of delayed transpiration and parameters related to water productivity in the region due to its ten-day spatial resolution and the absence of data gaps. In general, the WaPOR database can be used as a guide in the reliable determination of evapotranspiration values and planning related to water resources in the agricultural sector.
Introduction In recent years, soil contamination with potentially toxic elements (PTEs) has become a major problem in most parts of the world. PTEs are naturally generated from the pedogenesis in the soil and are formed mainly by rock... more
Introduction
In recent years, soil contamination with potentially toxic elements (PTEs) has become a major problem in most parts of the world. PTEs are naturally generated from the pedogenesis in the soil and are formed mainly by rock weathering. Nevertheless, the natural content of metals, i.e., Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, Cd, used to be low in the soil, but due to anthropogenic activities such as industrial emissions, atmospheric transportation, sewage irrigation, and application of pesticides and fertilizers, there is an increase in the content of PTEs. PTEs in soil are one of the most important environmental pollutants due to their toxicity, durability, easy absorption by plants and long half-life. Therefore, the assessment of soil health is very important for the sustainable development of agriculture and the rehabilitation of soils contaminated with PTEs. The present study was conducted to quantify PTEs pollution for soil environmental assessment using a flexible approach based on multivariate analysis and using pollution indicators in a part of the central lands of Khuzestan province.

Materials and Methods
For this purpose, in February 2021, 200 surface soil samples (0-10 cm) were taken using stratified random sampling. The collected soil samples were cleaned by removing plant materials and other pebbles, and air dried, powdered, and sieved by using a 2 mm sieve size. The interest in soil's physical and chemical properties i.e., pH was determined with a digital pH meter. Soil textural particles were measured by the hydrometer method, soil organic carbon (SOC) content was estimated by following Walkley and Black method, bulk density (BD) was measured by the Clod method, and total metal content was determined using the aqua-regia solution digestion method and analyzed using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission spectrometry (ICP-OEC). The level of Pb, Ni, Zn, Cr pollution was estimated based on environmental indicators including contamination factor (CF), enrichment factor (EF), geo-accumulation index (Igeo), pollution index of individual metals (PI), and modified pollution index of individual metals (MPI). Multivariate statistical methods including correlation analysis, cluster analysis (CA), and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to find the source of metals in the soil. All statistical methods were performed using SPSS (26 version) software.

Results and Discussion
Measurement of soil pH showed that the soil of the studied area tends to alkalinity. Also, the soil texture in this area is loam. The results showed that the SOC in these soil samples is 0.71%, and the range of EC (between 0.18 and 60.5 dS/m) indicates the distribution of saline and non-saline soils in the studied area. The total average concentration of Zn, Ni, Cr, and Pb were 60.26, 50.96, 50.38, and 12.67 mg/kg, respectively. The order of average for heavy metals was Zn> Ni> Cr> Pb. The highest amount of standard deviation and concentration changes were observed in Zn and Pb elements. These two elements also showed a high degree of variation coefficient in the studied area, which can indicate the high impact of human activities on the content of these elements. The results obtained from the application of multivariate statistics showed that there is a positive correlation between the elements such as Zn, Ni, and Pb in the study area, indicating that these metals probably have the same source. Whereas the absence of correlation of Cr with these elements indicates a separate source for this element compared to Pb, Zn, and Ni. There was also a strong relationship among these elements based on the PCA and CA classification. Based on the multivariate statistical analysis the source of pollution for the metals studied was mainly from both anthropogenic and geogenic activities. The results showed that the soil samples taken from the study area are in the low pollution category based on the individual element indices of CF and Igeo, but in the moderate pollution class based on the EF index. In addition, the evaluation based on the cumulative and multi-element indices of PI and MPI showed that 100% of samples have high pollution.

Conclusion
The present study concludes that the average values of Zn, Ni, Cr, and Pb were found to be below the guidelines set by the IEPA (Iran Environmental Protection Agency) as well as the Earth's crust values. The results indicate existing relationships among the studied variables, revealing that the heavy metals Zn, Ni, and Zn share the same source in the study area. Additionally, it was observed that the source of Cr is primarily geogenic in nature. These findings highlight the significance of utilizing multivariate statistical methods and pollution indicators in tandem, as they prove to be valuable tools for evaluating and quantitatively determining the potential pollution risk.
Introduction Soil erosion is considered as one of the critical threats to the conservation of water and soil resources. However, until now, its various components, including its spatial changes, have yet to be given due attention. In... more
Introduction
Soil erosion is considered as one of the critical threats to the conservation of water and soil resources. However, until now, its various components, including its spatial changes, have yet to be given due attention. In order to implement soil erosion control and conservation programs in the watershed, it is essential to have basic information leading to know and accurately identify the factors affecting the degradation of soil and water resources. Meanwhile, the CORINE model has been considered as one of the practical models for estimating soil erosion and displaying the spatial distribution of soil erosion with easy and accessible inputs. The CORINE model developed based on the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) was therefore employed in the present study in the GIS environment to determine the potential and actual erosion risks of the Brimvand Watershed in Kermanshah Province, Iran.

Materials and Methods
The main associated factors of soil erosion, viz. soil erodibility and erosivity, such as slope, vegetation, depth, texture, and percentage of gravel, were collected, compiled, and ultimately classified in the ArcGIS software. The Fournier index (FI) and FAO-UNEP drought index (DI) were used to prepare the input maps. The Fournier index reflects the performance of the soil erosive agent. In other words, it shows the role of rainfall on soil erosion. The FAO-UNEP drought index shows the simultaneous performance of evaporation and precipitation on soil erosion of a region. The potential soil erosion risk was obtained by combining slope, erodibility, and erosivity layers. In addition, the actual soil erosion risk map was determined by combining the vegetation map and potential soil erosion risk.

Results and Discussion
Based on the results of the vegetation distribution in the region, the use of rainfed and abandoned lands had the largest area in the watershed, with an occupation percentage of 65.48%. Furthermore, the rangeland and forest areas, with respective coverage of 29.65 and 4.87%, stood in the second and third priority from the viewpoint of the area. The region has varying slopes, but more importantly, it has a low slope. Soil texture, depth, and gravel content significantly affect the area's erosion. The soil depth in a large part of the watershed, especiallywith a slope of less than 4% is more than 65 cm where it is mainly covered by abandoned and rainfed lands. In the studied area, the depth of the soil decreases with height increase, which indicates that the high slopes of the area are dominantly outcrops. Most of the area has gravel contents between 10 and 40%. The erosion potential of the region is not that much high because of the desired features of the affecting factors. According to the potential soil erosion risk, it was determined that about 65.57, 23.62, and 10.81% of the area were classified as intermediate, low, and high erosion potential, respectively. Further, the actual soil erosion risk was categorized as low, intermediate, and high with respective areal coverage of 53.83, 15.53, and 30.64%. It is therefore implied that the amount of erosion and sediment transfer will increase if the land cover in the watershed is declined.  This indicates that the erosion rate was highest in hilly areas due to lack of vegetation and soil with loamy texture. Accordingly, to curb soil erosion and prevent its associated adverse effects in the Brimvand watershed, it is strongly suggested to use lands based on their capability and potential, maintain the present cover status, and carry out management plans to restore vegetation.

Conclusion
Soil erosion remains one of the most critical challenges in watersheds, and its neglect can lead to various problems for the beneficiaries. In light of this, the present study aimed to address this issue by employing the CORINE model to assess potential and actual soil erosion in the Brimvand Watershed of Kermanshah Province, Iran. The research findings reveal the pivotal role of vegetation in mitigating soil erosion. Notably, areas with gentle slopes, which are inherently susceptible to erosion, benefit significantly from vegetation cover, leading to a noticeable reduction in erosion. However, the loss of this protective cover can trigger a rapid increase in soil erosion and subsequent loss of valuable soil resources. By shedding light on the spatial distribution of soil erosion, this study emphasizes the importance of preserving and promoting vegetation in the watershed to ensure its long-term sustainability and safeguard the well-being of those who depend on it. Therefore, land utilization should be planned based on capacity and potential of the land to curb erosion and avoid its detrimental impacts in the Brimvand Watershed. In addition, not only the current cover situation has to be maintained but also the vegetation conditions have to be improved through the implementation of managerial and reclamation plans leading to managing soil erosion.
Introduction The contamination of agricultural soils with heavy metals is considered as a fundamental problem of industrial and non-industrial societies all over the world, which is increasing significantly with technological advances and... more
Introduction
The contamination of agricultural soils with heavy metals is considered as a fundamental problem of industrial and non-industrial societies all over the world, which is increasing significantly with technological advances and is considered a serious threat to the environment, soil and human health. One of these heavy metals is cadmium, which has entered the environmental cycle due to various industrial activities such as metal smelting, battery manufacturing, paints, and plastic production. One of the suitable methods for cleaning the soil contaminated with heavy metals is to stabilize the elements by adding a modifier to the soil, which leads to a decrease in their mobility and bioavailability during the processes of absorption, oxidation and reduction, complexation or deposition. The use of iron nanoparticles is a new generation of environmental cleaning technology that can be an economic solution to some problems caused by pollutants, unlike traditional methods. Considering the importance of soil as a plant food holder and its special role in the food chain and the harmful effects of pollutants such as heavy metals in the soil, this research seeks to explore the potential of magnetic iron nanoparticles in remediating cadmium-contaminated soil. The study aims to investigate the effectiveness of these nanoparticles in reducing cadmium levels and their impact on the distribution of cadmium in different soil components.

Materials and Methods
The experiments were carried out in the chemical and biological research laboratory of the Department of Soil Science and Engineering of Maragheh University. To conduct the experiment, a soil sample from Ajabshir city with a geographic location of 54 degrees 46 minutes 51.7 seconds east longitude and 37 degrees 24 minutes 34 seconds north latitude located in East Azarbaijan province with an altitude of 1451 meters above sea level, with this The target of extractable cadmium less than 1.16 mg/kg of dry and textured soil (loam) was selected. This experiment is factorial based on random design with two factors of heavy metal cadmium from cadmium sulfate source including cadmium concentrations at three levels of zero, 6 and 12 mg/kg of soil and the factor of magnetic iron nanoparticles at three levels of zero, 1 and 2% in The time was four weeks after the addition of cadmium treatments and it was implemented in three repetitions. After measuring some physical and chemical properties of soil, cadmium concentrations in different species and ionic fractions were measured according to the method provided by Tisser. Finally, the obtained data were analyzed using SPSS and MSTATC software and the means were compared with Duncan's multiple range test at the level of five and one percent probability and the results were interpreted.

Discussion and Conclusion
By increasing the amount of cadmium treatment levels from 6 to 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium absorption in the exchange phase decreased. Therefore, the increase in the amount of cadmium levels in different levels of iron nanoparticles reduced the absorption of cadmium in the exchange phase, which in turn reduced the ability of the plant to absorb cadmium and removed cadmium from the plant. By increasing the amount of cadmium in the soil by 1%, nanoparticles increased the amount of cadmium extracted from the carbonate phase. Increasing the amount of cadmium added to the soil at different levels of nanoparticles, the amount of cadmium absorption extracted from the carbonate phase increased, and at the level of 12 mg cadmium/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted from the carbonate phase increased compared to the level of 6 mg cadmium/kg. In cadmium treatments at the level of 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted from the phase of iron and manganese oxides were increased compared to cadmium at the level of 6 mg/kg, and in the same treatments at the level of 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted was increased with the increase in the amount of nanoparticles. The results showed an increase in the phase of iron and manganese oxides, which may reduce the amount of cadmium available to the plant. In cadmium treatments at the level of 6 mg/kg at the level of 1% of nanoparticles, compared to the other two treatments, an increase in the amount of cadmium extracted from the oxide phase was observed. In the treatment of cadmium at the level of 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted from the phase of organic matter increased compared to the treatment of cadmium at the level of 6 mg/kg. Indeed, the research findings reveal an interesting trend in the impact of increasing iron nanoparticles at both cadmium levels of 6 and 12 mg/kg. Specifically, the changes in the amount of cadmium extracted from the organic phase of the soil follow a consistent pattern. Initially, as the iron nanoparticles were introduced, the cadmium extraction from the organic materials decreased. However, at higher levels of nanoparticles, the cadmium extraction started to increase again.This trend suggests that the presence of a higher concentration of nanoparticles may play a role in stabilizing cadmium in the organic matter of the soil. As a result, it may reduce the accessibility of cadmium to plants. In the treatment of cadmium at the level of 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted from the residual phase increased compared to cadmium at the level of 6 mg/kg. In the examination of cadmium extracted from the residual phase, it was found that, unlike other phases, the difference between treatments at zero cadmium level and other treatment levels of cadmium in the remaining phase was less compared to other phases, so that the amount of cadmium absorbed in the remaining phase 6 and 12 mg of cadmium per kilograms of soil have the lowest values among different absorption phases. Also, another noteworthy point about this examination was the trend of changes in extracted cadmium according to the levels of nanoparticles in all three levels of cadmium, so that with the increase of nanoparticles from zero to 1% in all levels of cadmium, there was a decreasing trend and with the increase of non-particles to two percent, an increasing trend was observed.

Conclusion
The results showed that in general, with increasing the level of iron nanoparticles, treatment of 12 kg of cadmium, the amounts of residual cadmium, carbonate, organic and oxide phases increased. Increasing the level of cadmium in different levels of iron nanoparticles reduced the absorption of cadmium in the exchange phase, which reduces the ability of the plant to absorb cadmium and removes cadmium from the plant, so that in the treatment with cadmium at the level of 12 mg/kg, the amount of cadmium extracted from the exchange phase reduced. Also, in the cadmium treatment at the level of 6 mg/kg with increasing the amount of nanoparticles, the amount of cadmium extracted from the exchange phase first increased and then a slight decrease in the amount of absorbed cadmium was observed, while at the level of 12 mg of cadmium, the amount of cadmium increased, absorption reduced, and thus removing cadmium from the plant.
Introduction Changes in soil properties depend on factors such as climate, topography, landscape features, altitude, parent material, and vegetation. The quantity and quality of soils obtained from different rocks (igneous, sedimentary... more
Introduction
Changes in soil properties depend on factors such as climate, topography, landscape features, altitude, parent material, and vegetation. The quantity and quality of soils obtained from different rocks (igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks) depend on the minerals that make up the rock, as well as weather and other factors. Soil parent material is one of the primary and important issues in soil classification in terms of physical quality and also one of the most important effective factors in soil erodibility. The topographical factor of each region is one of the important and influential features on the soil quality of that region. The present research was conducted with the aim of understanding the spatial changes of soil properties in different slopes and different types of rocks.

Material and Methods
The studied area is located in Razavi Khorasan province in the cities of Mashhad, Chenaran, Sarakhs and Torbat-Haidarieh. The geographic location of the region ranges from 58 degrees and 52 minutes to 60 degrees and 40 minutes east longitude and 35 degrees and 38 minutes to 36 degrees and 25 minutes north latitude. This research was carried out on seven types of rocks: granite, Sarakhs paleogene limestone, Chenaran jurassic limestone, marl, shale, sandstone and ophiolite from relatively pure rocks of Razavi Khorasan province. In the present study, two factors of rock type and slope were investigated as effective factors of soil properties. Soil samples were taken from the surface layer (0-20 cm) and from three slope classes ie., less than 10%, 10-25% and more than 25%, as well as all soil samples from the southern slopes. Tree soil samples were taken from each slope and a total of 63 samples were taken and the samples were transfered to the laboratory for physical and chemical tests. In this study, the soil particle size distribution (texture) was measured by hydrometer method, organic carbon and calcium carbonate were determined by wet oxidation and titration with HCl 6 M, the mean weight diameter of soil aggregates and surface crust factor were calculated by related equations. To measure soil cohesion and penetration resistance were used pocket vane test and pocket penetrometer, respectively. Comparison of means was done through Duncan test in spss software.

Results and Discussion
The results showed that all the studied variables in different types of stones had a significant difference at the level of 1%. There was no significant difference in the variable of surface level in different slopes. Also, the variables of calcium carbonate percentage and saturated conductivity at 5% level had significant differences in different slopes. Other characteristics of soil, including percentage of organic matter, the mean weight diameter of soil aggregates, the number of drops impact, and soil cohesion and penetration resistance in different slopes had a significant difference at the level of 1%. Althoug the soil texture class was not significantly different in different slopes, the percentage changes of clay, silt and sand had a lot of difference along the slope. The highest and lowest parameters of organic matter percentage, Soil cohesion and penetration resistance were observed in granite and shale, respectively. The highest percentage of calcium carbonate was observed in Chenaran limestone (40.41%) and the lowest in granite (14.72 %). The mean weight diameter of soil aggregates was the highest in ophiolite (1.005 mm) and the lowest in marl (0.403 mm). The mean weight diameter of soil aggregates in the medium slope was significantly higher than the other two slopes. The parameter of the number of drops impact was the highest in granite (47.14 number) and the lowest in marl (27.70 number). The highest value of saturated conductivity variable was observed in marl rock and the lowest value was observed in Chenaran limestone.

Conclusion
The results showed that all the investigated variables had significant differences in different types of stones. Also, some of the investigated variables such as percentage of organic matter, percentage of equivalent calcium carbonate and the mean weight diameter of soil aggregates had significant changes along the hillside. As a general conclusion, given that the physical and chemical properties of the soil are partly under the influence of the parent material and the slope, and also with the presence of good geological information in the country, it can be suggested to provide suitable management solutions to prevent soil erosion and degradation by comprehensive examination of soil properties under different slope and types of stones.
Introduction Changing land use may have a major influence on physical, chemical, and biological soil properties with a consequence for soil functioning and productivity. Abandonment of agricultural lands is actually a kind of restoration... more
Introduction
Changing land use may have a major influence on physical, chemical, and biological soil properties with a consequence for soil functioning and productivity. Abandonment of agricultural lands is actually a kind of restoration of these lands to their original natural conditions, which is often done through human intervention. Soil restoration after land abandonment is a complex phenomenon. The pastures of our country are typically cultivated in rainfed methods, and the use of agricultural inputs such as animal manure, poisons, and chemical fertilizers is not very common. Therefore the continuous cultivation of a product and the lack of use of agricultural inputs causes a gradual decrease in fertility and increase erosion. Hence, after years of cultivation, the production potential decreases, and the land is abandoned.
Materials and Methods
This study was conducted to determine the effects of land abandonment on some physical, chemical, and biological soil properties in the 0-20 and 20-40 cm depth at three different sites including Lal Abad, Qaleh Kohneh and Chalab-e Pain, using 2×2 factorial layout arranged in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. The physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the soil were measured by conventional laboratory methods. Electrical conductivity of saturated paste extract (ECe) with electrical conductivity meter device in saturated paste extract, pH of saturated paste with pH meter device, and bulk density by cylinder method were determined in the samples. The amount of dispersible clay (DC) was determined by the method of Gee and Bauder and the Mean Weight Diameter (MWD) was determined by the method of the wet sieve. The amount of absorbable phosphorus by extraction method and total soil nitrogen by Keldahl method were measured in the samples. The amount of soil organic carbon (OC) in the samples was determined by the method of Walkley and Black. Mineralization of organic carbon (soil respiration) (Cmin) and metabolic quotient (qCO2) were obtained by validated and conventional methods.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the abandonment of agricultural lands significantly increased the MWD and reduced the amount of dispersible clay. Bulk density also decreased due to the abandonment of agricultural land in all areas except the Qaleh Kohneh area. The results of the analysis of the chemical characteristics of the soil indicated a decrease in soil pH in all areas and depths, except in the Qaleh Kohneh area. The biological results also showed that the abandonment of agricultural lands caused the change in biological characteristics. Abandonment of agricultural lands in all three regions led to an increase in microbial biomass carbon and soil microbial respiration. High microbial respiration in abandoned lands is probably related to more organic carbon in these soils. Loss of soil organic matter due to cultivation and improper soil management is often the main reason for reducing soil respiration in agricultural lands compared to abandoned lands.
Conclusion
Changing land use from agriculture to abandonment improved the physical, chemical, and biological indicators of soil quality, especially the surface layer of the soil, which ultimately led to the improvement of soil quality in all the studied areas. It can be concluded that the release of agricultural lands has increased soil health by increasing the carbon input into the soil, improving the soil aggregates, and improving the microbial activity of the soil.
Introduction Rill erosion is one of the main factors of soil degradation, especially in rainfed lands in semi-arid regions. These soils have relatively lower organic matter content with weakly-aggregated units, which increases their... more
Introduction
Rill erosion is one of the main factors of soil degradation, especially in rainfed lands in semi-arid regions. These soils have relatively lower organic matter content with weakly-aggregated units, which increases their susceptibility to water erosion processes. Conventional tillage systems are adversely affect on soil structure and surface soil cover in rainfed lands. Raindrop energy and flow shear stress are the main erosive factors in the slope lands. The raindrop impact destroys soil structure and changes it to erodible unites; micro-aggregates and single particles, and so makes them to more detachment. A few studies have been done on the role of raindrop impact to soil erosion by water. Nevertheless, there is no sufficient information on the effect of raindrop impact on soil loss in the rills particularly in semi-arid regions. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the role of raindrop impact on soil loss from rills in various soil textures under different rainfall intensities.

Materials and Methods
A laboratory experiment was performed on two soil textures (clay loam and sandy loam) under four rainfall intensities (30, 50, 72 and 83 mm.h-1) in two rainfall conditions (under raindrops impact and without raindrops impact). Soil samples (0-30 cm) were taken from a semi-arid region in Zanjan province in 2020. The experiments were set up in an erosion flume with 100 cm long and 60 cm width and 15 cm depth which were exposed to simulated rainfalls for 30 min duration. Runoff and soil loss were measured at three rills under slope gradient 10% in the two rainfall conditions for each rainfall intensity. Soil loss from rills was determined as the mass of sediment collected from rill outlet per rill surface area (g.m-2). Under raindrop impact, the soil was exposed directly to raindrop impact and under without raindrop impact, a metal mesh sheet was used to eliminate raindrops impact to soil surface. The role of raindrops impact to runoff and soil loss was computed from the difference of runoff and soil loss under raindrops impact and without raindrops impacts. A t-test was used to assess the role of raindrops impact between the two rainfall conditions for the soils and rainfall intensities. 

Results and Discussion
Results indicated that runoff production and soil loss were significantly affected by the soil texture and rainfall intensity. Runoff and soil loss under raindrops impact increased in the soils with increasing rainfall intensity. Clay loam showed more runoff production and soil loss than sandy loam which was associated to lower aggregate stability and hydraulic conductivity. Runoff and soil loss in the two soils and four rainfall intensities were significantly affected by raindrops impact. Runoff production and soil loss except to 72 mm.h-1 rainfall intensity were very higher under raindrop impact than without raindrop impact. It seems under 72 mm.h-1 rainfall intensity, raindrops impact varied the rill’s morphology and prevent more runoff production. Runoff production in clay loam and sandy loam under raindrop impact were increased by 44 and 36 percent, respectively (p< 0.01). Soil loss resulted by raindrop impact in clay loam and sandy loam increased by 53 and 62 percent, respectively (p< 0.01). Raindrops impact had more importance in soil loss rather than runoff production. This result is related to the role of raindrops impact in destroying aggregates and producing more erodible soil particles and closing soil macrospores and declining water infiltration. The role of raindrop impact in runoff production and soil loss varied among the rainfall intensities. A slight reduction in the role of raindrop impact in runoff and soil loss was occurred with increasing rainfall intensity, especially in sandy loam.

Conclusion
The role of raindrop impact in runoff production and soil loss was significantly affected by soil type and rainfall intensity. Raindrops impact has more important in runoff and soil loss in the soils having higher aggregate stability and more hydraulic conductivity. The role of raindrop impact in runoff and soil loss in these soils declines with increasing rainfall intensity. In general, maintain soil surface cover is essential to control raindrops impact and decrease runoff and soil loss in semi-arid areas. The importance of soil surface cover is most obvious under different rainfalls in weakly-aggregated soils which are dominant in many slope lands. Also, soil surface cover has important role in controlling runoff and soil loss under heavy rainfalls in soils with more water-stable aggregates. Prevention from intensive tillage and using conservation tillage systems such as minimum tillage are effective strategies in controlling raindrop impact in rainfed lands in semi-arid regions.
Introduction Development of reservoirs helps to meet food and energy needs by supplying water for agriculture and hydropower plants. Efficient management of water resources is important and vital to overcome the problems of water leakage... more
Introduction
Development of reservoirs helps to meet food and energy needs by supplying water for agriculture and hydropower plants. Efficient management of water resources is important and vital to overcome the problems of water leakage and meet agricultural, industrial and drinking needs. Each of these requirements creates limitations in the way the reservoir is operated, which requires accurate information on the changes in the reservoir storage and other influential components during the operation period. In order to manage and plan water resources at country scale, using reservoir simulation models as a suitable tool in simulating processes related to dams, such as the operation of water reservoirs, will be very effective. Reservoir simulation models such as the HEC-ResSim model provide the opportunity to simulate the natural and hydrological processes related to the water resources system and the relationships between the supply and demand sectors by implementing a schematic structure of a real reservoir. Two scenarios of water savings of 20 and 30 percent were used in the current investigation.  Additionally, using this method, the objectives of water resource management can be assessed.

Materials and Methods
In the present study, the use of the Latian reservoir in real conditions was simulated using the HEC-ResSim model. The simulation was carried out according to the river's inflow from 1968 to 2018, downstream water needs, energy production capacity by turbines, physical characteristics and reservoir building. The implementation of the HEC-ResSim model is summarized in three steps. The Watershed Setup module is used to introduce the general outline of the watershed. In this module, the shape and geographical location of the basin and related elements such as rivers, reservoirs, hydrometric stations and other projects in it should be specified. The Reservoir Network module is used to introduce the desired reservoir network and to enter the physical characteristics and how to use them. The Simulation module is designed to introduce the simulation period and display the model outputs.  In this module, the simulation time and period and the operation pattern should be determined.

Results and Discussion
According to the results obtained from the reservoir simulation model, the average storage capacity of Latian dam for the simulation period was estimated to be 41 million cubic meters, which shows a significant drop of 49% compared to the normal level (83 million cubic meters). Additionally, for the same period, it was estimated that the average discharge was equivalent to 5.4 cubic meters per second and the average inflow to the reservoir of the Latian dam was equal to 5.7 cubic meters per second. This is in contrast to the period's average demand, which for the area downstream of the Latian Dam is 12.1 cubic meters. The findings indicate that the reservoir of the dam frequently, and particularly at the conclusion of the simulation period, is unable to satisfy the needs of the downstream. Additionally, according to the findings of the current study, the Latian dam power plant's (Kalan) average annual hydro-electric energy production was projected to be 68,000 MWh, and the results show that in accordance with the policy of operating the Latian dam in the majority ofthe years, the Kalan power plant is able to supply the electricity required in the study area. According to the results, the average reservoir volume of Latian dam for the entire period in the first and second scenario was estimated to be 49 and 63 million cubic meters, respectively. Also, by applying the first and second water saving scenarios, the Latian dam reservoir will be able to generate 66,000 and 63,000 MWh of energy annually.

Conclusion
In this study, the functioning and operation of the Latian dam reservoir was used by applying the Hec-ResSim reservoir simulation model. After entering data such as the elevation and length of the dam, surface-volume-elevation curve, evaporation from the surface of the reservoir, elevation and uncontrolled outlet coefficient, dam storage areas, rule curve, were simulated by the model. In the present study, the values of inactive volume and conservation volume of Latian Dam were estimated as 28 and 83 million cubic meters, respectively. The average water release of Latian dam for the first and second 25 years of operation was equal to 6.1 and 3.7 cubic meters per second, respectively, which met 50 and 32% of the downstream demand on average. The results indicate that the success rate of Latian dam in supplying drinking, industry and downstream environment for the period of operation is 42%. Also, 16 years out of 50 years of operation, Kalan hydropower plant has fully met 100% of the needs. On average, the large power plant is able to provide 80% of the energy needs of the study area for the entire simulation period.
Introduction Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has become very important as a valuable strategic product with high energy level. The importance of investigating environmental stresses and their role in predicting and evaluating the growth and... more
Introduction
Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has become very important as a valuable strategic product with high energy level. The importance of investigating environmental stresses and their role in predicting and evaluating the growth and crops yield is essential. A wide range of plant response to stress is extended to morphological, physiological and biochemical responses. Considering the rapid advancement in computer model development, plant growth models have emerged as a valuable tool to predict changes in production yield. These growth simulation models effectively incorporate the intricate influences of various factors, such as climate, soil characteristics, and management practices on crop yield. By doing so, they offer a cost-effective and time-efficient alternative to traditional field research methods.

Material and Methods
This research was conducted in the research farm of Varamin province, which has a silty loam soil texture. The latitude and longitude of the region are 35º 32ʹ N and 51º 64ʹ E, respectively. Its height above sea level is 21 meters. According to Demarten classification, Varamin has a temperate humid climate. The long-term mean temperature of Varamin is 11.18 ° C and the total long-term rainfall is 780 mm. In this study, in order to simulate irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan growth under drought stress, an experimental based on completely randomized blocks (CRBD) including: non-stress as control (NS), water stress at booting stage (WSB), water stress at flowering stage (WSF), water stress at milking stage (WSM) and water stress at doughing stage (WSD) with three replications during growth season 2019-2020 was carried out in Varamin, Iran. Crop growth simulation was done using SSM-wheat model. This model simulates growth and yield on a daily basis as a function of weather conditions, soil characteristics and crop management (cultivar, planting date, plant density, irrigation regime).

Results and Discussion
Based on the results, the simulation of the phenological stages of irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan under water stress condition using SSM-wheat model showed that there was no difference between observed and simulated values. Summary, the values of day to termination of seed growth (TSG) were observed under non- stress, stress in the booting stage, flowering, milking and doughing of the grains, 222, 219, 219, 221, 221 days, respectively andsimulation values with 224, 221, 220, 221, respectively. However, with their simulation values, there were slight differences with 224, 221, 220, 221, respectively. Acceptable values of RMSE (11.7 g.m-2) and CV (3.5) indexes showed the high ability of the SSM model in simulating the grain yield of irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan under water stress conditions. Grain yield values were observed in non-stress conditions of 5783, water stress in booting, flowering, milking and doughing of the grain stages in 5423, 5160, 5006 and 5100 kg. h-1, respectively. While the simulated values were 5630, 5220, 4920, 4680 and 4880 kg. h-1, respectively. Based on the findings, observed and simulated values of leaf area index (LAI) were observed under water stress condition in the booting, flowering, milking and doughing of the grain stages (4.3 and 4.47), (4.33) and 4.46), (4.4 and 4.57) and (4.4 and 4.58) cm-2, respectively. Evaluation of the 1000-grain weight of irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan under the water stress showed that the SSM model was highly accurate. RMSE (4.6 g.m-2) and CV (1.8) values indicate the ability of the SSM model to simulate the 1000-grain weight of irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan. Also, the simulated values of the harvest index were 34.7 % in non-stress conditions, which decreased by 6 % compared to the observed value. Harvest index values were observed under water stress conditions in the in the booting, flowering, milking and doughing of the grain stages in 30.2, 29.3, 29.9 and 29.5 %, respectively. Compared to its observed values, it was reduced by 3, 3.5, 5, and 5.5 %, respectively.

Conclusion
Based on the findings, the slight difference between the observed and simulated values demonstrates the SSM model's capability to accurately capture water stress impacts on the phenological stages, grain yield, and yield components of irrigated wheat cv. Mehregan during critical growth stages, including booting, flowering, milking, and doughing. The results indicate that the SSM model is effective in simulating wheat growth under water stress conditions, showcasing its potential as a valuable tool for modeling irrigated wheat growth. The model's ability to account for water stress and its effects on various growth parameters makes it a reliable and efficient tool for predicting crop performance in water-limited environments.
Introduction: Calcareous soils are described as soils containing quantities of calcium carbonate which have an enormously effect on the soil properties (physical, consisting of soil water relations and soil crusting, or chemical... more
Introduction: Calcareous soils are described as soils containing quantities of calcium carbonate which have an enormously effect on the soil properties (physical, consisting of soil water relations and soil crusting, or chemical consisting of the availability of plant nutrients) and plant growth. Calcareous soils arise clearly in arid and semi-arid areas due to rare precipitation and little leaching. It has been evaluated that these soils contain over one-third of the world's surface zone and their CaCO3 content ranged from a few to 95%. Calcareous soils faced many challenges such as shortage of organic matter, low structure stability, low water holding capacity, low CEC, high pH, surface crusting and cracking and great infiltration rate which cause loss of essential plant nutrients via leaching or deep percolation. Another problem in calcareous soils is low availability of plant nutrients particularly phosphorous and micronutrients specially zinc, iron and manganese, and a nutritional imbalance between elements such as potassium, magnesium and calcium. Although a calcareous soil is dominated by free lime, it could also incorporate large quantities of iron, aluminum, and manganese. These metals provide more strong sorption sites for phosphorus and are mostly more significant in controlling phosphorus solubility in calcareous soils than calcium carbonate itself. Under such severe conditions, desired yield levels are difficult to attain. Calcareous soils lack the organic matter required for optimal crop yield. Therefore, numerous studies have made efforts to increase the availability of nutrients in the soils through different treatments. Common methods for dealing with these deficiencies, is the use of chemical fertilizers that have the risk of environmental pollution in addition to the high cost and low efficiency. Oxidation of sulfur leads to sulfuric acid formation which can decrease the soil pH and increase dissolution of insoluble soil minerals and release of essential plant nutrients. Furthermore, the addition of organic amendments improves the soil chemical and physical properties, initiates nutrient cycling, and provides a functioning environment for vegetation.
Materials and Methods: The objective of this research was to increase solubility of nutrient elements in a calcareous soil considering nine treatments (i.e., control (Blank), Soil + Humic Acid (HA), Soil + Sulfuric Acid (H2SO4 ), Soil + Thiobacillus (T), Soil + Sulphur (Sº), Soil + Sulphur + Thiobacillus (Sº +T), Soil + Vermicompost (VC), Soil + Vermicompost + Thiobacillus (VC+T) and Soil + Sulphur + Vermicompost + Thiobacillus (Sº +VC+T)). The experimental design was factorial arrangement in randomized complete block, with all the treatments replicated three times. All the treatments were incubated under the laboratory condition for 90 days in 25 ± 2 °C and 70% of water holding capacity by distilled water. During the incubation period, the moisture of the samples was kept at 70% FC by daily addition of deionized water based on weight loss. At the end of incubation period the pH value, electrical conductivity (EC), available form of macro elements (K, P and N) and micro elements (Zn, Mn, Fe and Cu) were determined in all treatments by standard methods.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that, the soil pH value significantly decreased in Sº+T and Sº+VC+T treatments, in com\pared to the blank. While, the EC of these treatments significantly increased with respect to the blank. The results also showed that most of the treatments have been able to increase the solubility of the nutrients. However, the effect of Sº +VC+T treatment on increasing the availability of studied soil nutrients and decreasing pH value was more significant than the other treatments.
Conclusion: Analysis of  the results obtained from this study using classical statistic methods showed that applying a single treatment cannot remove all obstacles to increase nutrient availability in calcareous soils. This may be attributed to high buffering capacity of calcareous soils and complexity of factors which control mineral solubility and nutrient availability. While, treatments that simultaneously provide soil organic matter and lower pH (such as Sº+VC+T) can significantly remove barriers to increase nutrient uptake in these soils. As a result, the simultaneous application of organic fertilizers, elemental sulfur and Thiobacillus bacteria can be a promising approach to increase the solubility of nutrients in calcareous soils and to increase the quantitative and qualitative growth of plants in these soils.

Keywords: Calcareous soils, Humic acid, Sulphur, Thiobacillus bacteria, Availability of nutrient elements, Vermicompost
Introduction: Iron (Fe) is an important micronutrient that plays a role in several crop physiological processes such as photosynthesis, respiration, and synthesis of heme proteins, DNA, RNA, and hormones. The most common Fe source used in... more
Introduction: Iron (Fe) is an important micronutrient that plays a role in several crop physiological processes such as photosynthesis, respiration, and synthesis of heme proteins, DNA, RNA, and hormones. The most common Fe source used in agriculture is Fe-EDDHA. However, the usage of this chelate may be problematic for plant growth. In the recent years, organic chelates have gained attention as they increase the microelements solubility and prevent iron precipitation in nutrient solution. Organic chelates such as amino acids and polysaccharides have many physicochemical (reactive OH, COOH and NH2 groups) and biological (biocompatible and biodegradable) properties that make these attractive materials usable for the agricultural practice. Biodegradability, low toxicity, immune system stimulation, the ability to coordinate metal, less sensitivity to photodegradation, and the effect on physical properties of rhizosphere and root growth dynamic are ideal properties of these components. The objective of this study was to evaluate Fe-organic-chelates efficiency as Fe sources for bean (Strategy I) and corn (Strategy II) growth in the hydroponic system.
Materials and Methods: In this research, we synthesized Fe-amino acid chelates including  Fe-Glycine (Fe-Gly), Fe-Phenylalanine (Fe-Phe), Fe-Tyrosine (Fe-Tyr), Fe-Methionine (Fe-Met), and Fe chitosan chelates in two forms of acidic hydrolyzed chitosan [Fe-C(A.hyd)] and enzymatic hydrolyzed chitosan [Fe-C(E.hyd)] and characterized by FTIR and CHN analyzer. The efficiency of these iron sources for bean (Strategy II) and corn (Strategy I) in hydroponic system was then evaluated. Seeds of bean and corn were washed with distilled water and transplanted into special containers containing coco peat, perlite and vermicompost (1:1:1) at 25 °C for germination and initial growth. The seedlings were transferred to polyethylene plastic lids fitting tightly over 8-L polyethylene containers under controlled conditions in the greenhouse with a light period of 8 hours per day, the temperature of 20 to 25°C and relative humidity of 65 to 75%. The pots were stacked in black color to prevent light reaching the root of the plant and the solution. In each pot, one plant seedling was placed and the basic nutrient solution was prepared in deionized water. The plants were harvested after 8 weeks, their root and shoot were separated and dried after washing with distilled water in an oven at 75 ° C. The dried samples were ground to fine powder to pass through a 20-mesh sieve. The analysis of Fe in samples was performed using atomic absorption spectrophotometer.
Result and Discussion: Application of organic chelates of amino acids and chitosan increased the shoot dry matter per plant compared to Fe-EDDHA. Fe content in shoot of corn and bean was highest using Fe-Tyr, Fe-Met and [Fe-C(A.hyd)]. Uptake and accumulation of Fe in roots were observed by using all chelates, but the highest translocation factor was found for the treatments including [Fe-C(A.hyd)] and Fe-Tyr. Translocation factor in bean plants was higher than corn, and around half of Fe in bean plants was translocated from root to shoot. The use of iron chelates in plant growth medium increased the activity of ferric chelates reductase enzymes in bean and corn compared to Fe-EDDHA. However, the mean of this enzyme activity in bean was higher than that in corn. Therefore, the activity of this enzyme can be used as an indicator for determining the iron availability in leaf cells in Strategy I and Strategy II plants. In general, the plants need less energy to absorb Fe when the chelates with a simpler structure are used.
Conclusion: The results indicated that using Fe organic chelates in the hydroponic system could supply sufficient amounts of iron for the plant uptake and also improve the root and the shoot growth of bean and corn. Overall, the effect of Fe organic chelates on Fe content of bean and corn shoots was in the following order: Fe- Chi(A.hyd) > Fe-Tyr > Fe-Met > Fe-Gly >. Activity of leaf ferric chelate reductase in bean was higher than that in corn.

Keywords: Amino acids, Bean, Chelate, Chitosan, Corn, Leaf ferric chelate reductase, Translocation factor
Introduction: Stresses of drought, salinity and deficiency of nutrients especially phosphorus (P) are the most important challenges for wheat production in Iran. One of the ways to achieve more wheat yield production is increasing of this... more
Introduction: Stresses of drought, salinity and deficiency of nutrients especially phosphorus (P) are the most important challenges for wheat production in Iran. One of the ways to achieve more wheat yield production is increasing of this plants tolerance to stresses of water-deficit, salinity and deficiency of essential elements such as P; and/or alleviate destructive effects of these stresses. In this respect, use of PGPR can be useful. Research has shown that PGPR with multiple mechanisms reduces the negative effects of water-deficit and salinity stresses, and also increases the resistance of plants to these stresses, which ultimately leads to increase of plants growth. This study was designed and carried out to investigate the effect of three superior PGPR on qualitative and quantitative indices of wheat under water-deficit stress in saline soil.
Materials and Methods: The soil used in this experiment was collected from longitude of 49° 26' 25'' E, latitude of 35° 52' 26'' N and elevation of 1534 m (located in the Qazvin province of Iran) from depth of 0-30 cm of soil. According to the experimental design, 3.5 kg of soil with applying P-fertilizers treatments was filled to the pots. The factorial arrangement based on completely randomized design (CRD) was used in this study. The treatments were replicated three times. The first factor: soil water content at two levels including 80% and 55% FC (W80 and W55); the second factor: Bacterial inoculants at four levels including control or non-inoculated seeds with bacterium (B0), inoculated seeds with Bacillus pumilus strain W72 (B1), inoculated seeds with B. safensis strain W73 (B2), inoculated seeds with Staphylococcus succinus strain R12N2 (B3); and the third factor: P-fertilizers at six levels including control or non-treated plants with P-fertilizers (F0), and plants treated with (rock phosphate) RP - (F1), RP + 19 mg triple superphosphate (TSP) / kg of soil (F2), RP + 38 mg TSP / kg of soil (F3), RP + 57 mg TSP / kg of soil (F4), with 57 mg TSP / kg of soil (F5), generally there were 144 experimental units (pots). Also, 192 mg RP (containing 13.8% P2O5 or 6.13% P) was mixed per kg of soil in each of RP treatments. Statistical analysis of data was performed using SAS software and comparison of means was evaluated by using the Tukey's test (HSD) at p < 0.05 level. There were 5 plants in each pot and irrigated up to 80% FC with distilled water. With the beginning of stem elongation stage, water-deficit stress was applied and continued until the harvest. During the experiment, pots were kept in greenhouse at 25/20±2°C day/night temperatures and 16 h photoperiod with 23,000 lux light intensity. At the end of the experiment, plants height, fertile clusters, root dry weight /shoot dry weight ratio, total dry weight of plant, grain number, thousand grain weight, also, root, shoot and grain P-concentration were measured.
Results and Discussion: Generally, it can be said that the moisture level of W80 compared to W55 increased all of measured traits in wheat plant. Due to the unique properties of water and its role in biological and non-biological reactions, by reducing soil water content to near of the permanent wilting point (W55), water absorption by the plant hardly occurs. Therefore, the plant needs to consume more energy for water absorption or grow with less water than normal status, which these factors disturb the metabolism of cells and eventually decreases natural activity and growth plant. Also, it seems that under water stress condition, wheat plant by formation of “Rhizosheaths” around their own roots, enters to the defensive phase and by this strategy prevents expansion of their own rhizosphere. With attention to the special importance of the rhizosphere in the supply of water, nutrients and activity of microorganisms, as well as the effect of microorganisms secretion and root exudates on the solubility and availability of nutrients. Thus, it is reasonable that qualitative and quantitative traits of plants decrease by reduction of the rhizosphere diameter due to the water-deficit stress. There was no significant difference between application of rock phosphate and control (F0) for most of measured traits of soil and plant; but, application of RP with bacterial treatments (B1 and B2 at W80 and B3 at both level of W55 and W80) compared to the control, often increased measured traits. Moreover, each level of TSP compared to the control, increased this trait frequently. Research indicate that RP can be used as a P-fertilizer, but its efficiency depends on its reactivity in the soil. There is ample evidence that RP has not enough efficiency in neutral and alkaline soils; but, it can be used as the P-fertilizer with proper efficiency in acidic soils or alkaline soil with application of PGPR. Basically, all of three bacterial treatments (B1, B2 and B3) at level of W80 and B3 treatment at level of W55, compared to control (without bacterial inoculation) improved qualitative and quantitative traits of plant. Research also shows that under stressful and non-stressful conditions, PGPR can improve plant growth by different strategies. However, this microorganism does not always improve plant growth under all conditions. It seems that this could be due to differences in genetic and function of bacteria and with conditions change, each bacterium may behave differently.
Conclusions: In general, for wheat cultivation that may get exposed to moisture stress at one or more stages of its growth (such as dry-farming of wheat), the use of B3 bacterial inoculant (Staphylococcus succinus strain R12N2) seems appropriate for crop management. Because in this study at both W80 (non-water-deficit stress) and W55 (severe water-deficit stress) levels of soil water content, B3 treatment increased qualitative and quantitative of wheat traits. In other words, because of the natural conditions of the dryland farming, the probability of precipitation is different; it seems that B3 treatment can increase wheat production under these conditions. However, the use of this bacterium as a biofertilizer for dryland wheat farming in Iran or other places of the world requires further testing and evaluation in dryland farms of that countries.

Keywords: Phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB), PGPR, Water deficit stress
Introduction: Soil erosion is the most widespread form of soil degradation jeopardizing food security worldwide. In Iran, gully erosion is important because about 90% of the country has arid and semi-arid climates and rainfall is not... more
Introduction: Soil erosion is the most widespread form of soil degradation jeopardizing food security worldwide. In Iran, gully erosion is important because about 90% of the country has arid and semi-arid climates and rainfall is not adequately distributed. In such conditions, the absence or lack of vegetation cover with increasing runoff causes more than 2 billion tons of soil losses annually. Therefore, conducting basic and applied researches on soil erosion via different methods for comprehensive management of natural resources is emphasized. The prerequisite for all kinds of erosion, such as gully erosion, is the prediction of the risk of gully formation in different areas susceptible to erosion.
Materials and Methods: The study area is located in Ghaleh Gorg watershed which sub-basin of Shahid Modarres that large part of these farmlands has been destroyed by gully erosion. The purpose of this study was to apply fuzzy logic operators for gully erosion zoning. In this research, six effective parameters on soil erosion including mean weight diameter of aggregate, sodium adsorption ratio, salinity, percent of fine sand, silt and clay were determined according to standard laboratory methods. After re-classification, standardization of prepared layers was carried out by the Fuzzy method. Hence, Fuzzy-based layers were integrated using operators of Fuzzy algebraic sum, Fuzzy algebraic production and Fuzzy gamma with 0.2, 0.5, 0.8, 0.9 values and the obtained results were evaluated. The validation of prepared maps was done based on two methods of map matching percentage of areas with very high and high sensitivity with gullies map of the study area and quality sum index (Qs).
Results and Discussion: The Fuzzy results of raster layers showed the relative accumulation of silt, clay and fine sand grains in the middle to western parts of the region due to leaching and soil aggregation of Aghajari formation with a high slope of >20%. The deposition of this sediments was with 0-5% slope in the middle and western part of the basin. Results of layer integration indicated the fact that the fuzzy summation and multiplication method are not suitable approaches for final mapping because of their high increasing and decreasing effects, respectively. About Fuzzy Gamma operator 0.2, the results revealed that about 17.07% of the area was in the high and very high-risk zone and 67.07% of the area was in the low risk zone. In Fuzzy Gamma 0.5, about 31.16% of the area was in high risk and 55.38% in low risk zone. And only 60.38 percent of the gullies was in the high-risk area. Thus, these both operators 0.2 and 0.5 cannot be an acceptable method for preparing the final fuzzy map. The results of gamma operator 0.8 showed that about 43.21% of the area was in high and very high risk classes and 42.45% of the area was in low and very low risk classes. In the gamma operator 0.9, about 60.92% of the area was in high and very high risk zone and 17.1% of the area was in low and very low-risk zone. Also, regarding the distribution range of gullies, 94.93% of gullies was in high and very high risk classes, which is more acceptable and better than gamma 0.8. According to the obtained results, Fuzzy gamma 0.9 with 94.93 matching percentage of areas containing very high and high sensitivity and maximum quality sum index (0.73) among different operators was selected as the best method for preparing Fuzzy map in the study area.
Conclusion: According to the results of this study and its comparison with field observations, effective factors contributing to the initiation and development of gully erosion were sensitivity of the geological formations, soil texture type, salinity and alkalinity and non-implementation of biological and biomechanical operations to the soil and vegetation cover restoration. Around 3855 hectares (60.38%) out of 6327.5 hectares of the total studied area were at high and very high erosion risk. Furthermore, 2056 hectares (94.93%) out of the 2166 hectares of the gullies area were at high and very high risk of erosion, denoting the high accuracy of the final map. Among the available methods, Fuzzy Gamma 0.9 with the highest overlap between the area of high and very high-risk classes of the gully map (94.93%), and the highest qualitative sum index (0.73), was selected as the best fuzzy method for zoning in the study area.

Keywords: Fuzzy operator, Fuzzy layers, GIS, Gully erosion, Zonation
Introduction: Rice is the second most important edible grain after wheat in Iran. The most important factor for sustainable production in rice production lands, is water. Almost 75 percent of the world's rice is produced from paddy fields... more
Introduction: Rice is the second most important edible grain after wheat in Iran. The most important factor for sustainable production in rice production lands, is water. Almost 75 percent of the world's rice is produced from paddy fields and rice is the largest consumer of water among all crops. Its growth is significantly affected by climate change and water scarcity. This research was carried out to compare the direct cultivation and transplanting of rice under different irrigation methods from the point of view of water productivity.
Material and Methods: The current work was designed as split plot based on randomized complete block design with 6 treatments and three replications in 18 plots with 6 m wide and 12 m length (72 m 2) in area of approximately 1500 m2 at the Agricultural Research Station of Golestan province in spring and the summer of 2018. Treatments including three levels of basin irrigation, sprinkler and drip (tape) irrigation were considered as main factors and two methods of direct cultivation and transplanting were considered as sub-factors.
Results and Discussion: The results of analysis of variance showed that the effect of irrigation and sowing method on the yield of rice were significant at 0.01 level probability. The highest amount of biological yield in transplanting was obtained by basin irrigation (8177 kg/ha) and in direct seeding in basin irrigation and taper irrigation (7375 and 6836 kg/ha, respectively). The highest 1000-grain weight in transplanting method was obtained in basin irrigation and direct seeding method in traditional irrigation and tape irrigation. The highest number of filled grains in the panicle was observed in the basin irrigation treatment in transplanting, with significant difference compared to the amount observed in direct seeding. Traditional irrigation between planting methods had not significant effect on the number of hollow grains; while in sprinkler and tape irrigation (with an average of 51 and 56 for sprinkler and tape irrigation, respectively), the number of hollow grains had a higher rate in direct seeding (with an average of 41 and 45 for sprinkler and tape irrigation). The results showed that basin irrigation with 8177 kg/ha grain yield in transplanting method and basin and tape irrigations with 7375 and 6836 kg/ha in direct seeding method had the highest grain yield. Sprinkler irrigation had the lowest paddy yields in transplanting (4188 kg/ha) and direct seeding (5712 kg/ha). Tape irrigation with 7390 and 6840 m3 of consumed water, resulted in lower water consumption compared to traditional irrigation (10700 and 1693 m3), respectively. The highest amount of water use efficiency was obtained in direct and tape irrigation (0.99 kg/m3) and in traditional and tape irrigation (0.76 and 0.66 kg/m3, respectively).
Conclusion: Adjusting water consumption both through lower water consumption and reduced water wastage can lead higher water productivity of rice production systems creating sustainable rice production systems. In transplanting method, tape irrigation and traditional irrigation had higher water use efficiency than sprinkler irrigation, although a significant water use reduction in tape irrigation rather than basin irrigation should be analyzed economically at real water prices. Overall, in this study, the tape irrigation method, by reducing water consumption, was able to increase water productivity and maintain the yield of rice in direct cultivation. Sprinkler irrigation had the lowest yield of rice in transplanting and direct cultivation. Problems such as lack of uniformity of spraying and waste water through the wind as well as poor quality of sprinklers are the main reasons for the decrease of the efficiency of sprinkler irrigation.

Keywords: Direct cultivation, Transplanting cultivation, Trickle irrigation, Production, Rice.
Introduction: Rice is a staple food source and the most important grain in developing countries, which is most commonly consumed by more than 90 percent of the world populations. Moreover, this plant is produced and consumed in Asia.... more
Introduction: Rice is a staple food source and the most important grain in developing countries, which is most commonly consumed by more than 90 percent of the world populations. Moreover, this plant is produced and consumed in Asia. However this major crop faces severe limitations such as water scarcity and other environmental stresses. Limited water resources along with climate change effects, have increased attention to methods which improve water use efficiency in crops such as rice cultivation. On the other hand, traditional irrigation methods for rice production often waste considerable fraction of irrigation water. Therefore, it is necessary to modify irrigation and other farming methods. Furthermore, using biochar and nitrogen fixing bacteria as organic biofertilizers can be effective methods to improve water use efficiency and yield attributes of rice plant. Therefore, the present research was conducted to investigate the effect of biochar and Azosprillum lipoferum rhizobacteria on yield and water use efficiency on Tarom Hashemi rice cultivar of under flooded and alternating irrigation regimes. 
Materials and Methods: This study was conducted at the research fields of the Sari Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University in 2017 and 2018. The experimental site is located at 36º 39ʹ42ʺ N latitude and 53º03´54ʺ E longitude with -11 m above sea level. Soil samples were taken from depths of 0-30 cm before land preparation. The experiment was done in factorial split-split plot arrangement with complete randomized blocks based design with three replications. Treatments included two irrigation management methods (flooding and irrigation regimes) in combination with nine fertilizers levels (100% of recommended nitrogen or N100, N100+ 10 ton biochar or biochar 10, N100+ biochar 20, N75, N75+ biochar 10, N100+ biochar 20, N50, n50+ biochar 10 and N100+ biochar 20) as main plots and seedling inoculation with Azospirillum lipoferum bacteria (without inoculation was also included as control) as sub plots. Plot ridges were covered by plastic sheets and inserted into the soil at 50 cm to prevent water flowing from one plot to the others. The plots were then leveled and 3-4 leaf seedlings stage. A specific number of seedlings were gently washed and placed for 30 minutes in a pan containing 10 L of water mixed with 1 L of bacterial inoculum. Carboxymethyl cellulose, 15 g, was added to increase adhesion of bacteria into the plant roots. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers were applied according to the results of soil analysis. Weeds and pests were controlled mechanically or by hand and no herbicides or pesticides were used.
Results and Discussion: Results showed that biochar and nitrogen fertilizers, irrigation methods, and seedling inoculation with bacteria had significant effects on water use efficiency indices. Comparison of means of interaction effects showed that the highest paddy yield (5950.43 and 5330.78 kg/ha, respectively) were observed by flooding irrigation method in combination with N50 + biochar 20 treatment and inoculated by Azospirillum lipoferum bacteria and alternating irrigation management method which was along with N50 + biochar 20 without inoculation. Alternating irrigation plots experienced water shortage in some growth stages and therefore slightly lower paddy yield is acceptable. Application of biochar 20 and flooding or alternating methods which treated by N75 and N50, respectively showed 49.1% increase in economic efficiency index.
Conclusion: In general, application of 20 ton biachar along with 75% nitrogen fertilizers led to 42.8% increase in economic advantages in alternating irrigation method as compared to the flooding systems. These observation indicates beneficial effect of fertilizer in economic advantage enhancement in rice cultivation.

Keywords: Biochar, Azospirillum lipoferum, Water use efficiency index, Rice
Introduction: The date bunch fading disorder causes huge loss on farmers' incomes and damages to economy of date producing regions. Thus it is important to find a way for controlling the disorder or reducing its economic damages. It seems... more
Introduction: The date bunch fading disorder causes huge loss on farmers' incomes and damages to economy of date producing regions. Thus it is important to find a way for controlling the disorder or reducing its economic damages. It seems that the water losses of the tree under critical environmental conditions, such as high temperature and very low air relative humidity, cause date bunch fading disorder especially when is accompanied by regional warm wind. According to the scientific literatures, the use of different covers on bunches, high-frequency irrigation, foliar application of mineral nutrients and anti-transpiring substances, and soil mineral fertilization can affect date palm bunch fading disorder. Superabsorbent polymers have great capability for storage water and can be used in soil to improve its water retention and increase soil available water under drought conditions. On the other hand, potassium has important roles in metabolism of carbohydrates, plant water relations as the major element in action mechanism of stomata, and plant water osmotic potential. Organic matter can also improve soil physical properties, i.e., soil structure and soil available water as well as soil fertility and bioavailability of mineral nutrients. Because of mentioned roles of these three factors, the effects of them on date palm bunch fading disorder were investigated in this research.
Materials and Methods: The effects of superabsorbent, potassium fertilizer, and manure on yield and date bunch fading disorder of "Mazafati" date palm cultivar were investigated in Jiroft, Kerman province, south of Iran. An experiment was conducted in factorial randomized complete block design. The factors were included superabsorbent polymer A200 in 0 (S1), 200 (S2), and 300 (S3) g.tree-1 levels, potassium sulfate fertilizer in 0 (K1), 2 (K2), and 3 (K3) kg.tree-1 levels, and cow manure in 0 (O1), 65 (O2), and 130 (O3) kg.tree-1 levels. Treatments were applied in February in three blocks and harvest was done at the first half of August. The yield of intact fruits, the yield of dried and dropped fruits (collected in an elastic silicone wire cloth cover), and total yield were determined at the harvest time and date bunch fading disorder was calculated as weight percentage (the dried fruits weight was divided by the total fruits weight and multiplied by 100, in each plot). Weight, diameter, and length of fruits were measured and determined from a random sample containing 30 intact fruits per each plot (a tree). Statistical analysis was done by IBM SPSS Statistics version 25.
Results and Discussion: According to the results, the block had no significant effect on any of studied parameters, on the other hand, the results showed significant effects of all three factors on all of the measured parameters including percentage of date bunch fading disorder, total fruits yield, intact fruits yield, fruit weight, fruit diameter, and fruit length, except fruit length by the manure factor, by ANOVA at the 0.01 level. Three factors interaction significantly affected only the fruit characteristics including weight, diameter, and length of fruit. About the intact and total fruits yield and date bunch fading disorder, interactions between superabsorbent and two other factors were statistically significant. The highest means of intact fruits yield were observed in S3K3 and S3O3 treatments (28.9 and 28.7 kg.tree-1) increased by 98% and 93% compared to S1K1 and S1O1 treatments, respectively; and they were also significantly higher than those of all other treatments. The maximum means of total yield were found in S3K3 and S3O3 treatments (35.0 and 26.8 kg.tree-1) increased by 33% and 28% compared to S1K1 and S1O1 treatments, respectively. The mean percentage of date bunch fading disorder was significantly decreased by increasing the levels of superabsorbent, potassium fertilizer, and manure factors in interactions between superabsorbent and two other factors (SK and SO interactions), thus the lowest mean of date bunch fading disorder percentage in both interactions was found in third levels of each factor (S3K3 and S3O3 treatments), decreased by 60% and 63% compared to S1K1 and S1O1 treatments, respectively. The lowest and the highest mean of fruit weight, fruit diameter, and fruit length parameters were observed in S2K1O3 and S3K3O3 treatments, respectively. Negative significant correlations were found between percentage of date bunch fading disorder and total fruits yield, intact fruits yield, fruit moisture, fruit weight, fruit diameter, and fruit length, while the last six parameters had positive significant correlations with each other. In addition to common positive effects of three factors on water supply improvement, they can influence plant progress in different ways, such as carbohydrate metabolism and activation of some enzymes by potassium, and increasing of mineral nutrients availability and soil microbial activities by organic matter and manure. Therefore, these three factors could have some positive interactions on their effects on control of the disorder, increasing the yield, and improvement of weight and size of fruit. An observed decrease in weight and size of fruit by using 2nd level of superabsorbent and 3rd level of manure can be resulted from significant decrease in percentage of disorder and finally competition between safe fruits for potassium in carbohydrate metabolism and so on.
Conclusion: According to the results of this research, applying of superabsorbent polymer (300 g.tree-1), potassium fertilizer (3 kg.tree-1), and manure (130 kg.tree-1) together can be recommended to improve qualitative parameters of date palm fruits (weight, length, and diameter). Applying the 3rd levels of these factors together can also control date bunch fading disorder cv. Mazafati, and increase the economic income because of qualitative improvement of fruits.

Keywords: Date palm, Fertilizer, Fruit size, Superabsorbent polymer A200, Water availability, Yield
Background and Objectives: High-accuracy of soil maps is a powerful tool for achieving land sustainability in agricultural and natural resources. This study was conducted to determine the effect of different feature selection methods with... more
Background and Objectives: High-accuracy of soil maps is a powerful tool for achieving land sustainability in agricultural and natural resources. This study was conducted to determine the effect of different feature selection methods with machine-learning algorithms to prepare digital mapping of soil classes at two taxonomic levels from subgroup down to family in the interest region, i.e. Vargar lands of Abdanan city, related to the Ilam province.
Materials and Methods: Study area is 1027 hectares with 628.6 mm and 22.6 ºC mean annual precipitation and temperature, respectively. Three major physiographic units including Hilland, Piedmont plain and Alluvial plain were considered. Soil moisture and temperature regimes are calculated based on the Newhall model in JNSM 6.1 version software. A total of 44 soil profile observation with random sampling pattern was determined based on standardized soil surveys then digging, description and after sampling from all genetic horizons then soil samples were transferred to the laboratory. Finally, all of the soil profiles were classified based on the soil taxonomy system (2014) down to the family level. Geomorphometric covariates as a representative of soil-forming factors were prepared from the digital elevation model (ALOS PALSAR Satellite,2011) with 12.5 m resolution in SAGA GIS 7.4 version software. Three feature selection approaches included Boruta, Variance inflation factors (VIF) and Mean decrease accuracy (MDA) with two Random forest (RF) and Fuzzy logic data mining algorithms were applied for relating soil-landscape relationship by using “random-forest”, “caret” packages in R 3.5.1 and SoLIM solution version 2015 software’s. Sample-based project used for predicting soil classes in Fuzzy logic modeling process. In total observation profile split into two data set included 80 percent (n=36) for calibrating and 20 percent for validating (n=8) based on bootstraps sampling algorithm random forest. Internal validation of the random forest algorithm was done based on out of bag error percentage (OOB%). The best model performance was determined based on overall accuracy (OA) and kappa index, also for each individual class user accuracy (UA) and producer accuracy (PA) were applied.
Results: The results have shown that from a number of 40 geomorphometry covariates, six covariates included Terrain classification index for lowlands, Annual insolation, Topographic position Index, Upslope curvature, Real surface area, and Terrain surface convexity were selected by MDA as the best environmental covariates. Also, the RF-MDA method with overall accuracy of 84% and Kappa index of 0.56 had the best performance compared to other methods (RF_VIF, RF-BO, Fuzzy-MDA) in the subgroup level with 58, 55, 50 and 0.3, 0.67 and 0.18 respectively. Out of bag error results (%OOB) for RF-MDA, RF-VIF and RF-Boruta were obtained that 72.42%, 67.86%, and 82.76% for subgroup level and 93.10%, 93.10% and 86.21% for the family level respectively. while there was little difference between the accuracy of the method at the family taxonomic level and performed similar results in the modeling of soil classes process. The results of the fuzzy approach showed that the kappa index values and overall accuracy of this method were similar to the other three scenarios and there was a slight difference between the accuracy of the results at the soil family level. In the fuzzy method, it was observed that the kappa and overall accuracy values at the subgroup level were lower than the other scenarios. Fuzzy approaches in contrasted to RF modeling prevented continuous spatial variability by generating fuzzy maps for each of the soil classes in the landscape. These results indicate that the random forest method is superior to the fuzzy method in family class mapping and soil subgroups. Based on the MDA sensitivity analysis index, similarly, three geomorphometry covariates included Terrain surface convexity (convexity), Terrain classification index for lowlands (TCI_Low) and Real surface area (Surface_Ar) had the highest importance for predicting soil classes at two taxonomic levels. With regarded to final soil predicted maps area, two classes (Fine-silty, carbonatic, hyperthermic Typic Haplustepts) and Typic Calciustolls with 32.70% and 48.90% and (Fine-silty, carbonatic, hyperthermic Typic Calciustolls) and Typic Haplustepts with 0.18% and 1.85% had the highest and lowest content at family and subgroup maps respectively.
Conclusion: In general, using different variable selection approaches in situations where soil classes have a relatively imbalanced abundance can increase the accuracy of digital mapping in soil studies. Increasing the number of field observations and the use of other environmental variables affecting soil formation can also be used for graduating in prediction low-accuracy soil classes.

Keywords: Random forest, Environmental covariates, Fuzzy logic, Soil mapping
Introduction: Land evaluation plays a decisive role in determination of land suitability for the intended uses. For this purpose, various approaches have been proposed, among which the parametric approach is an important one. In this... more
Introduction: Land evaluation plays a decisive role in determination of land suitability for the intended uses. For this purpose, various approaches have been proposed, among which the parametric approach is an important one. In this approach, the land index (LI) is calculated using the Khidir (the square root) and/or the Storrie methods, and then the land suitability classes were determined based on the LI. Unfortunately, in many land suitability studies, the LI has been used without any correction, called uncorrected land index (ULI) that led to different results in evaluation of land suitability approaches. The current study shows the importance of the corrected land index (CLI) and its effect on land suitability classes.
Materials and Methods: In this study land suitability classes were determined by four methods including 1-simple limitation, 2- number and intensity of limitations, 3- Kiddir (square root) and 4- Storrie, using two cases i.e. the CLI and ULI. Properties and criteria for determining land suitability classes are shown in Table1. Simple limitation method is based on the Liebig’s law or the law of the minimum. Land classes are defined according to the lowest class level of the land characteristics. Number and intensity of limitation method has been described in Table 1. In parametric approach, the ULI is calculated using Kiddir and Storrie methods as shown in equations 1 and 2, respectively. The relationships between ULI and CLI are presented in Table 2.

(1)
(2)

Then, a simulation process was done for the eight characteristics involved in calculating the land suitability index. For this purpose, one million random values were considered for each of the S1 to N2 classes; so that the minimum rating (Rmin) was a random number for each class in own defined range (Rating in Table 1) and the other seven characteristics were random numbers between Rmin and 100. For example, in the S2 class, a minimum random number is in the range of 60 to 85 and seven other characteristics were between this Rmin and 100. Finally, a total of five million random simulations were considered.
Results and Discussion: Table 3 shows the results of five million simulations for S1 to N2 classes. Based on the minimum, maximum and mean values obtained, it can be seen that the simulation process is acceptable. These numbers show that the simulations have simulated almost all the cases that may occur in reality, from the best to the worst. Based on the results, it is clear that the mean values of the ULIs or the Storrie method are much lower than the Khiddir ones (Table 3), but there was no significant difference between mean values both in Storrie and Khiddir methods using CLIs. These results are sufficient to conclude the importance of using CLIs and to show the difference between the results obtained from the CLIs and ULIs. Tables 4 to 8 show the results of one million simulations for each suitability class. The present study revealed that the results of the four employed methods using the CLIs are much closer, especially for the Storrie and Khiddir methods. All together, the simple limitation method was more consistent with the Khiddir method. On the other hand, the employed methods differed greatly when the ULIs were used. The analysis of five million simulations has shown that the contradictory results of land evaluation methods in various studies can be quite mathematically logical, but with a different probability.
Conclusion: According to the findings of the current study, it can be illustrated that it is very important and necessary to use the CLIs to determine the land suitability class. The study showed that using the CLIs leads to the closeness of the results of different methods, so that there was no significant difference between Storrie and Khiddir methods. In general, the results of the Khidir method are closer to the simple constraint method compared to Storrie.  There was a significant difference between the Khiddir and Storrie methods using the ULIs,  but the difference was too small and insignificant using the CLIs. Totally, the results of the ULIs may be largely inaccurate, misleading and unrealistic. Therefore, it is strongly suggested that the CLIs be used in determining the suitability classes, and then the results be compared with the observations in the reality.

Keywords: Land suitability evaluation, Simulation, Parametric method
Introduction: Increasing freshwater consumption caused to reduce renewable freshwater resources in recent years, and one of the basic strategies would be use of non-conventional water resources. Arsenic is one of the natural elements... more
Introduction: Increasing freshwater consumption caused to reduce renewable freshwater resources in recent years, and one of the basic strategies would be use of non-conventional water resources. Arsenic is one of the natural elements widely distributed in the Earth’s crust. It is commonly found in compounds with oxygen, chlorine, or sulfur, which generally contain inorganic arsenic compounds. Arsenic organic compounds also contain hydrogen and arsenic carbon. There are several methods that can limit the amount of arsenic in water and wastewater; one of these methods is surface adsorption. In this process, any solid that tends to absorb the fluid environment on its surface is considered as an adsorbent. Absorption capacity, selectivity, reproducibility, kinetics, compatibility, and cost are the most essential characteristics of the adsorbent.
Materials and Methods: In this study, activated carbon derived from agricultural waste was used as tertiary treatment. The heated coal powder used in this study was obtained from the almond and walnut peel waste (from Tuyserkan city of Hamedan province). Activated carbon powder was used in laboratory-scale experiments and was performed for arsenic removal from synthetics samples. Physically activated carbon was obtained and then chemically activated by acidification. Characterization tests (i.e., XRD, FT-IR, BETand SEM tests) were carried out on both types of the adsorbent. Arsenic removal was carried out in batch experiments. The effect of laboratory parameters (i.e., contact time, pH, adsorbent dose, and initial concentration) on the removal process was studied. Experiments are carried out step by step, and after optimizing each parameter and keeping the other parameters constant, all the parameters are optimized accordingly.
Results and Discussion: The contact time for the adsorption process was considerably decreased in comparison with previous studies. Kinetic and equilibrium studies showed that the adsorption process followed by Langmuir isotherm and second-degree kinetic models. Chemical activation, improved performance, and characteristics of the adsorbent. Acidified charcoal and raw charcoal were compared, and it was found that acidic charcoal had the finest cavities and had a uniform distribution. Although the volume of the cavities has not changed significantly, the structure of the cavities has changed substantially, with the most enormous volume of cavities (0.5 cm3 / g) being less than 5 nm in diameter and the average diameter of the cavities Decreased by 2 nm. According to the results of the Coal Structure Morphological Survey (SEM), in crude coal, the cavities have large openings. Their number is small, but in acidified coal, the number of cavities is increased, and the surface area of the coal is high. The high internal surface area and the presence of microstructural cavities lead to high adsorption of arsenic at the acid-adsorbed sites. With increasing contact time from 0 to 3 minutes, the removal rate of arsenic increases, and after 3 minutes to 10 minutes, it grows with a low gradient and then the removal percentage slightly. In other words, after 10 minutes, there is a balance between the solid and liquid phases. The arsenic removal rate reaches 90% at the third minute and 100% in approximately 13 minutes. As the retention time increases, the contact time of the arsenic with the adsorbent increases, and the adsorption rate increases as the opportunity for contact with the adsorption sites increases. Due to the high specific surface area of the adsorbent and its morphological characteristics, the removal rate reaches 100% with time.
Conclusion: The XRD experiment shows that improved coal is closer to the stable structure than the raw coal. According to the FT-IR experiment, the acidified charcoal decreased the oxygen and aliphatic functional groups and increased the hydrophobicity of the charcoal. The BET experiment revealed that the cavity surface size increased, and the cavity diameter decreased. The cavity distribution was such that the largest volume of cavities was in the range of nanomolecular size. The SEM image also shows an increase in the fine cavities. As a result, the adsorbent has a good morphology and reduces the adsorption time. Also, its special surface is high and has uniform cavities distribution, which can be one of the main causes of high removal percentage. The results showed that at concentrations of less than 120 µg / L and 10 min retention time, the removal rate was 100%. At higher concentrations, drinking water standards can be reached by increasing the retention time or adsorbent dose. The rate of uptake depends on both the concentration of arsenic and the amount of the adsorbent.

Keywords: Adsorption, Arsenic, Walnut shell, Water treatment
Introduction: SALTMED model is one of the most practical tools for simulating soil salinity and crop production yield. Growth models are important and efficient tools for studying and evaluating the impact of different management... more
Introduction: SALTMED model is one of the most practical tools for simulating soil salinity and crop production yield. Growth models are important and efficient tools for studying and evaluating the impact of different management conditions and scenarios on water, soil and plant relationships and can be used to make or predict appropriate management scenarios according to the region's conditions and to predict plant performance in the field. Since the performance of irrigation scenarios in field conditions are costly and time consuming, and due to the limited water resources in the country and the necessity of optimal water use in agriculture, using the efficient and generic models can be useful tool for simulating crop production and soil salinity variations. This research has been conducted in order to simulate soil salinity and yield production using SALTMED model in Azadegan Plain of Khuzestan province.
Materials and Methods: This study was carried out in wheat fields of Azadegan plain in Khuzestan province during 2014-2015 in three regions including Ramseh (as saline soil), Atabieh (as very saline soil) and Hamidieh (as control, non-saline soil). Three 10-hectare plots were selected in each area and a pilot with area of 2000 m2 was used for evaluation and measurement in each plot. First year data were used to calibrate the SALTMED model and second year field data were used to validate the model and to achieve the results in three conditions. The dominant soil texture in the area was clay loam. The quality of used irrigation water with average salinity of 2 dSm-1 was classified as C3-S1(high salinity with low sodium absorption ratio) and had no effect on wheat yield loss. In this study, version 3-04-25(2018) of SALTMED model was used and after calibrating in the first year, the results of simulated wheat grain yield and soil salinity variation values were used for model validation in different regions and in soils with different degrees of salinity, in the second year.
Results and Discussion: The average measured and simulated biomass yield in the first year were 6.6 and 6.1 t/ha, respectively. Furthermore, the average of measured and simulated of wheat grain yield was 2.9 and 2.6 t/ha, respectively. Some statistical indices including mean bias error, normalized root mean square error, and root mean square error for grain yield were 0.11, 0.04, and 0.12 t/ha, respectively. The values of the same statistical parameters for biomass were -0.49, 0.1, and 0.61t/ha, respectively. These results showed that the measured values of grain yield and wheat biomass were in good agreement with the simulated values using SALTMED model. The simulated and measured variations of soil salinity at three soil depths of  0-30, 30-60, and 60-90 cm, showed close agreement with each other in three layers. Root mean square error, normalized root mean square error, and mean bias error  for soil salinity values were 1.3, 0.20, and -0.06, respectively. After calibrating the model in the first year, to validate this model in the second year, the results of three pilots locations in three regions of Ramseh (saline), Atabieh(very saline) and Hamidieh(non-saline) were used. Comparison of simulated and measured wheat grain yield and biomass values showed that there was no significant difference between simulated and measured values. The simulated values of grain yield and wheat biomass in the three non-saline, saline and very saline soils had high correlation with the measured values, indicating high accuracy and efficiency of this model in simulating grain and biomass yield in different degrees of soil salinity. Moreover, the trend of soil salinity changes simulated by the SALTMED model in three highly saline, saline and non-saline soils (for three soil layers) was close to the measured values. The SALTMED model with normalized root mean square error and mean bias error of 0.18 and -0.13, respectively, showed good accuracy in different salinity conditions. There was no significant difference (5% level) between the measured and simulated salinity values of the different soil layers. The mean standard error at the 0-30, 30-60, and 60-90 cm layers was 1.1, 1.05, and 0.81 dSm-1, respectively. Therefore, based on the results and statistical indices, it was found that SALTMED model had good accuracy and efficiency in simulating yield, biomass and soil salinity under different salinity conditions.
Conclusion: According to the results and statistical indices, SALTMED model had good performance and accuracy in simulating grain yield, biomass and soil salinity variations in different soil salinity conditions and so it can be used to predict wheat yield, yield components and soil salinity in different soil condition with different degrees of soil salinity to sustain soil and water and improve water productivity in similar areas.

Keywords: Biomass, Calibration, Grain yield, Khuzestan province, Salinity, SALTMED model, Validation
Introduction: This research aimed to evaluate the qualitative land suitability for irrigated cultivation of Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L. cv Kabkab) using FAO (parametric -the second root formula) and Multi-criteria approaches. The... more
Introduction: This research aimed to evaluate the qualitative land suitability for irrigated cultivation of Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L. cv Kabkab) using FAO (parametric -the second root formula) and Multi-criteria approaches. The FAO approach has been used by many scholars in different parts of the world and Iran for land suitability assessment. In this approach, the most commonly used method is the parametric method. The FAO approach uses Boolean logic to assess land suitability. This logic has been criticized by a number of land evaluation researchers. Because it does not take into account the continuous nature of the soil variations along the earth's surface and the uncertainty in the measurements. To overcome these shortcomings, the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP) was presented to determine the land suitability classes. Land suitability should be determined based on a fuzzy analytical hierarchy process, in which, unlike the Boolean logic, unequal importance of different land characteristics and continuity of soil variations are considered.
Materials and Methods: The studied area is located in Kheshet and Komaroj plain, Kazerun County, Fars province, southwestern- Iran;  between latitudes 29º 32΄ and 29º 36΄ N and longitudes 51º 20΄ and 51º 22΄ E. Its surface area is 5000 ha. The mean annual rainfall and temperature are 377mm and 23 °C, respectively. The soil temperature and moisture regimes are hyperthermic and xeric, respectively. The physiographic unit is river alluvial plain with a very gently sloping. The entire Kabkab date palm plantation of Fars Province is located in this plain. To fulfill the objectives 10 date palm groves, each with an area of at least 0.5 ha and palm date (Kabkab cultivar) cultivation, aged between 20 and 25 years, identical in soil management and vary soil characteristics were selected. A soil profile was dug randomly in each date palm grove, with dimensions of 1.5 (length), 1(width) and 1.5 (depth) meters and described, using soil profile description (Soil Survey Staff). Soil samples were collected from each horizon. After pre-treatments soil samples were analyzed and some physical and chemical characteristics were measured using standard laboratory methods. The profile site was chosen to have a date palm tree in each of the four corners of the profile. The yield of the four trees in four corners of each profile was measured and their average yield was considered as the yield of the corresponding profile. Meteorological data was collected for a period of 10 years from the nearest synoptic station (Kazerun). Land indices were calculated, using soil and climatic data and FAO (parametric-second root formula) and fuzzy AHP and AHP methods. Weighted average of the climatic and the soil data were used and a land index was calculated for each soil profile. In the fuzzy AHP and AHP methods, relative weight of each of the studied criteria was determined by analytical hierarchy analysis using a pair wise comparison matrix. In the fuzzy AHP method the membership degree for each soil and climatic criteria was determined through an appropriate membership function and finally, land suitability class for each soil profile was determined. Landscape characteristics such as slope, drainage and soil depth were not considered in the land evaluation, because these characteristics did not show any limitation for the date production in the studied area. Finally the accuracy of the methods was compared.
Results and Discussion: The results of qualitative land suitability evaluation based on FAO (parametric-second root formula) method showed that about 10 and 90 percent of the studied area were classified as S2 and S3, respectively. Based upon fuzzy AHP method, 100 percent of the studied area was classified as S2 and according to AHP method about 90 and 10 percent of the studied area were in S1 and S2, respectively. According to the results, the suitability classes resulted from AHP method was higher than of the fuzzy AHP and FAO methods. Correlation coefficients between the measured yields and the calculated land indexes showed that the fuzzy AHP method results were more correlated to the measured yield than of the other two methods which indicated that the fuzzy AHP was the most appropriate method for land suitability assessment for Kabkab Date palm plantation compared to the FAO (parametric-second root formula) and AHP methods.
Conclusion: According to the results of this research, the fuzzy AHP was the most appropriate method for qualitative land suitability evaluation for Kabkab Date compared to the other two methods in Fars province, Iran.

Keywords: Date palm, Fars province, Land suitability
Introduction: Dryland farming is a major agricultural practice in northwest of Iran. Accurate understanding of soil fertility status is one of the basic needs of dryland agricultural system. Soil chemical properties play an important role... more
Introduction: Dryland farming is a major agricultural practice in northwest of Iran. Accurate understanding of soil fertility status is one of the basic needs of dryland agricultural system. Soil chemical properties play an important role in soil fertility. Assessing soil fertility is an essential need to identify environmental-friendly strategies leading to more sustainability in agricultural systems. Unfortunately, plant nutrients are insufficient in many dry farming areas of Iran, or soil conditions do not allow plant to uptake certain nutrients. Therefore, soil scientists focus on using commercial fertilizers and manures (rotation system and conservation tillage) to add nutrients and organic matter to soil. The fertility of soils can be further improved by cultivation of cover crops through adding organic matter to the soil which leads to a healthy soil with more macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients content and better structure. Therefore, evaluation of soil fertility is a basic tool for decision management in drylands and estimation of capacity of soil to maintain a continuous supply of plant nutrients for a crop production. Evaluation of soil fertility in drylands of the northwest Iran have two objectives 1) Assess nutrient status of soil-crop system 2) Diagnose suspected nutrient imbalances.
Materials and Methods: This study was carried out in northwest of Iran drylands including: west Azarbayjan, east Azarbayjan, Kurdistan and Kermanshah provinces. A total of 674 soil samples were collected from farmer’s fields in east Azarbayjan, west Azarbayjan, Kurdistan and Kermanshah 414, 97, 90 and 73 samples, respectively. The surface soil samples were taken from 0-25 cm depth in each field before the sowing of the rainfed plants in autumn by composite sampling method. After collection, soil samples were immediately dried, grounded, screened through 2 mm sieve, labelled and stored in plastic container. The samples were analyzed for 12 chemical and physical parameters include: soil texture (hydrometer method), pH (saturation paste) and EC (saturated extract), organic carbon, Total N (Kejeltak), calcium carbonate equivalence (acid-neutralizing value), phosphorus (Olsen), potassium (sodium bicarbonate extracted) and iron, zinc, Mn and copper (DTPA extracted). Soil samples were categorized as low, medium and high on the basis of their availability in soils by two Gomes (1985) (equation 1) and common (nutrient classification by critical level method for dryland wheat) methods.
X_i≤X ̅-SD Low
X ̅-SD<X_i<X ̅+SD Medium Equation (1) 
X_i≥X ̅+SD High
Where, X_i, X ̅ and SD are soil property, average of soil property in all area and standard deviation of soil property, respectively. In order to compare the levels of soil fertility of one province with those of another it is necessary to obtain a single value for each nutrient. Nutrient index value (NIV) was calculated by Parker et al., (1951) method (equation 2) for soil samples of each province or district from the proportion of soils under low, medium and high categories using following equation:
NIV=  ((〖1×S〗_Low+2×S_Medium+3×S_High))/(S_Low+S_Medium+S_High ) Equation (2)
Where,S_Low, S_Medium and S_High are number of samples testing low, medium and high category in each province, respectively. If the NIV is less than 1.67, the soil fertility status is low, the value of 1.67-2.33 reveals optimum fertility (sufficient nutrients). The values greater than 2.33 denote high fertility status.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that, the Gomes (1985) method could not classify the soil properties in all studied regions (population) correctly, due to the tends towards central limit theorem (optimal condition). Calculation of NIV showed that using conventional method (critical levels) for classification of soil properties was better than Gomes (1985) method because it was more compatible with the field conditions. The results revealed that soil salinity and calcium carbonate did not seriously make problems in dryland areas. However, increasing the amount of calcium carbonate decreased soil phosphorus, potassium, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu, significantly. Soil phosphorus and Zn were more influenced by increasing calcium carbonate. Assessment of soil fertility status by NIV showed that, soil organic matter was low (deficient) in west and east Azerbaijan with 92 and 69 percent of those areas. But total nitrogen was optimum (sufficient) in all areas with 98 percent averagely (except east Azarbayjan). This is mainly due to the application of nitrogen fertilizers in wheat drylands and conservation tillage system in some areas. Soil phosphorus was evaluated low in two west Azerbaijan (81%) and Kermanshah (67%) provinces, but in east Azerbaijan (68 %) and Kurdistan (85%) were sufficiency or high for wheat production. Potassium was more than sufficiency (high) in 90 percent of all areas averagely. Micronutrients deficiency were observed in some provinces. The results showed the deficiency of Fe with 100 and 69 percent in west Azarbayjan and Kurdistan, respectively. Deficiency of Mn with 89 percent of west Azarbayjan, Zn with 84 percent in east Azarbayjan and Cu with 100 and 87 percent in west and east Azarbayjan were also the other obtained results of this study, respectively. The results of present study suggested that nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer applications can also be important in micronutrient management in dryland areas.
Conclusion: It can be concluded that the capability of critical level method is better than Gomes (1985) method in classification of soil properties. Nutrient index value (NIV) method can efficiently evaluate soil fertility status in Iran drylands. According to this research, Fe, Zn and Cu nutrient deficiencies are just as important as P and N deficiencies in Iran dryland areas.

Keywords: Dryland, Northwest of Iran, Nutrient index value, Soil fertility
Introduction: highly increases in population growth rate, in particular in developing countries, cause high pressure on agricultural resources. In north of Iran, the pressures are compounded by restricted rice paddy fields. Reliable and... more
Introduction: highly increases in population growth rate, in particular in developing countries, cause high pressure on agricultural resources. In north of Iran, the pressures are compounded by restricted rice paddy fields. Reliable and relevant land suitability evaluations are vital requirements for land use policy and decision making to support sustainable rural development. Therefore, it is necessary to employ and compare the classic model (FAO), new release technique (multi-criteria decision making strategy) and the capabilities of fuzzy systems to assess land suitability. In recent years, multi-criteria evaluations including Boolean overlay operators and weighted linear combination methods have been increasingly used. Also, using the Ordered Weighted Average (OWA) method can improve the above-mentioned techniques. The OWA method is able to calculate the degree of risk taking and risk aversion of individuals and apply them to the selection of the final option. Therefore, the purposes of the current study were to explore the most reliable method of land suitability evaluation for rice by using integrated fuzzy decision making and determine the optimum depth of soil for quantitative land suitability evaluation for rice production in Amol, Mazandaran province.
Materials and Methods: Two-hundred soil samples from 50 observation points at four depths of 0 to 25, 25 to 50, 50 to 75 and 75 to 100 cm with a constant interval were selected. After crop harvesting and taking soil samples from four depths in 50 observation points, and from the genetic horizons of representative pedon excavated in the region, the parameters needed for land suitability evaluation of rice were measured. Then, land suitability classes were calculated using the parametric (square root), Fuzzy-AHP and Fuzzy-AHP-OWA methods and were compared in four depths from 0 to 25, 0 to 50, 0 to 75 and 0 to 100 cm. In Fuzzy-AHP method, Kandel membership functions were used to determine the membership degree and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was used to determine the weight of each of the effective land properties in crop yield. In Fuzzy-AHP-OWA method, criteria weights were obtained from AHP method and ordered weights using linguistic fuzzy quantifiers.
Results and Discussion: The results showed significant difference between the potential yield (5.5 t/ha) and the average of actual yield (3.9 t/ha) in the study area. With respect to the same and acceptable agricultural management of all plots, this difference might be due to soil limitations and subsequently a decrease in the numerical value of the soil index. Except for 0 to 25 cm soil depth, actual yield for the other soil depths showed a positive significant correlation with all calculated land indices by parametric, Fuzzy AHP and Fuzzy-AHP-OWA methods. The compatibility percentage between the representative pedon and observation points was remarkable for 0-50 and 0-100 cm depths in three studied methods. Considering time and cost consuming for land evaluation, this finding shows that 0 to 50 cm soil depth information might be a relevant alternative for the optimal depth to evaluate land suitability for rice in studied paddy fields. The results of the Fuzzy-AHP method showed that soil texture and organic carbon content were the most important soil properties for rice production. The results of land evaluation using Fuzzy-AHP-OWA method showed that with increasing the levels of risk (decreasing the value of α from 1000 to 0.0001), areas with a higher suitability degree occupy greater area. This can be explained by the fact that the strategy associated with the fuzzy quantifier all (α=1000) represents the worst-case scenario (the lowest criterion value is assigned to each location) and under the strategy associated with the fuzzy quantifier, at least one (α=0.0001), the land suitability pattern is composed of the best possible outcomes. The highest correlation coefficients (R2= 0.37) were obtained for Fuzzy-AHP-OWA (α=1) based on correlation between actual yields and calculated land indices for different depths of each parametric method, Fuzzy-AHP and Fuzzy-AHP-OWA. This is due to the high trade-off among the evaluation criteria in the half fuzzy quantifier (α=1).
Conclusion: The proposed approach based on Fuzzy-AHP-OWA has great potential to model land use suitability evaluation problem. Half fuzzy quantifier is introduced as the best scenario using Fuzzy-AHP-OWA method for rice land suitability evaluation. This is due to the high trade-off among the evaluation criteria in this quantifier. Given the fact that the land suitability studies are often costly and time consuming, the land suitability evaluation by using 0-50 cm results might be a relevant alternative for the optimal soil depth required for land suitability evaluation in paddy fields.

Keywords: Analytical hierarchy process (AHP), Fuzzy conceptual quantifier, Fuzzy logic, Ordered weighted average (OWA)
Introduction: Supplying human and animal nutritional needs requires suitable use of water resources. Due to the decrease of fresh water resources for agriculture, saline water resources cannot be ignored. Increasing water salinity reduces... more
Introduction: Supplying human and animal nutritional needs requires suitable use of water resources. Due to the decrease of fresh water resources for agriculture, saline water resources cannot be ignored. Increasing water salinity reduces the water absorption by plant, due to decreasing the water potential. On the other hand, soil infertility (such as nitrogen deficiency) decreases the evapotranspiration and crop yield. The present study was to increase the water and nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency of maize, under salinity stress condition. This was done by managing the consumption of saline water and nitrogen fertilizer. In this research, irrigation requirement was determined proportional to the plant evapotranspiration to avoid excessive saline water use.
Materials and Methods: In this research, two treatments of water salinity and nitrogen deficiency in four levels and three replications were implemented as a factorial experiment in a randomized complete block design. The studied plant was maize (S. C. 704 cultivar) sown in plots with dimensions of 3 × 3 meters and 1.5 meters distance. In this research, fertility stress was in the form of nitrogen fertilizer consumption and at four levels. Treatments of N_0، N_1، N_2  and N_3  consisted of consumption of 100, 75, 50 and 25% of nitrogen fertilizer, respectively. Salinity stress has been applied by irrigation of the plant with saline water. Water salinity treatments were selected based on the yield potential of maize, at four levels of 100, 90, 75 and 50%. According to the above four performance levels, treatments of S_0، S_1، S_2  and S_3  included irrigation water with electric conductivity of 0.5, 1.2, 3.5 and 7.5 (dS/m), respectively. The soil moisture content was measured at the depth of root development during the interval between two irrigations. Daily maize evapotranspiration was measured by the volumetric balance of water at the depth of root development. The stomata resistance of maize leaf was measured by the AP4 porometer device between two irrigations interval. Variance analysis and mean comparison of data were done by SPSS software and Duncan's multiple range test, respectively.
Results and Discussion:
Water use efficiency
In this research, the evapotranspiration and dry matter yield of maize decreased under salinity stress and nitrogen deficiency treatments. This seems to be caused by the water potential decrease (due to salinity stress) and the nitrogen deficit in the soil. Under these conditions, optimum use of water and fertilizer increased water use efficiency. At first without water and fertilizer management, water use efficiency in different treatments (S_0 N_0 to S_3 N_3), ranged from 2.74 to 4.4 kg/m^3 (in 2017) and from 2.57 to 4.35 kg/m^3 (in 2018). With suitable management of irrigation, water use efficiency, however, increased in stress treatments and approached to optimum treatment. The range of water use efficiency was from 4.2 to 4.4 kg/m^3 (in 2017) and from 4.15 to 4.32 kg/m^3 (in 2018). The reason for this was the management of irrigation volume based on actual evapotranspiration in stress treatments. On the other hand, increasing soil nitrogen was an appropriate strategy to increase water use efficiency. But in high salinity stress, despite the optimum use of water and fertilizer, it was not possible to achieve optimal water use efficiency. This is explainable by the harmful effect of salinity on the reduction of nutrient uptake (especially nitrogen) by the plant.
Nitrogen use efficiency
Soil nitrogen deficiency and increasing water salinity reduced nitrogen use efficiency. In different stress treatments, nitrogen use efficiency ranged from 3.34 to 5.11 kg/kg (in 2017) and from 3.06 to 5 kg/kg (in 2018). The results showed the destructive effect of salinity on nitrogen uptake by the plant. Under these conditions, the ions in the soil (especially the sodium and calcium) caused the plant to be unable to absorb nitrogen from the soil. Therefore, the production of plant matter was reduced. The results showed that proper management of nitrogen can increase nitrogen use efficiency under salinity stress. At high salinity levels, the nitrogen fertilizer was not, however, absorbed by the plant and accumulated in the soil.
Conclusion: The results showed that water use management could increase the water use efficiency under stress treatments, by controlling evapotranspiration. On the other hand, soil fertility increased nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency under salinity stress. Among all treatments, S_0 N_0 had optimum water and nitrogen use efficiency. Overall, the volume of water used in the field should be adjusted to the actual requirement of the plant to prevent excessive consumption under salinity stress. In addition, increasing soil nitrogen, rather than more irrigation water, appears to be a suitable strategy to increase crop yield.

Keywords: Evapotranspiration, Nitrogen deficiency, Salinity stress, Yield
Introduction: Although jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) is known as a medicinal plant and is less important than other fruit trees, it has received more attention in recent years due to its significance in traditional Iranian medicine.... more
Introduction: Although jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) is known as a medicinal plant and is less important than other fruit trees, it has received more attention in recent years due to its significance in traditional Iranian medicine. There is no study on the actual water need for jujube trees and the impact of irrigation on yield and water use efficiency in the country. However, some studies emphasized on the need of regular watering and irrigation to improve the quality and quantity of jujube fruit. Given the importance of jujube in China, extensive researches have been conducted on water requirements, plant strategies to save water, impact of drought stress on plant morpho-physiological behaviors, impact of appropriate water distribution on soil quantity and quality of plant development, root distribution patterns and its impact on the amount of water consumed. In all cases, it has been emphasized that the mechanisms of water consumption in jujube differ by climate, genotype, irrigation method and management. In order to improve the quantity and quality of jujube fruit, it is necessary to balance the soil moisture condition and keep the plant away from stress. However, dehydration in jujube is a serious issue that should be addressed with the aim of saving water and improving fruit quality. In this study, the actual water requirement of the plant, the effect of different levels of deficit irrigation on evapotranspiration (ET) and crop coefficient (Kc) rate, yield and water use efficiency (WUE) in jujube trees were investigated. The moisture stress was applied through all stages of plant growth by deficit irrigation.
Materials and Methods: In this study, the lysimeter experiment site of Yazd (Shahid Sadoghi Desertification Research Station) with 20 weighing drainage lysimeters (170 cm in height and 121 cm in diameter) was used. To measure evaporation from the soil surface, one lysimeter without plant was used. Note that the moisture content in this lysimeter was always maintained at the field capacity. For the measurement of reference ET (ET0), one lysimeter was used and it compared with ET0 calculated by Penman-Monteith-FAO. After preparing the lysimeters and providing the conditions for planting seedlings, we planted one tree per lysimeter. Trees collected from the villages of Alqoor, Flarg and Gyuk (South Khorasan Province). The suckers were two-years-old with the same size and shape. Trees were irrigated with 50 liters water on a weekly basis for six months. At the beginning of autumn of 2018, treatments including complete irrigation (field capacity), 30% and 60% of deficit irrigation were conducted in a completely randomized design with six replications. Soil moisture measurement during the experiment was performed by TDR. Soil moisture was recorded at 4 depths (0-30, 30-60, 60-90 and 90-120 cm) and their mean was considered as an index of soil moisture status to compensate the irrigation fraction. During the experiment and at the end, indices such as different stages of plant growth, ET, ET0, Kc, yield and WUE were determined. The data were analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the statistical package SPSS ver. 16.0, and the mean values were also compared using LSD multiple range test (α = 0.05).
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the jujube trees began their vegetative growth from late March (leaves appear) until the end of November (leaves fall) over 2017-2018 agronomic year in Yazd. During this time, which lasted about 235 days, four major and important stages were evident. The steps cited were in FAO's recommendation for deciduous fruit trees (in Issue 122 of the Iranian Irrigation and Drainage National Committee). The results of these studies showed that the length of different growth periods of jujube trees (including early stage, plant development stage, mid stage and end stage) was different with another deciduous fruit trees. ET values in three irrigation regimes showed that the highest ET was observed in July and the lowest in March. Annual ET in control, 30% and 60% of deficit irrigation treatments were 828.06, 514.04 and 386.04 mm, respectively, with 0.45, 0.28 and 0.21, annual Kc, respectively. The results of ET and Kc computed at different growth stages showed that the reproductive growth development period (flowering, fruit set beginning of fruit growth) had the highest ET. In control treatment, the lowest ET (60.81 mm) and Kc (0.27) were observed in early growth period with less than 10% of crown cover. The highest ET (316.22 mm) and Kc (0.60) were found in growth development period with full crown cover. Analysis of variance showed that there was a significant difference (P <0.0001) between the different irrigation treatments in terms of dry matter yield. There was a significant difference for WUE (P <0.001) between different irrigation treatments. Each of different irrigation regimes had a significant difference in yield. The highest yield for each tree was found for the control treatment with 229.36 g and the lowest yield with 57.90 g was observed for 60% deficit irrigation regime. There was no significant difference between control and 30% deficit irrigation treatment in WUE. The value of WUE decreased with increasing the drought stress. In 60% deficit irrigation treatment, WUE was 0.366 g fruit dry weight per liter denoting the significant difference between this irrigation treatment and the others.
Conclusion: The results of this study showed that jujube trees were susceptible to drought stress in all four stages of growth, especially the period of growth coinciding with flowering, fruit set and early fruit growth. Hence, jujube trees yield and WUE seem to decrease under drought.

Keywords: Deficit irrigation, Fruit, Water requirement, Water use efficiency
Introduction: Suspended load estimation is utilized to study and investigate many problems of water engineering sciences such as dam reservoir design, transportation of sediments and pollution in the rivers, creation of stable channels,... more
Introduction: Suspended load estimation is utilized to study and investigate many problems of water engineering sciences such as dam reservoir design, transportation of sediments and pollution in the rivers, creation of stable channels, estimation of erosion and sedimentation around bridge piers, and watershed management. The purpose of this study was to estimate the suspended load in the Dareh-Roud watershed in Ardabil province using the rivers discharge values and the physiographic characteristics of the sub-basins. Moreover, annual suspended load and sediment specific discharge were calculated for the whole of the watershed.
Materials and Methods: In this study, the Dareh-Roud watershed in Ardebil province was considered as the study area. The flow discharge and suspended load data were collected from 16 hydrometric stations with a statistical period of 15 years from 2001-2015. The physiographic characteristics of sub-basins, including area (A), slope (S), shape factor (Sf), and curve number (CN), were achieved using ArcGIS and WMS. Five different input combinations were defined based on the effect of flow discharge variables and physiographic properties on the suspended load. Also, considering the area and slope parameters, the sub-basins were divided into two groups (i.e., the first and second groups). The performance of data-intelligent models, including Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), Adaptive Neural-Fuzzy Interference System (ANFIS), and Gene Expression Programming (GEP) models were investigated in the predict of the suspended load in the study area. Several statistical indicators, including determination coefficient (R2), root mean square error (RMSE), and Nash- Sutcliffe efficiency (NS), were utilized to evaluate the model’s efficiency.
Results and Discussion: According to the results, estimation of suspended load without using the physiographic characteristics resulted in a high error, and in contrast, the suspended load estimation was most accurate by using a combined scenario involving all physiographic aspects and flow discharge. The scatterplots indicated that in the first group, the points were concentrated around the 1:1 axis for the values of less than 20 (ton/day). However, for the greater amounts, the scattering of issues around the one-to-one line was not appropriate, which means that the models were in the condition of underestimation. Similar conditions were observed for the second group, the excellent dispersion was seen for the values of less than 1000 (ton/day), and in general, the models had underestimation conditions. However, in both groups, the dispersion of the GEP model was somewhat better than the other models. Based on the values of R2 and NS, ANN and ANFIS models had the acceptable and satisfactory accuracy for the first group. The GEP model was more reliable and efficient in estimating the suspended load of the first group. On the other hand, the efficiency of ANN and ANFIS was not acceptable for the second group. Comparison of the results of different models using the best input combination indicated that the GEP model with the highest determination coefficient (R2 = 0.68), the lowest root mean square error (RMSE = 7.69 ton/day). The NS equal to 0.55 in the validation step has shown better performance than the other models in estimating the suspended load for the first group. Similarly, for the second group, the GEP model with the highest determination coefficient (R2 = 0.72), the lowest root means square error (RMSE = 975.26 ton/day). The NS equal to 0.43 in the validation step has shown better performance than other models in estimating the suspended load.
Conclusion: In the present study, the efficiency of different intelligent models was investigated in the suspended load estimation of Dareh-roud watershed. In this regard, an extended period (i.e., during 15 years) of measured data, including flow discharge and sediment at the hydrometric stations located on the mentioned watershed, were used. In order to simulate the suspended load, five different input combinations were considered. For all models, the accuracy of suspended load estimation was improved by combining the physiographic characteristics and discharge values. Due to the higher accuracy of the GEP model, regional sediment models were achieved for the first and second groups, separately. Also, annual suspended load and sediment specific discharge were calculated for all sub-basins. According to the results, most of the suspended load of the Dareh-Roud watershed is produced and transported in its old rivers (i.e., Dareh-Roud and Qarah-Su). Based on the results of this research, in the Dareh-Roud watershed, 6.33 million tons of suspended sediments were transported during 2001-2015.

Keywords: Suspended load, Dareh-Roud, Intelligent models, Specific sediment discharge
Introduction: In recent years much attention has been paid to the environment, especially river and lake pollution. Rivers and streams are usually receiving the outlet of sewage systems which may cause pollutant levels to rise. Pollutant... more
Introduction: In recent years much attention has been paid to the environment, especially river and lake pollution. Rivers and streams are usually receiving the outlet of sewage systems which may cause pollutant levels to rise.  Pollutant dispersion is a key element in water quality modeling and the longitudinal dispersion coefficient is an important factor in stream pollution modeling due to its effect on pollutant mixing intensity. Various methods proposed to estimate longitudinal dispersion coefficient in natural streams based on different procedures and different set of data. The performance of the methods presented in previous research is mainly based on precision indices that alone cannot be used as a comprehensive index for comparing different methods.
Materials and Methods: In this study, in order to evaluate the performance of different methods, a combination of uncertainty criteria along with accuracy indexes were considered. First, the interval analysis approach was used to evaluate the uncertainty of different methods such as Deng et al. (2001), Kashefipour and Falconer (2002), Sahin (2014), Zeng and Huai (2014), M5 and Gene Expression methods. For ± 10% uncertainty in the independent parameters of estimating dispersion coefficient, for all 164 measured data, the probability bands of computational longitudinal dispersion coefficient was obtained for the 6 estimator methods. Then, by comparing the actual measured values with the position of the computational uncertainty bands, 10 uncertainty and accuracy indices were calculated for each estimator method. To determine the most appropriate method for estimating longitudinal dispersion coefficient with less relative uncertainty and greater relative accuracy, weighting was performed on 10 uncertainty-accuracy indices using the G1 weighting method, and then the performance of the methods was evaluated by three multi-criteria decision models including CUI, TOPSIS and VIKOR.
Results and Discussion: Based on the results, the M5 tree model has the lowest containing ratio among all methods and also has the lowest band, while the Kashefipour and Falconer (2002) model has the highest containing ratio and band values. In addition, for all methods except the method of Deng et al. (2001), the parameter of average deviation amplitude decreases with increasing containing ratio. Among the methods used, the M5 tree model has the lowest CR and the highest D. Based on the uncertainty and accuracy analysis, the method of Deng et al. (2001) was better than other methods and then the equation presented by Zeng and Huai (2014) with CUI = 0.717 had the best performance. The two data-driven methods of the M5 and GE are also ranked next. The results of TOPSIS method are completely in accordance with CUI method and there is no difference between the two methods. According to the VIKOR method, the two methods of Deng et al. (2001) and Zeng and Huai (2014) performed the best, followed by data-driven models. The only difference between the results of the VIKOR model and the two CUI and TOPSIS methods is the ranking of the two data-driven methods, so the GE model is more efficient than the M5 model in VIKOR method.
Conclusion: The results of the three multi-criteria decision-making methods were close to each other and in all the methods, the mathematical model of Deng et al. (2001) and the empirical model of Zeng and Huai (2014) were more efficient than the other methods. It is important to note that the uncertainties of decision-making models have not been examined in this study and the purpose of the present uncertainty study has been to quantify the inherent uncertainties of the methods and relationships for estimating the longitudinal dispersion coefficient.

Keywords: Multi-criteria decision models, VIKOR, TOPSIS, CUI
Introduction: Sugarcane fields of the southwest of Iran have heavy soil texture, high temperatures, hot and dry wind flow at spring and summer seasons. The electrical conductivity of irrigation water was considered about 1.1 dS.m-1, in... more
Introduction: Sugarcane fields of the southwest of Iran have heavy soil texture, high temperatures, hot and dry wind flow at spring and summer seasons. The electrical conductivity of irrigation water was considered about 1.1 dS.m-1, in basic designs of this irrigation method. In addition to sugarcane production, sugar is a fundamental good in the economic section of Iran. It has multiple use in food, medical and chemical industry, production of by-products such as feedstuffs, yeast and alcohol, wood and paper. Sugarcane requires lots of water during the growing period and sensitive to water stress and is not compatible with long duration of flooding. If groundwater rises and covers the root zone, crop yield decreases due to root rot. Significant benefits are identified in terms of increased yield, improved crop quality, reduction in applied water, and reduced agronomic costs for weed control, fertilization, and tillage. Improved water management is crucial for a sustainable future, and SDI will be one tool that is available to improve water productivity. The main advantages of SDI are related to water savings because water is applied directly to the crop’s root zone, which prevents losses due to direct evaporation from the soil and deep drainage, and, if properly managed, SDI allows for the maintenance of appropriate levels of soil moisture. Due to the water crisis in Iran, this study aimed to reduce the volume of consumed water and water productivity for sugarcane and sugar yield by managing water consumption using drip irrigation for the first time in the cultivation of sugarcane.
Material and Methods: According to recent droughts and severe water crises in Iran, subsurface drip irrigation was implemented in sugarcane for the first time. It seems that water consumed in subsurface drip irrigation is less than other methods. Therefore, its effect was investigated by 15, 20, and 30 cm depths and 75 cm space of subsurface emitters and comparison with control, on water productivity and sugarcane yield. An experiment based on randomized complete block design was carried out at the Sugarcane Research and Training Institute of Khuzestan in the South-West of Iran. After harvesting the plant field (start Ratoon), soil samples were collected at 0-30, 30-60, and 60-90 cm depths. In order to measure the bulk density of soil, samples were collected from the undistributed samples with sampler cylinders, and the texture was determined by the hydrometer method. To assess soil moisture percentage, pressure plate was used for determining content in field capacity (FC) and permanent wilting point (PWP) (the results were 25.1% and 12.9%, respectively). Emitters were pressure controlled emitter type, anti-siphon and the pressure at the pump station was 4.3 bar, and emitters with a flow 2.2 liter-1 and the depth of emitters pipes were 15, 20, and 30 cm from the surface soil. Depending on irrigation frequencies and irrigation water acidity, acid was injected into the irrigation water to prevent clogging of the emitters. After a specified time, it was discharged from the network.
Regarding the presence of algae in irrigation water, chlorine gas was used in acid filtration before irrigation in field capacity. Finally, the average quantity and quality functions and Water Productivity in subsurface drip irrigation were compared with compression irrigation. For data fitting and curves, EXCEL software was used, and SAS statistical software was used for statistical analysis. Also, to investigate the salinity distribution in drip irrigation, the mean soil samples were used during the sampling period. The figures were drawn using 8 Surfer software in two dimensions. In drawing the shapes, Craig’s introspection was used.
Results and Discussion: High evaporation, air temperature, and relatively low quality of irrigation water are the most important limiting factors for sugarcane irrigation in Khuzestan. It seems that according to the research records, the irrigation of subsurface drops with proper management is successful. Therefore, for this purpose, the effect of planting depth of 15, 20, and 30 and a distance of 75 cm drops and to compare with the regular irrigation of sugarcane lands as control (control), on water productivity and sugarcane yield complete random blocks was applied.
The results of the analysis of variance of quantitative traits showed significant effects of the planting depth of droplets, in terms of yield at the level of one percent and in terms of stem height traits, number of stems per hectare, and water efficiency per sugarcane and produced sugar, at the level of five percent. According to the results of qualitative traits, the effect of treatment of droplet implant depth in all traits was non-significant. At a depth of 20 cm, the highest efficiency of water production for sugarcane and sugar production were 1.6 and 0.73 kg / m3, respectively. The lowest water productivity for sugarcane and sugar produced in the control treatment was 4.2 and 0.51 kg / m3, respectively. As a result, water productivity in the treatment of selected index (planting depth of 20 cm) per sugarcane and produced sugar has resulted in an increase of more than 30% in water productivity compared to the usual irrigation of fields (control). The results of salinity distribution around the droplets also showed that under the conditions of irrigation of subsurface droplets with salt water, the lowest salinity values were always seen as a range around the droplets. With increasing distance from the droplets, the salinity increased. More salts The drops are concentrated in the streams on both sides of the drops, The highest salinity occurred at the bottom of the furrow, and the lowest salinity was found on the ridge, where the drip pipe was planted and on either side of which there were two rows of reeds.
Conclusion: Subsurface drip irrigation is one of the most optimal irrigation methods that are almost unknown to sugarcane in the executive, research, and academic sectors, and has been implemented for the first time in sugarcane cultivation in Iran. Given the recent droughts and the crisis and water scarcity, and the importance of environmental issues, it will be invaluable to investigate further and apply them. In general, in this study, using a flow rate of 2.2 lit/hr and a space of 75 cm and an installation depth of 20 cm droplets, the highest quantitative and qualitative functions and the highest water productivity per sugar cane. And the sugar produced. Also, regardless of any deepening treatment, the drip irrigation system, compared to the conventional irrigation system, reduced water consumption by about 20% and water yield by 26% per sugarcane and sugar produced. According to the results and considering the uniformity of moisture distribution, soil surface salinity, lack of runoff, protection of the discharge pipe, removal of surface evaporation and sugarcane root development, depth of 20 cm, application of the discharge pipe with a distance of 75 cm drops on the hose with a flow rate of 2.2 lit/hr are recommended. Also, although the distribution of moisture onions is provided up to a distance of 80 cm, a shorter distance between the droplets, such as 60 cm with the above flow, needs further investigation.

Keywords: Subsurface drip irrigation, Emitters, Salinity dynamics, Sugarcane yield, Water Productivity
Introduction: In recent years, canola cultivation in Iran has been considered as oil production, and in 2014-2015, it has been allocated to 7.7% of the cultivation area of industrial products of the country. The yield of canola oil and... more
Introduction: In recent years, canola cultivation in Iran has been considered as oil production, and in 2014-2015, it has been allocated to 7.7% of the cultivation area of industrial products of the country. The yield of canola oil and seeds depends on the availability of sufficient water resources during the growth period. In the Mediterranean, with the cultivation of canola autumn, the high- temperature occurs in the stages of formation and growth of seeds in the spring can increase the water requirement of this plant and irrigation management at this time is important in increasing plant yield. Due to the weather conditions of each area, type of variety and soil conditions may vary the need for canola. In one study in Hamedan water use efficiency of canola in two ways drip and furrow irrigation were calculated as 1.09 and 0.63 kg m-3, respectively. The present study was conducted with the purpose of evaluating the net water requirement of canola plant in different cities of Isfahan province into different climatic zones and considering the phonological stages.
Materials and Methods: In order to estimate the net water requirement of canola under two different climates (arid-cold winter with temperatures above freezing point - hot summer A-C-W) and (Semi-arid-cold winter with a temperature equal to or less than zero-hot summer SA-K-W) in Isfahan province, a research was conducted in 2014-2015 using a completely randomized, unbalanced design. The study was carried out in different cities of Isfahan province, which have canola cultivation. The required statistical information was obtained from 28 stations of synoptic and climatologic meteorology in Isfahan province and some neighboring provinces. Soil data was used to calculate the soil evaporation coefficient (Ke), which describes the evaporation component in the trait (ETc). In order to calculate the soil properties, in addition to the sampling of existing fields, a database of 1600 soil profiles in the Soil and Water Research Department of Isfahan province was also used. The plant growth stages were considered based on FAO’s 56 irrigation and drainage journal. For analyzing data in each climate, a completely randomized, unbalanced design (with inequality repeat) was used, and the meanings were compared with Duncan’s multiple range test (at 5% level).
Results and Discussion: There was a significant difference (α=1%) between the different cities in terms of total water consumption and the net water requirement of different phenological growth stages. In the SA-K-W climate, the net water requirement for each hectare of canola cultivated in the cities of Fereydoun Shahr, Friedan, Golpayegan, Khansari, Semirom, Tiran and Karvan, Shahreza, Chadegan, Dehaghan, and Boein va Mian Dasht was 3936, 4069, 4258, 4011, 3991, 4147, 3964, 3961, 4035 and 4055 m-3, respectively. In the SA-K-W climate (with ten cities), the net water requirement of canola was estimated at 4,000 m-3 ha-1. The difference between the highest and the least water requirement in this climate were 322 m-3 ha-1 and related to cities of Frieden and Fereydoun City, respectively. In the climate of A-C-W (12 cities), canola net water requirement was 892 m-3 ha-1 more than the net water requirement of this crop in the SA-K-W climate. On average, the initial, developmental, and (middle and final) net water requirements of the canola in the A-C-W climate were 540, 2150, and 2200 m-3 ha-1, respectively. The net irrigation requirement estimated for each ha-1 of canola cultivation in Isfahan, Ardestan, Khomeini Shahr, Falavarjan, Kashan, Lenjanat, Naein, Najaf Abad, Natanz, Shahin Shahr, Mobarakeh, and Borkhar cities was 4747. 4807. 4797, 5,105, 4885, 4908, 4750, 4785, 4974, 4971, 4879 and 5097 m-3, respectively.
Conclusion: Based on the results of the 10 cities in the SA-K-W climate, canola production per hectare requires an average of 4,000 cubic meters of net water per hectare. In the A-C-W climate of 12 cities, the average net water requirement per hectare was 4892 m-3. The difference in water requirement between this climate and the climate of SA-K-W was related to the middle and late stages of canola growth.

Keywords: Early growth stage, Development stage, Yield, Water requirement
Introduction: Reducing water resources in the country and increasing water loss in different methods of irrigation have increased oriented the attention to pressurized irrigation, especially drip irrigation. One of the most suitable... more
Introduction: Reducing water resources in the country and increasing water loss in different methods of irrigation have increased oriented the attention to pressurized irrigation, especially drip irrigation. One of the most suitable solutions for proper water resources management in the country is applying drip irrigation system in gardens. The village of Mohammad Abad is located in the central part of Anbarabad Township and has 15 villages. The main economic activity is  horticultural practices there. Water losses due to soil evaporation are minimized in pressurized irrigation due to the decrease in the level of soil wetting, as well as the loss of water distribution in the air or soaking the foliage by this method. The use of this method reduces the growth of weeds and, consequently, unwanted water consumption by weeds, which ultimately affects the various aspects of rural life in the area. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of new irrigation systems on villagers in Mohammad Abad village. Therefore, this research sought to answer the question of what are the consequences of new irrigation systems in the rural areas of Mohammad Abad.
Materials and Methods: The research method was based on the applied objective and descriptive-analytic based on the method used. To collect the information in the theoretical part of the documentary resources, in the practical section, a survey method based on the distribution of the questionnaire and direct observation was used. The statistical population of the research was Mohammad Abad village with 15 villages, 1113 households and 5358 people. The four villages including 300 households and 955 people which employed modern irrigation systems were sampled. Next sampling was based on the number of households. According to the research facilities, 50% of households was selected as 150 households. Then, the questionnaires were distributed randomly among the households' supervisors of the village to the number specified, which was allocated according to the population of each village. In the present study, SPSS software was used to analyze the data and Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis and one-sample T-test were used to measure the variables. The information gathering tool was a researcher-made questionnaire.
Results and Discussion: Based on the results, the highest employment in the agriculture and horticulture sector was at 45.3%, which is due to the climate of the surveyed community, and the land inheritance laws. The lowest employment rate was in the administrative and service sector with an average of 5.3%. Moreover, according to the table below, 94.7% of owners have new and drip irrigation systems. Additionally, 13 items were considered to investigate the effect of new irrigation systems on villagers' life. All items were achieved a weighted average and higher score. According to the items studied, the target issue was related to increasing the household welfare (3.78), quantitative and qualitative products (3.76), increasing household welfare (3.78), improving quality of life (3.65), reducing the motivation of immigration (3.49) , increase in product quality (3.93), reduction of irrigation problems (4.48), water saving (4.49), increase in the economic situation of people (3.65), increase in production efficiency (3.78), return of immigrants (3.61), reclamation of abandoned lands (4.46) which all were above-average. Overall, the economic status as a general indicator with average of 3.90 was also above-average. In addition, there was a positive and significant correlation between all variables with new irrigation systems. Thus, new irrigation systems have had a positive impact on the improvement of all variables. The income increase, return of migrants and increase in efficiency of production seem to be more useful variables for predicting the rural population's economic status.
Conclusion: Based on the results, applying traditional irrigation increased irrigation costs and reduced the production efficiency and the quantity and quality of production in our studied region. Modern irrigation has had a positive effect on the economic and social condition of the villagers leading to increased revenues. Consequently, this has resulted in the restoration of the abandoned lands and the return of migrants. The results also show that the use of new irrigation systems, in addition to reducing water losses, will increase household income, product quality and the level of welfare and quality of life, reduce migration, and restore the deserted lands.

Keywords: New irrigation systems, Farmers, Rural areas, Mohammad Abad county
Introduction Savory is considered one of the most important medicinal plants, which is used in various food and medical industries. Nitrogen (N) plays a major role on the growth and yield of medicinal plants. Therefore, an adequate... more
Introduction
Savory is considered one of the most important medicinal plants, which is used in various food and medical industries. Nitrogen (N) plays a major role on the growth and yield of medicinal plants. Therefore, an adequate supply of N is required for successful production of savory. However, the application of chemical N fertilizers is associated with many obstacles such as groundwater ‎pollution, N enrichment of surface waters, and drop in the quality of plants. ‎Accordingly, nowadays, great attention has been paid to organic fertilizers. In this regard, humic acid-based fertilizers have shown promising results. Humic acids (HAs) could be converted into nitrohumic acids (NHAs) through the nitration process, in which nitro groups (NO2) are located on the aromatic rings. This process increases the N content of the HA. Thus, ‎‎NHAs can be used as organic N fertilizers in the cultivation of medicinal plants whose organic production is a priority. However, the ‎effects of these types of fertilizers on plant growth and physiological characteristics have not been well ‎understood. Accordingly, the present study for the first time investigates the effectiveness of NHA on the ‎morphological and physiological characteristics of savory, as well as N loss through leaching.‎
Materials and Methods
In the current study, HA was initially extracted from leonardite (purchased from Yazd Golsang Kavir Company) as a rich source of HA. Then, NHA was prepared through the nitration process using nitric acid (50% by volume). After that, using FT-IR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) and CHNS analysis the extracted HA and NHA were characterized, and their N content was determined. Afterward a ‎greenhouse experiment in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications was conducted ‎to determine the effects of 16 treatments, including control (without urea, HA and NHA), urea (U1, U2 and U3), humic acid ‎‎(HA1, HA2 and HA3), nitrohumic acid (NHA1, NHA2 and NHA3), urea-humic acid (U1HA1, U2HA2‎ and U3HA3), and urea-nitrohumic acid (U1NHA1, U2NHA2 and U3NHA3) on the morphological ‎and physiological characteristics of savory plant. The treatment levels were ‎determined as 40, 80, and 120 mg N kg-1 for the first, second and third level of the treatments, respectively. In the combined treatments of urea and HA or NHA, an equal fraction of the total nitrogen (N) was applied. At the end of the experiment, standard methods were used to assess various characteristics, including root length, leaf area, plant height, root volume, wet and dry weights of shoot and root, leaf chlorophyll index, concentrations of phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen, nitrate, and nitrate reductase in both the shoot and root. Additionally, leaching was conducted on specific days during the experiment, and the leachate was collected for nitrate measurement.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that using the nitration process, some characteristics of the NHA such as total acidity, the content of carboxylic and phenolic groups as well as N content improved as compared to the initial HA. Moreover, the results indicated that most of the morphological and physiological ‎traits of savory plants, including leaf area, plant height, root length, fresh and dry weights of root and shoot as well as chlorophyll index, and the concentration of nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, nitrate and nitrate reductase enzyme were significantly higher in the NHA treatments than those of HA. In addition, the highest shoot dry weight was obtained in the combined treatments of U3NHA3 and U3HA3 as well as in the U3 treatment alone. The average rate of nitrate concentration increase in the U treatments was 1.77 times higher than the UNHA treatments. According to the results, U3 treatment indicated the highest nitrate loss which by using the U3NHA3 treatment, the mean concentration of nitrate ‎in the leachate decreased by about 40.5% as compared to the U3 treatment.‎
Conclusion
The findings of this research revealed that most of the morphological and physiological ‎traits of savory plant showed better responses to the combined treatments of U3NHA3 and U3HA3 as well as to the U3 treatment alone. However, with regard to the lower accumulation of nitrate in the shoot of savory as well as to the lower nitrate leaching, the combined treatments were preferred. Accordingly, NHA can be ‎a alternative nitrogen source in increasing the yield and growth indicators of savory. However, the reasons behind the fact of the better performance of combined nitrogen treatments than the individual ones require more research in the future.
Introduction Knowledge of the spatial distribution of soil salinity and soil organic carbon (SOC) leads to obtaining valuable information that is effective in decision-making for agricultural activities. More than a third of the world's... more
Introduction
Knowledge of the spatial distribution of soil salinity and soil organic carbon (SOC) leads to obtaining valuable information that is effective in decision-making for agricultural activities. More than a third of the world's land is affected by salt, which threatens the growth and production of crops, and prevents the development of sustainable agriculture. The high electrical conductivity (EC) content in soils poses significant challenges in arid and semi-arid regions, greatly impacting agricultural production. Saline and sodic soils often exhibit high levels of sodium which is a key characteristic. The presence of sodium ions leads to the destabilization of soil aggregates and the dispersion of soil particles resulting in the closure of soil pores. Consequently, unfavorable changes occur in the soil physical, chemical, and biological properties increasing its susceptibility to water and wind erosion. Additionally, high sodium levels can lead to the decomposition of soil organic carbon (SOC). SOC is crucial for water retention, cation exchange, and nutrient availability, making its reduction in agricultural soils a significant threat to sustainable soil management. Therefore, the investigation of soils in terms of EC and SOC contents and their spatial distribution is of great importance to support decision-makers in agricultural development planning to reduce challenges related to food security in arid and semi-arid regions.
Materials and Methods
This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the EC and SOC in topsoil (0-30 cm) and subsoil (30-60 cm) layers using four machine learning (ML) algorithms namely, random forest (RF), decision tree (DTr), support vector regression (SVR) and artificial neural network (ANN) performed in Qazvin Plain. The study area includes a part of agricultural lands and natural areas of Alborz and Qazvin provinces, between the Nazarabad and Abyek cities in Iran. This region with an area of 60,000 hectares is located at latitude 35° 54´ to 36° 54´ to the north and 50° 15´ to 50° 39´ to the east. This research was carried out in four stages including (i) soil sampling and measuring the physical and chemical properties of the soil and preparation of environmental covariates from a digital elevation model (DEM) with spatial resolution 12.5 m and Landsat 8 satellite imagery with spatial resolution 30 m by SAGA GIS and ENVI software, (ii) spatial modeling of soil EC and SOC in the topsoil and subsoil layers by the RF, SVR, ANN, and DTr ML algorithms, (iii) evaluating the efficiency of the ML algorithms and determining the relative importance of environmental covariates, and (iv) preparation of spatial prediction maps of EC and SOC in the topsoil (0-30 cm) and subsoil (30-60 cm) layers in the study area.
Results and Discussion
        The result of the spatial prediction maps of EC showed that the studied area has non-saline to very saline soils up to a depth of 60 cm. It is also possible that the EC equivalent shows a decreasing trend in soil salinity with a depth from 6.05 to 5.55 ds/m from the topsoil to the subsoil layer. The highest amount of SOC was observed in the surface layer equal to 3.3%. Globally SOC content decreased from the surface (average of 0.84%) to depth (average of 0.4%). The high spatial variability of SOC showed that the soils of the study area are affected by management activity.
Environmental covariates were extracted as a proxy of topography and remote sensing indices including elevation, diffuse Insolation (Diffuse), Multi-Resolution Index of Valley Bottom Flatness (MrVBF), Normalized Differences Vegetation Index (NDVI), SAGA wetness index (SWI) and wind Effect (WE) were used as representatives of soil formation factors. The topography parameters, including the elevation, diffuse insolation, and Multi-Resolution Index of Valley Bottom Flatness, were most closely related to EC and SOC variations in each topsoil and subsoil layer. Elevation can be justified around 50% and 35% of EC and 28.56% and 29.47% of SOC variations in the topsoil and subsoil layers, respectively, followed by the diffuse variable can succeed to justified 19.7% and 25.1% of EC and 27.28% and 27.67% of SOC spatial variations in the topsoil and subsoil layers, respectively.
The results confirmed that the RF was recognized as outperforming the ML model for predicting EC in the topsoil (R2 =0.74, RMSE =0.36, and nRMSE= 0.07), as well as predicting SOC in topsoil and subsoil layers (R2= 90 and R2=0.80), followed by the DTr for predicting EC (R2 0.77, RMSE/0.9, and nRMSE 0.17) in the subsoil layer in comparison other models.
Conclusion
      The RF (Random Forest) and DTr (Decision Tree) models incorporating topographic parameters demonstrated satisfactory accuracy in predicting the variation of topsoil and subsoil electrical conductivity (EC) and soil organic carbon (SOC) in the study area. Topography plays a crucial role in soil formation, and elevation-based topographic attributes are commonly used as key predictors in digital soil mapping projects. The variability in topography influences water flow and sedimentation processes which, in turn, affects soil development and the spatial distribution of soil properties. The resulting soil maps can be valuable tools for decision-making programs related to soil management in the region.
Introduction Wind erosion is one of the important processes of soil degradation in arid and semi-arid regions. Increased soil surface resistance is a key factor to prevent wind erosion. Mulch can increase the resistance of soil surface... more
Introduction
Wind erosion is one of the important processes of soil degradation in arid and semi-arid regions. Increased soil surface resistance is a key factor to prevent wind erosion. Mulch can increase the resistance of soil surface against erosive agents by creating a coating on the soil surface. The effectiveness of mulch on wind erosion control is on the quantity, type, and durability of the used in dust sources of Iran for stabilizing soil surface against wind erosion. In recent decades, petroleum mulch has been broadly used for stabilizing soil surface against wind erosion in dust sources of Iran. Bio-polymers (e.g. cellulose hydrogel and biochar) and naturally accessible materials (e.g. nanoclay) as environment-friendly mulches can be an alternative to chemical polymers and petroleum mulches. In arid and semi-arid regions, wetting-drying cycles play a crucial role in soil aggregate formation and strength. However, there have been limited studies assessing the impact of wetting-drying cycles on the durability of applied mulches. The main objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of different types of mulches, including inorganic montmorillonite nanoclay, chemical polyvinyl acetate polymer, and biological biochar and cellulose hydrogel, at various time intervals. The study aimed to improve the physical and mechanical properties of soil, as well as control wind erosion in a loamy sand soil using a wind tunnel. Additionally, the durability of these mulches was evaluated over time after subjecting them to four wetting-drying cycles.
Materials and Methods
A factorial experiment was conducted based on completely randomized design with three replications. The factors including mulch type (four levels: nanoclay montmorillonite, polyvinyl acetate polymer, biochar and cellulose hydrogel), mulch concentration (Nanoclay montmorillonite: 0, 16 and 32, Polyvinyl Acetate polymer: 0, 8, and 16, biochar and cellulose hydrogel: 0, 65 and 200 g/m2) and duration (21, 42, 63 and 126 days). The soil used in the wind tunnel experiments was collected from a dust source in the southeast of Ahvaz (Site Number 4). Trays measuring 50×30×5 cm were filled with this soil. The soil surface was then uniformly sprayed with an emulsion of Nanoclay and Polyvinyl Acetate. Additionally, biochar and cellulose hydrogel were mixed uniformly with the soil. Water was sprayed on the soil surface to maintain a constant moisture content of 75% of field capacity. After a specified period, soil properties such as mean weight diameter of aggregates, fractal dimension, penetration resistance, and shear strength were measured. The trays were then placed in a wind tunnel, and a wind erosion test was conducted at a wind speed of 20 m/s for a duration of 5 minutes. The amount of soil loss was measured using the weight method. Then, at each time, the best treatment from each mulch (in terms of reducing wind erosion) was selected and subjected to wet and dry cycles (four cycles).
Results and Discussion
The results showed a significant interaction effects (p<0.01) of mulch type, mulch concentration and time factors on soil aggregate stability and fractal dimension, penetration resistance, shear strength were significant (p<0.01). Soil loss decreased in soils amended with biochar and cellulose hydrogel and increased in the case of montmorillonite and polyvinyl acetate polymer over the time. The amount of soil loss in soil amended with cellulose hydrogel decreased by 99.3%. The highest amount of soil penetration resistance and shear strength was observed in cellulose hydrogel mulch at the fourth time which were equal to 1038 and 123 kPa, respectively. Over time, the mean weight diameter of aggregates increased in the soil treated with cellulose and biochar hydrogels, but decreased in the polyvinyl acetate and montmorillonite nanoclay treatments. There was a negative correlation between aggregate stability and the fractal dimension of aggregates. In terms of soil loss, at the fourth measurement time, soils modified with cellulose hydrogels, biochar, polyvinyl acetate, and montmorillonite nanoclay experienced reductions of 99%, 71%, 84%, and 85% respectively, compared to the control. After four wet and dry cycles, the soil loss further decreased by 98%, 64%, 76%, and 81% in the respective treatments, compared to the control.
Conclusion
In general, it can be concluded that cellulose hydrogel presented the greatest effect on reducing soil loss and controlling wind erosion. In the soils amended with biochar and cellulose hydrogel, the effect of mulches on reducing soil loss increased over the time. However, the opposite results were found in the case of polyvinyl acetate and montmorillonite nanoclay polymers. Therefore, biochar and cellulose hydrogel in the long term and polyvinyl acetate polymer and montmorillonite nanoclay in the short term can control wind erosion. Wet and dry cycles at all durations increased soil loss. But their effect remained on soil loss reduction until the end of the fourth cycle. The results revealed that environmentally friendly biopolymers synthesized from biomass components can be considered as sustainable sources to reduce wind erosion. Bio-polymers are a new window into the use of sustainable biomaterials instead of synthetics in wind erosion control.
Introduction Quince with the scientific name "Cydonia oblonga Mill." is one of the most important horticultural products in the word including Iran. According to the average production from 1994 to 2020, Iran was the fourth largest quince... more
Introduction
Quince with the scientific name "Cydonia oblonga Mill." is one of the most important horticultural products in the word including Iran. According to the average production from 1994 to 2020, Iran was the fourth largest quince producer in the world. Isfahan province is one of the most important centers of high quality quince production with 2432 hectares of cultivated area and annual production of 25986 tons. Most of the quince orchards are located in the cities of Natanz and Isfahan. Plant nutrition as an important factor in growth, is a function of nutrients and environmental conditions interactions. Assessing the nutritional status of plants is based on precise determination of nutrients and appropriate application method to diagnosis and interpret the results. Various methods have been used to evaluate the nutritional status of the plant, such as the Critical Value Approach (CVA), the Deviation from Optimum Percentage (DOP), the Diagnosis and Recommendation Integrated System (DRIS) and the Compositional Nutrient Diagnosis (CND). The CND method expresses interactions by considering the ratio of one element to the geometric mean of all elements. Then high and low functional groups are separated, by using mathematical and statistical methods and application of cumulative function of the variance ratio of nutrients and the chi-square distribution function. Finally, CND nutrients norms and indices such balance index are calculated step by step. Therefore, considering the importance of the quince production in the country and the lack of sufficient knowledge to determine its nutritional status, the present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the nutritional status of quince trees using the CND method and determining the nutrients norms for this product.
Materials and Methods
In order to evaluate the nutritional status of quince trees using the CND method, 28 orchards were selected in the cities of Isfahan and Natanz. The orchards were selected such a way that they had different ranges of yield. The geographical location was recorded for each orchard. Then random and composite sampling of leaves was done from branches without fruit in July 2018. Concentration of nitrogen phosphorous, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, zinc, copper and boron was measured in quince leaves. At the end of season, the yield was determined for each orchard. The orchards divided into two groups based on high and low yields. The CND norms, CND nutritional index and nutritional balance index (r2) were computed based on steps of Parent and Dafir. The balance index of nutritional elements (r2) was calculated by Keith-Nilson method based on the Chi-square statistical distribution function (K2) in Excel software.

Results and Discussion
According to results of cumulative distribution function of nutrient variance and considering the yield of 23 tons per hectare as the intermediate yield, 25% of the studied orchards were in the high yield group and 75% of the orchards were in the low yield group. After solving the third– rank cumulative function equations of the studied nutrients, the highest yield was obtained for potassium Fci (VK) = 21.98 and the lowest value was for nitrogen Fci (VN) = 15.37. CND standard norms of nutrients and residual value were described as: V*N= 2.91, V*P= 1.39, V*K= 2.91, V*Ca= 2.13, V*Mg= 1.35, V*Fe= -2.01, V*Mn= -3.12, V*Zn= -3.97, V*Cu= -4.85, V*B= -3.51 and V*Rd= 6.78. The CND nutrient index revealed that potassium and nitrogen had the most negative index among macronutrients in the low-yield orchard group. The low amount of soil organic matter and the high presence of sand can contribute to the negative nitrogen index. Among the micronutrients, the iron index was negative in 67.7% of the low-yield orchards. Zinc and copper had the next highest nutritional requirements in most orchards. The presence of calcareous conditions in the soil of the studied orchards may be one of the reasons for this observation. The estimation of the nutritional balance index indicated that the r2 value in orchards with low yield was 60.3% higher than that in high-yield orchards.
Conclusion
CND nutritional balance index (r2), specially in orchards with low yield was more than zero (20.85), indicating nutritional imbalance in these orchards. Proper management and balanced application of chemical fertilizers should be considered. This can increase the yield and quality of quince production.
Introduction Recent studies show that most crops and horticultural plants can form symbiosis with the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and the endophytic Serendepita indica, simultaneously. The endophytic fungus plays an important role... more
Introduction
Recent studies show that most crops and horticultural plants can form symbiosis with the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and the endophytic Serendepita indica, simultaneously. The endophytic fungus plays an important role in alleviating environmental stresses in plants. It has also been shown that excessive available phosphorus in soil limits the root colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. No information is available on how soil phosphorus affects the establishment of endophytic fungus in root. Barley roots can be colonized by both mycorrhizal fungi and the endophytic fungus Serendipita indica. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of single or dual inoculation with Rhizophagus irregularis and Serendipita indica on barley roots under different phosphorus (P) levels. The researchers utilized a monoclonal antibody called MAb32B11 to assess the presence of glomalin, a signature molecule of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, in the roots. The glomalin content was quantified using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method with the MAb32B11 antibody.
Materials and Methods
In this experiment, barley plants were inoculated with Rhizaphagus irregularis (AMF) and Serendepita indica (endophytic fungus) with three levels of phosphorus from triple super phosphate source. At the end of the vegetative growth period (about three months), the plants were harvested and phosphorus concentration in the plant were measured. A subsample from roots was stored in -20 ºC for determination of glomalin content. The glomalin content in the roots was analyzed using the monoclonal antibody MAb32B11. This antibody was employed to differentiate between the two fungi present in the roots and to quantify the abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) specifically in plants treated with Rhizophagus irregularis. Additionally, the content of glomalin in the soil was determined at the end of the experiment using the same method as described above. The experiment was designed as a factorial completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the fresh and dry weights of shoot and root increased significantly in dual inoculation. At zero phosphorus level, shoot and root phosphorus concentrations were significantly higher in treatments with R. irregularis than in those without fungus (control). Under individual inoculation with R. irregularis, or S. indica as well as their dual inoculations, increasing level of phosphorus had no significant effect on shoot and root phosphorus concentration. In dual inoculation, the percentage of total colonization (88%) was significantly higher than that of individual inoculation treatment (68%) but the contribution of each fungus in root colonization under dual inoculation was significantly reduced as estimated by glomalin content of root and determination of total colonization. It was found that with increasing phosphorus level, total colonization percentage significantly decreased and the highest percentage of colonization (61%) was observed at zero level of phosphorus. By increasing phosphorus level, the percentage of root colonization was significantly decreased in individual inoculation by R. irregularis, or S. indica as well as dual inoculation. Results of glomalin assay in soil showed that the glomalin content was high in treatments of R. irregularis but control treatments without fungus and individual inoculation with S. indica had low glomalin. Antibody-reactive root glomalin was less in the dual inoculation treatment (1006.9 µg.g-1) than in the R. irregularis treatment alone (1924.5 µg.g-1) indicating that the presence of S. indica, in root inhibits, root colonization by R. irregularis. Moreover, the increasing of phosphorus level, significantly decreased root glomalin.
Conclusion
The increase of available phosphorus concentration in the soil caused to limit the expansion of the symbiosis of R. irregularis and S. indica, and this limitation was more for R. irregularis. In the case of dual inoculation with both Rhizophagus irregularis and Serendipita indica, the negative impact of phosphorus on colonization percentage was observed to be less compared to single inoculation. Although the percentage of colonization by each fungus decreased in the dual inoculation treatment compared to their individual inoculation, the overall colonization percentage increased significantly. It appears that in the dual inoculation scenario, while the total root colonization percentage increases, the presence of S. indica leads to a decrease in the colonization percentage specifically with R. irregularis. But in general, growth and nutrient absorption in the case of dual inoculation was better than the inoculation of each of them individually. It was also found that increasing the concentration of phosphorus in the soil caused a decrease in root colonization for both fungi, although the negative effect of phosphorus on the colonization of R. irregularis was more than that of S. indica. The measurement of glomalin in soil and root showed that the inhibitory effect of S. indica fungus on R. irregularis is less in soil than in root.
Introduction In sustainable farming systems, the use of organic fertilizers is of particular importance in increasing crop production and maintaining sustainable soil fertility. Nowadays, the consumption of organic foods is introduced to... more
Introduction
In sustainable farming systems, the use of organic fertilizers is of particular importance in increasing crop production and maintaining sustainable soil fertility. Nowadays, the consumption of organic foods is introduced to consumers as an alternative. The result of the application of chemical products is the crisis of environmental pollution, soil and water resources, and the health risk to human society. Nowadays, in order to reduce the effects of misuse of chemical inputs, chemical fertilizers can be replaced with organic biological fertilizers, including animal manure, compost, and green manure. In this regard, chicken manure has a positive effect on the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the soil, and due to its richness in uric acid, the nitrogen contained in it is used by the plant much faster than the nitrogen of other organic fertilizers. Vermicompost is considered a good source of soil fertility due to its organic materials. Organic matter in the soil improves the permeability and drainage of the soil and also prevents excessive dryness of the soil by maintaining sufficient moisture. Despite the fact that vermicompost can be used as a fertilizer in organic farming, high levels of this fertilizer may cause salinity effects in the plant, which affects the growth and development of the plant and even it can cause the death of cucumber as one of the crops sensitive to soil and water salinity. The cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is one of the important vegetables that can be produced in a greenhouse all year round. Fresh consumption of cucumber throughout the year has increased its production. The development of technology and the short growth period of this product has made it possible to grow it in most climate zones. Therefore, in this research, the effects of different levels of water deficit with the simultaneous application of vermicompost and chicken manure on cucumber plants in the Behbahan region have been investigated.
Materials and Methods
In this study, different levels of irrigation water, vermicompost, and poultry manure on ground cucumber were investigated. The experiment was performed in the form of split plots based on completely randomized design and the form of stacks. Treatments included three levels of poultry manure (2, 4 and 8 ton ha-1), three levels of vermicompost (3, 6 and 9 ton ha-1) and three levels of water stress (100, 75 and 50% of plant water requirement). Both vermicompost and poultry manure were applied to the soil before planting. Harvest was done every three days. Fruit weight, diameter and length, plant length, the protein of the dry matter of the fruit percentage, and leaf chlorophyll in each plot were carefully measured. Also, the yield and water productivity at the end of the season were calculated.
Water productivity
Referring to the yield to irrigation water ratio, is obtained by the following relation (Payero et al., 2009):
WP=Y/IR                                                                                                                              (1)
In this equation, WP represents water productivity (kg/m3), Y denotes the yield (kg/ha), and IR shows the amount of irrigation water (m3/ha).
Statistical analysis
The analysis of variance for the results obtained from different treatments was conducted using SAS software (SAS 9.1, SAS Institute, Cary, NC, USA). The mean values of the main factors and interactive effects were compared using the Duncan method at the 1% and 5% levels of significance.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that irrigation, poultry manure and vermicompost had a significant effect on the measured parameters at the level of one and five percent probability. Reduction of water consumption reduced yield and yield components, but in this regard, no significant difference was observed between 100% and 75% of water requirement. The highest yield was obtained in the treatment of 100% of plant water requirement and consumption of 4 ton ha-1 of poultry manure and 6 ton ha-1 of vermicompost, in this regard, no significant difference was observed with the treatment of 75% of water requirement. According to the results obtained from this study, it can be said that there is no significant difference in terms of yield between treatments of 75 and 100% of plant water requirement. Therefore, the amount of water given to the plant can be reduced to 75% of the plant water requirement, and with proper management, less water can be consumed without a significant reduction in crop yield. Examining the effects of irrigation water on the amount of the protein of the dry matter of the fruit showed that the highest amount of the protein of the dry matter of the fruit (56.31%) was obtained in the treatment of 75% of the water requirement and the protein of the dry matter of the fruit was less in other treatments. The interaction effect of vermicompost and poultry manure resulted in the highest percentage of cucumber protein at a treatment of 4 tons ha-1 of poultry manure and 6 tons ha-1 of vermicompost (58.42%). However, when the simultaneous use of 8 tons ha-1 of poultry manure and different levels of vermicompost was employed, the percentage of protein in the fruit's dry matter decreased. The combination of drought stress, poultry manure, and vermicompost, along with their interaction effects, significantly influenced the chlorophyll a and b values at both the 1% and 5% probability levels. As the depth of irrigation water decreased, the amounts of chlorophyll a and b also decreased. The treatment with 100% water requirement of the plant showed the highest amounts of chlorophyll a (0.63 mg/g fresh weight) and chlorophyll b (0.36 mg/g fresh weight). However, no significant difference was observed compared to the 75% treatment. Regarding the interactions between vermicompost and poultry manure, it was found that when using 6 tons ha-1 of vermicompost to reduce yield and its components, the use of poultry manure should be reduced to 4 tons ha-1. On the other hand, when higher levels of vermicompost (9 tons ha-1) are used, the application of poultry manure should be reduced to 2 tons ha-1.
Result
According to the results obtained from this research, it can be said that there is no significant difference in performance between the treatments of providing 75% and 100% of the water requirement of the plant, therefore, the amount of water given to the plant can be reduced to the amount of 75% of the water requirement of the plant. With proper management, less water can be consumed without significantly reducing the yield of the product.
Introduction Wind Erosion is the natural process of transportation and deposition of soil by wind. It is a common phenomenon occurred mostly in dry, sandy soils or anywhere the soil is loose, dry, and finely granulated. Heavy metals are... more
Introduction
Wind Erosion is the natural process of transportation and deposition of soil by wind. It is a common phenomenon occurred mostly in dry, sandy soils or anywhere the soil is loose, dry, and finely granulated. Heavy metals are found in the environment and soils may become contaminated by accumulation of heavy metals through emissions from the rapidly expanding industrial areas, mine tailings, disposal of high metal wastes, leaded gasoline and paints, land application of fertilizers, animal manures, sewage sludge, pesticides, wastewater irrigation, coal combustion residues, spillage of petrochemicals, and atmospheric deposition. Soils are the major sink for heavy metals released into the environment by the aforementioned anthropogenic activities and their total concentration in soils persists for a long time after their introduction. The heavy metal contamination of soil and its potential risks to humans and the ecosystem is a significant concern. Windy deposition, which is the process of heavy metals being transported by erosive winds and deposited onto soil, is one of the sources of heavy metal contamination. Due to the geographical situation and climatic conditions such as arid soil, erosive winds are blown in periods of year in Tabas. Since wind are erosion is severe in this area, huge amounts of wind deposition accompanied with erosive winds entered into this town. Heavy metals through the windy deposition are suspended, translated and finally deposited in residential regions, which can create some problems for human health. Therefore, the knowledge of wind erosion and the human risk of these deposits is essential. The aim of this research was to determine the rate of wind erosion and the concentration of some heavy metals in these deposits.
Materials and Methods
For this purpose, the rate of suspended load was measured monthly from February 2021 to January 2022. Based on previous information from the erosive winds and storms, suspended depositions were gathered in some directions (north, northwest, northeast, west and southwest) of the Tabas entrance. In addition, the suspended load in the city center of Tabas was also measured. The cumulative load of suspended depositions was measured monthly and the concentration of some heavy metals such as manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), cupper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) were measured in these suspended particles.  Soil digestion was made by Aqua regia (nitric acid and chloridric acid; ratio of 3:1), and after then atomic absorption was used to measure the total concentration of above heavy metals.
Results and Discussion
The results indicate that Tabas experiences significant wind deposition of suspended loads, with the highest rates entering from the northeast direction and the lowest rates from the southwest direction. This pattern aligns with the wind rose of Tabas, which illustrates the prevailing wind directions in the region. Additionally, substantial suspended loads are observed in the northwest and north directions. The variations in suspended load discharge reveal that the maximum discharge occurs in the city center of Tabas during the months of June and July 2021. This corresponds to the arid climate conditions of these months, where plant growth is limited, soil cohesion is low, and loose soil particles on the surface are susceptible to wind forces. As a result, these loose particles are easily detached by the wind, contributing to the high levels of suspended load. Regarding the spatial variation of heavy metals in suspended particles, the cumulative concentrations of Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn are found to be higher in the west, northwest, north, and west directions, respectively. This suggests that these heavy metals are transported and deposited in specific areas within Tabas due to the prevailing wind patterns. In terms of temporal variation, the highest concentrations of Mn and Fe in suspended particles are observed in April 2021, predominantly in the northeast and west directions, respectively. On the other hand, the highest concentrations of Cu and Zn are found in May 2021, with the southwest and northeast directions being the primary deposition areas for each metal, respectively. These findings highlight the spatial and temporal dynamics of suspended load and heavy metal deposition in Tabas, emphasizing the influence of wind patterns and climatic conditions on these processes. Understanding these variations is crucial for assessing the potential risks associated with heavy metal contamination and implementing appropriate mitigation measures in the region.
Conclusion
The results of this research showed that most contents of the suspended load are entered from the northeast direction into Tabas. In addition, the spatial variation of heavy metals indicated that the concentrations of studied heavy metals (Mn, Fe, Cu, and Zn) in suspended particles, especially in the western, northwestern, and northern in spring, are very high and they can cause carcinogenic effects on human life. Therefore, the management practices should be mostly made in these directions to control or reduce soil erosion and reduce its damage effects.
Introduction Considering the value of water in agriculture and the limitation of this important and vital resource and the existence of intermittent droughts in the country, saving in consumption and optimal use of available water seems... more
Introduction
Considering the value of water in agriculture and the limitation of this important and vital resource and the existence of intermittent droughts in the country, saving in consumption and optimal use of available water seems necessary. Today, utilizing saltwater is considered one of the practical and effective approaches to minimize water consumption while achieving acceptable economic performance. Given the scarcity of freshwater sources, the utilization of unconventional water for strawberry cultivation holds significant economic importance. Through the application of innovative technologies, such as magnetic technology, the modification of these water sources can lead to increased quantitative and qualitative yields of agricultural products. Salinity stress, which alters the water and nutrient absorption patterns, directly impacts the plant's yield in terms of both quantity and quality. Strawberry is an important commercial product, and the quantitative and qualitative increase of its yield is emphasized from different aspects. The purpose of this research is to the effect of salinity stress under the influence of a magnetic field on the yield and yield components of the strawberry plant.
Materials and Methods
The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of salinity stress under the influence of magnetic fields on the yield and yield components of strawberry plants. The factorial experiment was conducted in the form of a randomized complete block design with three replications in 2021 and 2022 in Neka city. The control treatment included full irrigation in all stages of plant growth with normal water (non-magnetic). The treatments include the type of irrigation water at two levels (Non-Magnetic Water (W1) and Magnetic Water (W2)), and water salinity was at three levels (0.86 dS/m (S1), 20 mM sodium chloride (S2), and 40 mM sodium chloride (S3). The strawberry plant of the Silva cultivar was cultivated in 3 x 4-meter plots with a row spacing of 40 cm and a between the spacing of 40 cm. Magnetization of irrigation water was created by passing water through a permanent magnet with a magnetic field intensity of 0.3 Tesla. The salt used for salinity stress was laboratory sodium chloride. The used irrigation method was drip (tape), and the amount of irrigation water and irrigation cycle was done according to the needs of the plant. Soil moisture monitoring was used to calculate the amount of applied water.
Results and Discussion
The results of analysis of variance showed that the effect of the irrigation water type and different levels of water salinity on the length, diameter, number of fruits per plant, fruit weight, biomass and plant yield was significant at the 1% probability level. The effect of water salinity on the number of fruits per plant was significant at the 1% probability level and on the fruit length and fruit diameter at the 5% probability level. The interaction effect of irrigation water type and water salinity was also significant at the probability level of 1%. On average, during two years of strawberry cultivation with the application of a magnetic field, the length, diameter, number of fruits per plant, fruit weight, biomass, and plant yield were increased by 9.76, 14.14, 23.05, 27.60, 27.08, and 28.36% respectively. The introduction of 20 and 40 mM sodium chloride resulted in a decrease in the physical characteristics of strawberry fruit and overall yield. The most significant reduction was observed in the number of fruits per plant at the salinity level of 40 mM sodium chloride, exhibiting a 56.69% decrease compared to the control treatment.
Conclusion
The growth of population and expansion of agriculture on one hand and the demand for more harvesting from limited water resources on the other hand, make it necessary to increase water productivity. Lack of water and competition for water resources has caused research to be done in order to reduce water consumption and preserve its resources. Therefore, searching for ways to reduce consumption and preserve water resources is of great importance. One of these methods is using magnetic water. The results of the research showed that the use of magnetic water technology caused a significant increase in the yield and yield components of strawberries compared to the control treatment. In addition, the salinity level of irrigation water had a significant impact on the yield and yield components of strawberries, with the highest yield observed in the treatment without salinity stress when using magnetic water technology. The findings of this study indicate that the application of magnetic water technology can enable the use of low salinity levels and lead to improved strawberry yield.
Introduction Water is one of the most important factors of development in human societies, water scarcity, specially fresh water which is one of the main limitation for agricultural, economic and social development in most developing... more
Introduction
Water is one of the most important factors of development in human societies, water scarcity, specially fresh water which is one of the main limitation for agricultural, economic and social development in most developing countries. Providing and implementing an optimal cropping pattern, in addition to better management of water and soil resources, can lead to reducing production risk, increasing the ability to deal with crises, improving employment, better management of providing services to farmers, and providing the possibility of expanding agro-based industries. In many regions of the world, including in Iran, many studies have been done to improve the cropping pattern in different regions. Despite the existing problems in designing and implementing the appropriate cropping pattern in the plains, modifying the cropping pattern based on scientific principles and emphasizing the reduction of water consumption while reducing water consumption provides the possibility of sustainable agriculture and in terms of economic and social aspects. Implementing an optimized cropping pattern in the Farahan Plain is an undeniable necessity to preserve national resources. This study was conducted with the objective of optimizing the cropping pattern in the area, taking into account multiple criteria.

Methodology
In this research, considering the importance of determining the cropping pattern based on the multiple objectives of the decision makers, it was tried to determine the optimal cropping pattern by using mathematical programming and fuzzy logic by establishing a compromise between the objectives of the cropping pattern. The model considered for this study was in the framework of the goal of the maximum ideal distance (Fuzzy Composite Distance). Also, in order to use water resources sustainably, scenarios of cropping patterns are presented based on different conditions of water resources uses. Based on the basin's water resource stability, an optimal cropping pattern was developed to address the conditions of normal water resource exploitation, as well as sustainable and unsustainable scenarios. Each scenario corresponds to a specific period. To achieve this, a multi-objective planning approach was utilized, integrating water, food, energy, and economic profit indicators. The resulting optimal cropping pattern considers stable water resource utilization during normal, drought, and wet periods, ensuring sustainable conditions.

Results and Discussion
The results showed that the amount of water consumed by the optimal cropping pattern compared to the existing cropping pattern under normal, drought and wet conditions is reduced by 23.2, 29.2 and 18.1%, respectively. On the other hand, compared to the existing cropping pattern, the amount of calories produced by the optimal cropping pattern under normal, drought and wet conditions increases by 51.7, 61.9 and 45.2%, the average energy efficiency increases by 40.9, 42.8 and 35.8% and the net profit productivity increases by 43.3, 30.9 and 44.2 %, respectively. Based on the obtained results, it can be seen that in the optimal cropping pattern in drought conditions, the cultivated area of crops such as potatoes, onions, tomatoes, grain corn, sugar beets, beans, alfalfa and watermelons should reach to the zero or be at the lowest possible level. In normal and drought conditions, the cultivated area of these crops should be minimal. On the other hand, the area under cultivation of crops such as fodder sorghum, fodder corn, saffron, cumin, camellia and medicinal plants should be increased and the cultivation of these crops should be promoted at the region. Also, regarding horticultural products, the cultivated area of walnut, apple, peach, apricot and almond orchards should be minimized and replaced with plants such as grapes, oleaster, jujube, barberry, rose, and figs.
Conclusion
Based on the obtained results, it was found that the use of the optimal cropping pattern derived from the indicators of water, food, energy and economic profit is completely superior and preferred over the existing cropping pattern and single purpose optimal cropping pattern. In order to achieve sustainable water resource management, it is recommended to modify the cropping pattern during drought, normal, and wet periods based on the suggested optimal cropping pattern. The existing cropping pattern currently falls short in terms of achieving the four objectives of water, food, energy, and economic profit. Therefore, it is crucial to develop main plans and strategies in the Farahan Plain that align with the implementation of the proposed optimal cropping pattern. By doing so, it will be possible to optimize the allocation of water resources and achieve improved outcomes in terms of water availability, food production, energy efficiency, and economic profitability.
Introduction Over the last years, long-term average rainfall has experienced a meaningful decrease (from 250 to 206 mm per year) leading to continuous drought in Iran. In addition, population growth and increasing demand for food put more... more
Introduction
Over the last years, long-term average rainfall has experienced a meaningful decrease (from 250 to 206 mm per year) leading to continuous drought in Iran. In addition, population growth and increasing demand for food put more pressure on the limited available water resources. Thus, the quantitative and qualitative improvement of agricultural products become a necessity. There is 640,000 hectares of alfalfa cultivated land, standing for 5.4% of the total cultivated area. One of the most basic obstacles in these farms is the unsuitable model of water consumption management. Previous studies were conducted with the aim of evaluating the mutual effects of different treatments in controlled plots. Nonetheless, there is a need for large-scale investigations to monitor and improve water productivity in agricultural systems. In this research, the focus was on irrigation management and optimizing irrigation timing as a potential solution to enhance water productivity, considering the fixed irrigation cycles and traditional use of available water resources. The study began by assessing the current water productivity in 11 alfalfa farms located across four regions in Zanjan province, ensuring a suitable spatial distribution. Subsequently, the impact of irrigation management, particularly the adjustment of irrigation timing, was evaluated to determine its effectiveness in improving water productivity in these farms.
Materials and Methods
Eleven alfalfa farms, covering a total area of 28 hectares, were initially selected in the agricultural lands of Zanjan province. The majority of these farms were equipped with sprinkler irrigation systems. From these 11 farms, two specific farms were chosen to implement the proposed methods aimed at improving water productivity. These selected farms served as experimental sites where the irrigation management techniques were applied and evaluated. Improvement solutions were mainly focused on irrigation management. Each farm was divided into two parts; one part with real conditions (farmers' management) and the second one with controlled conditions. In the controlled treatments, irrigation management was implemented through optimization of irrigation time. A nutritional program was also prepared according to the soil quality of the fields and applied in the controlled treatments. In each farm, basic information such as area, physical and chemical properties of soil and water quality were determined. Irrigation information (such as inflow discharge and irrigation schedule) was measured and determined at least three times during the cropping season. Soil moisture were measured before and after irrigation in order to calculate the water application efficiency. The amount of harvested product and production costs were obtained at the end of the cropping season through measurements and interviews with farmers. In this research, the indicators including the volume of irrigation water, the water use efficiency, and the physical and economic efficiency of water have been calculated to analyze the water productivity.
Results and Discussion
The volume of irrigation water in alfalfa farms was measured as 14250 m3/ha on average (with the lowest and highest consumption values of 9849 and 20576 m3/ha, respectively). The average of irrigation water in farms with surface irrigation systems equals to 17,806 and in farms equipped with sprinkle irrigation systems is about 13,460 m3/ha. While the net water requirement of alfalfa in study area was 7160 to 7290 m3/ha. The minimum and maximum values of water application efficiency were 38.3 and 82%, respectively, with average of 64%. The average of application efficiency in surface and sprinkle irrigation systems were obtained 50 and 67%, respectively. The measured alfalfa yield ranged from a minimum of 6.5 ton/ha to a maximum of 14.1 ton/ha, with an average yield of 10.4 ton/ha. After implementing the revised irrigation program in the controlled plots, the harvested water decreased by an average of 49.5%. It was observed that the irrigation schedule in most farms followed a traditional and estimated pattern, with the depth of irrigation water in the middle of the growing season exceeding the net irrigation requirement. The water use efficiency (WUE) values varied between 0.42 and 1.28 kg/m3, with a minimum value of 0.42 kg/m3 and a maximum value of 1.28 kg/m3. The average WUE was calculated as 0.79 kg/m3. Analyzing the correlation between water consumption and the water use efficiency index revealed a decreasing trend. As the volume of irrigation water increased, the water use efficiency index experienced a decline. Specifically, an increase of 1000 m3 in irrigation water resulted in a decrease of 0.04 kg/m3 in the water use efficiency index. The implementation of the corrected irrigation program and appropriate to the water demand led to an increase of the mentioned index by 72%.
Conclusion
The lack of proper irrigation programs that consider climatic conditions and the actual needs of the alfalfa plant was identified as a key factor contributing to high water consumption in the farms. Additionally, the inefficient selection and design of the irrigation system led to lower irrigation efficiency than expected. Despite the majority of farms being equipped with sprinkle irrigation systems, the harvested water did not decrease significantly due to inadequate water management practices. These factors ultimately resulted in a decline in both physical and economic productivity indicators in the alfalfa farms. However, the results of the study highlighted that implementing corrected irrigation management, particularly through modifications to the irrigation timing, can lead to a significant decrease in volume of irrigation water and an improvement in both physical and economic productivity.
Introduction Heavy rains often occur in small areas, but they may be the result of large-scale systems and their energy and moisture are provided from distant areas (Mohamadei et al., 2010). Therefore, identification of synoptic systems... more
Introduction
Heavy rains often occur in small areas, but they may be the result of large-scale systems and their energy and moisture are provided from distant areas (Mohamadei et al., 2010). Therefore, identification of synoptic systems is of great importance in order to predict precipitation. Although rain has many positive effects on human life, heavy rain can cause one of the most dangerous and damaging natural disasters, namely floods. Every year, floods cause many human and financial losses in different regions of the world. Floods are more effective in vulnerable areas and cause the loss of human lives, damage to property and products, disruption of transportation and services, and other economic losses (Kheradmand et al., 2018). In March 2019, heavy rains occurred in Golestan province, which caused flooding in parts of this province, especially in the cities of Gonbad-Kavus and Aqqala. Most of this heavy rain and flood occurred in the Gorgan River basin. According to meteorological reports, the rain started from the night of 03.17.2019 and continued until 03.21.2019, although the heaviest rainfall occurred from the 03.18.2019. The volume of the flood was so great that the dams on the Gorgan River could not accommodate it. According to the reports of the regional water company of Golestan province, the flood entered the Bostan dam at 1 am on 03/19/2019, and after passing through it, entered the Vashmgir dam at 6 am, and then on 03.21.2019 entered the city of Aqqala. The damage of this flood was estimated at about 4800 billion Tomans, which includes damage to 17800 residential units, damage to farms, transportation infrastructure, 40% reduction in tourism, damage to industrial units, unemployment of about 3000 people, and damage to the nomads of the province. (Islamic Republic News Agency, 04.09.2019). Considering the heavy damage caused by the mentioned heavy rain and flood in Golestan province, it is necessary to identify and analyze the causes of its occurrence in order to plan and take the necessary measures to prepare and deal with such incidents.
Materials and Methods
The study area is Gorganrood watershed, most of this area is located in Golestan province. Golestan province is one of the northern provinces of the country and is located in the southeast of Caspian sea. In this research, in order to identify and analyze the heavy rain that occurred in Golestan province in March 2019, which led to severe flooding, several types of data were used (data from meteorological stations, NCEP/NCAR reanalyzed data, MODIS satellite images, GPM precipitation products). First, using the rainfall data of the synoptic stations located in the Gorgan River watershed, the time of heavy rainfall was identified, and then using the data of the aforementioned stations and several stations outside the basin, a rainfall zoning map was prepared. MODIS satellite images were also used to check the position of precipitation system and cloudiness of region. Using GPM satellite rainfall products called IMERG, which were extracted on a half-hourly basis, as well as the main synop reports of meteorological stations, which are reported on a six-hourly basis, the intensity of rainfall was investigated. In addition, the physical conditions of the basin were investigated using the topography and slope map of the basin prepared from the DEM layer of the region. In the following, using the reanalyzed data of the NCEP/NCAR database (National Center for Environmental Prediction - National Center for Atmospheric Research of the United States), synoptic maps including maps of land surface pressure, geopotential height of the upper atmosphere, Omega (indicates the speed of vertical movements of the atmosphere), wind direction and speed, moisture flux convergence function, frontal function, specific humidity, atmospheric precipitable water and Hoff-Müller diagram were drawn to identify the synoptic and dynamic factors of the mentioned precipitations.
Results and Discussion
The results of the present research in the analysis of flood factors can be summarized as follows:
 Survey of the topography and slope of the Gorganrood basin revealed that the physical conditions of the basin are such that the potential for flooding is high.
 The amount of rainfall in 24, 6 and a half hour intervals in the study area were investigated and it was shown that the rainfall occurred on March 17, 18 and 19, especially on March 18, in terms of the intensity of rainfall were very intense.
 Investigation of the state of the middle troposphere showed that the formation of the Rossby wave and the meridional expansion of one of its troughs, along with the creation of a positive vorticity that dominated the studied area on the seventeenth of March, are the main factors in the creation of a baroclinic atmosphere and the dynamic ascent of air.
 Investigation of the synoptic-dynamic conditions of the lower levels of the troposphere showed that in the lower levels of the low-altitude synoptic system with closed meters, at the same time as the deep trough reigns over the region, it has been formed and strengthened during peak rainfall times and has led to a strong rise of air.
 Investigating the state of atmospheric humidity in the study area and identifying sources of moisture supply using special humidity maps, moisture flux convergence function and atmospheric flow paths were carried out.
 Investigating the omega variable in the vertical profile of the atmosphere using the Hoff-Mueller diagram showed that during the times of precipitation events, upward movements prevailed in all levels of the troposphere, especially during the peak of precipitation, the upward movements became more intense in the lower levels.
 Identifying the type of clouds using MODIS products showed that during heavy rains, especially on March 18, deep convective clouds with a high density of water were formed in the region, which extended up to a height of 300 hectopascals and were very thick.
Introduction Nowadays, climate change is one of the human challenges in the exploitation and management of water resources. Temperature along with precipitation is one of the most important climatic elements and is one of the main factors... more
Introduction
Nowadays, climate change is one of the human challenges in the exploitation and management of water resources. Temperature along with precipitation is one of the most important climatic elements and is one of the main factors in zoning and climatic classification. Due to location of Iran within the drought belt and proximity to the high-pressure tropical zone, this country has an arid and semi-arid climate and suffers from drought in majority of years. Therefore, temperature fluctuations and variability are important issues, and make the study of temperature changes a necessity. In the current study, four data mining algorithms in selecting predictors for downscaling of maximum temperature in Birjand synoptic station have been studied, compared and the superior algorithm has been introduced. As the number of large scale features are high, selection of machine learning algorithm will play as an important role in statistical downscaling of climatic variables such as maximum temperature. 
Materials and Methods
Today, the data set is such that many variables are used to describe the climatic phenomenon in environmental studies. As the number of data is huge, choosing the predictors is one of the most important steps in preprocessing machine learning. In this study, four machine learning methods including stochastic approximation of simultaneous turbulence (SPSA), Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO), Ridge and Gradient Boosting Method (GBM) in selecting important features in downscaling of maximum temperature in Birjand synoptic station during the statistical period of 1961-2019 were studied and compared. It is a mechanism to find a combination of predictors that with a minimum number of predictors can produce an acceptable evaluation index in estimating the variable under study. For the present study, the weather information of Birjand Synoptic Meteorological Station has been prepared by the Meteorological Organization of Iran. In order to calibrate and validate the machine learning algorithms, 70% and 30% of the available monthly data, respectively, were allocated for this purpose. To conduct this research, coding in R-Studio environment and Caret and Fscaret packages were used. In this study, to evaluate the performance of the algorithms, three indices includes relative Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (rNSE), Volume Efficiency (VE) and Kling-Gupta Efficiency (KGE) were used.
Results and Discussion
Before using the algorithms in selecting large-scale predictors, the correlation between these variables and the maximum observational temperature at Birjand station was investigated. Large scale variables mslp, P1_v, P8_v, P8_u, P850 Temp, with a maximum correlation temperature of 0.6 showed that the correlation is acceptable given the complexity of the climate change phenomenon. In addition, these results show that all the algorithms used the important factors including F1, F2, F15, F16, F18, F20 and F26 by more than 50% and the first variable (mean pressure at the ocean surface) was the most important parameter in downscaling of maximum temperature. Also, the highest importance was for P1_v and the lowest value related to P5_u, as 73.2% and 15%, respectively. Violin plots of downscaled maximum temperature in validation step of different algorithms along with the observed maximum temperature in Birjand synoptic station in each of the algorithms showed that the values of the first and third quartiles in the output data of SPSA algorithm compared to other algorithms were closer to the observed data. According to the evaluation criteria, SPSA algorithm has a higher performance than other algorithms in reproducing the maximum monthly temperature values in Birjand synoptic station. Also, based on the volumetric efficiency evaluation criteria and relative Nash-Sutcliffe, GBM algorithm was more successful in selecting predictors than Ridge and LASSO algorithms. It is also observed that SPSA algorithm shows different results than other algorithms. In comparison of mean and variance of downscaled and observed maximum temperature, the results of t-test and F-test showed that SPSA algorithm has higher efficiency than other algorithms in regenerating mean and variance of observed maximum temperature in Birjand synoptic station at the 5% significance level.
Conclusion
The data used in this study included large scale atmospheric variables and the maximum observed temperature at Birjand station. The algorithms were used to select important predictors and the performance of these methods in the validation part. According to the results of this study, the highest importance among large-scale variables is related to P1_v and the lowest value is related to P5_u, the values of which were 73.2% and 15%, respectively. The SPSA algorithm also performs better than other algorithms in selecting predictors and consequently the maximum temperature.
Introduction The relative preference and the cation exchange capacity of the exchanger are among the important and determining factors in the adsorption and retention of cations. Studies have shown that factors such as valency, the size... more
Introduction
The relative preference and the cation exchange capacity of the exchanger are among the important and determining factors in the adsorption and retention of cations. Studies have shown that factors such as valency, the size of the hydrated radius or the relative hydration energy of ions, the type of clay mineral, the concentration of the solution phase, the amount of organic matter, the structural characteristics, and the charge density of the exchanger determine the preferential adsorption of cations in the soil. The aims of this study were: 1) to investigate the effect of contact time, adsorbent dose, and pH on potassium selectivity by bentonite in binary systems including K-Ca, K-Mg, and K-Na based on Gapon, Vanslow, and Gaines-Thomas equations and 2) to investigate the potassium adsorption isotherms by bentonites saturated with calcium, magnesium, and sodium.
Materials and Methods
To saturate bentonite, 1 M solutions of calcium, magnesium, and sodium chloride were separately used. The effects of contact time (10-1440 min), adsorbent dose (0.1-2 g), and pH (3-9) on potassium adsorption and selectivity by bentonites saturated with calcium, magnesium, and sodium in binary systems were investigated. In these experiments, 20 mL of a solution containing 24 meq L-1 of potassium and 6 meq L-1 of the competing cation (Ca, Mg, or Na) were added to the adsorbent. The selectivity coefficients of Gapon, Valselow, and Gaines-Thomas were calculated. Isotherm experiments were also performed to evaluate the effect of different equivalent fractions of potassium (0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 0.9, and 1) and the competing cation in the solution phase on potassium adsorption. Simple linear, Freundlich, and Temkin equations were fitted to the isotherm data.
Results and Discussion
This study results showed that the adsorption of potassium by Ca-, Mg-, and Na-bentonites increased with increasing contact time and reached its highest value in 24 hours. The pseudo-second-order kinetic equation was better able to describe the process of potassium adsorption by bentonites over time than the pseudo-first-order equation. Potassium adsorption by Mg- and Na-bentonites had a downward trend with increasing the absorbent dose in the range of 0.1-2 g, while Ca-bentonite showed the highest adsorption of potassium in the dose of 0.2 g. With increase in pH, the percentage of potassium adsorbed from the solution phase increased; and reached its maximum value at pH 9. The amount of potassium adsorption by Mg- and Na-bentonite in all pHs was almost the same and at the same time more than Ca-bentonite. The interesting result of this research was that the behavior of Mg-bentonite was more similar to Na-bentonite than to Ca-bentonite. An increase in the negative charge of aluminosilicates with an increase in pH can occur due to the loss of protons by silanol and aluminol groups. The selectivity coefficients of Gapon, Vanslow, and Gaines-Thomas changed under the influence of contact time, adsorbent dose, and pH. Comparing the results of the investigation of the mentioned factors with the results of the selectivity coefficients showed that these coefficients cannot be a definitive criterion for judging the preference of one cation over another cation for adsorption in exchange sites. The isotherm experiment indicated that the amount of potassium adsorption in the solid phase increased with the increase of the potassium equivalent fraction in the solution phase; so the maximum adsorption was observed at the highest initial concentration of potassium (30 meq L-1, which corresponded to the equivalent fraction of 1). The linear adsorption coefficient in the simple linear equation (Kd) showed that potassium adsorption by Na-bentonite was higher than the two others. The highest amount of Kd, 56.0 L kg-1, and the lowest value, 11.9 L kg-1, were obtained for bentonites saturated with sodium and calcium, respectively. The parameter bT, the heat of exchange in the Temkin equation, was estimated to be 4.5, 5.0, and 19.1 (J mol-1) for bentonites saturated with sodium, magnesium, and calcium, respectively. Three simple linear equations, Freundlich, and Temkin were able to describe the adsorption process well. However, based on the highest value of the coefficient of determination (R2) and the lowest value of the standard error (SE), it can be said that the Freundlich equation showed the best fit to the data.
Conclusion
The highest adsorption of potassium occurred at a contact time of 24 h, a dose of 0.1 g for Mg- and Na-bentonite and 0.2 g for Ca-bentonite and pH 9. The pseudo-second-order equation described well the kinetics of potassium adsorption by bentonites over time. The results showed that the behavior of Mg-bentonite was more similar to Na-bentonite than Ca-bentonite. The selectivity coefficients of Vanslow, Gaines-Thomas, and Gapon changed under the influence of contact time, adsorbent dose, and pH. The results revealed that it is not possible to definitely determine the preference or non-preference of a cation based only on selectivity coefficients. The isotherm experiment showed that the amount of potassium adsorption increased with the increase of the initial equivalent fraction of potassium in the solution. The highest value of R2 and the lowest value of SE were obtained for simple linear and Freundlich equations, respectively.
Introduction Monitoring the changes in physical and hydraulic properties and stability of growth media due to root growth effects and wetting and drying cycles is important. Wetting and drying cycles can probably change physical... more
Introduction
Monitoring the changes in physical and hydraulic properties and stability of growth media due to root growth effects and wetting and drying cycles is important. Wetting and drying cycles can probably change physical characteristics, availability of water, air and nutrients for the plant and, as a result, might affect the growth and yield of the greenhouse plants. The growth period greatly affects the physical characteristics of the growth substrates; therefore, the watering of growth substrates should be managed according to these changes to avoid improper irrigation.
Materials and Methods
In this study, 14 growth media were prepared from individual substrates with different volumetric ratios. In order to evaluate the changes of growth media over the time (i.e., during consecutive irrigation events) in the greenhouse, 10 wetting and drying cycles were applied on the growth media in the lab. Several physical indicators including easily available water (EAW), air after irrigation (AIR), water buffering capacity (WBC) and water holding capacity (WHC) of the growth media were determined before and after the wetting and drying cycles. Besides, the subsidence, decrease of mass and decomposition of the growth media were determined over the time. Total porosity (TP), bulk density (BD), particle density (PD), pH and electrical conductivity of the mixtures were measured as well.
Results and Discussion
The pH values in the growth media varied from 5.72 to 6.94. The maximum pH value was related to sawdust- sugarcane bagasse biochar produced at 300◦C vermiculite-zeolite, and wheat straw-vermiculite substrates, and the minimum value was related to the cocopeat-perlite substrate. The values of EC in the growth media varied from 0.21 to 1.43 dS m-1. The highest and lowest EC values among the growth substrates were related to date palm bunches-vermiculite-rockwool and rockwool (0.2)-perlite substrates, respectively. The bulk density (BD) values of the growth media varied in the range of 0.1630.401 Mg m-3. The values of total porosity (TP) of the growth media varied in the range of 64.882.8%v/v. The highest TP was related to the cocopeat-perlite substrate. The TP values of most of the substrates were greater than 70%v/v. The average values of EAW in the growth substrates ranged from 0.123 to 0.272 cm3 cm-3. The highest EAW was related to the sawdust-sawdust biochar produced at 500 ◦C vermiculite-zeolite substrate. The application of wetting and drying cycles increased EAW in most of the growth media. Therefore, it can be stated that the time had a positive effect on the EAW in most of the growth media. The average values of AIR before and after the application of wetting and drying cycles for the growth media varied in the range of 0.0630.240 cm-3 cm3. The highest value of this indicator was observed in the sawdust-date palm bunches biochar produced at 300◦C vermiculite substrate. In all substrates (with the exception of the sawdust-sawdust biochar produced at 500◦C vermiculite-zeolite), the AIR increased after wetting and drying cycles. The range of WHC values before and after applying wetting and drying cycles was 0.4530.699 cm3 cm-3. The highest WHC belonged to the wheat straw-vermiculite substrate. The WHC values of five growth media, including cocopeat-perlite, decreased due to the application of wetting and drying cycles, and the WHC values of nine growth media decreased. The most stable substrate after the wetting and drying cycles was rockwool-sawdust-vermiculite. The effect of time on the quantity of WBC was positive, so that with the application of wetting and drying cycles, the WBC values of most of the substrates increased. In all substrates, subsidence and dry weight reduction were observed after the wetting and drying cycles. These changes were low for the substrates with a high volumetric ratio of inorganic materials. The least change among the growth substrates in terms of decomposition (dry weight reduction) was related to the completely inorganic substrate rockwool (0.1)-perlite (%0.17). The most stable substrate in terms of subsidence after wetting and drying cycles was the rockwool-sawdust-vermiculite, which has a large volumetric ratio of individual inorganic substrates. The highest subsidence was observed in the substrates containing wheat straw (wheat straw-vermiculite and date palm bunches biochar produced at 300◦C wheat straw-vermiculite). The organic matter content in all the growth substrates decreased over time (after wetting and drying cycles). The decrease of organic matter in the substrates can be related to the decomposition of organic materials as a result of wetting and drying cycles.
Conclusion
The BD, TP, EAW and WHC of the majority of growth media were in the optimal ranges and for some mixtures even better than cocopeat-perlite. Wetting and drying cycles could affect the growth media through several processes such as decomposition of organic compounds, displacement and rearrangement of particles, fragmentation of particles, shrinkage, hardening and subsidence. The growth media with a high percent of organic substrates were unstable as compared with those containing a high proportion of inorganic substrates. In general, the wetting and drying cycles increased the frequency of micropores in the growth media. The wetting and drying cycles positively affected EAW, WHC, AIR and WBC of most growth media. These findings imply that wetting and drying cycles may improve the growth media according to the studied extensive variables. However, it is necessary to study the intensive variables such as hydraulic conductivity, oxygen diffusion and pore tortuosity in the growth media for better evaluation of the impact of wetting and drying cycles as well.
Introduction One of the most fundamental global environmental challenges in the past two decades has been the issue of soil pollution and degradation. Soil, as an important environmental element, has played a significant role in food... more
Introduction
One of the most fundamental global environmental challenges in the past two decades has been the issue of soil pollution and degradation. Soil, as an important environmental element, has played a significant role in food production, human health, and living organisms, but various factors, by both human and naturally have destroyed it. The exploitation of natural resources with activities such as mining and quarrying, as an anthropogenic action (caused by human activities), is one of the most important factors of human intervention in nature and also one of the environmental hazards of soil degradation, which has caused the spread of desertification. Sangan iron mines in Khaf city are the largest mines in the northeast of Iran. According to the geomorphological disturbances caused by the activity of Khaf iron ore mines and the geological composition of the region, there is a potential for causing pollution and destroying the soil around the mine. This research was conducted with the aim of evaluating the impact of mining activity on concentration of some heavy metals such as lead, iron, nickel, copper, and arsenic in the soil around the iron ore mine in Sangan area of Khaf city in Khorasan Razavi province. Realizing the polluted hotspots due to the concentration of heavy metals, as one of the important signs of soil pollution and the spread of desertification, is one of the goals of this research, and the results can be effective in making appropriate management decisions to prevent soil pollution and further destruction.
Materials and Methods
In order to conduct this research, 60 soil samples were systematically taken from a depth of 0-20 cm from two areas adjacent to the mine and control. The concentration of aqua regia extracted heavy metals was measured using an inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). In the first stage, the results were descriptive, and in the second part, after performing tests related to the normality of the data, they were inferential using the parametric independent t-test and Pearson's correlation coefficient in the statistical environment of the SPSS software. In order to quantify the level of soil contamination with heavy metals, geochemical indices including contamination factor, pollution load index, and enrichment factor were used. The pollution load zoning map of the area adjacent to the mine as well as the average enrichment map of lead and arsenic elements were prepared using the inverse distance weighting interpolation method in the ArcGIS environment.
Results and Discussion
The results of this research showed that the average concentrations of arsenic, copper, nickel, lead, and iron elements in the area near the mine were 12.71, 25.54, 34.59, 48.64, and 38860 mg/kg and in the control area were 8.57, 15.97, 32.13, 16.96, 29110 mg/kg, respectively. The comparison of the coefficient of variation (dispersion criterion) of heavy metals showed that the highest coefficient of variation among the metals is related to the lead with a value of 42.8%, as well as the coefficient of variation for other metals in the area adjacent to the mine also has a relatively high dispersion compared to the control area. In addition, it was found in all elements except for nickel (p<0.05), which indicates a significant difference in the average concentrations between the control area and the area adjacent to the mine. The correlation between lead element and nickel, copper and arsenic variables was inverse and there was a positive and very strong correlation between iron and copper and nickel with values of 0.8 and 0.76 respectively and nickel and copper with values of 0.82. The pollution coefficient of the lead elements in the area adjacent to the mine showed moderate to significant pollution levels, which is more polluted than other elements. The pollution load in the area near the mine showed that the value of this index was greater than one in the samples closer to the mining areas, which indicates the high contamination of the surface soil with these elements. Lead and arsenic elements in the area adjacent to the mine showed moderate to relatively intense enrichment. From the examination of all the pollution indicators used in this research, as well as the positive and very strong correlation between copper and nickel, the presence of these two elements in the soil of the study area showed no pollution. The comparison of the results obtained from the analysis of soil samples in the two areas of the control and adjacent to the mine showed an increase in the concentration of heavy metals (iron, lead, and arsenic, copper) in the area adjacent to the mining.
Conclusion
The results obtained from the analysis of soil samples and pollution indicators in the two control areas adjacent to the Sangan iron ore mine in Khaf city showed that the presence of iron ore industrial and mining sites in the study area and the spread of its wastes and tailings by seasonal and local winds, as well as the activities of humanity and the spread of these pollutants to other areas, can be one of the main reasons for the increase in the concentration of metal pollutants in the soils of this region.
Introduction Conventional cropping systems, dependent on heavy application of chemical fertilizers, are not ecologically and environmentally sustainable; they are a threat for soil and water quality and, in consequence, for plant and... more
Introduction
Conventional cropping systems, dependent on heavy application of chemical fertilizers, are not ecologically and environmentally sustainable; they are a threat for soil and water quality and, in consequence, for plant and human health. Nitrogen fertilizers are heavily applied in conventional leaf vegetable production systems to obtain maximum growth and yield. However, the excess nitrogen tends to accumulate in leaf vegetables in the form of nitrate, which pose serious human health hazards. Therefore, to supply nitrogen from non-chemical sources, such as organic amendments, is a sustainable practice for production of leaf vegetables. Spent mushroom substrate (SMS), which is the remaining material after the harvest of mushroom, is produced in large quantities (5 kg SMS for 1 kg of mushroom) and is enriched with organic carbon, N, P, K, and micronutrients. Therefore its reuse as a soil amendment not only provides essential elements for plants but also improves soil quality. Similarly, incorporation of green manures, especially legume green manures, into cropping systems is a sustainable practice for soil fertility and soil quality management. In this study, we aimed to investigate the short-term effects of two soil organic amendments (spent mushroom substrate and alfalfa residues) and their combination, in comparison to inorganic N fertilizer (urea), on soil fertility, and selected essential nutrients, and nitrate accumulation in a leaf vegetable, test plant (spinach).   
Materials and Method
A one-season pot experiment was led in a randomized complete block design with three replications in experimental greenhouse of Bu-Ali Sina University. Treatments were comprised of two levels of spent mushroom substrate (SMS-1: 2% SMS, and SMS-2: 5% SMS), two levels of alfalfa green manure (AGM-1: 1% AGM, and AGM-2: 3% AGM); two levels of the mixture of SMS and AGM (SMS+AGM-1: 1% SMS plus 0.5% AGM; and SMS+AGM-2: 2.5% SMS plus 1.5% AGM);  two levels of urea fertilizer (U-1; 120 kg/ha, and U-2: 360 kg/ ha); and control. Selected properties of the initial soil and both organic amendments were determined. Spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.) was seeded as leaf vegetable, test plant in early autumn 2017. After ten weeks, spinach were harvested and the aboveground and root dry weights were determined. Moreover, the content of NO3-, P, Fe, Cu, Zn, and Mn in edible parts were measured. Soil samples were analyzed for EC, pH, total organic carbon, available P and K, and alkaline phosphatase activity.
Results and Discussion
All soil quality indicators were significantly affected by the treatments. TOC was significantly increased in all of the organic treatments compared to the chemical and control treatments. The maximum increase in TOC was observed in SMS-2, SMS+AGM-2, and AGM-2 treatments, compared to the control (134, 130 and 107%, respectively). A decreasing trend in TOC was detected in the high level of urea treatment (U-2) compared to the control which can be explained by the faster decomposition of soil organic matter in the presence of higher inorganic N inputs. Both organic amendments (in both levels) and the higher level of urea (U-2) decreased soil pH compared to the control. The initial low pH of SMS (5.6) and AGM (6.2), in the first case, and oxidation of urea to nitrate, in the latter, may justify this observation. In contrast, soil EC increased under the both organic amendments relative to the control and U-1 treatments. Moreover, the adverse effect of SMS on soil salinity was greater than AGM due to the initial differences in their corresponding source materials (5.8 vs. 3.0 ds/m). Available K was significantly increased in the second level of all organic treatments compared to the chemical and control treatments. As for available P, all organic treatments, except AGM-1, led to the significantly higher P than the chemical and control treatments. It is reported that organic materials compete with mineral particles for P adsorption and increase its availability. Moreover, all organic treatments, except SMS-1, significantly increased phosphatase activity compared to the chemical and control treatments. This could contribute to the mineralization of organic materials and increase available P.   
Spinach yield was affected by the experimental treatments. The highest increase in shoot dry weight occurred in SMS+AGM-2 and AGM-2 treatments by 235 and 230%, respectively, compared to the control. Moreover, the second level of all organic treatments as well as the first level of SMS plus AGM treatment significantly increased yield compared to the chemical treatments. Spinach P content was significantly higher in all organic treatments, except SMS-1 and AGM-1, compared to the chemical and control treatments. Organic amendments, by decreasing the surface adsorption of P and increasing soil microbial biomass, promote the availability of P for plants. Spinach nitrate content ranged from 265 (in control) to 7807 mg/kg (in U-2). According to the critical limit of nitrate in spinach (4000 mg/kg) presented by European Union, only U-2 treatment led to over-accumulation of NO3-. The two levels of AGM treatments and SMS+AGM-2 resulted in the comparable amounts of nitrate as the recommended amount of urea (U-1). A narrow variation in spinach Cu content (from 6.1 in SMS+AGM-2 to 9.8 mg/kg in AGM-2), all within the standard range reported for plants (5-20 mg/kg), was observed among the treatments. Spinach Fe content was increased under all organic treatments relative to the control, although some disparities were not significant. The lowest Fe was detected in U-2. It is reported that excessive N may diminish root growth and, in turn, reduce nutrient uptake. Spinach Zn content varied from 44.8 (in control) to 71.5 mg/kg (in SMS-2), which was close to the higher limit of standard range (20-50 mg/kg) reported for vegetables, but lower than toxic concentration range (200-400 mg/kg). Spinach Mn content varied from 17.4 (in control) to 32.1 mg/kg (in SMS-2), which was close to the lower limit of the standard range (40-400 mg/kg) reported for plants.
Conclusion
The most appropriate treatments in view of improving yield and soil quality (i.e., optimum TOC, P, and K; and lower EC) as well as tolerable nitrate accumulation were SMA+AGM-1 and SMS-1 in decreasing order. These treatments are preferred over the chemical treatments (U-1 and U-2).
Introduction Land suitability analysis and land use mapping are one of the most practical applications of Geographic Information Systems in land resource management. Complexities in soil have briefly limited studies on how it functions... more
Introduction
Land suitability analysis and land use mapping are one of the most practical applications of Geographic Information Systems in land resource management. Complexities in soil have briefly limited studies on how it functions (Karlen, 2008). There are many methods from different centers including food and agriculture organizations (FAO), to evaluate land suitability. These methods are based on the characteristics of the land and the needs of the plant. Soil quality indicators are a set of measurable soil characteristics that affect crop production or the environment and are sensitive to land use change, management or conservation operations. (Brejda, 2000; Aparico and Costa, 2007). As a result, there is a global need for environmental issues, improvement of soil quality assessment methods for sustainable agricultural development and recognition of the sustainability of soil management and land use systems. Until now, various methods have been used to collect data, measure and evaluate soil quality, and laboratory analysis is the most common method, which has the advantage of being easy to use and characterizing and the quantitative characteristics of the test on different soil quality indicators (and Wang, 1998 Gong). Criteria for soil quality indicators should be a set of physical, chemical, biological characteristics or a combination of them (Doran and Parkin, 1997).
Materials and Methods
In the present study, the qualitative assessment of land suitability was investigated using fuzzy and parametric hierarchical analysis process models for the irrigated wheat and alfalfa crops. Soil characteristics, climatic conditions, topography and accessibility were selected based on the Food and Agriculture Organization framework and expert opinions. The interpolation function was used to plot values to points in terms of quality/ terrain characteristics for the type of operation and the evaluation was performed based on parametric and fuzzy analytical hierarchy process models. The process of evaluation is based on the FAO qualitative land evaluation system (FAO 1976a, b, 1983, 1985), which compares climatic conditions and land qualities/characteristics including topography, erosion hazard, wetness, soil physical properties, soil fertility, and chemical properties, soil salinity and alkalinity with each specific crop requirements developed by Sys et al. (1991a, b, 1993). Based on morphological and physical/chemical properties of soil profiles some 10 land units were identified in the study area.Climate data related to different stages of wheat growth were taken from ten years of meteorological data of the region (2007-2017) and the climatic requirements of the crop were extracted from the Table developed by (Sys et al., 1993). An interpolation technique using the ArcGIS ver 10.3 helped in managing the spatial data and visualizing the land index results in both models for preparing the final land suitability evaluation maps. The FAHP method and (Chang, 1996) method, which is a very simple method for generalizing the hierarchical analysis process to the fuzzy space, was used in order to assign weight to the criteria through. This method is based on computational mean of the experts’ opinion and the time normalization method and the use of triangular fuzzy numbers. A pairwise comparison matrix has been made fuzzy based on the experts’ opinion and using the triangular fuzzy numb. After calculating the weights of the criteria in the present research through the FAHP method, the entire criteria maps were overlaid through the use of the GIS function and the suitability maps were prepared for the main criteria. The main suitability maps went through weight overlaying eventually and the final map of suitability for wheat and alfalfa cultivation was produced.
Results and Discussion
The results of this study showed that the FAHP was an efficient strategy to increase the accuracy of weight allocation to criteria that affect the analysis of ground fit. The inability of conventional decision-making methods to account for uncertainty paves the way for the use of fuzzy decision-making methods. One of the drawbacks of the AHP is its inability to account for the uncertainty of judgments in pairwise comparison matrices. This defect is compensated by the FAHP method. Instead of considering a specific number in a pairwise comparison, a range of values in the FAHP is used for uncertainty for decision makers. The present research method can be useful for prioritizing lands, improving exploitation, conserving resources, and creating sustainable management. The results of this study, considering the main criteria of cultivation in the study area and the opinion of domestic experts, can provide useful insights into choosing the appropriate cultivation pattern in the region. The use of different fuzzy AHP methods as well as comparing the results of different fuzzy AHP methods in future research is recommended.
Introduction Crude oil is a complex combination of many hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon compounds, including heavy metals, which affect the physical and chemical properties of the soil, cause the soil particles to stick and connect and... more
Introduction
Crude oil is a complex combination of many hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon compounds, including heavy metals, which affect the physical and chemical properties of the soil, cause the soil particles to stick and connect and then cause the soil to become stiff and impenetrable. Contamination of soil with petroleum hydrocarbons is a significant environmental problem, which has received remarkable attention in recent decades. Petroleum hydrocarbons are resistant and hazardous pollutants. Some petroleum hydrocarbons such as benzene are mutagenic and carcinogenic materials for humans. There are many physical and chemical methods to remediate oil-contaminated soils. Phytoremediation is a relatively new technology for refining contaminated soils in which resistant plants are used to remove or reduce the concentration of inorganic, radioactive, and organic pollutants, especially petroleum compounds, from the environment.
Materials and Methods
Sufficient amounts of about 50 kg of soil contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons were collected from regions (0-30 cm soil depth) adjacent to the oil wells west of Kermanshah province. Uncontaminated soil samples were also taken from sites at the lowest distance to the contaminated sites. The aim of this study was to compare the efficiency of different plants to remove total petroleum hydrocarbons from oilfield soils. In this study, after determining the total amount of petroleum hydrocarbons, the contaminated and uncontaminated soils were mixed in 4 treatments with different weight ratios (0, 10, 25, and 35%). This experiment was established as completely randomized design with 3 replications for 6 different plants (Barley, Grass, Alfalfa, Hemp, Camelina, and Vicia ervilia). One treatment without plant was considered to remove soil matrix effects on petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations. Plants were harvested at the end of their growing season (90-120 days). Soils and plant samples from the experimental pots were analyzed for their important properties (including some physiological characteristics of the plants, as well as the percentage of reduced petroleum hydrocarbons in the soils). The gravimetric method was used to determine the concentration of petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil. After measuring the properties of the soil and plant, the normality of the data was checked by the Anderson–Darling test, and the homogeneity of the variance of the treatments was checked by using Levene's test. Analysis of data variance was done using ANOVA and average data comparison was done using LSD test at 5 and 1 percent probability levels (SAS 9.4 and SPSS 26).
Results and Discussion
In general, the growth of most plants showed a decreasing trend in proportion to the increase in soil pollution levels. However, the growth decline rates of different plants were not similar. Camelina was very sensitive to oil pollution and the plant could not tolerate pollution even at 10% level. After camelina, alfalfa was highly sensitive to oil pollution. The highest dry weight of the aerial parts of the hemp plant in the soil without oil contamination was observed at the rate of 111.22 grams in the pot. The leaf area of all studied plants in contaminated soils decreased compared to the control treatment (without contamination) so with the increase in the percentage of contamination, the leaf area of the plants was significantly reduced. The highest amount of leaf surface was observed in unpolluted soil and in the hemp plant. Except for the Camelina plant, which was completely destroyed at different levels of pollution, the rest of the plants showed a noticeable decrease in growth. The total petroleum hydrocarbons in soil were measured again 120 days after the start of cultivation, and its difference with the total amount of petroleum hydrocarbons at the beginning of cultivation was determined as the reduction of petroleum hydrocarbons and reported as a percentage. According to the mean comparison results, the percentage of reduced petroleum hydrocarbons was not significantly different among cultivated and non-cultivated treatments, although, it was significantly affected by soil pollution levels. Since all the studied soils contained natural bacteria and were not sterilized, the eliminated part of petroleum hydrocarbons is probably decomposed and removed by native bacteria in the soils. Therefore, the strengthening of native bacteria in these soils may increase the decomposition and degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons.
Conclusion
The results of this research show that the presence of petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil caused a decrease in growth and other physiological characteristics in all studied plants. Although the Camelina was able to germinate in soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons, the presence of these pollutants in the soil prevented the optimum growth of the plant, so its use in subsequent studies of phytoremediation of oil-contaminated soils, was not recommended. The results showed that there is no statistically significant difference between cultivated and non-cultivated treatments at different pollution levels, and the reduction of the total petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil was probably done by native microorganisms in the soil. It is recommended to take into consideration the efficiency of the plant species used, the type of polluting hydrocarbons, and the duration of contamination in future research to obtain better results.
Introduction Determining the capture zone of water resources is a strategic approach proposed at the national level of water resources management in Iran. One of the important actions for this purpose is protection of karst water... more
Introduction
Determining the capture zone of water resources is a strategic approach proposed at the national level of water resources management in Iran. One of the important actions for this purpose is protection of karst water resources, which are considered one of the vital sources for supplying water due to the widespread karst formations in this country and the limitation of groundwater resources in alluvial aquifers. Generally, water flows out through the springs in the karst system. The land area where the water contributes to the spring is called the spring's capture zone. The study and analysis of the recession curve of the springs, the area extending from a discharge peak to the base of the next rise, along with the other physical characteristics of springs such as electrical conductivity is a useful indicator for getting knowledge about the condition of the catchment area and other properties of the heterogeneous karst terrain. In estimating the water budget, unlike the non-karst areas where the surface runoff or the outflow is considered the main factor in the estimated water budget, the recharge component is an important factor in the karst domain. The difference between hydrogeological and hydrological (topographic) catchments is one of the obvious features in karst landscapes. The identification of these basins or their boundaries is possible by combining geology and topography information. Soufiyan Cement Company in the vicinity of Chelleh Khanehe Olya Spring located in Moro Mountain is associated with the creating social problems due to the expansion of mining activities and the negative impact on spring water in this area. Therefore, this study aims to determine the catchment area and the capture zone of the Chelleh Khanehe Olya Spring by determining the protective boundary for the extraction of limes by the Soufiyan cement factory to prevent the negative impact of this factory on the spring.
Materials and Methods
In this research, the hydrograph of the recession curve related to a rainfall event has been analyzed by taking into account the mean monthly discharge rate of spring to determine the sub-regimes of diffuse and conduit flow by employing the following equation:
Qt=Q0e-αt                          (1)
Where Qt is the discharge rate at time t, Qo reveals the discharge at the initial time, and α is a recession coefficient.
In addition, The Qmax/Qmin ratio has been calculated to estimate the flow type and the degree of karstification in the catchment area.
In the next step, to determine the Chelleh Khanehe Olya Spring catchment area and its capture zone, spring hydrogeological boundaries were determined and investigated using the SCS method and estimating the area's water budget. Due to the lack of sufficient rainfall and groundwater discharge information in this region, the water budget for a given period (2019-2020) has been computed indirectly by measuring the monthly discharge rate from the selected stations. After collecting the required data, the following equation developed by Milanovich (1989) has been used to estimate the water budget as follows:
P=E+R+I                          (2)
Where P, E, R, and I denote precipitation (P), evaporation at the basin level (E), runoff (R), and recharge to the aquifers (I). All the parameters are in mm units.
Results and Discussion
Analyzing the variation of electrical conductivity along with the discharge rate indicates that by decreasing the discharge rate from 2.5 l/s to 8.1 l/s, the electrical conductivity increase from 463 µs/cm to 500 µs/cm, reflecting an increase in the volume of the reservoir, the dilution of the aquifer. The hydrograph recession curve during 2019-2020 indicated two laminar and turbulent sub-regimes. Micro regimes α1 (01.002) and α2 (0.013) represented that the dominant system of karst development in the region is diffuse. The high density of fractures and the lack of purity of lime are the main reasons for the weak development of the karst fracture in the region, which the Chele khaneh Olya Spring recession curve analysis,  maximum to minimum ratio of discharge, and karstification coefficient confirmed this issue. Determining the catchment basin using geological, hydrogeological information, and water budget showed that the hydrological and hydrogeological boundary of the Spring is different. The protected zone of Chele khane Olya Spring, which includes the total hydrogeological basin and the Cretaceous limestone area below the level of the Spring, was estimated to be about 184,000 square meters (18 hectares). According to the findings of this research, Soufiyan Cement Company does not have the right to enter the hydrogeological boundary to extract limes, and on the other hand, to prevent the water level from decreasing due to the excessive extraction of lime as a result of the excavation depth reaching the level of the water table, it suggests to extract from the unsaturated part of the aquifer (unsaturated limes) to prevent the flow rate of Chele Khana Spring from decreasing and even drying it up.
Conclusion
Analyzing the discharge rate, electrical conductivity, hydrograph recession curve, and its recession coefficient (α=0.002), revealed that the dominant flow in the system is diffuse, which results from the high density of fractures and region lithology consisting of impure cretaceous limestone. Since the result revealed the inconsistency between hydrological and hydrogeological boundaries, the geological profile of the site was prepared and the spring of the catchment was estimated. Based on the findings of this research, the Chelle Khanehe Olya capture zone consists of the hydrogeological area, obtained from the groundwater budget estimation, and the protective boundary for the limestone below Cheleh Khaneh Olya Spring (the unsaturated zone of the area's limestones), which covers an area of about 18 hectares.
Introduction Evaluation of plant models in agriculture has been done by many researchers. The purpose of this work is to determine the appropriate plant model for planning and predicting the response of crops in different regions. This... more
Introduction
Evaluation of plant models in agriculture has been done by many researchers. The purpose of this work is to determine the appropriate plant model for planning and predicting the response of crops in different regions. This action is made it possible to study the effect of various factors on the performance and efficiency of plant water consumption by spending less time and money. Since the most important agricultural product in Iran is wheat, so proper management of wheat fields has an important role in food security and sustainable agriculture in the country. The main source of food for the people in Iran is wheat and its products, and any action to increase the yield of wheat is necessary due to limited water and soil resources. Evapotranspiration is a complex and non-linear process and depends on various climatic factors such as temperature, humidity, wind speed, radiation, type and stage of plant growth. Therefore, in the present study, by using daily meteorological data of Urmia, Rasht, Qazvin, Mashhad and Yazd stations, the average daily evapotranspiration values based on the results of the FAO-Penman-Monteith method are modeled and the accuracy of the two methods temperature method (Hargreaves-Samani and Blaney-Criddle) and three radiation methods (Priestley-Taylor, Turc and Makkink) were compared with FAO-56 for wheat.
Materials and Methods
The present study was conducted to evaluate the accuracy and efficiency of the AquaCrop model in simulation of evapotranspiration and biomass, using different methods for estimation reference evapotranspiration in five stations (Urmia, Qazvin, Rasht, Yazd and Mashhad). Four different climates (arid, semi-arid, humid and semi-humid) were considered in Iran for wheat production. The equations used to estimate the reference evapotranspiration in this study are: Hargreaves-Samani (H.S), Blaney-Criddle (B.C), Priestley-Taylor (P.T), Turc (T) and Makkink (Mak). Then, the results were compared with the data of the mentioned stations for wheat by error statistical criteria including: explanation coefficient (R2), normal root mean square error (NRMSE) and Nash-Sutcliffe index (N.S).
Results and Discussion
The value of the explanation coefficient (R2) of simulation ET and biomass in the Blaney-Criddle method is close to one, which shows a good correlation between the data. The NRMSE and Nash-Sutcliffe values for both parameters and the five stations are in the range of 0-20 and close to one, respectively, which indicates the AquaCrop model's ability to simulate ET and biomass. On the other hand, the value of R2 in the Hargreaves-Samani method for biomass close to one, NRMSE in the range of 0-10 and Nash-Sutcliffe index is more than 0.5, which indicates a good simulation. The NRMSE index in the evaluation of ET and biomass wheat is excellent for the Blaney-Criddle method and about Hargreaves-Samani for ET is poor and for the biomass is excellent.
The Turc method with NRMSE in the range of 0-30, explanation coefficient close to or equal to one and a Nash-Sutcliffe index of one or close to one can be used to simulate ET and biomass at all five stations. Also, for biomass simulation, Priestley-Taylor and Makkink methods have acceptable statistical values in all five stations.
Based on the value of explanation coefficient (R2) of estimation ET and biomass wheat for radiation methods, the correlation between the data in all three radiation methods is high. Percentage of NRMSE index of Makkink method for wheat in ET evaluation in Qazvin station is poor category and in Urmia and Rasht is good and in Mashhad and Yazd is moderate and about biomass in all five stations (Qazvin, Rasht, Mashhad, Urmia and Yazd) is excellent category, the error percentage of Priestley-Taylor method for wheat in ET evaluation in Yazd station is good and the rest of the stations is poor, about biomass is excellent in all five stations (Qazvin, Rasht, Mashhad, Urmia and Yazd). The error rate of Turc method for wheat in ET evaluation in Urmia, Rasht and Mashhad stations is good and in Qazvin and Yazd is poor and about biomass is excellent in all five stations (Qazvin, Rasht, Mashhad, Urmia and Yazd).
Conclusion
According to the results obtained using Blaney-Criddle method with R2 value close to one, NRMSE in the range of 0-20% (excellent to good) and Nash-Sutcliffe index close to one and Turc method with R2 value close to one, NRMSE in the range of 0-10% (excellent) and Nash-Sutcliffe index close to one was showed a good accuracy of AquaCrop model in simulation of evapotranspiration and biomass with these methods of estimation of evapotranspiration compared to other methods.
Introduction Conservation Agriculture (CA), as a sustainable cultivation system, aims at efficient use of natural resources with least environmental impacts, while achieving food security through increasing yield and crop diversification.... more
Introduction
Conservation Agriculture (CA), as a sustainable cultivation system, aims at efficient use of natural resources with least environmental impacts, while achieving food security through increasing yield and crop diversification. CA consists of three main principles: 1- reduction or elimination of mechanical soil disturbance; 2- maintaining a permanent cover of crop residues on soil; and 3- diversification of crops. However, the total area under CA in Iran is less than 5% of arable lands. In Hamedan province, CA is mostly implemented in rainfed farming. Therefore, there is a necessity to expand CA in irrigated areas. Nonetheless, a lack of sufficient technical and local knowledge about CA acts as a barrier for its expansion in irrigated lands. Despite the large body of research conducted on CA, there is no detailed information about the combined effects of cover crops and conservation tillage systems on soil functioning and corn productivity in semi-arid regions of Hamedan province. Therefore, our aim was to study three-year effects of conservation tillage practices (no tillage and minimum tillage) and cover crops (hairy vetch and grass pea) on selected soil quality indicators and yield components of corn in a clay loam soil of a semi-arid region in Hamedan. 
Materials and Methods
Combined effects of various tillage practices and cover crops on selected soil quality indicators and corn productivity were examined in a three-year experiment conducted in the research field of Bu-Ali Sina University. A factorial experiment in the basis ofbased on randomized complete block design with 3 replications and 2 factors were carried out, in which three levels of tillage practices (no tillage (NT), minimum tillage (MT), and conventional tillage (CT)), and three levels of cover crops (hairy vetch (V), grass pea (L), and no cover crop) were the imposed treatments. Surface soil samples (0-15 cm) were collected two weeks after corn harvesting in the third year of experiment. Total organic carbon (TOC), organic carbon stock (CS), active carbon (AC), carbon management index (CMI), basal respiration (BR), alkaline phosphatase activity (APA), bulk density (BD), mean weight diameter of water-stable aggregates (MWD), and available phosphorous (P) and potassium (K) were determined. Corn yield components (including number of kernel rows per corn, number of grains per corn row, ear cob weight, hundred weight of grains, ear weight, grain weights per ear, biological yield and grain yield) were measured.
Results and Discussion
The highest TOC (0.96%), CS (18.7 ton/ha), AC (398 mg/kg), CMI (74.8), BR (0.118 mgCO2/g.d) and MWD (1.82 mm) were observed in MT treatment. However, no significant difference was detected between MT and CT in terms of AC, CS and CMI. Moreover, the lowest TOC (0.74%) was measured in NT, which showed no significant difference with CT treatment (0.83%). Reduced destruction of soil structure coupled with the increased MWD, and increased inputs of crop residues through MT, resulted in the protection of organic matter against microbial decomposition. Soil structuring, represented by BD, was improved under conservation tillage treatments (NT and MT).
Among cover crops, hairy vetch treatment demonstrated the highest TOC (1.0%), CS (19.5 ton/ha), AC (427 mg/kg), CMI (80.3) and MWD (1.73 mm). However, these indicators, except CMI, were not significantly different between the two cover crops. On the contrary, these indicators were lowest in the control (no cover crop). Moreover, AC and CMI were not significantly different between grass pea and the control. Carbon stock was increased by 54 and 40% in hairy vetch and grass pea treatments, respectively, relative to the control. In general, cover crop cultivation combined with conservation tillage practices introduced additional biomass to the soil which in turn improved soil organic matter over time and enhanced soil quality.
The lowest amounts of biological yield (1663 g/m2), grain yield (507 g/m2), hundred weight of grains 11.0 g), ear weight (91.4 g), grain weights per ear (62.9 g), and number of kernel rows per corn (13) were measured in CT system. In contrast, the highest grain yield (637 g/m2), hundred grain weight (13.6 g), ear weight (108.4 g), and grain weights per ear (81.9 g) were measured in NT treatment. However, the biological yield showed no significant difference between NT and CT. Soil quality improvement in conservation tillage treatments explains the enhancement of certain yield components. Biological yield and number of grains per row demonstrated significant difference between cover crop treatments; the maximum of biological yield (2103 g/m2) and of number of grains per row (44) was measured in hairy vetch treatment. Moreover, the lowest of biological yield (1589 g/m2) was observed in the control (no cover crop) treatment. 
Conclusion
All soil quality indicators, except available P, were improved under MT as compared with CT. Our three-year study revealed that among conservation tillage treatments, MT improved majority of soil quality indicators compared to NT. Therefore, minimum tillage practice seems to be more sustainable in this study area. Conservation tillage treatments (MT and NT) also enhanced corn grain yield, grain weights per ear and number of grain rows per ear compared to to the CT. Both cover crops improved most soil quality indicators. Moreover, both cover crops induced significant effect on biological yield, although hairy vetch was more effective than grass pea. The integration of minimum tillage with hairy vetch cover crop is considered as a sustainable cropping system for the improvement of soil quality and corn yield in this area.
Introduction Boron (B) has a dual effect on living systems, so that the concentration range within which B is changed from a nutrient to a pollutant is rather narrow. Although B plays essential roles in all living organisms, its... more
Introduction
Boron (B) has a dual effect on living systems, so that the concentration range within which B is changed from a nutrient to a pollutant is rather narrow. Although B plays essential roles in all living organisms, its long-term excessive uptake has adverse effects on either human beings or plants and animals. Furthermore, part of the B that can be used as fertilizer is highly soluble and easily leached into the soil profile leadsing to some problems such as decrease of fertilizer efficiency. Therefore, to improve agricultural productivity through its gradual uptake by plants, the increase of B adsorption in the soil solution is necessary. Many adsorbents have been used for the adsorption of B from aqueous solutions; however, layered double hydroxides (LDHs) have been considered as one of the most effective adsorbents as well as slow releaser fertilizers of inorganic anions such as nitrate, phosphate, etc. The formula of LDHs are typically denoted as [M1-x 2+M x 3+ (OH)2]x+ (An-) x/n .m(H2O), where M2+ and M3+ are divalent and trivalent cations, respectively, the significance of x is the molar ratio of M3+/(M3++ M2+) and An- is the intercalated anion. Although LDH materials are commonly prepared by combining two divalent and trivalent metals, more metals can be introduced in the brucite layer to achieve a large variety of composition and higher adsorption capacity. Stability of LDHs in soil can be affected by numerous factors (e.g. low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOAs)) leading to release of structural cations in addition to interlayer anion. However, there are scarce investigations that have evaluated the potential of ternary LDHs (e.g. Zn–Mn–Al LDH) in desorption of B (as interlayer anion) and release of Zn and Mn (as structural anions) in a simulated soil solution. Therefore, the objectives of this study were, i) to compare the desorption of B capacity of binary LDH (Zn–Al LDH) and ternary LDH (Zn–Mn–Al LDH) in the simulated soil solution, and ii) to investigate the effect of three different electrolytes (potassium nitrate, oxalic acid, and citric acid) on the release of Zn and Mn from synthesized LDHs.
Materials and methods
A modified urea hydrolysis method was employed to synthesize Zn–Al and Mn-substituted Zn–Al LDHs with Zn(+Mn)/Al molar ratio of 2. Herein the contents of Mn with respect to Zn corresponded to 2% and 10% molar ratio. Accordingly, the synthesized materials denoted as Zn–Al, Zn–Mn1 and Zn–Mn2 for the samples without Mn, with 2 and 10 mol% Mn with respect to Zn content. For investigation of B desorption at a concentration of 10 mM, 15 mL from equilibrium solutions were substituted with 15 mL of 0.03 M KNO3 and shaken for 240 min. Substitution was repeated four times and A modified urea hydrolysis method was employed to synthesize Zn–Al and Mn-substituted Zn–Al LDHs with Zn (+Mn)/Al molar ratio of 2. Herein the contents of Mn with respect to Zn corresponded to 2% and 10% molar ratio. Accordingly, the synthesized materials denoted as Zn–Al, Zn–Mn1 and Zn–Mn2 for the samples without Mn, with 2 and 10 mol% Mn with respect to Zn content. For investiigatigatingon of B desorption at a concentration of 10 mM, 15 mL from equilibrium solutions were substituted with 15 mL of 0.03 M KNO3 and shaken for 240 min. Substitution was repeated four times and B concentrations in extracts were measured by Azomethine-H method. Furthermore, the supernatant Zn and Mn concentrations were determined by GF-AAS (PG 900). This process was repeated for 1.25 mM oxalic acid and 1.25 mM citric acid to study the effect of these compounds on B desorption as well as release of Zn and Mn. B concentrations in extracts were measured by Azomethine-H method. Furthermore, the supernatant Zn and Mn concentrations were determined by GF-AAS (PG 900). This process was repeated for 1.25 mM oxalic acid and 1.25 mM citric acid to study the effect of these compounds on B desorption as well as release of Zn and Mn.
Results and Discussion
The adsorption and desorption isotherm were carried out to describe the distribution of B between the liquid and adsorbent. The isotherm data of synthesized LDHs were matched with Freundlich model. The values of 1/n in this model were found between 0 and 1 for all LDHs indicating favorable sorption of B on these compounds. The highest adsorption was observed for ternary LDHs (particularly Zn–Mn2) due to their higher specific surface area and also due to the ion exchange mechanism in combination with surface adsorption. However, the results showed that the percentages of B desorption by potassium nitrate, oxalic acid and citric acid were lower for Zn–Mn1 (19.4, 29.1 and 38.2%, respectively) and Zn–Mn2 (18.6, 28.2 and 35.9 %, respectively) than Zn–Al (30.8, 41.2 and 46.2%, respectively). This observation suggests that the type of LDH, B adsorption mechanism and background electrolyte can affect the amount of B desorption. Furthermore, after 4 successive desorption cycles, the concentration of Zn and Mn increased in the supernatants (particularly in organic acid electrolytes) suggesting dissolution mechanism possibility happened for the studied LDHs. Among the background electrolytes, citric acid was the most effective compound in releasing Zn and Mn, followed by oxalic acid and potassium nitrate. A reason for this such observations could be that with respect to chemical structure, citric acid by three carboxyl groups can form more chelate rings compared to oxalic acid, which contain two carboxyl groups. Therefore, it seems that B containing Zn–Mn–Al LDH may have potential to be used as a slow release fertilizer in soils to supply three essential elements, including B, Zn and Mn simultaneously. However, further studies are required to support such a hypothesis.
Introduction Overuse of antibiotics and their entry into the environment is a global concern today. Much of the antibiotics taken by animals and humans are excreted unchanged and found in their feces which enter the environment through... more
Introduction
Overuse of antibiotics and their entry into the environment is a global concern today. Much of the antibiotics taken by animals and humans are excreted unchanged and found in their feces which enter the environment through livestock waste and municipal wastewater disposal. Uncontrolled release and continuous introduction of antibiotics to the environment induced antibiotic resistance in microorganisms living in other habitats which pose a potential hazard to existing aquatic ecosystems and animals. Rivers act as the main sink for the effluents that distribute antibiotics and antibiotic resistant microorganisms in the environment. This study aimed to investigate the antibiotic resistant index (ARI) in Goharrood River. Seasonal variations and source of contamination, focusing on urban surface wastewater of Rasht, were investigated through sampling of river water and sediment in different points along the river during four seasons of a year.
Materials and Methods
The water and sediment of the river were sampled at three points along the river (focused on river course in Rasht city), in autumn, 2016 and in winter, spring and summer, 2017. The number of antibiotic resistant heterotrophic and coliform bacteria were counted via colony count method in the antibiotic supplemented 100 µg/mL Nutrient Agar and Eosine-Methylene Blue agar media respectively. Cephalexin, gentamicin, doxycycline, ciprofloxacin, and trimethoprim antibiotics were tested in this study. ARI was calculated by dividing number of bacteria colonies (heterotrophic and coliform bacteria) in plates supplemented with antibiotics to the number of colonies in control plate (without antibiotic). Escherichia coli as an indicator coliform bacterium was isolated from water and sediment samples (12 strains; 4 season and 3 sampling points) and their resistant pattern to these antibiotic was also tested by disk diffusion (Kirby-Bauer) method in Mueller-Hinton agar medium. The inhibition zone (ZOI) of E. coli growth was measured and its sensitivity/resistant was assessed based on CLSI standard protocol. The calculated ARI of heterotrophic and coliform bacteria of water and sediment of the River and the determined ZOI of E. coli isolated from water and sediment were analyzed by repeated measures of factorial arrangement in a completely randomized design format by SAS software package. Factors included sampling point at 3 levels (before entering river to the Rasht city; A, in the Rasht city; B, and after river exit from the Rasht city; C), and antibiotics at 5 levels (cephalexin, gentamicin, doxycycline, ciprofloxacin, and trimethoprim) as main plot and sampling time at 4 levels (autumn, winter, spring, and summer) as sub-plot.
Results and Discussion
The highest ARI value of water heterotrophic bacteria was obtained to cephalexin at the sampling point C. Mean ARI of water heterotrophic bacteria to all antibiotics (regardless of type of antibiotic) at three points of A, B and C was 3.77, 4.54 and 7.53%, respectively. The highest ARI levels of heterotrophic and coliform bacteria in water were obtained in the summer season. In fact, the change of seasons and clearly the summer season controlled the ARI in water bacteria rather than the type of antibiotics. So that in this season 30.78% of water heterotrophic bacteria were resistant to ciprofloxacin antibiotic and about half (50.78) of the river water coliforms were resistant to cephalexin. Although ARI for heterotrophic and coliform bacteria was lower in sediment rather than that in water, the highest ARI levels of heterotrophic and coliform bacteria in sediment were obtained against cephalexin in autumn and winter, respectively. In general, the mean ARI in water and sediment bacteria was as follows: cephalexin > gentamicin > ciprofloxacine > doxycycline > trimethoprim. The lowest ZOI value for E. coli was obtained against cephalexin. Therefore, in all three sampling points, isolated E. coli bacteria from water and sediment were resistant to cephalexin. In the study of the sampling time and sampling point interaction, it was also seen that the lowest ZOI of E. coli was in autumn and at sampling point C. Therefore, it seems that E. coli has become resistant to antibiotics when river crosses the city.
Conclusion
According to the results of this study, Goharrood river is contaminated with antibiotic-resistant, especially cephalexin resistant bacteria and it may distribute pollution downstream. If the river water is used in aquaculture and irrigation of downstream agriculture fields, the antibiotic resistant bacteria may be spread in the other ecosystems and finally may enter the human food chain.
Introduction Control and extraction of water using underground dams in arid regions has been of interest to researchers since not too long ago. Construction of underground dams does not require surface water storage and does not change... more
Introduction
Control and extraction of water using underground dams in arid regions has been of interest to researchers since not too long ago. Construction of underground dams does not require surface water storage and does not change land use. Therefore, they are environmentally suitable. The lack of groundwater resources on the one hand and indiscriminate and unscientific harvesting on the other hand, and the increasing needs associated with population growth, will cause scientific communities to revise and provide appropriate solutions for managing the exploitation of groundwater aquifers and creating new resources or renewable reservoirs in the country. Nowadays, in many countries of the world, the construction of underground dams has been considered as a new method for utilization of water resources. Several criteria such as physical, socio-economic and hydrological criteria are involved in the location of underground dams. Underground dams have wide applications for feeding groundwater aquifers and water storage, as well as preventing soil erosion and increasing groundwater quality. Due to the limitation of water resources and the lack of equality of the world's share in exploiting this divine gift, it is anticipated that most countries will soon suffer from severe water shortages, so that it is firmly believed that if this problem continues, many international conflicts will be over water for centuries to come. One of the strategies to deal with water shortage is to extract water from new resources, especially the discovery of underground, which can be done by constructing different underground dams and with the knowledge of the world.
Materials and Methods
In this study, to determine the susceptible areas of underground dam construction using field visits was selected Pashueeyeh watershed. To communicate between effective criteria and save time and money, a method based on combining maps in GIS and RS system has been used. In the first step, investigations were carried out to identify suitable areas for the construction of underground dam. For this purpose, data extracted from basic maps, findings in this field and expert opinions were used.
Results and Discussion
Therefore, a combination of new sciences such as GIS, RS and geoelectrics was used in determining the susceptible areas of underground dam construction, which in turn is a valuable research that provides the situation for creating other combined researches in different climates of the country, stating that a combination of different sciences in addition to the sciences mentioned in this research can increase the quality of studies related to underground dams and even large groundwater discovery are effective and in case of mild to severe droughts can be a way to solve the country's problems in the field of using quality water and lower extraction costs. The results showed that Pashueeyeh watershed is not a susceptible place for underground dam construction in Lut desert region for water storage. According to the results of geoelectric sodages and field evidences, the bedrock at the proposed location has dense clay that have many salts and the depth of impact on the bedrock varies between at least 2.6 meters and a maximum of 7 meters. On the bedrock is a river alluvial layer consisting of two wet and dry horizons. Also, the river alluvial layer consists of sequences of layers with different aggregation and permeability. The results show that the electrical resistance of different layers rarely reaches more than 30 ohms per meter; this is due to fine grain texture and high density of sediments as well as water salinity.
Conclusion
One of the strategies to deal with water shortage is to extract water from new resources, especially the discovery of underground aqueous, which can be done by constructing different underground dams and with the new knowledge of the world. Underground dams in the world are expanding in different climates, especially in arid and semi-arid regions, which are likely to become one of the most important sources of water extraction in the future years, especially if they are associated with new technologies and combination of GIS, RS and geoelectric. the results showed that the combined role of GIS, RS and geoelectric in determining the susceptible areas of underground dam construction makes the accuracy of proper site construction of underground dams and even the discovery of underground aquifers much higher and achieved valuable results.
Introduction The accuracy of determining reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is an important factor in estimating agricultural and garden water requirements. The complexity of the evapotranspiration process and its dependence on... more
Introduction
The accuracy of determining reference evapotranspiration (ET0) is an important factor in estimating agricultural and garden water requirements. The complexity of the evapotranspiration process and its dependence on meteorological data have made it difficult to accurately estimate this variable. Non-linearity, inherent uncertainty and the need for diverse climatic information in ET0 estimation have been the reasons that have made researchers interested in data mining methods such as artificial neural network (ANNs), random forest (RF) and support vector machine (SVM). Dos et al. (2020) evaluated the performance of machine learning methods to estimate daily ET0 with limited meteorological data. Their results showed that machine learning methods estimate ET0 with high accuracy, even in the absence of some variables. The use of artificial intelligence models in estimating ET0 with high accuracy has become popular in recent years, but the complexity of these models makes it difficult to apply them to regions with different climatic conditions) Feng and Tian, 2021.( Therefore, the aim of this study is to show that different data mining methods are suitable for daily ET0 estimation, which can reach a comprehensive and simple model with high accuracy by using minimal weather data.
Materials and Methods
In this research, the accuracy of data mining methods in estimating ET0 was evaluated in comparison with the plant water requirement system (FAO-Penman-Monteith standard method). For this purpose, data related to meteorological parameters such as sunshine hour, air temperature, wind speed, and relative humidity air were collected from ten synoptic stations and five climatology stations of Qazvin province in a period of 10 years (1389-1399). The ET0 extracted from the plant water requirement system was calculated based on the Penman-Moanteith method of FAO 56 and on a daily time scale, which is the actual value (measured) with the estimated values obtained by data mining methods (ANNs, RF and SVM) were evaluated. In order to validate the obtained results, the data of each station was divided into two sets of training (two-thirds of data) and testing (one-third of data). Finally, the generalizability of the mentioned methods in estimating ET0 was investigated based on NRMSE, R2, RMSE, MBE, EF and d Criteria.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the ET0 values of the plant water requirement system have a good correlation with the estimated ET0 values of ANNs, RF, and SVM methods. In this research, the accuracy of the results of ANNs method was relatively higher than the other two methods. The results of statistical investigations and diagrams showed that ANNs, RF and SVM methods, considering all meteorological parameters (mean air temperature, average relative humidity, sunshine hours and wind speed) as input to the model, in Qazvin synoptic station with altitude 1279 meters and the climatology station of Rajaei power plant with a height of 1318 meters, estimated ET0 with higher accuracy in both training and testing steps.In the ANNs method, the values of NRMSE and R2 at Qazvin synoptic station in both training and testing steps are equal to 0.11 and 0.97, respectively, and at Rajaei Power Plant climatology station in both training and testing steps are equal to 0.10 and 0.97, respectively. In this research, the accuracy of estimating the value of ET0 in two ANNs and RF methods is close to each other and higher than the SVM method. On the other hand, the fitting speed of the ANNs method is very long compared to the RF method, and considering all aspects, it can be said that the RF method has a more suitable approach for estimating the ET0 value. The results of this research showed that the value of ET0 is not only based on air temperature, but may change under the influence of other factors such as air pollution, and is also strongly influenced by regional conditions such as topography and altitude.
Conclusion
The results of this research, in addition to better investigation of ET0, help to know more influential factors in each region and can be used in regions with similar climatic conditions. For example, in the current study area, it was found that the role of average air temperature is greater than other climatic parameters and has a greater impact on ET0. Therefore, it can be said that increasing the average daily air temperature will increase ET0 and subsequently increase the water requirement of plants. As a result, by using these methods and paying attention to these points, it is possible to avoid water stress and possible reduction of the production.
Introduction Surface and underground waters are one of the world's most important problems and environmental concerns. In the last few decades, due to the rapid growth of the population, the water needs have increased, followed by the... more
Introduction
Surface and underground waters are one of the world's most important problems and environmental concerns. In the last few decades, due to the rapid growth of the population, the water needs have increased, followed by the input load to the water. In order to classify the quality of underground water and water level according to the type of consumption, there are many methods, one of the most used methods is the use of quality indicators. Considering the facilities available in water quality monitoring stations and the need to save time and money, using alternative methods of modern data mining methods can be good for predicting and classifying water quality. The process of water extraction for domestic use, agricultural production, mineral industrial production, electricity production, and ester methods can lead to the deterioration of water quality and quantity, which affects the aquatic ecosystem, that is, the set of organisms that live and interact. Therefore, it is very important to evaluate the quality of surface water in water-environmental management and in monitoring the concentration of pollutants in rivers. The aim of the current research was to estimate the numerical values of the drinking water quality index (WQI) using the tree method and investigate the effect of wavelet transformation, the Bagging method, and principal component analysis.
Materials and Methods
In this research, to calculate the WQI index from the quality parameters of the Bagh Kalaye hydrometric station including total hardness (TH), alkalinity (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), calcium (Ca), sodium (Na), Magnesium (Mg), potassium (K), chlorine (Cl), carbonate (CO3), bicarbonate (HCO3) and sulfate (SO4) were used in the statistical period of 23 years (1998-2020). Quantitative values calculated with the WQI index were considered as target outputs. By using the relief and correlation method, the types of input combinations were determined. The random tree method was used to estimate the numerical values of the WQI index. Then, the capability of the combined approach of wavelet, principal component analysis, and Bagging method with random tree base algorithm was evaluated. To compare the values obtained from the data mining methods with the values calculated from the WQI index, the evaluation criteria of correlation coefficient (R), root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), and modified Wilmot coefficient (Dr) were used.
Results and Discussion
The use of the wavelet transform method and the Bagging method has improved the modeling results. Considering that the Bagging classification method with the random tree base algorithm is a combination of the results of several random trees, so using this method has increased the accuracy of the RT model. So, in general, it was concluded that the use of wavelet transformation and classification methods increases accuracy and reduces errors. The best scenario with the highest accuracy and the lowest error was related to scenario 10 of the W-B-RT model with Total Hardness, Electrical Conductivity, Total Dissolved Solid, Sulphate, Calcium, Bicarbonate, Magnesium, Chlorine, Sodium, and potassium parameters. The results showed that the effect impact of pH in estimating the numerical value of the WQI index is considered lower than other parameters. When the principal component analysis method was used, by reducing the value of the eigenvalue from F1 to F12, the value of the factor also decreased; As a result,so F1, F2, and F3 factors were selected as the basic components. Considering 3 main factors, modeling was done employed and R=0.98, RMSE=2.17, MAE=1.52, and Dr=0.97 were obtained. In general, the results showed that the PCA method, despite reducing the dimension of the input vectors and simplifying it, can improve the accuracy and speed of the model and is introduced as the best method for estimating the numerical value of the WQI index.
Conclusion
The results obtained from the present research showed that the use of wavelet transform, Bagging and PCA methods had a positive effect on improving the results and increasing higherthe accuracy. In estimating the numerical values of WQI index, PCA-B-RT method considering 3 main factors, with correlation coefficient equal to 0.98, root mean square error equal to 2.17, average absolute value error equal to 1.52 and tThe modified Wilmot coefficient equal to 0.97 had the highest accuracy. Considering that all the methods used in the estimation of quantitative values had acceptable accuracy, therefore, in case of lack of data and lack of access to all chemical parameters, it is possible to obtain appropriate and acceptable results by using a limited number of parameters and data mining methods achieved.
Introduction The rise in water demand and reduction of water quality and soil in irrigating areas, especially in dry and semi-arid areas of the world, have turned into one of the most crucial challenges for water and soil engineering in... more
Introduction
The rise in water demand and reduction of water quality and soil in irrigating areas, especially in dry and semi-arid areas of the world, have turned into one of the most crucial challenges for water and soil engineering in recent years. This issue leads us toward optimal quantitative and qualitative management of these valuable resources aimed at achieving economic performance and water productivity. The periodic evaporation and transpiration of the plant in the conditions of simultaneous water and salinity stress are known as one of the most important factors in the qualitative and quantitative growth of the plant yield. Applying mathematical models that simulate the relationship between field variables and yield can be seen as a useful tool in water and soil management issues in such a situation, which has the potential to ensure optimal use of the water and soil resources of any country by providing the plant's water needs and preventing its further loss.
Materials and Methods
A factorial experiment was performed in 2019 based on completely randomized blocks design with three replications in plots with an area of 9 square meters at the agricultural and animal husbandry farm of Aliabad Fashafuyeh, located in Qom province to examine the simultaneous effect of different levels of water stress and salinity on the periodic evaporation-transpiration and fresh yield of the single cross 704 forage corn cultivar. The applied treatments included the irrigation water salinity at three electrical conductivity levels of 1.8 (S0), 5.2 (S1), and 8.6 (S2) deci Siemens/meter (dS/m), which were prepared by mixing saline well water of the region with fresh (drinking) water and three water stress levels of 100% (W0), 75% (W1), and 50% (W2) of the plant's water requirement. The depth of soil moisture in the corn plant root zone was measured by the TDR device at five depths of 7.5, 12, 20, 40, and 60 cm during different growth stages of the plant using pairs of 7.5, 12, and 20 cm stainless steel electrodes.
Results and Discussion
The simultaneous water and salinity stresses, which led to the reduced amount of periodic evaporation-transpiration of the yield compared to ideal conditions (without stress), were simulated by additive and multiplicative models. The results suggested a decrease in the evaporation and transpiration with the increased simultaneous water and salinity stresses so that the amount of total evaporation-transpiration in different treatments was measured to be between 692.7 and 344.9 mm and the fresh yield was estimated between 50.4 and 3.2 tons per hectare. Also, the highest amount of periodic evaporation and transpiration in all treatments was found to occur in the development and intermediate stages, and the relative fresh yield in the W0S0 to W2S2 treatments was calculated between 66% and 100%. The results of modeling the relative yield of the crop based on the amounts of relative evaporation and transpiration of corn in different growth stages and under the different treatments of water stress and salinity, indicated that Singh's additive model and Rao's multiplicative model were appropriate, while the Minhas model was recognized to be inappropriate in this estimation.
Conclusion
The research results suggested the significant impact of water stress and salinity at least at the 95% level on evaporation and transpiration and the corn yield. Moreover, the effect of the sensitivity of different growth stages of the plant on the reduction of evaporation and transpiration of corn varies so that in the three treatment groups W0, W1, and W2, the highest average decrease in slope was related to the final stage (13.6%) followed by the middle stage with an average decrease of 8.4% compared to the control treatment. Therefore, the highest decrease rate in evaporation-transpiration slope has been observed in these two growth stages due to the beginning of flowering, fruit formation, and physiological ripening of seeds. These results come from the lack of sufficient water storage and increased salinity of irrigation water in the soil. Water stresses and salinity will reduce water absorption and evaporation-transpiration, and ultimately, reduce crop production due to the decreased amount and potential of water in the soil. Another finding to be mentioned is the priority of water stress compared to salinity stress in reducing evaporation and transpiration and production yield. Also, by managing water and salinity stresses in the critical stages of plant growth (especially the middle stage), which is the time of flowering and the beginning and completion of the maize production process, a significant reduction in the crop can be somewhat prevented.
Introduction Showing the rivers as a one-dimensional problem has simplified or eliminated many processes affecting salinity transfer in the river. Storage processes are one of the factors affecting water quality in rivers. Generally, as... more
Introduction
Showing the rivers as a one-dimensional problem has simplified or eliminated many processes affecting salinity transfer in the river. Storage processes are one of the factors affecting water quality in rivers. Generally, as a substantial factor, the limitation of observational data confines the use of two-dimensional and three-dimensional models, leading to the use of more widely employed one-dimensional models. Most existing computer models are developed based on the Advection-Dispersion Equation (ADE) and do not consider the storage zone. For this purpose, Modified Advection-Dispersion Equation (MADE) is proposed to consider the stagnant area by defining effective velocity and dispersion coefficient. In this study, a solution has been proposed to apply the effect of the Stagnant zone in water quality simulation in one-dimensional models. The river simulation is closer to the natural conditions. In this model, to prove the improvement of the proposed method, the average stagnant zone fraction expressed as the fraction of the average cross-sectional area of the river (η) and employed in a one-dimensional model through the definition of the effective velocity and the dispersion coefficient. This model is considered representative of the one-dimensional models developed only by the Advection /Dispersion relation, and the proposed method was investigated for the Arvand River. Observational data along the river were used to calibrate and validate the model.
Materials and Methods
Since the available and well-known one-dimensional computer programs are generally developed based on the 1D Advection-Dispersion model, they do not consider factors affecting salinity transport such as topography and river morphology heterogeneities known as storage areas. In such a way, these processes are not expressed by presenting the problem as a one-dimensional equation. In this research, in order to increase the accuracy of the simulation with well-known and available one-dimensional models a corrective solution is proposed. To compare the proposed modified method and the base ADE, at the first, the tidal and transboundary arvand river is modeled as a study area, which is a well-mixed river. The river's upstream and downstream boundary conditions were defined according to the available data in 2014. Manning's roughness parameters ranged from 0.017 to 0.033, and the dispersion coefficient was 285 m3/s according to previous studies. In order to apply the effect of stagnant areas in the modified equations, it is essential to determine the value of η for the river. This study uses three parameters of dispersion factor (a), dispersion exponent (b), and η by ant colony algorithm with the definition of 5 initial ants and 100 repetitions in Sehan station in the study area, Arvand river was optimized. The values of the estimated parameters are respectively η = 0.168, a = 273.4, b = 0.94. Therefore, in the modified model, corrections were made using the speed and effective dispersion coefficient as the modified Advection - Dispersion (MADE) method and considering variable dispersion coefficient depending on the flow's speed in the one-dimensional model. These changes were validated in the other two stations (Faw and Dweeb).
Results and Discussion
Based on this study results, increasing the parameter η caused the peak of the time series to rise and the river's travel time to decrease. The shortening of the water travel time in the river, although increases the dispersion coefficient due to the influence of the stagnant zone, the effect of this parameter on the time series of the simulated concentration is reduced. Like the observational data, the slope of falling and rising limbs is increased. By comparing the one-dimensional model in the two cases of using the effective dispersion coefficient and velocity and without it, the increase in accuracy in the simulation was determined at Sehan station - 123 km from the river formation site - after optimizing the coefficients with three statistical errors parameters. In addition, these changes at two other stations along the river with distances of 180 and 150 km from the river's source confirm this accuracy. For instance, the simulated and measured concentration in 12 months of the year by applying the optimized coefficients reaches the correlation coefficient (r) of 0.86 to 0.97 at a distance of 150 km from the upstream, and the root means square error (RMSE) improves 1.27 ppt. The remaining difference in the concentration estimation may be caused by the effect of other parameters or even the entry of agricultural runoff from the lands along the river.
Conclusion
Accurate estimation and simulation of concentration in river engineering have always been one of the environmental challenges. This research aimed to improve water quality simulation using one-dimensional model in well-mixed rivers. In order to increase the accuracy of the modeling and become closer to the actual conditions, correction factors such as considering the dead zones along the river have been suggested. Analysis showed that, on average, 16% of the surface of the Arvand River's cross-sections are stagnant areas, and the dispersion coefficient depends on the river's speed. These areas include bed dunes and meanderings of the river. The point that attracts attention is the tidal irrigation channels on the sides of the river. The results showed that in Sehan, Dweeb, and Faw stations, the root means square error decreases to 1.78, 1.27, and 0.84, respectively. Therefore, the modified 1D model estimated the concentration (in this study salinity) closer to the measurement data. In Dweeb and Sehan stations, the effect of dead zones such as river meandering is evident. Still, in Faw station, no significant improvement in the impact of stagnant zones was observed due to its proximity to the river mouth. The results of this research can be used for higher accuracy in one-dimensional water quality simulations and bringing the models closer to the natural conditions in rivers.
Introduction Due to climate change, one of the limiting factors of crop production is environmental stress which, by disrupting the natural metabolism of the plant, limit plant growth and finally reduce crop production. Drought stress... more
Introduction
Due to climate change, one of the limiting factors of crop production is environmental stress which, by disrupting the natural metabolism of the plant, limit plant growth and finally reduce crop production. Drought stress causes the greatest reduction in crop productivity compared to other environmental stresses. Therefore, the use of methods to reduce water consumption in agriculture is more important due to the lack of freshwater resources. Increasing water use efficiency and maintaining plant yield by reducing water consumption has a particular importance for crop production and should be paid special attention. Drought stress reduces photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, biomass, growth and consequently plant yield. The effects of drought stress on the yield of plants such as potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), rice (Oryza sativa L.) etc., which play an important role in the nutrition and food of the world, has a great importance. Achieving the desired soil moisture range is one of the most important approaches to increase water use efficiency and not significantly reduce yield. For this goal, a factorial experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with five replications in the research greenhouse of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.
Materials and Methods
Factors studied in this experiment included three levels of irrigation 1- full irrigation (100% of field capacity), 2- medium drought stress (70% of field capacity), 3- partial root-zone drying (70% of field capacity), time of induction of water stress (two weeks after planting and 50% at flowering time) and two levels of phosphate (CaH4[Po4]2 H2O) fertilizer (based on soil analysis (25 mg.kg-1) and adding 25% more than recommended (31 mg.kg-1)) at the beginning of the period phosphate was mixed with soil inside the pot in greenhouse condition. Fontane potato cultivar was used in this study. In irrigation treatments, one part of the pots was stressed two weeks after planting and the second part of the pots were fully irrigated until the beginning of flowering and irrigation treatments were applied at 50% flowering stage. From the prepared samples, membrane stability index, osmotic potential, and relative water content were measured in the laboratory and at the end of experiment, plant height, tuber weight, biomass and plant water use efficiency were measured. Minitab 18 software was used to analyze the data.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that with increasing phosphate fertilizer from 25 mg.kg-1 to 31 mg.kg-1, plant biomass increased significantly and in all treatments biomass increased between 2 to 28% . Partial root-zone drying treatment showed a 17.4% increase in biomass. In the medium drought stress treatment, the total growth period and phosphorus level of 31 mg.kg-1, the lowest water use efficiency was observed, and there was no significant difference in the medium drought stress treatment of the total growth period and the phosphorus level of 25 mg.kg-1. Partial root-zone drying treatment of roots from flowering time and 31 mg.kg-1 P, with full irrigation treatment 25 mg.kg-1 P have the same water use efficiency, but the performance of this treatment  compared to full irrigation treatment was reduced by 28%. Water use efficiency in partial root-zone drying (intermittent irrigation) has increased compared to traditional irrigation, which indicates a more optimum use of water in the medium drought stress method. Full irrigation treatment had the highest tuber weight per plant and partial root-zone drying during the growing season treatment had the lowest tuber weight per plant (65%) compared to full irrigation. The partial root-zone drying treatment after flowering, ranked second after full irrigation treatment, for tuber weight per plant and more tuber weight per plant compared to other drought treatments. Using 31 mg.kg-1 phosphate, tuber weight per plant in full irrigation treatment reached 332 g.plant-1 which increased by 13% and was significantly different from all treatments. With increasing phosphate level from 25 mg.kg-1 to 31 mg.kg-1, in the partial root-zone drying treatment from flowering time, tuber weight per plant increased by 28% to 207 g.plant-1. Tuber weight per plant in other drought treatments decreased with increasing phosphate level from 25 mg.kg-1 to 31 mg.kg-1, although this decrease was not statistically significant.

Conclusion
Compared to deficit irrigated methods, partial root-zone drying from the beginning of growth and full irrigation has the ability to use available nitrogen at the end of the growing season and has more greenery than other drought treatments. This effect probably explains the filling of the gland tubers at the end of the growing season and thus the keeping of yieldyield production. The best methods for saving water consumption and maintaining the yield, the partial root-zone drying methods is better than the medium drought stress method.
Introduction The sustainable availability of water resources and the qualitative and quantitative status of these resources are threatened by many natural and antropogenic factors, among which climate change plays an important role.... more
Introduction
The sustainable availability of water resources and the qualitative and quantitative status of these resources are threatened by many natural and antropogenic factors, among which climate change plays an important role. Climate change can have profound effects on the hydrological cycle through changes in the amount and intensity of precipitation, evapotranspiration, soil moisture, and increasing temperature. On the other hand, the distribution of rainfall in different parts of the world will be uneven. So that some parts of the world may face a significant decrease in the amount and intensity of precipitation, as well as major changes in the timing of wet and dry seasons. Therefore, sufficient knowledge about the effects of climate change on hydrological processes and water resources will be of particular importance. In this research, as the first comprehensive study, the effect of future climate change on the water resources components of Neyshabur-Rookh watershed was investigated by a set of one hydrological model and six General Circulation Models under the RCP4.5 scenario.
Materials and Methods
The Neyshabur-Rookh watershed with an area of 9449 square kilometers is a sub-basin of Kavir-e Markazi-e Iran and a part of the Kalshoor Neyshabur watershed, which is located between of 58 degrees and 13 minutes and 59 degrees and 30 minutes and east longitude and 35 degrees and 40 minutes and 36 degrees and 39 minutes north latitude. The study area with an average altitude of 1549.6 m above sea level and average annual precipitation of 246.83 mm, a mean annual temperature of 13.3 Celsius has an arid to semi-arid climate. For hydrological simulation of the watershed using WetSpass-M model, maps of Digital Elevation Model (DEM), land-use, soil texture, slope, and distribution map of groundwater depth, Leaf Area Index (LAI), and climate data (rainfall, mean temperature, potential evapotranspiration, wind speed and the number of rainy days) per month in 1991-2017 period were used. Then the prepared model was calibrated and validated. The climatic data of six General Circulation Models (GCMs) under the RCP4.5 scenario (Representative Concentration Pathways) were downscaled using the Quantile Mapping Bias-Corrected method. The downscaled GCM models were ranked and weighted in each station according to results of the Leave one out cross validation method and utilized as an ensemble for projecting the near-future climatic conditions of the water resources components of the watershed. By importing the monthly maps of precipitation, average temperature and evapotranspiration in the period of 2026-2052 into the calibrated hydrological model, the hydrological response of watershed to near future climate change was determined and evaluated.
Results and Discussion
WetSpass-M was calibrated by changing the calibration parameters in five hydrometric stations and the compared measured and simulated streamflow. The values of four evaluation criteria NS, R2, MB, and RMSE indicated the good performance of the model during the calibration and validation process. By predicting climatic parameters in near future and preparing and importing maps of monthly precipitation, mean temperature, and evapotranspiration to WetSpass-M, the hydrologic simulation of the watershed was done in the 2026-2052 period. The results indicated that the mean annual temperature and precipitation would be respectively increased by 4.66% and 1.21°C under RCP4.5 in the near-future period compared to the baseline period. The average temperature will increase in all months so that the most changes will occur in September and the least changes will occur in March. The rainfall of the watershed will increase in March, April, May, October, and December and will decrease in the rest of the months. The highest and lowest rainfall changes will happen in April and August, respectively. The analysis of the components of water resources in the near future shows that annual total runoff, groundwater recharge, and actual evapotranspiration will increase by 5.9%, 14.85%, and 1.42% compared to the base period, and annual direct runoff and interception will decrease by 15.15% and 3.54%, respectively.
Conclusion
Considering the importance and major role of the Neyshabur watershed in the economy of agricultural products of Razavi Khorasan province, the results of this research will be of great help to the managers and policymakers of the country's water resources management in order to make appropriate decisions with the aim of reducing the effects of climate change on the water resources of the Neyshabur-Rookh Basin.
Introduction Soil is one of the main drivers of global warming through losing carbon in the form of CO2. On the other hand, its ability to sequester carbon is a suitable option for reducing CO2 emissions. Therefore, even few changes in... more
Introduction
Soil is one of the main drivers of global warming through losing carbon in the form of CO2. On the other hand, its ability to sequester carbon is a suitable option for reducing CO2 emissions. Therefore, even few changes in carbon sequestration or decomposition of soil organic carbon affect the global atmospheric CO2 content. Although the soils of arid and semi-arid regions have low organic carbon content, they can sequester substantial amounts of carbon due to the large area of these regions. So, the Rothamsted carbon model was used to predict the impact of future climate changes on the amount of CO2 emissions and low soil organic carbon stocks in the semi-arid arable lands of Razavi Khorasan province. This model is one of the most widely used models for the study of soil organic carbon turnover and has been evaluated in a variety of ecosystems including grasslands, forests and croplands and in various climate regions. The RothC model is consists of five conceptual soil carbon pools, four active fractions and a small amount of inert organic matter (IOM) that is resistant to decay. The active pools splits into: Decomposable Plant Material (DPM), Resistant Plant Material (RPM), Microbial Biomass (BIO) and Humified Organic Matter (HUM). This model is able to reveal the effect of soil texture, temperature, rainfall, evaporation, vegetation and crop management on the soil organic carbon turnover process.
Materials and Methods
The Rothamsted carbon model was calibrated and validated using data measured in 2020 and available data from the long-term field experiments in the semi-arid agricultural lands of Jolge Rokh. Then, by analyzing the climate change of the study area, the impact of climate change until the end of the current century on the amount of CO2 cumulative emissions, total organic carbon (TOC) and active carbon pools model were modeled and compared in the current climate and also climate change conditions.
Results and Discussion
The comparison between the measured and simulated soil organic carbon values by the model shows the potential of the model to provide predictions with acceptable accuracy. The outcome of comparisons revealed that R2, Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), Mean Difference (MD), Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and Model efficiency were 0.97, 2.78, 2.11, 2.33 and 0.70 respectively. Assessment of climate changes in the region (during 1981-2020) showed a decrease in precipitation and a significant increase in temperature over the past 40 years. Climate change simulation was carried out by temperature increasing and decreasing the precipitation until the end of the current century, indicated the decrease of all active carbon pools. It was found that DPM, RPM, BIO, HUM and TOC decreased respectively to 2.41, 2.72, 2.51, 1.04 and 1.32% compared to the current climatic conditions, while the cumulative CO2 emission increased by 1.26%. Temperature rising leads to increase the rate modifying factor (a) by 2.20%, which enhances microbial respiration and decomposition rate of organic carbon and CO2 emissions (carbon output). However, it also increases the ecosystem's net primary productivity (carbon input). Decreases in rainfall and increase in potential evapotranspiration cause a reduction of the rate modifying factor (b) to 0.23%, which on one side reduces the activity of microorganisms and carbon biodegradation; but on the other side, it decreases the vegetation cover and following that reduces CO2 trapping during the photosynthesis process and transfers it to the soil. It seems that in arid and semi-arid climates where the lack of moisture is the most important limiting factor of the plants growth; the role of precipitation in carbon decomposition and sequestration is greater than temperature.
Conclusion
The Rothamsted carbon model is suitable for regional simulations because it requires only easily obtainable inputs. Therefore RothC is an appropriate tool for estimating long-term effects of climate change and agricultural management (such as application of manures, returning plant residues to the soil, crop rotations, conservation tillage etc.). The RothC model validation in the cold semi-arid agricultural lands of the region, shows the ability of model to properly simulate the pattern of organic carbon changes. Also, simulation of soil organic carbon changes under the climate changes conditions indicates an increase in cumulative CO2 emissions and decrease in soil organic carbon pools of the study area. The methodology can be applied to other regional estimations, provided that the relevant data are available. The predictions allowed to identify the land management potential to carbon sequestration. Such information demonstrate a beneficial tool for evaluation of past land management effects on soil organic carbon trends and also estimation of future climate change effects on soil organic carbon stocks and CO2 emissions.
Introduction The maintenance of planted forests in arid and semi-arid lands is important. Soil formation in forest ecosystems is different with different tree species. Tree species have a direct and indirect effect on soil organisms.... more
Introduction
The maintenance of planted forests in arid and semi-arid lands is important. Soil formation in forest ecosystems is different with different tree species. Tree species have a direct and indirect effect on soil organisms. Forest ecosystems change their species composition and abundance of microorganisms, and consequently their biogeochemical cycles. The accumulation of vegetation biomass and the improvement of soil fertility can play a significant role in soil restoration.
Materials and Methods
In order to investigate the biological characteristics of the soil from 5 treatments, including agricultural (dry farming and relatively poor lands that are usually cultivated barley and wheat and have low productivity), pasture (pastures with minimal vegetation and high slopes that are affected by overgrazing have been changed to barren lands), forest with Acacia type (under and outside the crown), forest with the Cupressus arizonica type (under and outside the crown) and forest with the Pinus brutia type (under and outside the crown) randomly. Sampling was done in 3 repetitions from the 0 to 5 cm layer. The statistical sampling design of this research was completely random, in which, according to the type of afforested species, two types of coniferous forest stands (including Cupressus arizonica and Pinus brutia) and one broadleaf stand (Acacia species) were selected. Also, the area under the crown trees and outside the crown trees was also investigated. Soil samples were sampled with sterile equipment and crushed through a 4-mm sieve. Fresh and moist soil was kept at 4 °C temperature for soil biological tests. Microbial biomass carbon, soil basal respiration (197 days), substrate-induced respiration, and metabolic quotient were measured. Streptomycin sulfate was used to measure fungal respiration and cycloheximide was used to measure bacterial respiration. The activities of urease, acid, and alkaline phosphatase enzymes were determined. After measuring the biological properties of the soil, the normality of the data was checked by the Anderson–Darling test, and the homogeneity of the variance of the treatments was checked by using Levene's test. Analysis of data variance was done using One-Way ANOVA and average data comparison was done using Duncan's test at 5 and 1% probability levels (SAS 9.4 and SPSS 26).
Results and Discussion
The results of soil biological characteristics analysis showed that the highest values of soil respiration and amount of consumed organic matter, substrate-induced respiration, microbial biomass carbon, enzyme activities, and fungal respiration were measured in conifers. Although the amount of these features was also significant in broadleaf trees, they had significant differences. In this study, the high soil respiration rate in coniferous covers compared to broadleaf can be due to the high organic carbon content of the soil in this cover. According to the results of substrate-induced respiration in different coatings, likely the activity of microorganisms involved in the decomposition of organic matter in the studied habitats had a significant difference; Therefore, different coatings can affect the population of soil microorganisms as the main source of decomposition and emission of carbon dioxide by changing the quantity and quality of organic matter and other factors. Also, the highest values of metabolic quotient and bacterial respiration were observed in agricultural and pasture covers. A higher metabolic quotient in these covers indicates a decrease in the efficiency of the use of leaf litter by the soil microbial community. In general, the metabolic quotient in the bacterial community is higher than the fungal community; Therefore, it seems that the predominance of the bacterial population in agricultural and pasture cover has caused this index to increase, although plowing and cultivation, and disturbance of these covers have caused stress to this bacterial community and as a result increased the metabolic quotient deficit in these covers.
Conclusion
The results of this research showed that the type of planted tree species causes significant changes in the biological characteristics of the soil. The current research shows that the forest, whether coniferous or broadleaf, had the highest values of enzyme activities, basal respiration, substrate-induced respiration, microbial biomass carbon, and the lowest values of metabolic quotient compared to agricultural and pasture covers. Afforestation increases biological activity and possibly the number and diversity of microorganisms, and improves soil characteristics in the long term. In agriculture and pasture land, due to the destruction of soil and aggregates by agricultural activities such as plowing or excessive livestock grazing, the amount of organic carbon and the activity of microorganisms decreases, and with the decrease of other soil characteristics, the quality of the soil decreases over time. From this research, it can be concluded that the planting of forest species in the soils of degraded areas in the long term can increase soil organic carbon due to high-quality leaf litter, and as a result, increase permeability and soil moisture. Increasing soil organic carbon increases the activity of microorganisms, and in the long term, it will improve various soil characteristics. Planting forest plants in the natural areas of the country, which were destroyed due to the change of use to agriculture and indiscriminate cultivation and finally abandoned, can improve the characteristics of the soil and, as a result, establish the native vegetation of the region, and increase the permeability of water in the soil, the risk of soil erosion, floods, etc. reduce.
Introduction A large part of forest and woodland ecosystems in Iran have been located in arid and semi-arid areas which low level of soil organic carbon (SOC) is considered as one of the main problems. Millions of trees together that make... more
Introduction
A large part of forest and woodland ecosystems in Iran have been located in arid and semi-arid areas which low level of soil organic carbon (SOC) is considered as one of the main problems. Millions of trees together that make forest ecosystems, play a major role in carbon sequestration and can sequester it in the form of biomass, above ground in plants and also underground in plants root or in the soil. Forest ecosystems play a significant role in absorbing and reducing greenhouse gases and therefore, can play a crucial role in decreasing global warming. Soil is one of the great sources of carbon storage, which plays a significant role in the atmospheric carbon deposition and dioxide gas. The carbon stored in the soil changes under some important driving factors such as: land use change, animal grazing, pollarding, exploitation (included forest harvesting), topography and forest trees, and types. One of the main sources of income for forest stakeholders in Zagros area is the Zagros oak forest. These people livelihoods are heavily dependent on natural resources, especially forest, known as a kind of traditional land use system called “Galazani”. Each family, in this system, has its own common ownership and manages their proprietorships called “Gallajar” which is a part of the woodlands and use some kind of traditional silvopastoral techniques to use these areas. Dominant livestock in the most part of theses area are goats and sheep. In the growing season, they usually feed on ground vegetation and in the winter time, they use dried oak leaves (leaf hay) that is stored before on some special trees call “Daar-Galla”. In the northern part of Zagros oak forest (Kurdistan province), there are some very special stands that are found around every village called sacred groves and are totally intact because of some spiritual values and taboos. There are no exploitation and grazing and even land use changing in these areas, and they show the real undisturbed forest lands in Zagros. The aim of this research was to study and compare soil carbon stock and some essential soil properties in sacred groves and pollarded forests (Gallajar) of northern Zagros forests in order to obtain more precise data in soil after high exploitation and pollarding.
Materials and Methods
The average annual rainfall in 25 recent years in the study is 690 mm and the average annual temperature is 14.2 degrees Celsius. The dominant trees species in the region are Lebanon oak, Aleppo oak and Persian oak. To conduct this investigation, three study areas included both sacred groves and Gallajars, in three main slope aspects including north, east and south facing aspects, were chosen. Then six plots (10 a) were randomly selected in each area and tree canopy (%) and litter percentage were determined in the field. Soil samples took in two depths (0-15 and 15-30 cm) in the center of each plots and then bulk density (BD) and some chemical soil properties included soil organic carbon, soil carbon stock, total nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), electrical conductivity (EC) and pH were measured in the soil laboratory. A factorial randomized complete block design was used to analysis soil data.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that there were significant differences between soil depths for studied soil properties except BD, N and K and also there were significant differences in various slope aspects in studied parameters. However, no such a trend was observed in soil N and EC. The results also revealed that pollarding had significant effects on all studied soil properties. In addition, all studied soil properties including SOC stock, N, P, K and EC in sacred groves was higher than Gallajars while pH and BD were increased in pollarded areas. The amount of SOC stock, N, P and EC were greater at depth 0-15 compared to depth of 0-15 cm while, pH showed lower amount in the surface soil layer and K and BD had no significant differences in the two studied soil layers. SOC stock in northern, eastern and southern slope aspect were 72.6, 48.2 and 45 tons/ha, respectively. Pollarding and livestock grazing in Gallajars caused a significant decrease in tree canopy and, as a result, the litters on the grounds also reduced. Therefore, it seems that the reduction of trees and canopy cover affected soil properties significantly and reduced SOC stock meaningfully in the long term. Other essential chemical soil properties were also lower in Galajars compared to sacred groves.
Conclusion
Finally, we can claim that, some factors including pollarding and grazing can significantly reduce SOC stock and other studied soil properties in this research. On the one hand, people are using these forest areas as grazing pastures and also for pollarding trees to fed their livestock and the government could not have convinced them not to pollard the trees and, on the other hand, the results in this study showed that these pollarding operations are affecting forest stands and forest soil chemical properties and SOC stock significantly and reduce their quality considerably. It can be suggested that some new management treatments should be done in these forest areas through the training of local people, preparing sufficient fodder resources and providing enough facilities by the government to reduce pollarding by stakeholders. As a result, the natural process of production and decomposition of organic matter may be controlled in a better way, so that, the soil quality and carbon storage in these forests to be improved in the long term.
Introduction Currently, many disasters threaten the health of ecosystems. The pressures caused by extensive human interventions and the unprincipled exploitation of natural resources have led to the degradation of natural resources and... more
Introduction
Currently, many disasters threaten the health of ecosystems. The pressures caused by extensive human interventions and the unprincipled exploitation of natural resources have led to the degradation of natural resources and the structure and functioning of ecosystems. Hence, evaluating the consequences of human intervention in nature and meeting the growing need of humans to receive diverse services has made it necessary to evaluate the performance of watershed ecosystems in providing different services. Healthy watersheds play an important role in providing a wide variety of ecosystem services. Therefore, watershed health monitoring and evaluation is vital for the conservation of ecosystems and achieving the optimal level of services. In such a way a suitable collaborative and executive approach is established between research and watershed management. In this connection, watershed health analysis can provide valuable help in achieving the goals of integrated management of watersheds and, of course, the balance between the needs of human societies and ecosystems. However, the assessment of the health and sustainability of the watershed affected by human activities has not been sufficiently documented yet.
Materials and Methods
The current pilot research has evaluated the health of the Shiraz Darwazeh Quran Watershed in Fars Province, Iran, and the effect of existing watershed management structures in the region on the health of the watershed with a focus on floods. For this purpose, 36 key criteria from a set of climatic, anthropogenic, and hydrologic factors were identified based on the conditions of the region and the analysis of the flood occurrence process in the watershed. The selected criteria were then categorized into the three indices of pressure (P), state (S), and response (R). After screening the selected criteria in exploring the conceptual approach of pressure, state, and response (PSR), the health status was evaluated in two cases with and without watershed management structures.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the health condition without considering the watershed management structures was at average conditions with health index of 0.55. In addition, the results of the watershed health assessment verified the non-significant effects of stone and mortar structures on improving watershed health. So that, the health conditions was remained at average status with health index of 0.53. Therefore, it can be acknowledged that the existing watershed management structures, due to the limited both number and spatial coverage, have not been able to noticeably affect the improvement of the general conditions of the watershed, despite the effect on the factors affecting the health of the sub-watersheds where the structures have been constructed. The spatial changes of the calculated variables showed that the abandoned lands, time of concentration, area under military activities, surface of sensitive formations to erosion, high density of the drainage network, density of the roads, areas of regions with high potential in producing runoff and sediment, and size of the residential areas were the most important factors affecting the health situation of the Darwazeh Quran Watershed.
Conclusion
According to the results of the analysis of the indicators and criteria considered in evaluation of the health of the Shiraz Darwazeh Quran Watershed based on the PSR approach, it was found that the watershed had an average health status. Therefore, it can be acknowledged that the existing watershed management structures have not been able to impose a noticeable effect on the prosperity and improvement of watershed health conditions. In general, it can be said that abandoned lands, short concentration time, military activities, the presence of formations sensitive to erosion, high density of drainage network and road, and the potential of high runoff and sediment production, and the size of residential areas are among the most important factors affecting the declining the health of Darwazeh Quran Watershed. Therefore, it is necessary to pay further attention to the aforesaid factors by conducting periodical monitoring with more comprehensive data, in time and also analyzing the trend of relative changes of the indicators in order to explain the adaptive and intelligent management of the watershed. The necessary measures should also be taken into account simultaneously. Therefore, it is suggested to turn the weak points of the region into strong points by applying bioengineering measures and use the opportunities in the region such as the potential of tourism and ecological features in order to improve the health status of the watershed.
Introduction Mazandaran province is one of the most important rice and citrus-producing areas in Iran, where most of the citrus orchards and agricultural fields are irrigated with groundwater. On the other hand, irrigation water pH is one... more
Introduction
Mazandaran province is one of the most important rice and citrus-producing areas in Iran, where most of the citrus orchards and agricultural fields are irrigated with groundwater. On the other hand, irrigation water pH is one of the basic qualitative factors that determine the solubility and biological availability of chemical components in the soil such as nutrients and heavy metals, and it can affect agricultural production.
Materials and Methods
The coastal strip of Mazandaran Province toward the southwest of the Caspian Sea is situated in the north of Iran with an area of 8,252 km2 between 35.77 to 36.99 N latitudes and 50.36 to 57.13 E longitudes. In this study, the temporal and spatial variations of groundwater salinity were studied in the coastal strip using data from 300 wells, collected by Mazandaran Regional Water Company. Data included mean pH for each 6-month period of 9 consecutive years, from 2012 until the end of 2020. pH maps and maps of the risk probability area for rice and citrus growth were obtained by using Ordinary Kriging (OK) and Indicator Kriging (IK) in ArcGIS 10.7.1 software, respectively. Classifications were selected according to the properties pH range for the growth of citrus (5.8, 8) and the optimum pH for rice (6.8) in OK method. The indicator amount of pH was considered equal to 6.8 in IK method. Thereby, areas belonging to different pH classes were outlined and places with the risk probability for growing the rice and citrus were identified.
Results and Discussion
The 11 different models for semivariograms were drawn, and the best one was chosen according to the lowest nugget-to-sill ratio, and thus Stable and Exponential were obtained as the highest frequency for first and second half-years. The indices of cross validation for each selected semivariogram were estimated within acceptable ranges. In Ik method, the pH of studying area was classified into 4 ranges of <5.8, 5.8–6.8, 6.8–8.0, >8, and the percentage area of each classification derived from the ArcGIS software, the average area of each classification during the studying period was calculated zero, 0.6, 83.5 and 15.9 percent, respectively. It showed that most part of the study area located in the range of 6.8-8. It means most rice fields and citrus orchards were irrigated by the groundwater with the pH close to neutral. The obtained maps in the OK method indicated that the pH of the groundwater was not acidic in any points and alkaline conditions were observed in the western and eastern parts of the province. Therefore, The IK method was used to further investigate and determine the vulnerable areas. The probability of pH risk in rice and citrus growth was classified into 4 ranges (0-20%, 20-40%, 40-60% and 60-100%), and the average percentage area of each classification along the period was estimated 94.9, 4.8, 0.3 and zero percent, respectively. Using the IK method, higher probability of groundwater pH reducing the yield in citrus orchards and rice fields was found in eastern parts of Mazandaran province, which was about 5% of total studying area. Also, the results of the study in these 9 consecutive years did not show any decreasing or increasing trend in pH changes and consequently the area under each classification.
Conclusion
Generally, the results indicated that the pH of groundwater for irrigating the citrus orchards and rice fields was appropriate in the most parts of the province and merely in the eastern part of the province, low water alkalinity may make a risk probability for rice and citrus growth in both western and eastern parts of the province. Due to the fact that alkaline water causes soil alkalinity and consequently reduces the solubility of phosphorus and some other plant nutrients in soil, it is suggested to supply the optimum required fertilization amounts of the nutrients in soil. However, the amount of fertilization should be on the basis of field research results. It is also proposed to study the condition of rice and citrus growth and the irrigated water in more details through the farms of western parts of the province. Due to the fact that most citrus orchards in this province are irrigated under the pressurized irrigation systems and using groundwater for irrigation, it is suggested that the Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) be examined in future research.
Introduction In arid and semi-arid regions, agricultural sustainability needs to improve the consumption of water and soil resources. Low rainfall, high evaporation, low water quality and less leaching of solutes in the soil due to... more
Introduction
In arid and semi-arid regions, agricultural sustainability needs to improve the consumption of water and soil resources. Low rainfall, high evaporation, low water quality and less leaching of solutes in the soil due to limited water resources are the main problems in these areas. The quality of water and soil resources in the provinces of Fars, Khuzestan, Yazd, Golestan and Khorasan also shows that most of the wheat farming lands in these provinces are always facing salinity issues. According to the conducted studies, saline water can be successfully used in irrigation, but application of unconventional water by surface irrigation systems with low efficiency due to evaporation and high water salts leads to soil salinity. Micro-irrigation methods increase water use efficiency by reducing water consumption and increasing yield, so that drip irrigation efficiency of 91-80% and irrigation levels of 50-73% have been reported. In recent years, the use of drip irrigation system (such as tape on wheat fields) has been recommended to farmers as a water management solution. Micro-irrigation systems by reducing water consumption and increasing yields, improve water use efficiency. Drip tape irrigation system compared to other surface and sprinkler irrigation methods, due to short irrigation periods and reduction of evaporation losses and deep infiltration even for crops can be proposed as an alternative. Drip tape irrigation in wheat cultivation can increase water use efficiency up to 2 times. Also, in irrigation with salt water, while maintaining humidity in the environment, it reduces salinity stress and by consuming less water and reducing the amount of wetting, it introduces less solutes into the soil. This method has limitations in wheat fields due to costs and also the possibility of soil salinity problems, some of which can be overcome by increasing the distance between the laterals and reducing the consumption of drip irrigation (Tape) per unit area.
Materials and Methods
  In this study, during the 2020-2021 at the Salinity Research Center of Yazd Province (Iran), the effect of lateral distances on the surface and depth distribution of soil salinity was investigated. For this purpose, two irrigation water salinity treatments, including 3 and 8 dS / m and two flood (T1) and drip irrigation systems (Tape) with lateral distances of 60 (T2), 100 (T3) and 140 (T4) cm were considered. Irrigation management treatments included the use of the flooding method (as the dominant method in wheat fields) and the use of the Tape drip irrigation method (as the proposed method with very low water consumption). A distance of 60 cm was considered as the optimal distance with complete water overlap, a distance of 100 cm was considered as an economic distance with the possibility of deep moisture distribution and a distance of 140 cm was considered as a large lateral distance. To investigate the salinity distribution and the accumulation of salts in the soil, regular soil sampling of different treatments was the end of the season.
Results and Discussion
In all irrigation treatments (saline and non-saline), despite the constant volume of water consumption per unit area of all treatments, in T3 and T4 treatments, irrigation depth increased compared to T2 treatment and reduced soil salinity in the wetting area (irrigated area). By increasing the horizontal distance of each point of the field from the lateral, the irrigation depth and leaching fraction decrease and consequently, the soil salinity of these points can also increase. Under non-saline irrigation conditions (salinity of 3 dS/m), soil salinity at intervals of zero (below the lateral), 15 and 30 cm, between 5.5 and 6.1 dS/m has been observed. Values below the threshold of tolerance to salinity of wheat plant and, in this regard, does not pose a risk to the plant. At a distance of 45, 60 and 70 cm from the water pipe, the salinity of the soil is higher than the threshold and if there is a plant in this area of the field, it will face serious damage.
Conclusion
The results showed that although the Tape method in saline conditions (8 dS/m) compared to non-saline conditions (3 dS/m) leads to higher accumulation of solutes in the soil and increases the possibility of plant damage, but according to the final results of this study, by increasing the distances of irrigation laterals and proportionally increasing the depth of irrigation and keeping the salts away from the planting bed, a more suitable environment for plant growth can be prepared and higher economic benefits of this measure can be obtained. Also, in terms of controlling soil salinity, the conditions have been such that treatment with lateral distance of 140 cm compared to treatments of 60 and 100 cm has led to lower amounts of soil salinity in the subsurface and has provided better conditions for the plant. Thus, by increasing the distances of laterals from 60 to 140 cm and, consequently, increasing the depth of irrigation, it was possible to transfer solutes to lower depths of the soil.
Introduction Precipitation is one of the most important input parameters of the hydrological models for rainfall-runoff simulation, which due to the lack of proper dispersion of rain gauge stations and the newly established some of these... more
Introduction
Precipitation is one of the most important input parameters of the hydrological models for rainfall-runoff simulation, which due to the lack of proper dispersion of rain gauge stations and the newly established some of these stations in most basins of the country, the use of these precipitation data faces serious challenges. Therefore, the use of remote-sensing methods is one of the ways that can be used for the streamflow simulation using hydrological models. Runoff is also one of the most important hydrological variables and rainfall-runoff modeling is one of the key items in hydrological sciences to estimate runoff characteristics such as volume, peak flow and arrival time to peak flow. In the present study, we used reanalyzed precipitation data and then evaluated the simulated streamflow using this precipitation data in the Zoshk subbasin. The precipitation data was validated with in situ data, of Kashafrood basin.
Materials and Methods
The reanalysis precipitation data was selected from the ERA5 precipitation data, and the HEC-HMS was used for the rainfall-runoff simulation. The basin parameters were calculated by the GIS menu. This menu is the newest option in the HEC-HMS software that needs only the DEM basin for calculating the basin parameters. In the present study, we should validate the ERA5 reanalysis precipitation data with in situ data, so we did that in the Kashafrood basin. The number of the rain gauge stations were 34, but some of the stations didn't have complete data and omitted them from the list of the rain gauge stations. For the validation ERA5 reanalysis precipitation data was used from the R, NSE, RMSE, Bias, FAR, POD and TS statistical indicators. These indicators were calculated by programming in EXCEL Visual Basic. The ERA5 precipitation data was evaluated for the Kashfarood basin at daily and monthly time steps. The DEM Zoshk was downloaded with the spatial resolution of 12.5 meters from ALOS-PALSAR satellite and then the basin parameters were calculated by the GIS menu. The SCS curve number was selected as a loss method. In this method, the calculations related to the percentage of impermeability and the average curve number of each sub-basin were obtained through land use and curve number layers, respectively. The SCS unit hydrograph was selected as a transform method. The recession method was selected as a base flow method. NSE and PBias were used for the calibration and validation events in HEC-HMS. In this way, at first the HEC-HMS model was calibrated by tow in situ rainfall-runoff events (91/1/11 and 91/2/6), and then validated by one in situ rainfall-runoff event (99/1/23). For validation streamflow of the ERA5 reanalysis precipitation data, the event on 99/1/23 was used and their streamflow hydrographs were evaluated with each other in Zoshk station.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the reanalysis precipitation data of ERA5 had underestimation in daily and monthly time steps. Also in monthly time step, the accuracy of these precipitation dataset in detecting precipitation events (in terms of FAR, TS, and POD indices) was higher than a daily one. In addition, in monthly time steps it had worse accuracy in summer months than the rest of the year in detecting precipitation events (in terms of FAR, TS, and POD indices). For streamflow evaluation, in the calibration phase both NSE was in very good and good ranges, and PBias was in very good, good and acceptable ranges. In addition, the model underestimated the observational one. Finally the ERA5 reanalysis precipitation data was compared by 99/1/23 hydrograph event. The streamflow hydrograph from the ERA5 reanalysis precipitation data was underestimated due to ERA5 underestimation of the precipitation at the Zoshk rain gauge on the days corresponding to the 23/6/99 incident. The ERA5 reanalyzed precipitation data with NSE and Bias percentage coefficients in unacceptable range (NSE≤0.5 and PBias≤±25), compared to flow hydrograph obtained from Zoshk station precipitation data, the efficiency of this precipitation dataset is low. The range of the streamflow hydrograph from the ERA5 precipitation data was unsatisfactory in compared to the observational hydrograph (NSE = -0.47 and PBias = -55.16).
Conclusion
In general, the accuracy of the flow hydrograph of this product compared to the flow hydrograph of the precipitation data of Zoshk station (NSE = 0.64 and PBias = -15.82), cannot be a relatively reliable source instead of in situ rainfall data in hydrological simulation. The suggestion for future studies is to evaluate other rainfall data based on remote sensing methods in hydrological modeling.
Introduction Increased agricultural activities, the occurrence of successive droughts, and limited freshwater resources, along with increasing population, have made a priority for the importance of protecting water resources in programs... more
Introduction
Increased agricultural activities, the occurrence of successive droughts, and limited freshwater resources, along with increasing population, have made a priority for the importance of protecting water resources in programs of developed and developing countries. Due to the climatic conditions in Iran, which has a wide range of arid and semi-arid characteristics, facing the challenge of water resources crisis, is inevitable. Therefore, the use of wastewater is very important.
Materials and Methods
This research was conducted in the research farm of Sari University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (SANRU), which has a silty clay soil texture. The latitude and longitude of the region are 36º 40ʹ N and 53º 04ʹ E, respectively. Its height above sea level is 21 meters. According to Demarten classification, Sari city has a temperate humid climate. The long-term average temperature of Sari is 11.18 °C and the total long-term rainfall is 780 mm. In order to evaluate the wastewater effects on soil chemical characteristics, microelements concentrations, heavy metals accumulation and Maize yield (Single Cross 704), an experiment was carried out as factorial based on a completely randomized design with treatments included; Water source factor (wastewater (A1), well water (A2)), Irrigation (subsurface method (I1) and (drip method (I2)) with three replication in 2018-2019 under lycimetric conditions, at the Sari Agriculture and Natural Resources University (SANRU), Iran.
Results and Discussion
According to this study results, the effect of type of irrigation source on soil electrical conductivity, soil microelements and heavy metals accumulation of the soil was significantly different (P ≤ 0.01). The highest soil electrical conductivity with a value of 1.8 dS.m-1 was observed in the conditions of using treated wastewater. The highest amount of total nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were related to the source of treated wastewater with values of 0.086, 24.2 and 222.2 mg.kg-1, respectively. The results showed that the accumulation of soil Pb (0.07) and Cd (0.014 mg.kg-1) in irrigation with treated wastewater increased compare to the well water source by 0.05 and 0.010 mg.kg-1, respectively. Also, the effect of irrigation method and the interaction effect of source and method irrigation on soil chemical characteristics, microelements concentration and heavy metals accumulation were not significant. The use of wastewater by increasing soil stability improves soil physical condition, increases soil fertility, increases photosynthetic products, increases the efficiency of plant photosynthetic system and ultimately improves plant growth. The use of subsurface irrigation resulted in a 67% increase in grain yield and 28% increase in biomass productivity compared to the drip method. Adequate nutrients during the reproductive growth stage of the plant play an important role in grain growth. Therefore, it can be said that the nutrients in the wastewater have increased the grain yield compared to using the well water source. Because the wastewater contains nutrients and micronutrients such as: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, zinc and iron were relative to the well water source and increased maize grain yield. The results showed that the use of effluent compared to well water, caused the absorption of more Pb and Cd in the grain, leaf and stem of maize. Due to the use of wastewater as water source, the amount of Pb uptake among different parts of the maize, with values of 27.2, 22.5 and 20.5 mg.g-1, respectively, related to the grain, leaf and stem. However, the uptake of Cd in the grains, leaves and stems was 2.32, 1.35 and 2.01 mg.g-1, respectively. According to the results, the high concentration of heavy metals Pb and Cd due to the use of wastewater in the grain sector directly threatens human health. Also, the concentration of heavy metals Pb and Cd in the leaf and stem parts of corn, by endangering the health of livestock and poultry, indirectly affects human health.
Conclusion
The results showed that irrigation with treated wastewater due to its richness in nutrients and microelements, improves soil fertility and creates favorable conditions by increasing soil organic matter and minerals for plant growth. Also, according to the permissible threshold values of the concentration of heavy metals Pb and Cd in plants, the accumulation of heavy metals Pb and Cd in the grain, stem and leaf of single cross 704 corn, will not be a problem for consumers. Optimal use of wastewater can increase soil fertility and the ability of plants to absorb nutrients from the soil and ultimately increase plant yield.
Introduction Agriculture is the essential sector for promoting food security. Crop area estimation (CAE) can meet the requirements of the crop monitoring plan. The organizing basis of the cultivation pattern is recognizing the types of... more
Introduction
Agriculture is the essential sector for promoting food security. Crop area estimation (CAE) can meet the requirements of the crop monitoring plan. The organizing basis of the cultivation pattern is recognizing the types of crops and examining the condition of their crop area. Shush county in Khuzestan province has 300,000 hectares of the crop area. It is one of the agricultural hubs of Iran because it has a record annual production of more than two million tons of strategic crops such as wheat, sugar beet, and corn. CAE affects the amount of net production and shortage or surplus of produce for market steadiness. Traditional approaches for CAE are time-consuming and costly and are not widely enforceable. Remote sensing (RS) data provide good information for decision-makers by determining the crop type and the crop area. RS data has made it possible to avoid continuous reference to agricultural lands with less time and cost than another usual method and accurate CAE. Also, the use of multi-time images during the growing season of agricultural products allows the use of spectral curves when related to the crop calendar of each crop. This spectral curve is almost separate for each product and increases the ability to distinguish between products. Therefore, multi-temporal images support segregation based on multispectral images of products. The current study follows a speedy method with appropriate accuracy established on satellite image classification algorithms and spectral indices to identify and separate crops with RS data in Shush County.
Materials and Methods
Landsat-8 data with path/row coordinates 166/38 extracted from the USGS website were used to identify and separate the cultivated lands of the region. The reason for choosing Landsat images is the relatively suitable temporal and spatial resolution, availability, and the appropriate time distribution with the product growth period. The Landsat 8 carries 2-sensors, OLI (Operational Land Imager) and TIRS (Thermal Infrared Sensor). The OLI sensor with a spatial resolution of 30 meters has 8-bands in the visible spectrum, near-infrared (NIR), short-wavelength infrared (SWIR), and a panchromatic band with a spatial resolution of 15 meters. The TIRS sensor can record thermal infrared radiation with a spatial resolution of 100 meters with the help of 2-bands in atmospheric windows of 10.6 to 11.2 micrometers for band 10 and 11.5 to 12.5 micrometers for band 11. This research used bands 1-7 of the Landsat-8 OLI sensor with a spatial resolution of 30 meters after the initial corrections of satellite images. The spectral similarity between the region's dominant crops has made it impossible to select a single image to differentiate and extract the cultivation pattern. Wheat and barley have a high spectral similarity. The peak of the greenness of these products is in the first four months of the year, which has high NDVI values at this time. Therefore, choosing a good time to separate the crops was feasible by referring to the Khuzestan Organization Agriculture-Jihad (KOAJ) and receiving the regional crops calendar in 2018-19. Then, the low-level cloud cover images on April 24, June 27, and August 30, 2019, were selected for classification based on the crop calendar. Planting, harvesting, maximum greenness, and ripening information of the dominant crops in the area were pivotal in obtaining image dates. In dates selected related to the images were considered planting, harvesting, maximum greenery, and ripening information of the region's dominant crops.
Results and Discussion
According to the results, from total crop area in Shush county (163313.7 hectares) is allocated about 103513.2 hectares (63.4% of the county's crop area) to the ANN, about 102875.1 hectares (63.0% of the county's crop area) to the SVM, and about 102,277.3 hectares (62.6% of the county's crop area) to the NDVI, which in comparison with the KOAJ statistics, has an error of 0.11, 6.2 and 1.8%, respectively.
This difference is the similarity of the reflective spectrum in some places, which affects the separability and recognition of phenomena and increases the error in estimating the area under cultivation of different crops. The highest and lowest errors in estimating the area under cultivation in the artificial neural network method were in barley and rice crops, respectively, in the support vector machine method were in wheat and rice crops, respectively, and in NDVI index were in wheat and barley crops, respectively. The difference between the cropped area obtained from classification methods and NDVI index with cropped area statistics of Agricultural-Jihad Organization may be due to the following: First, the cultivation history of different has caused problems such as reflections of diverse agricultural lands in one image. Second, the agricultural lands in this area are small. Most of them are under one hectare. Also, the crops in this area are diverse. Third, the smallest region that the image used in the present study can distinguish is about 900 square meters, which is a large number for the agricultural lands of the study area and causes errors.
Conclusion
The study results showed that the support vector machine method had the lowest error in CAE than the artificial neural network method, which indicates the higher accuracy of the support vector method in identifying and separating crops in the region. Comparing the area obtained from the NDVI index with the statistics of the Agricultural-Jihad Organization of Khuzestan province and evaluating the accuracy of this method indicated the higher efficiency of spectral indices in CAE for the region compared to classification methods. The NDVI index minimizes the error values of the results due to having a threshold and better identification of vegetation density. Therefore, based on the accuracy assessment results and comparing the cropped area with the KOAJ statistics, the utilization of the NDVI index provides the best CAE in the region.
Introduction The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of soil conditioners on physiological responses (stomatal resistance, leaf temperature, chlorophyll, percentage of root colonization, carotenoids, proline) of Lycium... more
Introduction
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of soil conditioners on physiological responses (stomatal resistance, leaf temperature, chlorophyll, percentage of root colonization, carotenoids, proline) of Lycium depressum Stocks to drought stress. The experiments were performed in semi-controlled greenhouse conditions.
Materials and Methods
The experiment was conducted as a factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design including the main factor, irrigation at 4 levels (100, 75, 50 and 25% of field capacity) and the sub-factor of soil conditioners. In each combined treatment, 5 repetitions of irrigation and soil remediation and a total of 160 pots were used. Subsoil treatments including hydrogel and nitrobacter, mycorrhiza and zeolite were added to each pot. Five hundred cuttings of the target plant were planted in the greenhouse. The grown cuttings were transferred to the pots where the experiments were carried out. At each irrigation level, 40 pots containing 4 kg of vegetation soil of the target species were considered and the field capacity (FC) of the target soil was determined in the soil laboratory. A total of 160 pots were placed in the greenhouse for testing. The main treatment of the experiment included irrigation levels (100, 75, 50 and 25% of the FC) and sub-treatments of soil conditioners including Stacosorb hydrogel in the amount of 3 grams per kilogram of soil in each pot in the lower part of the plant roots. Zeolite with the industrial name of mineral zeolite (Mineral Zeolite) was added in the amount of 8 grams in each pot in the lower part of the root of the plant. Nitrobacter (a collection of strains of Azotobacter sp, Azospirillum sp and Bacillus sp with the brand name Nitrobacter Diane) was added to the amount of 3 mL in each pot in the upper region of the plant roots. Addition of mycorrhiza (the mycorrhiza used in this experiment was Glomus mosseae and was prepared as soil containing mosseae fungi) in the amount of 10 grams per pot in the lower part of the plant roots. After adding soil conditioners, irrigation was done according to the FC in 4 irrigation levels, in the determined treatments.
Results and Discussion
Measurement of physiological characteristics showed different responses in each of the variables. Carotenoid changes in 50% irrigation showed the lowest value (p<0.05) and the control treatment without mycorrhiza showed the highest value in the measurement of chlorophyll and carotenoid at 100 and 75% irrigation levels. The results of measuring colonization percentage, stomatal resistance and leaf temperature showed the lowest value in 25% irrigation. In the control treatment, proline parameters and root colonization percentage increased under the influence of drought stress, and stomatal resistance parameters, leaf temperature and chlorophyll decreased under the influence of drought stress. With intensification of drought stress, chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of the plant increased and the amount of proline decreased in Nitrobacter treatment with mycorrhiza, which was significantly different from the control treatment. In the control treatment with mycorrhiza, with increasing drought stress, the leaf temperature increased and the amount of proline decreased, which was different from the control treatment. Aperture resistance decreased from 48 m2/mol.s at 100% irrigation level to 44 m2/mol.s at 25% irrigation. The leaf temperature in the hydrogel modifier without mycorrhiza decreased from 26°C at 100% irrigation to 21.57°C at 25% irrigation level. In the treatment of zeolite without mycorrhiza, the amount of chlorophyll b+a increased from 0.6 mg/g at 100% irrigation to 1.20 mg/g at 25% irrigation. The amount of carotenoid in zeolite modifier with mycorrhiza at 100% irrigation level increased from 0.1 mg/g to 0.2 mg/g at 25% irrigation. In the control treatment with mycorrhiza at 100% irrigation level compared to 50% irrigation level, 1.5% increase in root colonization was observed. The amount of proline in mycorrhiza-free hydrogel treatment were 2.77 μmol/g and 2.66 μmol/g at 100% and 50% irrigation levels, respectively. Reduction of proline at 50% irrigation level indicates that the hydrogel modifier has increased the resistance of Lycium depressum Stocks to drought stress.
Conclusion
The results of this study showed that the increase in drought causes changes in the physiological function of the plant and the use of soil conditioners under drought stress due to the improvement of the physiological parameters, will increase the resistance of the plant by 50%. Nitrobacter treatments without mycorrhiza, hydrogel and zeolite with mycorrhiza and without mycorrhiza, due to further improvement of physiological parameters, are recommended for plants in nature.
Introduction Farmers and agricultural products face many risks, including adverse weather conditions, pests, diseases, and changes in product prices, laws, and regulations. The first step in managing and minimizing many of these risks is... more
Introduction
Farmers and agricultural products face many risks, including adverse weather conditions, pests, diseases, and changes in product prices, laws, and regulations. The first step in managing and minimizing many of these risks is often choosing the right crops for the area under cultivation; Therefore, knowing whether these lands are suitable for a particular crop can determine the success or failure of agricultural strategies. Because farmers are exposed to climate change and the economy, where agricultural frameworks are changing at an unprecedented rate, it is vital for them to be able to adapt to new trends. Increasing the availability of land suitability information for agricultural products will be a valuable aid for farmers and managers in this field to develop new agricultural strategies. At the same time, the growth of computational capabilities and increased access to geographic data has made land suitability assessment faster and easier.
Materials and Methods
The study area is located in Abik city, a city located in Qazvin province of Iran, between 50 degrees and 40 minutes to 50 degrees and 41 minutes east longitude and 35 degrees and 52 minutes to 36 degrees and 21 minutes north latitude. The average annual soil temperature at depth of less than 50 cm is 15.8 °C and has thermal heating regime. Furthermore, according to the average rainfall of the region, 222.7 mm, the humidity regime of the region is of Eridic type. Moisture and heat regimes were obtained by Newhall software. According to regional conditions and the size of the area, 60 profiles were drilled for network description and sampling. Field studies including determination, drilling, description of profiles, slope percentage, etc. were determined at the site. Information on soil physical and chemical properties were tested. Parametric, American (USDA) and LSP methods were used to evaluate the land. Necessary climatic characteristics for annual plants include the climatic variables that are necessary to determine the growing season, planting date and type of cultivar. The information of Buin Zahra synoptic station has been used. In this study, CROPWAT software was used to calculate the potential evapotranspiration. Land information such as slope, drainage Condition and flood absorption, as mentioned in the profile description card, was used to assess land suitability. Growth period was also obtained for the region using the area agronomical calendar. To calculate potential of production, the model AEZ which is provided by FAO, is used in this research.
Results and Discussion
The decrease in the suitability of the studied lands for the wheat crop is due to the salinity and sodium content of the lands and the presence of surface gravel and shallow soil depth. According to the provided tables and maps, 18% of the study area is unacceptable, 12.5% is average, 12.5% is good, 25% is very good, or very good and 31.25% of the total study area are in the excellent fitness class. The above values have been obtained by considering the rangeland and saline sections as well as the type of product in preparing the fit map. The accuracy of the preferred rational scoring method in land suitability is higher than the parametric method because in this method the land suitability maps of the area are obtained by logical collectors and the output map is the result of all parameters and constraints that the area may have. To have the desired. In the parametric method, this problem is summarized in soil properties and climatic conditions. Due to the lack of direct measurement of product performance, more accurate comparisons were not possible.
Conclusion
Most of the restrictions were in shallow hilly areas with shallow soils and pebbles, and salinity, alkalinity and gypsum did not impose any restrictions in these areas. Traffic in these areas was difficult and they were mostly in the S3 class by the parametric method and the poor and unacceptable class in the LSP. In land evaluation using LSP method, understanding the relationships of criteria with each other and the amount of impact that each has on the potential of land for different uses is essential. The LSP method is sensitive yet flexible, and may not work well if the data accuracy and number of parameters are low. The application of GIS-based LSP method showed a suitable tool to create accurate, flexible and rationally justifiable criteria in assessing the capability and suitability of land in agriculture. In such studies, by using the Bayer LSP method, prerequisites such as precisely defining the goals of users, managers and agricultural expertise should be considered. This method is a multi-criteria evaluation method that has been improved for measurement among decision makers, land management and other specialties.
Introduction The water quantity and quality has always been one of the main challenges in the issue of allocating water resources for different uses. Water quality management requires the collection and analysis of large amounts of water... more
Introduction
The water quantity and quality has always been one of the main challenges in the issue of allocating water resources for different uses. Water quality management requires the collection and analysis of large amounts of water quality parameters that will be evaluated and concluded. Many tools have been found to simplify the evaluation of water quality data, and the water quality index (WQI) is one of these widely used tools. In summary, the WQI can be defined as a number obtained from the combination of several quality parameters based on standards for its extraction. The aim of this study was to develop and introduce the new Surface Drinking Water Quality Index (SDWQI) adopt the water quality parameters measured on hydrometric stations of Iran. In developing this index, criteria such as the availability of required parameters in most rivers and simple and accurate methods have been considered. Also, the ability to calculate with the minimum general parameters of water quality, simple calculations and in terms of the international standard WHO for drinking is one of the advantages of the introduced index.
Materials and Methods
For this purpose, 12 water quality parameters including Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Electrical Conductivity (EC), Total Hardness (TH), pH, Chloride (Cl-), Sulfate (SO42-), Carbonate (CO32-), Bicarbonate (HCO3-), Magnesium (Mg2+), Sodium (Na+), Calcium (Ca2+) and Potassium (K+) have been used from Rudbar and Astaneh hydrometric stations located on Sefidroud river. Then initial preprocessing on data e.g. correlation analysis, and multivariate statistical methods including cluster analysis (CA) and principal components analysis (PCA) are used to selecting and weighting of water quality parameters using the “clustering” and “factoextra” packages in R 4.1.1. In order to develop the SDWQI were performed four steps including, parameter selection, sub-indexing, weighting and aggregation of the index. Also, in order to evaluate the index of the present research, the results of the SDWQI have been compared with the WHO drinking water quality index and Schoeller drinking water quality classification.
Results and Discussion
Correlation analysis between water quality parameters shows a significant correlation between TDS, EC and TH parameters and also with Cl-, Ca2+ and Mg2+ parameters at the level of 1% in both Astaneh and Rudbar stations. On the other hand, the lowest values of Pearson correlation coefficient are related to pH and CO32- parameters with other quality parameters. The results of CA indicate that most of the water quality parameters are located in separate clusters. So only the parameters TDS, EC, Cl- and Na+ in both Rudbar and Astaneh stations are in the same cluster. The weights of the parameters showed that TDS and K+ are assigned with the highest and lowest weights equal to 0.163 and 0.031 based on PCA method. Also, PCA results show that first and second principal components covered 59.3% and 67.6% of the total variance of measured water quality parameters in Rudbar and Astaneh stations, respectively. Water quality classification results indicate that (40.5%, 16.4% and 23.7%) and (90.1%, 73.1% and 57.3%) of data in Rudbar and Astaneh stations, respectively, fell into the excellent and good categories for drinking purposes based on Schoeller classification, WHOWQI and SDWQI.
Conclusion
Generally, the comparison of the SDWQI with the WHO index and the Schoeller classification shows the rigidity of the new index in the classification of water quality for drinking purposes. Each water quality index developed in order to evaluate the uncertainty of results, should be tested for data with different characteristics in terms of the range of variation with different limit values (minimum and maximum). The index developed in the present study is no exception to this rule and in order to evaluate the results better, it is suggested that to be evaluated and analyzed with data from other hydrometric stations. Another important point that should be considered in using any water quality index, including the present research index, is to examine the allowable limits of water quality parameters that are not considered in these indicators. The results of the study indicated that two most important steps in the development of a quality index that have a great impact on its results are sub-indexing and weighting of parameters. According to the results, two ideas recommended for future research. One, choosing an appropriate method such as non-deterministic (fuzzy) and intelligent (machine learning) methods to sub-index the parameters and two, to weigh the parameters more effectively, multivariate statistical methods such as clustering, factor analysis and principal component analysis should be used.
Introduction The world population has grown rapidly over the last 150 years and continues to do so, resulting in impacts on hydrologic resources at both a local and global scale (Yang et al., 2012). The competition for water between... more
Introduction
The world population has grown rapidly over the last 150 years and continues to do so, resulting in impacts on hydrologic resources at both a local and global scale (Yang et al., 2012). The competition for water between humans and ecosystems leads to complex interactions between hydrologic and social systems (liu et al., 2015). From the beginning of human history, it is located in floodplains. Floods can have large societal impacts, such as severe damage to urban areas, which are expected to grow around the world (Alfieriet al., 2018). In traditional hydrology, humans are either conceptualized as an external force to the system under study or taken into account as boundary conditions (Peel and Blöschl, 2011). Sivapalan et al. (2012) proposed a new model for investigating the interactions of the hydrological system and the social system. It explores the procedure coupled human-water system evolves and possible trajectories of its co-evolution, including the possibility of generating emergent, even unexpected, behaviors. Socio-hydrology must strive to be a quantitative science. There are several methods to control and mitigate flood risk, one of these methods is flood zoning (Jha et al., 2012). In last two decates, The Kalat city is flooded almost every year and many houses and historical sites in the city are damaged. Therefore, the main purpose of thisWe paper is to show investigated how changing human behavior with nature can affect the behavior of the natural system.
Method and Materials
Kalat city located in 59° 43' 23" to 59° 47' 41" northern latitude and 36° 59' 35" to 37° 00' 05" eastern longitude. The city is divided into 11 sub-basins. The city has experienced fast and inappropriate urbanization over the past few years. To collect our data, the annual reports of the Regional Water Organization and the Environment Organization of Khorasan Province were used.
SCS method was used to estimate the runoff peak discharge. Precipitation has been estimated for seven return periods: 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, and 200 years. In this study, to analyze the sensitivity of runoff, we considered precipitation and curves number from 20% less to 20% more than the actual values in the study basin (at intervals of 5 %). We used the Cowan method to determine the roughness coefficient in this study. HEC-RAS model has been used for flood zoning. To determine the impact of various factors on the intensification of floods in Kalat city, we obtained questionnaires from relevant authorities. Likert scale was used to measure the results of the questionnaires. We prepared two questionnaires; first one is related to the inner city zone and includes the factors that intensify the occurrence of floods inside the city of Kalat, and it was classified into the following parts: 1) Local community 2) Managerial 3) Physical; and the second one includes the factors that intensify the flood in the upper part of Kalat city. We classified these factors into three parts: 1) Non-local community 2) Managerial 3) Environmental .
Results and Discussion
Results of sensitivity analyzes demonstrated that land-use and land cover change had a further effect on peak discharge. In sub-basin 1, by 20% increase in the curve number, the level of peak dumping increased by more than 111%, with a return period of 2 year; while a 20% increase in precipitation, in the same return period, rises the peak discharge only 3%. The peak discharge time in some sub-basins was brief due to the presence of impermeable surfaces, so that in sub-basins 4, 6, 7, and 8, the peak discharge time was less than 30 minutes. These results highlight the dangers of these floods and the need for proper flood planning and management in these sub-basins. The results of the Manning coefficient demonstrated that we can reduce flood damage by applying management measures in the future, as well as paying attention to the feedback between urbanization and the flood zone. Roughness control by applying management programs can reduce the area of flood zones to 0.1 square kilometers. In this case, buildings should be removed from the river, and there should be no structure in the path of the river. According to the questionnaires in the inner city part, the most fundamental factor in intensifying the flood damage was related to “activities of local people” with the average of 3.59. In the upper part of the city, the most influential factors were ascribed to “managerial factors” with the average of 3.79.
Conclusion
In a general conclusion, it can be concluded that the role of human factors in the occurrence and intensification of floods was much greater than rainfall. Therefore, in order to manage and control floods, it is necessary to prevent the change of land use and the reduction of permeability. And management programs should be aimed at increasing surface permeability. We suggest that more research be done on the role of economic and social factors in increasing flood risk in other climate zones.
Introduction Precipitation is one of the most important components of water cycle. Accurate precipitation measurement is essential for flood forecasting and control, drought analysis, runoff modeling, sediment control and management,... more
Introduction
Precipitation is one of the most important components of water cycle. Accurate precipitation measurement is essential for flood forecasting and control, drought analysis, runoff modeling, sediment control and management, watershed management, agricultural irrigation planning, and water quality studies. Determining the correct amount of precipitation in cities and rural areas is also important for managing floods. The precipitation process is completely non-linear and involves randomness in terms of time and space. Therefore, it is not easy to explain that with simple linear models due to various climatic factors and may contain major errors. Therefore, various methods and models have been proposed to evaluate, and predict precipitation. This study aimed to estimate the daily precipitation of Tabriz based on hybridized tree-based and Bagging methods by using neighboring stations.
Materials and Methods
In the present study, the rainfall data of adjacent stations in Urmia lake basin (Sahand, Sarab, Urmia, Maragheh and Mahabad) were employed in 1986-2021 to estimate the daily rainfall in Tabriz. About 70% of data were considered for calibration and 30% of data were applied for validation. Using the correlation matrix and Relief algorithm, various input components were identified. Modeling was performed using tree-based data mining methods including M5P, RT and REPT and Bagging method. The daily precipitations of Tabriz was decomposed into their components by seasonal-trend analysis method. Its components, including trend, seasonal and residual, were used in different input scenarios to investigate the effect of these components on improving the modeling results. To evaluate the modeling performance, the indices of correlation coefficient, Root Mean Square Error, Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency and modified Wilmot coefficient were applied.
Results and Discussion
RT and REPT methods increased the accuracy of the model and decreased its error when they were used as the basic algorithm of the Bagging method. This was not the case with the M5P method, as the results were slightly weaker. It was also observed that Tabriz rainfall is largely influenced by Sahand rainfall, as the most models gave reliable estimates by using the rainfall data for Sahand station. This can be explained by the high correlation between Tabriz rainfall and Sahand. The results showed that the first scenario (Sahand) for M5P, RT, REPT and B-M5P method, the fifth scenario (Sahand, Sarab, Urmia, Maragheh and Mahabad) for the B-RT method, and the fourth scenario (Sahand, Sarab, Urmia and Mahabad) for the B-REPT method were the best scenarios. The best performance was found for the scenario 1 of the M5P decision tree model, followed by the Bagging method with the M5P base algorithm. In general, it was concluded that application of the Bagging method produced reliable results. Modeling without considering the decomposition components was compared with modeling with decomposition components. Adding seasonal, trend and residual components to the modeling input combinations significantly improved the accuracy of the results. Application of Bagging method in most cases also increased the modeling accuracy. The first scenario (Sahand and residual) for M5P and B-M5P methods, the tenth scenario (residual, trend, seasonal, Sahand and Sarab) for RT, REPT and B-REPT methods, and the eighth scenario (residual, trend and Sahand) for B-RT method were selected as the best scenarios. As a result, among the stations, Sahand, due to proximity and high correlation, and Sarab, due to greater correlation, had a great impact on precipitation in Tabriz. In general, the Bagging method with the basic M5P algorithm (B-M5P) was best suited in the first scenario. Thus, adding precipitation analysis components and using the Bagging method improve the modeling results with tree-based data mining methods.
Conclusion
Our results showed that Bagging method provided acceptable results in most cases. In the first case, the first scenario of M5P method including Sahand precipitation data was selected as the superior method and scenario. As a result, Sahand was the most effective station in estimating Tabriz rainfall with the highest correlation and the shortest distance from Tabriz. In the second case, with the decomposition components, the accuracy of the results increased significantly. The Bagging method with the basic M5P algorithm, the parameters of Sahand precipitation and the residual of Tabriz precipitation was considered as the best modeling algorithm. It can be concluded that using Bagging method and decomposition components with the closest station to the studied station results in the highest accuracy. Therefore, Bagging models with tree-based algorithm can be considered as simple and widely used methods.
Introduction In addition to the minerals, weathering in soil which depends on soil forming factors and processes, plants rhizosphere release components which affect soil minerals and finally their weathering. If the soil is polluted by... more
Introduction
In addition to the minerals, weathering in soil which depends on soil forming factors and processes, plants rhizosphere release components which affect soil minerals and finally their weathering. If the soil is polluted by heavy metals, root exudates will be influenced resulting in decreasing microbial activity. Many studies showed minerals weathering in rhizospheric medium for both natural soils and pure clay minerals but information about the effect of pollution of rhizosphere on clay minerals weathering is limited. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of cadmium pollution on the transformation of clay minerals in wheat rhizosphere in a dominant soil of Shahrekord plain (Chaharmahal soil series).
Materials and methods
Soil samples were collected from 0-20 cm depth of Chaharmahal soil series based on the 1:50,000 scale soil map. A factorial experiment as completely randomized design with three replications and three cadmium levels (0, 5, and 10 mg kg-1 from cadmium) was performed in two environments including bulk soil and rhizospheric soil (18 samples in total) in greenhouse conditions for 16 weeks. Necessary care was taken during the growth period and the soil moisture was kept constant at the field capacity. At harvest time, the rhizosphere soil was separated from bulk soil. Then, the soil samples were air dried and passed through a 2 mm sieve. The mineralogy was examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) in the studied soil after plant harvest (including rhizospheric soil and bulk soil) in unpolluted samples. Then, results were compared with minerals in polluted rhizosphere media. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and pH in the rhizosphere and bulk soils were also determined.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the effect of contamination on soil pH was not significant but the pH value in rhizosphere soil was significantly lower than the bulk soil. The average pH in the soil was 7.8 and in the rhizosphere reduced to 7.5. The interaction of medium (rhizosphere and bulk soil) and contamination on the amount of dissolved organic carbon was significant (p < 0.01). The amount of dissolved organic carbon in the rhizosphere at 170.6 mg Kg-1 was significantly higher than the bulk soil (104.6 mg kg-1), which could be due to root secretions. In the rhizosphere, increasing the contamination level to 5 mg kg-1 decreased by 19% and contamination of 10 mg kg-1 caused a 21% decrease in dissolved organic carbon. The amount of dissolved organic carbon in the rhizosphere was 39% higher than the bulk soil. The average of dissolved organic carbon in the rhizosphere and bulk soil was 170.6 and 104.6 mg kg-1, respectively. Based on mineralogical results, mica, smectite, chlorite, kaolinite and palygorskite minerals were detected in the bulk soil. Comparison of clay minerals samples in the bulk soil and rhizosphere showed that the trioctahedral chlorite transformed to hydroxy-interlayer vermiculite (HIV) in the rhizosphere soil. The presence of HIV was identified by an increase in the intensity ratio of the 10 and 14 angstrom peaks after K-saturation. In rhizospheric soils, the intensity of the 14 angstrom peak decreases in K-550ºC treatment. Furthermore, in the rhizospheric soils, a clear increase in the intensity of the 10 angstrom peak was observed from K-air dried to K-550ºC treatments which can be related to the presence of HIV which can be attributed to the changing conditions of the rhizosphere, including reducing pH and increasing the dissolved organic carbon and the activity of microorganisms. Comparison of diffractograms for clay fraction of rhizospheric soil with different contamination levels after cultivation showed that the type of minerals in contaminated levels was similar to non-contaminated conditions, but the amount of trioctahedral chlorite was the highest in higher contaminated soil. The peak intensity of 14 angstrom in potassium saturated sample heated at 550°C was lower in non-contaminated soil. Also, at the level of 10 mg kg-1 cadmium contamination, the chlorite peak had the highest intensity which indicates less chlorite was transformed to HIV in the contaminated soils.
Conclusions
The results showed that DOC in the rhizosphere soil was significantly higher than the bulk soil, whereas pH significantly decreased in the rhizosphere soil compared to the bulk soil. In both the rhizosphere and the bulk soils, increasing the contamination caused a decreasing trend in dissolved organic carbon. Mineralogical results of the rhizospheric and the bulk soils showed that trioctahedral chlorite was transformed to hydroxy-interlayer vermiculite (HIV). In addition, rhizosphere contamination reduced the chlorite transformation. The results suggest that soil contamination with a negative impact on plant activity and soil could even prevent the availability of nutrients from the clay minerals structure.
Introduction Given the energy crisis in the world, increasing environmental pollution, clean, renewable energy and the reduction of environmental pollution are needed. Soil is the main source of agricultural production. Therefore,... more
Introduction
Given the energy crisis in the world, increasing environmental pollution, clean, renewable energy and the reduction of environmental pollution are needed. Soil is the main source of agricultural production. Therefore, maintaining soil health and fertility is very important for sustainable food production. Nanotechnology is a good way to reduce soil issues in agriculture, a promising method to improve soil properties and significant capacity to increase yield. Nanotechnology is one of the newest technologies that is used in all fields of science and research due to its high potential and unique features, including natural resources and soil protection. Nanoparticles have the ability to change some physical, mechanical and chemical properties of soil due to their very high specific surface area and activity. Nanoparticles increase the cation exchange capacity of soil and soil porosity. Among all nanoparticles, zinc oxide (ZnO) is one of the most widely used nanoparticles. Zinc oxide nanoparticles due to their high specific surface area can act as a bonding agent between particles and stabilize the soil structure by flocculating soil particles. Although many studies have used zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO) in the field of heavy metal contamination in soil, aqueous solutions and plants, the effect of one nanoparticle on soils with different textures has been less reported. Therefore, objective of this study was to investigate the effect of zinc oxide nanoparticles on some physical and chemical properties of soils with different textures.
Materials and Methods
In this study, three soil samples with different textures, including sandy loam, loam and clay were collected from three locations as Malayer, Abbasabad and Nahavand, in Hamedan province, respectively. Samples were taken from soil surface (0-20 cm depth). The soil samples were transferred to the Soil Physics Laboratory. After  air drying, they were passed through a 4 mm sieve and mixed with specific weight percentages of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (zero, 0.5, 1 and 3 % W/W) in three replications. After preparing the treated samples, the soils were homogeneously poured into plastic containers measuring 18 × 5.5 × 18 cm with a specific bulk density related to the field. The treated soils in plastic containers, were wetted and dried with municipal water for 120 consecutive incubation period. After 120 days from the start of incubation, the samples were taken from the containers. Some physical and chemical properties including pH, cation exchange capacity, organic matter, calcium carbonate and electrical conductivity were measured.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the use of nanoparticles increased the cation exchange capacity in two textures of loamy and clay soils. The increment was significant compared to the control in loamy soil at two levels of 1 and 3% and in clay soil in all three levels of 0.5, 1 and 3%. Electrical conductivity increased and decreased (P <0.05) at 3% level for loamy soil and at 3% for sandy loam and clay soils, respectively. In contrast, the application of nanoparticles led to a decrease in pH and organic matter content (P <0.05) in sandy loam and clay soils, respectively. At the level of zero and 0.5%, the order of pH was: sandy loam> clay> loamy soil, with significant differences. But at the level of 1%, the order of pH was: sandy loamy> loamy> clay, with significant differences. At 3% level, the order of pH was: loamy> sandy loam> clay, with significant differences. At all levels of zero, 0.5, 1 and 3% of zinc oxide nanoparticles, the amount of organic matter was significantly in loamy> clay> sandy loam. Application of different levels of zinc oxide nanoparticles in clay soil reduced the percentage of calcium carbonate (P <0.05) (at the 3% by weight level), but had no effect on the amount of this variable in sandy loam and loamy soils. At all levels of zero, 0.5, 1 and 3%, the amount of soil calcium carbonate was significantly in the following order: clay> sandy loam> loam.
Conclusion
According to the results obtained in this study, it can be concluded that the use of nanoparticles can be a good solution to reduce the harmful environmental effects of chemical fertilizers. In addition to the positive effect of zinc oxide nanoparticles on physical and chemical parameters in different textures, the selection of the most optimal level of zinc oxide nanoparticles should be economically applicable. This requires further studies to determine the significant effects of nanoparticles on the physicochemical properties of the soils in different conditions to determine the optimal amount of nanoparticles, in order to save costs.
Introduction Grape is one of the most important horticultural products in the world and Iran which has been noticed due to its cultivation area, high economic and nutritional values. Annually, about 68 million tons of grape are produced... more
Introduction
Grape is one of the most important horticultural products in the world and Iran which has been noticed due to its cultivation area, high economic and nutritional values. Annually, about 68 million tons of grape are produced in the world. Iran, with 309,000 ha cultivation area and about 3.3 million tons share of production, is the 11th largest producer of this fruit in the world. Recent studies have shown that plant nutrition and soil fertility have significant effect in the reduced yield quality in the grape fields of our country. Plant nutrition as an influential factor is a function of the interaction of nutrients and environmental conditions. Assessing the nutritional status of plants is necessary to achieve the relationship between nutrients availability in the soil, the amount of elements in the plant and yield. Plant analysis method is used to optimize fertilizer application and diagnose plant nutrition disorders. The plant analysis method is useful for evaluating plant nutrition if an appropriate method to be used to diagnose and interpret the results. Tissue nutrient status can be diagnosed by the Critical Value Approach (CVA), the Diagnosis and Recommendation Integrated System (DRIS), and Compositional Nutrient Diagnosis (CND). Only DRIS and CND provide nutrient imbalance indexes, although no threshold value has been validated yet for diagnostic purposes. CND method expresses interactions by considering the ratio of one element to all elements. In this method, high and low functional groups are separated with great accuracy with the help of mathematical and statistical methods and the application of the cumulative function of variance ratio of nutrients and chi-square distribution function. A critical CND imbalance index was derived from the chi-square distribution function. Due to the importance of grape production in the country and the lack of required nutritional norms, this study was conducted to investigate the nutritional status of grape fields using the CND method.
Materials and Methods
In order to evaluate the nutritional status of grape fields in the Hamedan province, this study was conducted in the cropping years of 2017-2020. Every year, 40 different orchards were selected in each of the regions. The orchards were selected in such a way that they had different ranges of yield and soil properties. A database containing laboratory and field data was created for each grape field. The geographical location was recorded for the orchards. In each orchard, plant (leaf) samples were prepared and analyzed based on suitable laboratory methods. At the end of the season, the yield and its components were determined by visiting each orchard. Concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, manganese, and copper were measured in grape leaves. The project database was completed and CND indices were calculated for each nutrient element. The selected grape fields were divided into two groups with high and low yield based on yield. The CND norms and indexes were computed according to computation steps of Parent and Dafir. The Cate–Nelson ANOVA procedure was used to partition yield data between two groups by maximizing the between-groups sums of squares to determine the threshold values for CND indexes required to compute the critical CND r2 value. We used 83 observations for developing the nutrient norms.
Results and Discussion
The results of the indices calculated by the method of CND showed that the grape fields were deficient in nitrogen and potassium among the macronutrients and iron and manganese among the micronutrient elements. There was a correlation (0.25) between nutritional balance index and yield that was significant at 1 percent probability level. Potassium index was negative in 83% of low yield orchards. After potassium, nitrogen had a negative index in 58% of medium and low yield orchards. Phosphorus had the most positive index among macronutrients and was positive in most orchards. Among the micronutrients, manganese, iron, and zinc indices were negative in 59%, 49% and 73% of the orchards, respectively. The presence of calcareous conditions in the soils of the region can be the reason for this deficiency. The boron index was positive in some orchards and negative in some other orchards. Furthermore, in total, the index of unknown factors was negative in 41% of grape fields in Hamadan province.
Conclusion
The results indicated that management of evaluated orchards was not suitable and application of chemical fertilizers was unbalanced. The results of this study can be used in grape fields to increase yield and product quality. Therefore, it is recommended to use deficient elements in the fertilization program to improve yield.
Introduction Arid and semi-arid climates prevail in Iran. The precipitation is also sparsely distributed in most areas of the country. Therefore, there is a need for management measures to overcome the water crisis. One of these measures... more
Introduction
Arid and semi-arid climates prevail in Iran. The precipitation is also sparsely distributed in most areas of the country. Therefore, there is a need for management measures to overcome the water crisis. One of these measures is designing rainwater harvesting systems that can meet some of the non-potable needs and reduce runoff in urban areas. The main components of rainwater harvesting systems in residential regions include the catchment area, storage tank, and water transfer system from the catchment area to the tank. The storage tank is the biggest investment in a rainwater harvesting system, as most buildings are not equipped with a storage system. Therefore, tank capacity should be determined optimally to minimize project implementation costs. The stored water volume and the project profit increases with increasing the tank volume. However, in this case, the price of the tank increases. Therefore, the tank capacity should be optimally designed to justify economic exploitation.
Materials and Methods
In order to evaluate the feasibility of using rainwater harvesting systems, the tanks’ volume was optimized. Due to the higher rainfall of Ardabil relative to the average rainfall of the country, it is expected that this area has a good potential for the implementation of rainwater harvesting systems. Therefore, this region was selected as the study area under the scenario of a residential house with 100 and 200 m2 catchment areas and four inhabitants. The amount of rainfall in the region is one of the primary parameters in determining the volume of rainwater collection tanks. Some of the precipitated water is always inaccessible due to evaporation from the surface. Nonetheless, since there is almost no sunlight during and immediately after rainfall, and also the received water enters the reservoirs shortly after precipitation, evaporation was assumed to be zero. Daily precipitation data for 42 years (from 1977 to 2019) were retrieved from the Ardabil Meteorological site. The daily water balance modeling method was used to analyze the rainwater harvesting systems due to the simplicity of interpretation, high accuracy and better general acceptance. Daily precipitation data were entered into this model and used as the primary source to meet the domestic demands. Simulation of rainwater harvesting systems was performed using daily precipitation data in MATLAB software, and the reliability of these systems was calculated for different tank volumes. Then, considering the price of drinking water and the current price of tanks in the market, the optimal volume of tanks was calculated using the Genetic Algorithm. Finally, the annual volume of water supply and the amount of water savings in case of using the optimal volumes of tanks were also estimated.
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the percentage of reliability is directly related to the volume of the tank, thus, the reliability percentage also increases with increasing the tank capacity. As the volume of the tank increases, the slope of the increasing reliability percentage decreases continuously, to the point that this slope becomes almost zero. Comparing the reliability percentage obtained for 100 and 200 m2 rooftops indicated that 200 m2 rooftop had a higher reliability percentage than 100 m2 rooftop due to receiving much more rainfall and meeting the water need for a longer duration. By comparing the results of overflow ratio for 100 and 200 m2 rooftops, it can also be concluded that using a fixed size tank, the overflow in 200 m2 rooftop is higher, which is due to receiving more water volume than 100 m2 rooftop. The results also showed that by using a 5 m3 tank, 44.5 and 24 m3 of water can be stored annually from the 200 and 100 m2 catchment areas, respectively, these are equal to 28 and 19 m3, respectively, if 1 m3 tank is used. The optimal tank volumes for 100 and 200 m3 rooftops are equal to 0.59 and 1.66 m3, respectively. Since the tanks are made in specific volumes, the obtained volumes were rounded to the closest volumes available in the market. Thus, a 1.5 m3 tank was used for a 200 m2 rooftop and a 0.5 m3 tank was applied for a 100 m2 rooftop.
Conclusion
Application of a tank of 0.5 m3 for the rooftop of 100 m2 was the most profitable for saving 17% of water consumption, annually. Moreover, the optimal tank volume for the 200 m2 rooftop was selected to be 1.5 m3, saving about 32 % of water consumption per year. Water-saving percentages indicate the high potential of our study area for the implementation of rainwater harvesting systems.
Introduction Drought stress is the most important environmental factor limiting growth and development of plants worldwide. Growth reduction due to drought stress has been reported more than other environmental stresses. So far, many... more
Introduction
Drought stress is the most important environmental factor limiting growth and development of plants worldwide. Growth reduction due to drought stress has been reported more than other environmental stresses. So far, many studies have been conducted on the relationship and correlation between important agronomic traits in rapeseed, which have introduced 1000-grain weight, number of seeds per pod and number of pods per plant as the most important traits with high correlation in yield. The results showed that the application of drought stress had an effect on the yield components of sesame and the cultivars that were more sensitive to drought stress had a greater decrease in their yield. The aims of this study were to investigate (1) the effect of consumed water volume as the independent variable on other variables of the study, and (2) the effect of total independent variables (yield components and other independent factors) on yield and water productivity (dependent variables). Finally, the most important independent variables affecting water productivity and the most sensitive variables to the amount of consumed water were determined.
Materials and Methods
In order to achieve aforementioned objectives of this study, an experiment was conducted during two growing season of 2011-2011 and 2010-2011 in Behbahan Agricultural Research Station. The experiment was conducted as randomized complete block design with 4 replications. The applied amount of water in drip irrigation was composed of four levels of 50, 75, 100 and 125% water requirement in main plots and two canola varieties Hyola 401 and RGS003 in sub plots were placed.
Results and Discussion
The results of the analysis of variance of the regression model showed that the higher absolute value of beta coefficients and t-statistic of each independent variable caused that variable to be introduced as the most sensitive independent variable affecting the dependent variable. Therefore, the independent variable of water volume, with beta coefficient of 0.860 and t-statistic of 13.246 had the greatest effect on plant height variable. In terms of yield, the studied variables (the number of pods per plant, the number of seeds per pod, and 1000-seed weight, consumed water volume, flowering period, growth period and plant height) showed 74.1% of variation (R2 = 0.741) of dependent variable (Yield of canola). The consumed water volume with the highest absolute value of beta coefficient of 0.563 and t-statistic with 2.967 had the most significant effect on yield at the level of 1%. Among the dependent variables, the consumed water volume with the highest absolute value of beta -1.013 and t-statistic at -12.415 had the most significant effect on water productivity at the level of 1%. consumed of water volume with the highest absolute value of beta coefficient of 0.563 and t-statistic with 2.967 had the most significant effect on performance at the level of 1%. The results of Pearson correlation coefficient showed that the highest correlation between the number of pods per plant and seed per pod with both plant height were calculated to be 0.763 and 0.849, respectively, indicating that increasing plant height was effective in increasing the number of pods per plant and seed per pod.
Conclusion
The results of analysis of variance of regression model showed the effect on volume of consumed water as an dependent variable through other variables (number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod, yield, water productivity, 1000-seed weight, flowering period, growth period and plant height). Results showed a significant effect of all variables at the level of 1%, except for the variable of flowering period which had a significant effect but just at 5%. The volume of consumed water by r= 66.2% on grain yield variation in the pods, had the most significant effect on yield components. Therefore, seed number in the pods received the most negative effect from reducing water consumption due to drought stress. With increasing the growth period of canola, water productivity showed a significant decrease at 1%. The results of Pearson correlation coefficient showed that grain water productivity had a negative and significant correlation at the level of 1% with all variables. The highest correlation between water productivity (r = -0.939) was calculated with volume of consumed water, which indicates the importance of reducing water consumption in increasing canola water productivity.
Introduction Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) is native plant in Bolivia, Chile and Peru, which is widely adapted to different climatic conditions and can grow in all soils. This plant has shown adequate adaptation to arid and semi-arid... more
Introduction
  Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) is native plant in Bolivia, Chile and Peru, which is widely adapted to different climatic conditions and can grow in all soils. This plant has shown adequate adaptation to arid and semi-arid areas conditions and is planted from areas with low elevation (sea level) to areas with an altitude of 4000 meters above sea level. Quinoa is often cultivated in areas with limited water resources, and it is rare to find quinoa cultivation under full irrigation conditions. Some studies have shown that quinoa yields slightly better under full irrigation (without water restriction) than quinoa under deficit irrigation. Crop growth models are very important tools in the study of agricultural systems and they can be used to simulate the yield of crop in different conditions. Given that the study of performance limiting factors requires numerous and costly research and experiments in different areas, so finding a way to reduce the number, time and cost of these experiments is worthwhile. Aquacrop model is one of the applied models that are used to simulate yield variations in different water and soil management.
Materials and Methods
  This investigation was carried out in two growing seasons of 2019 and 2020 to determine the efficiency of Aquacrop model for simulating Quinoa grain yield and biomass under imposing three stress treatments of 30, 50 and 70% of water consumption in development and mid-growth stages. Plant spacing was 40 cm between rows and 7 cm between plants within rows. Seeds of quinoa (Titicaca cultivar) were cultivated in the first decade of August 2019 and in the third decade of July 2020. The experiment was a randomized complete block design with three replications. Three deficit irrigation treatments including 30, 50 and 70% of available water were considered in two growth stages (development and mid-growth) in 18 experimental plots (3 × 4 m). Soil moisture in rooting depth (about 40 cm) was measured by TDR and after the soil moisture of the treatments reached the desired values, plots were irrigated until the soil moisture reached the field capacity. The results of grain and biomass yield in the first year were used to calibrate the Aquacrop model and the results of the second year were used to validate the model. Root mean square error (RMSE), normalized root mean square error (NRMSE), Willmott index (D), model efficiency (EF) and mean error deviation (MBE) were used to compare the simulated and observed values.
Results and Discussion
  The results of the first and second year were used to calibrate and validate the model, respectively. The results of the first year showed that irrigation with 50 and 70% of available water in the development stage reduced quinoa grain yield by 17 and 33%, respectively, compared to the control treatment. The application of these two deficit irrigation treatments in the middle stage reduced the yield by about 12 and 28%, respectively. The results of comparing the statistical indices of grain yield, biomass and water use efficiency showed that the NRMSE for grain, biomass and water use efficiency were 9, 8 and 14% in the first year and 9, 6 and 9% in the second years. Furthermore, the EF for these traits were 0.81, 0.77 and 0.64 in the first year and 0.68, 0.71 and 0.62, in the second year, respectively.
Conclusion
The results of calibration and validation of the model showed the accuracy and efficiency of the Aquacrop model in simulating grain yield, biomass and water use efficiency of quinoa. This model can be used to provide the most appropriate scenario and irrigation management for different levels of deficit irrigation managements.
Introduction Drought analysis in agriculture can not only be achieved by measuring precipitation changes but also by using other parameters such as soil moisture. Due to the fact that soil moisture affects plant growth and yield, it is... more
Introduction
Drought analysis in agriculture can not only be achieved by measuring precipitation changes but also by using other parameters such as soil moisture. Due to the fact that soil moisture affects plant growth and yield, it is often considered for monitoring agricultural drought. Remote sensing data are often provided from three sources: microwave, visible and thermal. Most satellite soil moisture-based algorithms rely on passive microwave images, active microwaves, or a combination of data from several different sensors. Among the various remote sensing methods, the microwave electromagnetic spectrum has fewer physical limitations than other spectrum in measuring soil moisture. However, microwave soil moisture data often have very large pixel dimensions (more than 10 km), making it difficult to use them on a small scale.
Materials and Methods
In this study, in order to calculate the agricultural drought index at the field-scale, AMSR2 Retrieval data were calibrated first using field moisture measurement data in the Neishabour plain during 2017 to 2019. During the research period, 560 soil samples (20 samples in 28 shifts) were collected and soil moisture was measured in the laboratory of the Department of Water Science and Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. LPRM_AMSR2_ SOILM3_001 is one of the third level products of the AMSR2 sensor, which is produced on a daily basis with a spatial resolution of 25 × 25 km2. Land surface parameters including surface temperature, surface soil moisture and plant water availability were obtained by passive microwave data using the Land parameter Retrieval Method (LPRM). Then, by using Modis sensor images (NDVI and LST), linear downscaling equations were extracted. The dimensions of the AMSR2 images were reduced from 25 kilometers to 1000 meters using these equations. In next step, SMADI Agricultural Drought Index, which is a combination of vegetation characteristics, soil moisture and land surface temperature, was used to monitor agricultural drought at the field-scale. Statistical indicators such as coefficient of determination (R^2), mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) were also used to evaluate the statistical performance.
Results and Discussion
By visual analysis of the role of vegetation and land unevenness, it was found that these two factors affect the regression relationships extracted for calibration of remote sensing data. The RMSE and MAE values for the regression equations used in the calibration process were calculated in the range of 1.6 to 4%, which can be considered acceptable in comparison with the mean values of the soil moisture data (15 to 20). The results showed that changes in SMADI index in three land use zones including rainfed cultivation (R1), medium rangeland (R2) and poor rangeland (R3) have experienced a similar trend to precipitation changes, illustrating that precipitation is one of the most effective factors in major changes in SMADI agricultural drought index fluctuations. It was also observed that SMADI index changes with a delay of 1 to 8 days compared to the precipitation changes in all three zones. In all three zones, the SMADI index followed a similar trend to in-situ soil moisture changes. At mot 80% of the changes in SMADI-R1 index can be explained by in-situ SM-R1, and the rest of the changes were related to other environmental factors or measurement error. This decreases to 68% in the R3 zone. It should be noted that soil moisture monitoring can more accurately reflect the impact of environmental factors on the changes in agricultural drought index such as SMADI than other variables; because the rainfall recorded at the meteorological station does not necessarily occur uniformly throughout the study area. On the other hand, any amount of precipitation will not necessarily lead to an effective change in soil moisture storage. This also renders assessment of the performance of agricultural drought indicators difficult.
Conclusion
Examination of statistical indices of coefficient of determination (R2), mean absolute error value (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) showed that the algorithm used in downscaling as well as estimating SMADI agricultural drought index is well able to reflect the interactions between precipitation, soil moisture, vegetation and changes in canopy temperature profile. This feature justifies and strengthens its application in agrometeorological analysis.
Introduction Estimating soil properties on large scales using experimental methods requires specialized equipments and can be extremely time-consuming and expensive, especially when dealing with a high spatial sampling density. Soil... more
Introduction
Estimating soil properties on large scales using experimental methods requires specialized equipments and can be extremely time-consuming and expensive, especially when dealing with a high spatial sampling density. Soil Visible and Near-InfraRed (V-NIR) reflectance spectroscopy has proven to be a fast, cost-effective, non-destructive, environmental-friendly, repeatable, and reproducible analytical technique. V-NIR reflectance spectroscopy has been used for more than 30 years to predict an extensive variety of soil properties like organic and inorganic carbon, nitrogen, organic carbon, moisture, texture and salinity. The objectives of this study were to estimate soil properties (carbonate calcium equivalent (CCE), electrical conductivity (EC), pH, and organic carbon (OC)) using visible near-infrared and short-wave Infrared (SWIR) reflectance spectroscopy (350-2500 nm). In this study, the best predictions of all the soil properties, model and pre-processing technique were also determined. The Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Support Vector Machine Regression (SVMR) and Principal Component Regression (PCR) models were also compared to estimate soil properties.
Materials and Methods
A total number of 200 surface soil samples (0-10 cm) were collected from the Semirom region (51º 17' - 52º 3' E; 30º 42' - 31º 51' N), Isfahan, Iran. The samples were air dried and passed through a 2 mm sieve, and using standard procedures soil properties were determined in the laboratory. Accordingly, soil pH and the EC contents of soil samples were determined in saturated pastes and extracts, respectively. The CCE content of the soils were measured using back titration, and the OC contents of the samples were measured using Walkley-Black method. The Reflectance spectra of all samples were measured using an ASD field spectrometer. The selection of the best model was done according to the value of the Ratio of Performance to Deviation (RPD), the coefficient of determination (R2), and the Root Mean Square Eerror (RMSE).
Results and Discussion
Once the models were constructed using PLSR, ANN, SVMR and PCR approaches, descriptive analysis was carried out for each property, for the data measured in the laboratory. The parameters calculated for the properties were mean, coefficient of variation (CV), minimum and maximum, standard deviation and range. Coefficient of variation for the organic carbon, CCE, pH, and EC values were 21.7, 12.4, 1.34, and 28.74, respectively. Wilding (1985) proposed low, medium, and high variability for the CV values less than 15%, 15-35%, and greater than 35%, respectively. Accordingly, the organic carbon and EC of soils could be classified in the group with moderate variability. However, the calcium carbonate equivalent and pH are in the group with low variability. Since spectral data preprocessing has an effective role on improving the calibration, in order to perform spectral preprocessing, two first nodes at the first (350-400 nm) and the end (2450-2500 nm) of each spectrum were removed. In addition, two interruptions were eliminated, due to the change in the detector in the range of 900 to 1700 nm. Different preprocessing methods i.e., Standard Normal Variable (SNV) and First (FD) and Second Derivatives (SD) and Savitzky-Golay preprocessing techniques were performed on spectral data. Then, using PLSR, the cross‐validation method was used to evaluate soil properties calibration and validation. According to Stenberg (2002), for agricultural applications, The values of RPD greater than 2 indicate that the models provide precise predictions, the values of RPD between 1.5 and 2 are considered to be reasonably representative, and the values of RPD less than 1.5 indicate poor predictive performance. The results indicated the desirable capability of the PLSR method in estimating the EC (RPD > 2, R2 = 0.94), CCE (RPD > 2, R2 = 0.88), and OC (RPD > 2, R2 = 0.89). The best results of the pH (RPD > 2, R2 = 0.79) were estimated by the SVMR method. In this study the best methods of preprocessing techniques were First (FD) and Second Derivatives (SD) and Savitzky-Golay filter.
Conclusion
In general, based on the results of this study, VNIR spectroscopy was successful in estimating soil properties and showed its potential for substituting laboratory analyses. Moreover, spectroscopy could be considered as a simple, fast, and low-cost method in predicting soil properties. The PLSR model with First and Second derivatives and Savitzky-Golay pre-processing techniques seems to be more robust algorithm for estimating EC, OC, and CCE. The best results of the pH were estimated by the SVMR method with First and Second derivatives and Savitzky-Golay pre-processing techniques.
Introduction Global observations have confirmed that in recent decades, forests have been converted into agricultural land at a swift pace; this is a major global concern. Forests around the world have also experienced severe disturbances... more
Introduction
Global observations have confirmed that in recent decades, forests have been converted into agricultural land at a swift pace; this is a major global concern. Forests around the world have also experienced severe disturbances due to other anthropogenic activities. The conversion of forests to cropland often results in soil degradation. Slope gradient and land use change are known to influence soil quality; therefore, the assessment of soil quality is important in determining sustainable land-use and soil-management practices. Magnetic susceptibility (χlf) measurements are widely used to study soil-forming processes. Many efforts have been made to correlate soil magnetic susceptibility with different soil properties, such as topography, parent material, Fe oxide forms, etc. The Yasouj area of Kohgilouye Province is one of the most densely forested areas in Zagros mountainous region. Parts of the area have been cultivated to feed the growing population, which has led to forest degradation. The objectives of this study were to assess some soil properties focusing on soil χlf and Fe- oxides forms in different land uses and slope positions.
Materials and Methods
Forty soil samples were taken from dense forest, sparse forest, eroded lands and dryland farming from different slops (0-15 and 15-30 percent) in Mokhtar Plain, west of Yasouj city. Soil samples were taken from the depth of 0–15 cm in a completely randomized design with five replications. Soil moisture and temperature regimes in the study area are xeric and thermic, respectively. Particle size distribution was determined by the hydrometer method and soil organic matter, CaCO3 equivalent and bulk density were determined using standard procedures. Fe (Feo) were extracted by acid ammonium oxalate, using a single 4-h extraction at pH 3 in the dark. Total free iron (Fed) was extracted with the CBD method. The total Fe contents (Fet) in the soil samples were determined after extraction with 5 mol L-1 HNO3. Magnetic susceptibility of the soils was measured at low (0.46 kHz; χlf) and high (4.6 kHz; χhf) frequencies, respectively; using a Bartington MS2 dual-frequency sensor, with approximately 10 g of air-dry soil in polyethylene vials. The percentage of frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility (χfd%) was calculated to study the size of magnetic crystals in soils and the abundance of pedogenic ferrimagnetic in SP-SSD (~0.03 μm) boundary.
Results and Discussion
The results of this study showed that the land use and slope positions were among the important factors affecting the change of soil properties in this area. Land use change along with the reduction of organic matter reduced the stability of aggregates and increased land erosion. This process caused the loss of clay particles and magnetic minerals and affected many soil properties. Organic matter as an important indicator of soil quality, showed a decrease of about 3 times as a result of land use change from dense forest to eroded lands following by an increase in bulk density and a decrease in soil permeability and other soil quality indicators. Long-term afforestation and agricultural activities on sloping lands changed the soil texture from a class of silty loam in the forest to a lighter class of silty loam in agricultural use. Soil magnetic susceptibility, which is a function of soil magnetic particles was greatly affected by land use change and to a lesser extent by slope position. Due to the fact that magnetic susceptibility is influenced by factors such as soil texture, drainage class, erosion conditions, magnetic mineral contents, soil evolution conditions, land use changes from forest to other uses had significant effects (about 2 times) on χlf. Significant decrease in the amount of calcium carbonate in low slope positions was another reason for the increase in magnetic susceptibility in these positions. According to the measured values of χfd (ranged from 1.9 to 7.2%), the magnetic particles of the soils had low to moderate amounts of superparamagnetic (SP) particles, which indicates the combined effect of pedogenic superparamagnetic ultrafine particles and  lithogenic (inherited) magnetic particles in χlf of the soils. The effect of slope on Fe forms (Feo, Fed and Fet) has been significant (p < 0.01) in almost all land uses. Due to the relatively high correlation of χlf with some soil properties such as Fe forms, soil clay, the amount of diamagnetic compounds including calcium carbonate in the studied soils, it is possible to estimate the value of these soil properties using χlf, which is a quick and cost-effective approach. Overall, it seems that magnetic susceptibility could be applied successfully to estimate some soil properties in hilly regions of Zagros Mountains of southwestern Iran, especially for monitoring the consequences of land use changes. It should also be noted that any change in the use of the area should be defined in accordance with the potential of the land in the long term to prevent a reduction in soil quality.
Introduction Phosphorus is an essential soil nutrient that plays key roles in plant growth and development. Limited availability of P is the main constraint for crop production in many soils. Long-term phosphate fertilizers application... more
Introduction
Phosphorus is an essential soil nutrient that plays key roles in plant growth and development. Limited availability of P is the main constraint for crop production in many soils. Long-term phosphate fertilizers application in agricultural areas to increase the physiological efficiency of crops can lead to a significant P accumulation. The process of P fixation or sorption includes precipitation and adsorption onto mineral and organic surfaces. Various factors such as clay content, organic matter, exchangeable Al, Fe, Ca content and pH soil affect P sorption capacity. In order to achieve the proper management of P fertilization, it is necessary to understand the mechanism of the sorption process and the contributing factors, as well as how to influence these factors. Qazvin plain is one of the most important agricultural plains in Iran, playing a pivotal role in maintaining national food security. Cultivating crops such as wheat, barley, alfalfa and corn in different areas of this plain is widespread. Therefore, high amounts of phosphate fertilizers are applied in this plain every year. In this study, the kinetic and equilibrium adsorption of P in a heavy textured agricultural soil sample in Qazvin plain were investigated under the influence of some different environmental parameters.
Materials and Method
In order to conduct the kinetic adsorption experiment, one gram soil samples were placed in the shaker in contact with 25 ml of 0.01 M CaCl2 solution containing 20 mg P l-1. Time intervals were 0.17, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 48 and 72 hours. The effects of temperature (12, 25, 38 °C), salinity (0, 8.96, 17.02, 32.09, 46.25 dS m-1), pH (2.5, 3.5, 5.36, 7.5, 9.5, 11.5) and the type of background solution (distilled water and 0.01 M CaCl2 solution) were also investigated on P equilibrium adsorption. In the equilibrium batch experiments, the soil samples were placed in contact with the background solutions containing 0, 15, 20, 30, 50, 80 and 100 mg P l-1 (ratio 1:25) for 24 hours. The concentration of P in the samples was determined by a spectrophotometer after passing through the filter. The amount of P adsorption to each soil sample was then calculated based on the concentrations. The experiments were carried out in the factorial and completely randomized designs with three replications for each treatment. Using CurveExpert 1.4 software, the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, as well as the pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, the Elovich and Intra-particle diffusion models were fitted to the obtained laboratory data. Statistical analysis of experimental data was done based on the Tukey test at 5% level using Minitab software. The thermodynamics of P adsorption was also determined by examining parameters of the Gibbs free energy, enthalpy and entropy changes.
Results and Discussion
According to the results, the highest amount of adsorption occurred in the first 8 hours of soil contact with P solution, and approximate time of achieving the equilibrium conditions was 24 to 48 hours. The process of P adsorption onto soil particles consisted of two fast and slow stages until the equilibrium was reached. The kinetic adsorption properties of the studied soil was best described by the Elovich equation (r2=0.964). The Freundlich model showed better fit than the Langmuir equation to the equilibrium data. The effects of all four parameters of temperature, salinity, pH and background electrolyte solution on the P equilibrium adsorption were significant. By changing the temperature from 25 to 38 °C, qm (Langmuir coefficient) was 2.1 times. It was also 7.5 times under the conditions of using CaCl2 solution instead of distilled water. Increasing pH caused an increase in adsorption rate and the highest amount of adsorption changes occurred in the pH varying between 5.36 and 7.5. However, the highest and lowest P adsorption percentage with the values of 45 and 37% were related to zero and 46.25 dS m-1 salinity, respectively. The results also indicated that the sorption process was endothermic and spontaneous.
Conclusion
Adjusting and controlling the studied parameters in the soil during the application of phosphate fertilizers can optimize P use efficiency and increase crop yield in the studied area. Based on the results of the present study, it is recommended to add sulfur, ammonium sulfate, ammonium nitrate fertilizers and organic compounds to the studied calcareous soil with high pH and low salinity. Application of this method can reduce soil pH, which leads to a decreased P sorption onto the soil particles and an enhanced P availability for plants. Adjusting the P fertilization time with the crop growth and uptake is also recommended due to the high adsorption of P onto the soil particles in a short period of time.
Introduction Saffron, which its cultivation is compatible with the arid and semi-arid climate of Iran, is one of the most valuable agricultural products in the world. Therefore, the cultivation of this crop in different parts of the... more
Introduction
Saffron, which its cultivation is compatible with the arid and semi-arid climate of Iran, is one of the most valuable agricultural products in the world. Therefore, the cultivation of this crop in different parts of the country has been enormously developed in recent years. More than 95% of the world production of this precious product is allocated to Iran, which is mainly located in the two provinces of Khorasan Razavi and Southern Khorasan. The objective of this study was to determine the priority of lands for saffron cultivation by using TOPSIS method. Furthermore, in this study, TOPSIS, which is the second most widely used approach among multi-criteria decision making methods, was compared with the conventional parametric one to assess the land suitability for saffron production.
Materials and Methods
To achieve the objective of this study, 135 saffron farms in Khorasan Razavi, Southern Khorasan, Fars, Markazi and Kerman provinces were selected. In each farm, one pedon was dug and studied in detail. Soil samples were collected from different horizons of the pedons and taken to the laboratory for the designated physicochemical analyses. The average quantity of saffron yield in the last three years was recorded for each study point. The selected areas did not have climatic restrictions for saffron cultivation. For this purpose, in addition to local experience, the climate suitability index was calculated using the saffron climatic requirement table by its phenological period in each region. The effective soil criteria conditioned on the saffron yield were obtained using statistical analyses. By constructing a decision matrix and normalizing it, weighting the criteria by ranking order method and constructing a weighted matrix, determining the positive and negative ideal and then calculating the relative proximity of each alternative to the positive ideal, the preference of each alternative by TOPSIS method for saffron cultivation was determined. Then, the prioritization of alternatives was compared with the actual yield of saffron. Soil suitability index was also calculated using the table of soil and landscape requirements for saffron, and then compared with actual yield. Finally, the two schemes were validated and compared with each other.
Results and Discussion
The climate suitability index for saffron cultivation in the five studied areas indicated that the climate conditions in all areas were relatively similar. Consequently, soil properties can be considered as the only factors affecting the priority of lands for saffron cultivation in the studied areas. The results further revealed that three variables of lime content, salinity and exchangeable sodium percentage of soils under saffron cultivation in the country were higher than the critical level for saffron production. Therefore, these three variables are considered as the most important soil properties affecting the saffron yield. The order of weights assigned to the variables included salinity, exchangeable sodium percentage, lime, gravel, gypsum, organic carbon and soil reaction. Comparison of the order of priority of 135 options by TOPSIS with the actual yield of saffron showed an acceptable accuracy (R2 = 0.92) for this method. The soil index calculated by the parametric square root method for 135 soil profiles was also compared with the actual yield. The coefficient of determination obtained in this case was about 0.9, showing that TOPSIS was able to determine the suitability of lands for saffron cultivation better than the parametric method. Due to the ability of TOPSIS to evaluate a large number of evaluation criteria, this method is superior to the parametric method, which can consider a maximum of eight criteria in estimating the index.
Conclusion
The outcome of this study showed a high accuracy of TOPSIS method in determining land suitability for development of saffron cultivation. This method is well able to use a large number of criteria that have negative or positive effects on the priority of alternatives. Furthermore, depending on the conditions of the decision making problem, one of the methods of weighting the criteria can be employed and combined with the TOPSIS method. The high accuracy of this method can be attributed to the use of mathematical relationships and matrices, data standardization by Euclidean soft method, and the nature of comparing both distances from the positive and negative ideals.
Introduction Cadmium (Cd) mobility in soil is affected by various factors and its absorption from soil by tobacco is higher than other crops. Application of phosphate fertilizers in agricultural lands is an essential step to increase the... more
Introduction
Cadmium (Cd) mobility in soil is affected by various factors and its absorption from soil by tobacco is higher than other crops. Application of phosphate fertilizers in agricultural lands is an essential step to increase the yield of tobacco plants. Since most phosphate fertilizers contain small amounts of Cd, the uptake of Cd by tobacco plant in its cultivated areas due to the application of triple superphosphate fertilizer (TSP) is not unexpected. In many tobacco growing areas, the water or soil used is between low and medium salinity in terms of salinity, which can also influence the solubility of cadmium and, consequently, its uptake by tobacco plant. Cadmium can be absorbed through food, drink and respiration. This metal not only is absorbed by the digestive organs, but also is absorbed by the respiratory organs through airborne particles and cigarette smoke. Tobacco is resistant to high concentrations of Cd in soil and can absorb it from Cd-contaminated soil. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of P fertilizer and salinity on Cd mobility in soil and tobacco plant.
Materials and Methods
This experiment was conducted with the aim of investigating the interaction of three factors of irrigation salinity (0, 20 and 40 mM NaCl), triple tuper phosphate fertilizer (TSP) (0 and 1.5 g kg-1 soil) and soil Cd contamination level (0 and 12 mg kg-1 soil) in a completely randomized design with four replications on shoot Cd concentration, smoke Cd concentration, extraction percentage of DTPA, tobacco ash Cd concentration, Cd mobility factor and Cd fractions in soil. To homogenize the samples, they were thoroughly mixed together and the resulting composite samples were passed through a 2 mm sieve to incubate the samples and then implant. Cadmium contamination levels (0 and 12 mg kg-1) were prepared from Cd(NO3)2.4H2O source. Prior to planting, the relevant levels of contamination were added by spraying on the entire soil surface and mixed thoroughly. Soil samples were transferred to plastic storage containers and incubated for four months in a controlled greenhouse within a temperature range of 25-30 °C and 70% water holding capacity of the soil measured by the weighing method. Cultivation was carried out under controlled conditions in a greenhouse environment located in Bardaskan city. Two 60-day-old tobacco seedlings (Nicotiana tabacum L.) of Cocker 347 cultivar, which were previously seeded in non-contaminated cadmium soil and grown with non-saline water, were transferred to each pot and planted. The cultivar used in this experiment was a greenhouse tobacco cultivar used in the cigarette industry. Immediately after transferring the seedlings to pots, irrigation was performed with saline-free water (distilled water), salinity of 20 or 40 mM NaCl salt for 75 days according to the required treatment. Up to the fourth week, the amount of 400 ml per pot in each irrigation cycle, and after that until the end of the experiment, the amount of 800 ml per pot in each irrigation cycle was applied.


Results and Discussion
The results showed that Cd mobility factor in Cd-contaminated soil increased on average by 25.6%, 32.4% and 36.2% compared to non-contaminated soil at 0, 20 and 40 mM salinity, respectively. Application of phosphate fertilizer significantly reduced the mobility factor of cadmium in non-cadmium-contaminated soils. In Cd-contaminated soil, the extraction percentage of DTPA increased 26.5% and 56.4% with increasing irrigation salinity levels from 0-20 and 0-40, respectively. In non-Cd contaminated soil, TSP application reduced extraction percentage of DTPA 20.2%, 28.4% and 24.6% in 0, 20 and 40 irrigation salinity levels, respectively in compared to non-TSP application. With increasing the levels of soil Cd contamination, the percentage Cd concentration in oxide fraction of soil decreased and the percentage of Cd concentration in carbonate, organic and residual fractions increased. Application of TSP increased the concentration of residual Cd fraction in the soil.
Conclusion
With increasing the level of Cd contamination in soil, the percentage of Cd in carbonate and organic fractions increased compared to non-Cd contaminated soil. The results showed that TSP application in Cd contaminated soil in salinitylevels of 0, 20, and 40 mM increased Cd concentration of tobacco ash by 1.47%, 15.89% and 29.80% and increased Cd concentration of tobacco smoke by 23.20%, 23.30% and 18%, respectively. Salinity factor and phosphate fertilizer showed the reverse effect on soluble + exchangeable cadmium and DTPA available Cd in soil, so with increasing salinity, these concentrations increased and with increasing triple superphosphate fertilizer decreased.
Introduction In the last few decades, due to process of shifting from traditional activities and based on manual activities to industrial ones, the need for using oil and coal and its derivatives has increased. Using these materials has... more
Introduction
In the last few decades, due to process of shifting from traditional activities and based on manual activities to industrial ones, the need for using oil and coal and its derivatives has increased. Using these materials has caused some problems for environment as hydro carbon contamination. Soil is a major contributor to the various kinds of pollution, especially hydro carbon pollution. Due to the importance of soil in the life cycles and its vitally direct and indirect influence on all the organisms and human being, elimination of this pollutant is necessary. For this reason, some different methods have been developed. In this research, capability of soil washing by sodium dodecyl sulfate ionic detergent has been measured. In order to fulfill the existing necessity and solve this problem, a wide-ranging effort has been started from the past until now, which can be referred to the issue of washing contaminated soil as one of the issues raised. At the beginning of this technology, washing with pure water was considered and after a while, it was invalidated due to inefficiency in the tested cases. With advances in this emerging technology, the discussion of stronger solvents was explored, in which detergents became more attractive due to their lower potential toxicity and environmental degradability. Actually, the effect of major parameters on removing the hydrocarbons has been investigated and in this research has been afforded to purify polluted soil with creosote by considering actual conditions in industry.
Materials and Methods
The first sample has been taken from original soil of Razi industrial estate. It has coarse sandy loam texture with 31% clay, 11% silt and 57% of sand, pH equal 7, organic matter amount 2.3 % weight and density equal 1/8 gram per m3. Therefore, pure soil was extracted from 6 layers of soil to the depth of 0.5 m from Razi industrial area in Isfahan. Then, it was mixed by a concrete mixer specific to the block making. Afterwards, creosote was added evenly during stirring so the soil was contaminated deliberately. After storing in the laboratory for 3 weeks and homogeneity, the initial sample was chosen and its contamination was measured. This measurement was based on the amount of added oil to the certain volume of soil (about 30000 milligram in each kilogram). For avoiding error and having assurance from the amount of initial contamination, the sample was transferred to the laboratory and 25 gr of it was taken. Its hydrocarbon texture was extracted by solvent and its polar compositions were removed by passing on the silica gel absorbent. Then, a hydrocarbon was measured. The real pollutant amount of sample was 26776 milligram in each kilogram of soil. Secondary samples were chosen from basic sample, these chosen samples were washed under the different planned conditions. After finishing several complementary washing stages in different conditions, the soil samples remaining from washing were dried under different conditions. Then the amount of remained contamination in each sample was measured and recorded separately. At the next stage, the recorded results were analyzed. Stay time, temperature, pollutant concentration and washer concentration has been chosen as variable parameters.

Results and Discussion
According to the results, washing by pure water and temperature of 30°C would not be successful but by increasing temperature, the removing efficiency increased. Increasing temperature to 90°C increased the efficiency up to 18.5%. In addition, adding detergent to the environment increased the success of this method in reducing sample pollution. Increasing efficiency up to 4 g/L of detergent increased the efficiency up to 40% directly, but there was no significant change for increasing more than this amount. At this stage, the results showed that in the presence of detergent, increasing temperature caused to increase efficiency directly. The only difference was that increasing temperature (without detergent) increased efficiency directly, but in presence of detergent, increasing efficiency was significance up to 50% and after that it increased very slightly. The last studied parameter was time. These changes included increasing efficiency due to increasing time from 10 min to 20 min. Removing pollutant efficiency has been reduced by increasing time. Under all optimum conditions, in temperature of 90°C for 20 minutes and 4 g/L surfactant, Hydrocarbon removing efficiency was 61%. The economically optimum temperature is 50oC with regard to economical cases and the slight difference resulting from increase of temperature from 50 to 90°C.
Conclusion
Generally, the results revealed the suitability of ionic sodium dodecyl sulfate for cleaning soil under conditions of contamination. But 39 % of pollutant in polluted soil after washing by considering optimal conditions has been reminded. It must be mentioned that due to inefficiency of this amount of contamination reduction from contaminated soils for the discharge of these soils into the environment, this method can be introduced as a pollution reduction or a method for pretreatment of complementary methods.
Introduction Barley could be grown under low-input and harsh conditions because of its wide adaptability to drought, and heat stresses. Nonetheless, the water stress leads to yield reduction when drought stress occurs during stem... more
Introduction
Barley could be grown under low-input and harsh conditions because of its wide adaptability to drought, and heat stresses. Nonetheless, the water stress leads to yield reduction when drought stress occurs during stem elongation and grain filling stages. In rainfed areas, water and heat stress occur together, specifically after anthesis, amplifying the adverse effects of water stress via disrupting water uptake of crops. In this regard, measurement of canopy temperature (Tc) by infrared thermometry is a non-destructive method that can effectively characterize the water status of plants. There is a linear relation between Tc and transpiration, which increases upon stomata closure. Since stomata is very sensitive to environmental variations and moisture reduction in the plant and it is very difficult to measure, therefore, Tc is the preferred factor to determine the crop water status. The Tc was used to calculate the practical Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI) by Idso et al. (1981) and Jackson et al. (1981). Dold et al., (2017) reported a positive significant correlation between CWSI and transpiration, daily soil water content, and plant production. Negative significant correlations between CWSI and pure photosynthesis rate, transpiration, and stomatal conductance were also reported. This study was aimed to: (i) assess the water stress effects on dryland barley genotypes using Tc, (ii) identify the upper limit for Tc affecting performance and reducing barley grain yield, (iii) determine the critical point of water stress, and (iv) apply CWSI to select the most suitable barley genotypes for both rainfed and supplemental irrigation conditions.
Materials and Methods
To determine the crop water stress index (CWSI) and assess water status of dryland barley genotypes, an experiment was carried out in a split plot arrangement based on randomized complete block design with 15 genotypes in three replications at the Dryland Agricultural Research Institute, Maragheh (46° 45ʹ E, and 37° 26ʹ N), Iran in the 2015-2018 cropping seasons. The main plots included rainfed (as stress conditions), and supplemental irrigation (two times: 50 mm irrigation in the sowing time and 30 mm irrigation in the booting stage) as non-water stress conditions. The sub-plots included 15 barley genotypes (GaraArpa, 71411, Abidar, Ansar, ARM-ICB, ChiCm/An57//Albert, Dobrynya, Kuban-06, Makooei, Redical, Sahand, Sahand/C-25041, Sararood1, Ste/Antares//YEA762 and Valfajr). The barley genotypes were planted by Wintersteiger planter in six-row plots with 8 m long and 1.20 m wide (20 cm row spacing). The sowing rate was 380 seeds per m2 based on the thousand kernel weight (TKW) of each genotype. Seeds were treated by Penconazole fungicide. The planting dates were October 4, 2015, and October 7, 2017. In each plot, two canopy temperatures (Tc) were measured using infrared thermometer Model A-1 in six crop reproductive stages from the half of ear emerged above flag leaf ligule stage (GS55) to the soft dough stage (GS85). Measuring time was between 1:00 to 2:00 pm.
Results and Discussion
The results indicated that the upper baseline for non–transpiring of dryland barley genotypes (Tc-Ta = 0.0008VPD + 5.89; VPD: vapor pressure deficit) was 5.9 °C (ranged from 5.5 to 6.9) which is equal to 32.4 °C green canopy and 9.0 to 11.1 mm/day evapotranspiration. Non-stressed baseline or lower baseline (Tc-Ta = -2.4662VPD + 9.15; R2 = 0.97**) showed that CWSI threshold value was 0.75 which is equal to 24.3 °C (23.7 to 26.1 °C) Tc under supplemental irrigation and 23.3 to 24.7 °C under water stress conditions. Additionally, CWSI threshold was equal to 7.3 mm/day evapotranspiration and 5.02 kPa VPD. On the other hand, results revealed that when Tc exceeded 25 °C, biological yield, thousand kernel weight (TKW) decreased significantly, followed by grain yield in different barley genotypes. The slope of the CWSI calibration equation (Tc-Ta = -2.4662VPD + 9.15) is often more negative in hot and dry areas, and tends to zero in cold and humid areas. Therefore, its negativity indicates the conditions of moisture stress for barley genotypes in the dryland phase. The CWSI threshold for barley genotypes growth stages happened at 248 (6th June) days from sowing time (4th – 7th October) which is equal to flowering stage (ZGS60). According to CWSI quantity, Ansar, ChiCm/An57//Albert, Sahand/C-25041and Ste/Antares//YEA762 were grouped in the tolerance class under stress (dryland) conditions. However, Abidar, Sahand/C-25041, GaraArpa, ChiCm/An57//Albert and Makooei were placed in the tolerance class under non-stress (supplemental irrigation) conditions.
Conclusion
The CWSI could estimate the intensity of heat and water stresses in the grain filling stage for barley genotypes in cold and semi-arid areas. The average of canopy temperature threshold values were 24.8 and 24.0 °C for dryland barley genotypes in supplemental irrigation and dryland conditions, respectively. In addition, these indices could be used to estimate heat and water stress tolerance levels for barley genotypes.
Introduction The rapid growth of the world's population, followed by an increase in the need for water, has put great pressure on water resources, so it is necessary to plan for the optimal use and increase of efficiency of this vital... more
Introduction
The rapid growth of the world's population, followed by an increase in the need for water, has put great pressure on water resources, so it is necessary to plan for the optimal use and increase of efficiency of this vital resource. Sunflower is one of the most important oilseed crops that is mainly cultivated in Kermanshah province. Therefore, determining the appropriate sowing time of this crop for maximum production and water use efficiency is of particular importance. Because field experiments are costly and time-consuming, researchers use crop growth simulation models to determine the optimal planting time for each crop in a specific environment and climate. The use of simulation models minimizes the limitations of field experiments and allows the analysis of plant responses to environmental stresses and management scenarios. The objective of this study was to determine the optimal planting date of the Farrokh sunflower cultivar in four regions of Kermanshah province (Kermanshah, Islam Abad, Sarpol Zahab, and Kangavar) in order to maximize yield and water use efficiency using the AquaCrop model.
Materials and Methods
A field experiment was conducted at the Research Farm of Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran in order to calibrate and validate the crop parameters in the AquaCrop model. The experiment was performed in a randomized complete block design with eight irrigation treatments in three replications. The irrigation treatments were the application of 60, 80, 100, and 120% of irrigation requirement (T1, T2, T3, and T4), 20 and 40% deficit irrigation in vegetative phase (T5 and T6), and 20 and 40% deficit irrigation in reproductive phase (T7 and T8). The crop water requirement was calculated based on the daily weather data collected from an automated meteorological station at the Research Farm using the FAO Penman-Monteith equation. During the growing season, canopy cover, biomass, and soil moisture were measured weekly. The crop parameters were calibrated based on the measured data in treatments T1, T3, T6, and T7 and validated with four treatments T2, T4, T6, and T8. In the calibration and validation stages, the statistical indices including compatibility index (d) and root mean square error (RMSE) were used to evaluate the model outputs. The calibrated model was used to simulate crop growth based on daily weather data for 30 years (1988-2017) in four synoptic stations in Kermanshah province (Kermanshah, Islam Abad, Sarpol Zahab, and Kangavar) and for several different planting dates. The crop water productivity was calculated based on simulated grain yield and seasonal crop evapotranspiration. Finally, the model outputs under different planting dates were analyzed to determine the most appropriate planting time from the perspective of maximum production and maximum water use efficiency.
Results and Discussion
Statistical indicators show that the model has simulated the parameters of biomass, crop canopy, and soil moisture in the calibration stage with good accuracy. T1 and T6 treatments in biomass simulation, T7, T6, and T3 treatments in crop canopy simulation, and T3 and T7 treatments in soil moisture simulation had the highest accuracy. The accuracy of the model outputs in the validation stage for biomass and canopy cover was as accurate as in the calibration stage, while the accuracy of the simulated soil moisture in the validation stage was not high except in T4 treatment. Based on the model results, grain yield, seasonal evapotranspiration and water productivity were determined. According to the results, it can be said that in the study period (1988 -2017), grain yield has generally increased with a slight slope. The results showed that the planting date, which maximizes grain yield and water productivity, varies in the studied regions.  According to the model results, planting in the second decade of May and the second decade of June will lead to the highest grain yield and water productivity in Kermanshah, respectively. Planting in the third decade of May showed the highest grain yield and crop water productivity in Islam Abad. In Sarpol Zahab, which has the highest temperature among the studied stations, planting in the last decade of March and the first decade of April has the highest grain yield and water productivity, respectively. In Kangavar, which is located in the east of Kermanshah province and has the coldest climate, by cultivating sunflower in the last decade of May and the first decade of June, respectively, the highest grain yield and water productivity can be achieved.
Conclusion
Due to the fact that some crop parameters of crop growth simulation models are variety specific, in this study, the crop parameters of the AquaCrop model for Farrokh sunflower cultivar were calibrated and validated. The accuracy of the calibrated model for estimating biomass and canopy cover was higher than soil moisture. The simulation results showed that the values of the studied parameters (grain yield and seasonal evapotranspiration) have changes according to the planting time in each region. The highest crop yield can be obtained in Sarpol Zahab, Islam Abad, Kermanshah, and Kangavar regions (west to east of the province) by cultivation in the last decade of March, last decade of April, the second decade of May, and last decade of May, respectively. In all study areas except Islamabad, planting date that resulted in maximum water productivity was different from the planting date that had maximum grain yield station and delayed planting had the highest water productivity.
Introduction Simulation of quantity and quality of surface runoff in mountainous watersheds is one of the most challenging topics in modeling due to its unique features, such as unusual topography and complex hydrological processes. One... more
Introduction
Simulation of quantity and quality of surface runoff in mountainous watersheds is one of the most challenging topics in modeling due to its unique features, such as unusual topography and complex hydrological processes. One of the lesser-known aspects of modeling such catchments is the uncertainty analysis of water quality predictions, especially about the vital phosphorus parameter. Phosphorus is one of the important quality variables in water, and its increase in water resources can cause eutrophication phenomena in streams and reservoirs of dams. Due to the importance of the phosphorus parameter and the fact that water quality modeling has not been employed in the Karaj catchment area so far, in this research, total phosphorus has been modeled as a water quality parameter along with the flow and sediment discharge. This study aims to identify the most sensitive parameters of the model to flow, sediment, and total phosphorus discharge and calibrate, validate and analyze the parametric uncertainty of the SWAT model in predicting these three variables in a mountainous catchment. The case study was the catchment area of the Karaj River upstream of Bileqan pond, which is one of the mountainous watersheds in Iran. There are two critical water structures along the Karaj River, namely Amirkabir dam and Bilqan pond. Amirkabir dam (Karaj) is a multi-purpose project that is constructed to supply drinking water to Tehran and regulate water for irrigation and agriculture in the suburbs of Karaj. The Bileqan pond is also the essential point of supply and transfer of drinking water in Tehran. Given the importance of this region in supplying water for different uses, providing a calibrated model for quantitative and qualitative variables of water can be the basis for decisions to apply future management scenarios in this basin.
Materials and Methods
The case study was the Karaj River catchment area upstream of Bilqan Basin, which with an average height of 2880 meters, is one of the mountainous areas located in the Alborz Mountains. This basin with an area of 1076 square kilometers in the north, includes parts of Mazandaran province. In the east and south of the catchment area includes parts of Tehran province and most of it is located in Alborz province. The average annual temperature and rainfall in this basin are 12.1 °C and 480 mm, respectively, and the average of 117 glacial days during the year is observed in this area. The long-term daily data of synoptic stations adjacent to the study area from the beginning of 1998 to the end of 2018 (21 years in total) was introduced to the model. Also, daily data of relative humidity, rainfall, minimum and maximum temperature, solar radiation hours, and wind speed as meteorological parameters measured at stations in the study area were introduced to the model. It should be noted that there was a lot of missing data in meteorological information, especially for daily temperature data. In addition to the above information, daily flow data discharged from Amirkabir dam and technical specifications of the dam were introduced to the model. In addition, orchard management information, including irrigation periods and information related to phosphate fertilizers used in regional orchards, were presented to the model. The global sensitivity analysis method was used to determine the sensitive parameters of the model. Furthermore, the SUFI2 algorithm was used in SWAT_CUP software to calibrate and analyze the parametric uncertainty of the SWAT model. This algorithm quantifies the output uncertainty by 95% prediction uncertainty boundaries.
Results and Discussion
According to the results of sensitivity analysis, the parameters Baseflow alpha-factor (ALPHA_BF), Manning’s “n” value for overland flow (OV_N), and Precipitation Laps rate (PLAPS) were the most sensitive parameters to flow, sediment, and total phosphorus, respectively. The best Nash-Sutcliffe (NS) coefficients for runoff, sediment, and total phosphorus simulation obtained in all stations and after full calibration and validation periods were equal to 0.76, 0.56, and 0.92, respectively. Simulation of the peak points of the diagram of all three quantities was also associated with increased uncertainty and decreased model prediction accuracy, but due to the placement of more than 70% of the measured runoff and sediment values and nearly 60% of the measured total phosphorus values in the prediction uncertainty boundaries generated by SUFI2 algorithm the final value of the parameters used in the calibration process can be appropriate for simulating future scenarios in similar mountain catchments. The main weakness of the model is simulating the peak points of flow and sediment discharge. In the case of flow and sediment discharge, the liability of modeling can be generalized due to the lack of accurate prediction of the snowmelt inflow to the river in spring, which begins to increase in February and reaches the peak point in May. A considerable number of missing data in meteorological stations can effectively reflect the lack of accurate model prediction at the peak points. In this region, missing daily temperature data compared to other meteorological parameters has been significant. The dependency of the SWAT model on many experimental and quasi-experimental models such as SCS-CN and MUSLE can be another factor affecting the weakness in predicting the peak points of the sediment discharge, as well.
Conclusion
According to the uncertainty analysis results, most of observed flow, sediment and total phosphorus discharge values were within the uncertainty prediction boundaries generated by the SUFI2 algorithm. The NS coefficient for all three variables has met the satisfactory modeling threshold. Therefore, it seems that the sensitive parameters identified and used in the calibration process in this study and their final values can be appropriate for modeling future scenarios for this study area and similar mountain catchments. One of the limitations of the present study was a large number of missing data in meteorological stations, especially for the temperature variable. Thus, providing required measured meteorological data to the model may emhance the simulation, especially at peak points.
Introduction Precipitation is the most important element of water level that recognizing its temporal-spatial characteristics at different scales is an important step towards better understanding and modeling of the hydrological cycle... more
Introduction
Precipitation is the most important element of water level that recognizing its temporal-spatial characteristics at different scales is an important step towards better understanding and modeling of the hydrological cycle and related phenomena such as floods. Drought, landslides, snow and climate change are on a regional and global scale. Despite the large number of studies conducted in this field, there is still a lot of research need in many parts of the world for reasons such as lack of weather stations to access ground observation data and the non-uniform spatial distribution of these stations. Nowadays, with significant technological advances, including the advent of various satellites, access to a variety of precipitation data has been greatly facilitated. Among the latest precipitation products of various satellites, we can refer to the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite data. Related to the subject of the present study, it is stated that most of the studies on rainfall in the Jazmourian catchment area have been based on station data, which due to the poor distribution of meteorological stations; it is not possible to estimate the temporal-spatial distribution of precipitation in the study basin. In this study, the temporal-spatial analysis of precipitation using GPM satellite precipitation products as one of the most important climatic parameters in the basin Due to the undeniable importance of rainfall in this basin, it seems that the analysis of variable rainfall can provide valuable climatic information to researchers and planners. To pave the way for new study platforms.
Materials and Methods
In this study, satellite data (GPM) with a spatial resolution of 0.1 × 0.1 degrees from January 2001 to December 2019 have been used for spatiotemporal analysis of precipitation in the Jazmourian catchment. The GPM satellite provides more accurate and realistic estimates than other TRMM satellites. In this study, a calibrated precipitation product of level 3 of 6 GPM satellite versions was used. Relevant data are in NCDF format and have UTM image system with WGS84 datum, which after quality control and preprocessing, by specialized software (ENVI, ArcGIS and EXCELL) is converted into network data and data tables and the necessary outputs based on the geographical boundary of the catchment was extracted. The average monthly rainfall was extracted from the average daily rainfall belonging to each month and the seasonal average was extracted from the average of three months related to each season. Spatially, the values of each pixel are the conditions of the average amount of precipitation related to each time series (monthly, seasonal and annual) during the statistical period.
Results and Discussion
Based on the results, the average rainfall in the Jazmourian catchment was estimated as 144 mm, the spatial distribution of which ranged from 83 to 232 mm. The maximum rainfall occurred in the northern and western parts and the minimum occurred in the central and eastern parts of the basin. Furthermore; based on the annual distribution of rainfall during the statistical period under study, the highest rainfall was in 2019 with 239 mm and the lowest with 53 mm in 2001. In terms of seasonal distribution, winter and spring with values of 118 and 88 mm, respectively, showed the highest and autumn and summer with values of 22 and 45 mm, showed the lowest values of precipitation. Also, during the statistical period under study, winter 2005 with 193 mm had the highest and autumn 2003 with 1 mm had the lowest seasonal rainfall in the basin. In addition, an interesting point is the spatial displacement of high-pressure nuclei in different seasons of the year; so that these nuclei are observed in the cold seasons of the year in the northern and western parts and in the warm seasons of the year in the southwestern and southeastern parts of the basin. The spatial distribution of monthly precipitation indicates the occurrence of the highest monthly precipitation in February and March and the lowest in May and September. Also, the monthly rainfall time series indicates the maximum incidence of precipitation in February 2001 (94 mm) and it’s minimum in January 2001 (no precipitation).
Conclusion
Precipitation as a source of fresh water on Earth is one of the most important hydrological parameters, the importance of which is undeniable in the survival of human communities and natural ecosystems. Due to the large temporal-spatial variations of precipitation, its study seems necessary. But one of the main challenges for studying this phenomenon is the lack of ground stations as well as their improper distribution. Today, with advancement of technology and remote sensing, a diverse range of satellite data has become available to environmental scientists. In this regard, in the present study, using GPM satellite data and in the statistical period 2001-2019, the temporal-spatial distribution of precipitation in the Jazmourian catchment area in southeastern Iran has been investigated. In general, the high variability of rainfall in Jazmourian catchment in different months and seasons of the year, shows the dominance of arid and low climate in this basin. Therefore, due to the rainfall situation and its high fluctuations under climate change conditions, in the near future, this basin will face serious challenges and crises in water resources management and the sustainability of natural ecosystems. The GPM satellite data used in this study showed appropriate and expected results from the spatial-temporal distribution of precipitation in the Jazmourian catchment and showed a good correlation with meteorological stations. In general, the use of GPM satellite data in the present study is appropriate, which due to its appropriate spatio-temporal separation, gives reliable and satisfactory results. On the other hand, inadequate spatial coverage of meteorological stations and their large statistical vacuum in such a relatively large basin justify the use of this valuable and useful satellite data.
Introduction Agricultural products frost in spring imposes heavy financial losses to agriculture particularly in northwest of Iran’s orchards. Not only temperature is one of the most important climate parameters but also it is a very... more
Introduction
Agricultural products frost in spring imposes heavy financial losses to agriculture particularly in northwest of Iran’s orchards. Not only temperature is one of the most important climate parameters but also it is a very crucial element in the agricultural sector. Untimely temperature fluctuations and rise and fall which are usually unexpected will cause shock and heavy damages. Therefore taking into consideration the agricultural products frost and offering an approach would be of great importance for reducing relevant damages. In studies carried out by Omidvar and Dehghan Banadoki (2012) and Hesari et al. (2015) characteristics and different types of frosts have been considered in relation to the agricultural products. Different models were introduced to predict flowering date in different investigated regions. In more studies, in addition to determining the best model for predicting the date of occurance of flowering stage, probable date of last frost has been estimated as well. Investigating long term temperature changes is a method which applied by Martínez-Lüscher (2017) and Vitasse et al. (2018) to find out about established changes in flowering date and also changes in the last frost date. Nasr Esfahani and Yazdanpanah (2019) realized that 48-hour early warning for frost occurrence can be performed with adequate precision. Despite all studies in the field of products frost particularly during flowering date, it seems a rapid frost warning system must be established and provided to make early warning for each orchard. In this essay, since our goal is to make such early warning three days before frosting, so we have to investigate accuracy and validity of 72-hour minimum temperature simulation using WRF model. On the other hand, we must know phonological stage of each product in each orchard to inform the farmer about frost hazards based on critical temperature, therefore the second goal of this research is to detect phonological stages through Landsat 7 and Landsat 8 images.
Materials and Methods
In order to achieve the aim of current study, 72-hour minimum temperature simulation through the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model was investigated and values of vegetation index were derived for a 30 meters pixel at an experimental orchard in Kahriz, West Azerbaijan Province, in 2016-2107. Computational grid for 2 meters temperature simulation using WRF model contains of three nested grid with horizontal resolution of 27, 9 and 3 kilometers. Horizontal resolution of terrain height and land use data is equal to 30 second (about 1 km). The initial and 3-h boundary conditions with 0.5º horizontal resolution from the Global Forecast System (GFS) were obtained from National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). Based on the previous research KFMYJ physical scheme configuration for WRF model were used in this research. Model's hindcasts at 03:00 UTC hour for each of 51 synoptic weather stations of northwest of Iran in internal computational grid were interpolated by MATLAB software with interp 3 function using linear method, then the obtained values were compared to minimum temperature observed in the stations by using MAE, MSE, RMSE and MSSS indicators. Phenological statistics, the time of beginning and end of growth stages were obtained from Iran Meteorological Organization. Besides, 77 Landsat 7 satellite images of ETM+ sensor, and 41 Landsat 8 images of OLI sensor were downloaded from United States Geological Survey website from March to September 2007-2016 with a spatial resolution of 30 meters. In this research, atmospheric and radiometric correction were performed with the FLAASH method on the metadata file in the ENVI software environment and then vegetation index was calculated using NDVI index.
Results and Discussion
Examining the evaluation indicators of the WRF model, results revealed a significant correlation and regression model between 2 meters temperature variable from WRF model output and minimum temperature variable observed in the entire stations for 72-hour simulation. As a result WRF model can be applied in 72-hour temperature simulation in the area of study. Another finding of this research indicated that in comparison to the field-recorded data, NDVI values gained from Landsat images properly indicates changes of phenology stages in the relevant apple orchard. In this study, the indicators used to evaluate the model error showed model hindcasts are more accurate for 24-hour and then 48-hour simulations than for 72-hour simulation, but the 72-hour simulation accuracy is not much different from 24-hour and 48-hour simulations. In northwestern Iran, which is a mountainous region, it is very difficult to simulate airflow in areas with complex topography, therefore the total correlation coefficient of all stations in all three simulations is in the range of 0.5, and the error rates of MAE and RMSE, respectively reaches about 2.8 and 3.8 Celsius. According to the second finding of this research, the NDVI indicator obtained from Landsat 7 and Landsat 8 satellite images can show the progress and changes in the phenological stages of apple trees.
Conclusion
This study showed the efficiency of the WRF model for 72-hour simulation of the minimum temperature as well as the potential of Landsat 7 and Landsat 8 images in detecting apple phenological stages in the study area. Therefore, by using the WRF model for 72-hour minimum temperature simulation and recognizing the phenological stages from Landsat images, if the temperature in any orchard reaches a critical level in the next 72 hours due to the phenological stage, frost warning can be announced and then frost mitigation should be done by the farmer.
Introduction Soil salinity has a negative effect on physical, chemical and biological properties of soil. Salinity also affects the relationships between soil and plants, which in turn has a significant effect on plant growth. One of the... more
Introduction
Soil salinity has a negative effect on physical, chemical and biological properties of soil. Salinity also affects the relationships between soil and plants, which in turn has a significant effect on plant growth. One of the solutions used to reduce the effects of salinity and improve the physical properties of the soil is application of organic and chemical conditioners. Organic matter as well as calcium improve the structure and physical condition of the soil. Conditioners in saline soils include soluble calcium salts such as gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O), calcium chloride (CaCl2.2H2O) and phosphogypsum (phosphorous gypsum), and acids such as sulfuric acid, sulfur, pyrite, Aluminum sulfate and sulfur lime (calcium polysulfide). Strategies aimed at evaluating and ameliorating the structural quality of soils should be developed to ensure the sustainable use of lands. The least limiting water range (LLWR) attempts to incorporate crop-limiting values of soil strength, aeration, and water supply to plant roots into one effective parameter (on the basis of soil water content). The LLWR can be a useful indicator of soil quality and soil physical constraints on crop production. Therefore, the objective of this research was to study the effects of organic and inorganic conditioners on some structural and hydraulic indices of saline sodic soils.
Material and Methods
In this study, the effect of two types of organic and chemical conditioners and the simultaneous application of them on modifying the physical properties of 5 saline soils around the lake of Urmia were investigated. Treatments included algae, salfit and algae+salfit. The soil samples were transferred to culture boxes (40 × 40 × 40) according to the bulk density of the sampling site. The soil samples were wetted and dried several times. Conditioners treatments including application of calcium and organic compounds. After reaching the field capacity, wheat seeds were sown and irrigated with water (electrical conductivity 0.28 dS/m and pH= 7.78). It should be noted that irrigation was done at intervals of 8 days. Two months after the beginning the experiment, irrigation was stopped and soil moisture was allowed to reach a permanent wilting point. At this stage, undisturbed soil samples were prepared from the treated soil of each box and the mean weight‐diameter of dry (MWDdry) and wet (MWDwet) aggregates were measured. Then the values of least limiting water range in two suctions of 330 and 100 cm and water integral capacity of samples were measured.
Results and Discussion
According to the initial analysis, all soils used were saline and the amount of calcium carbonate was high in two soils (number 3 and 5). Soil organic carbon content was also low. The results of salfit analysis also showed that the dissolved calcium and sulfur content were 8 and 3.9%, respectively. The results showed that soil 1 had the highest amount of MWDwet and soil 5 had the lowest amount of MWDwet. The highest and lowest aggregate stability values were obtained in soils 3 and 5, respectively, where soil 5 was very saline soil. The studied soils differed in terms of soil water relations. The highest amount of LLWR330 was found in soil 5, while the lowest amount of LLWR100 and IWC parameters was also obtained in same soil. The results of this study showed that salfit treatment caused the highest increase in aggregate stability (74.9%) LLWR330 (14.5%) and integral water capacity (26.2%) compared to the control and the highest mean weight‐diameter of aggregates in both wet and dry conditions was obtained in salfit-algae treatment (52.4% and 40.4% increase, respectively). The results of correlation analysis among the measured parameters showed that the highest correlation was found between aggregate stability and MWDwet. Among the measured parameters, aggregate stability had the highest correlation with other parameters and the correlation of this parameter with LLWR330, LLWR100, IWC and MWDwet were 0.36, 55, 75 and 88 %, respectively. Soil water integral capacity also had a significant correlation (p < 0.01) with LLWR330 (0.84) and MWDwet (0.7).
Conclusion
The effect of initial soil properties on studied parameters was significant and the use of conditioners improved studied parameters, and use of conditioners increased indices structural and hydraulic of saline soils. In general, the results of this study showed the positive effect of conditioners on physical properties of the studied soils, in which salfit and salfit-algae have a better effect on studied parameter, and they could be useful to improve soil physical condition. It seems that the application of different rates of conditioners as well as their interaction with each other should be considered according to the basic properties of the soil.
Introduction The type of management operations and land use systems are the key parameters affecting the soil quality and sustainable land use. The exploitation systems by efficient use of soil and water recourse can decrease productions... more
Introduction
The type of management operations and land use systems are the key parameters affecting the soil quality and sustainable land use. The exploitation systems by efficient use of soil and water recourse can decrease productions costs and increase the yield as well as conserve the natural resources. However, farmers and stakeholders need to be aware that through their management practices, they affect soil quality and, with the short-term goal of production and greater profitability, lead to soil degradation. They can both use the land economically and improve and maintain soil quality by balancing production inputs and refining their management approaches. There are different management systems of productivity in agricultural lands in Neyshabour plain in northeastern Iran. In addition to the water and soil limitations in the study area, the prevalence of the smallholder system and the unwillingness of farmers to integrate smallholder, has further increased the destruction of soils in the study area. The objective of this study was to assess the changes in soil quality index in surface soil and profile (0-100 cm) and calculate the correlation between soil quality index and alfalfa and rapeseed yield in rangeland and agricultural areas managed by smallholders, total owners, and Binalood Company in the study area.
Materials and Methods
A total of 21 soil profiles were described in the total owner, smallholder and Binalood company management system and sampled from the alfalfa and rapeseed lands. Questionnaires were prepared with the help of farmers and experts in the study area based on Analytic Hierarchical analysis (AHP) method. The physical and chemical characteristics of the soil samples were determined. The important soil characteristics affecting plant growth were determined by interviewing farmers and experts study area. Soil quality index in the minimum data set (MDS) was calculated by two methods of principal component analysis (PCA) and expert opinion (EO), by additive and weighted methods in surface soil and profile. To achieve a single value for each soil properties in the soil profile, two methods of weighted mean and weighted factor were used. To evaluate the accuracy of the assessment, the correlation between soil quality index and alfalfa and rapeseed yield was investigated of the various management system.
Result and Discussion
The results showed that the highest additive and weighted soil quality index at both surface and soil profile in both PCA and EO methods were in rangeland. It was due to lack of cultivation and maintaining organic matter comparing to agricultural land. The total owner management system due to its economic power and the use of appropriate and scientific methods comparing to smallholder management system, showed the highest additive and weighted soil quality index. In all management system, the EO-calculated weight index by weighted factor method had the highest value due to assigning the suitable weight for soil characteristics. The correlation analyses soil quality indices with canola and alfalfa indicated that the EO soil quality calculated by weighted factor for the soil profile were more correlated than surface soil in total owner system and the Binalood company. Weight coefficient method due to the application of different weights to each layer based on their importance, showed a higher soil quality index in both EO and PCA sets than the weighted average method. The reason for better EO performance probably is that the PCA is a reducing the dimensions, meanwhile, the minimum data selection in the EO method is based on regional experts which are familiar with cause-and-effect relationship of the soil properties. Due to the relatively good correlation of the yield of the studied products, with the soil quality index, an appropriate management needs to maintain and improve soil quality, especially in the smallholder system, as well as meeting the nutritional needs of these products.
Conclusion
Soil quality assessment in this study indicated that calculation of the soil quality index only considering the surface soil properties may not provide complete information for the farmers and land managers. Then inclusion of both surface and profile soil properties with farmers' knowledge and study area experts are essential for sustainable soil management. On the other hand, the differences in the management system also affected the soil quality index. Although the smallholder management system due to low input, especially chemical fertilizers, water and agricultural implements, had a high potential concerning environmental issues, but in terms of production, total owner and Binalood company management systems because of their high economic strength had the higher soil quality index. The farmers and stakeholders of the total owner management systems should be considered despite the proper management, however due to high inputs of fertilizer and water, especially in the Binalood company, the production may not be sustainable. Therefore, for further studies, calculating the water consumption in the desired management systems is recommended.
Introduction Almond (Prunusdulcis Mill.), native to West Asia to the Mediterranean, and Iran after the United States and Spain has a third rank in production of this product in the world. Drought stress is one of the most important... more
Introduction
Almond (Prunusdulcis Mill.), native to West Asia to the Mediterranean, and Iran after the United States and Spain has a third rank in production of this product in the world. Drought stress is one of the most important factors limiting the yield and production of agricultural products. Many anatomical, physiological, enzymatic, nutritional, quantitative and qualitative characteristics of almonds are affected by drought stress. There are a lot of micro-organisms in soil can help plant nutrition and uptake of nutrient elements in different ways that can be mentioned by the dual symbiotic relation between micro-organism and plant. Mycorrhizae fungi are one of these microorganisms. The most important beneficial effects of mycorrhizal symbiosis is increasing the nutrient uptake, leaf gas exchange, photosynthesis, water use efficiency, productivity, improve plant nutrition and resistance to environmental stresses. Also, it helps the plant to absorb more water and nutrients by modification of rhizosphere environment, improvement of soil structure through formation of stable aggregates, expansion of external filaments and change of root morphology. The results of mycorrhizae symbiosis research in different plants show that the higher uptake of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu) and manganese (Mn). The aim of this study was to evaluate the ability of mycorrhizal fungi, a symbiotic and environmentally friendly agent, in drought stress condition on increasing growth and absorption of water and nutrient elements on almond rootstocks commonly consumed in Chaharmahal-va- Bakhtiari province.
Material and Methods
This field experiment was carried out as a factorial based on a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The treatments consist of two level of mycorrhizal fungus (M0: without and M1 with using of mycorrhizal fungus), four kinds of rootstock (bitter, local Shorab 2, GF and GN) and four levels of drought stress (without stress as a control, slight, moderate and severe water stress which based on ratio of depletion of plant available water). Inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi at the rate of 100 g of a mixture of three species of mycorrhizal fungi (Clariodeoglumus etunicatum, Rhizophagus intraradices and Funneliformiss mosseae) was placed under the roots for each rootstock with a population of at least 100 active fungal organs including spores, vesicles, and hyphae per gram. The plants were exposed to drought stress for six weeks. Leaf samples were taken to measure the amount of nutrient elements. Nitrogen by Kjeldahl method, P by spectrophotometer, K by flame method with flame photometer and nutrients of iron, zinc, manganese, boron  and copper were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry with an atomic absorption spectrometer (PerkinElmer Analyst 400, Waltham, United States of America). Statistical analysis was done with SAS 9.3 statistical software. Duncan’s multiple range test was used to separate means.
Results and Discussion
The results revealed that there were significant differences between four cultivars in terms of nutrient concentrations except B. The maximum amounts of the studied characteristics were obtained from GF rootstock. The GN rootstock was in the second ranking. Water deficient treatment showed a significant effect on the examined nutrient elements except Mn and Cu concentrations. The maximum amounts of measured nutrient elements, except K, were obtained from I1 treatment. The highest rate of K was obtained from I3 and I4 treatments. With increasing drought stress the decreasing trend of nutrient elements, except K was observed. Mycorrhizae fungi treatment caused increase of nutrient elements except B. The maximum amounts of N, P, Fe and Zn were obtained from GF +I1. Using of mycorrhizae fungi in drought treatments caused significant increase in N, K, Fe, Mn and B. The maximum amount of nutrients was obtained from GF + M1 treatment. The maximum amounts of N, Fe and B were obtained from I1 + M1 + GN. Inoculation of mycorrhizae fungi caused increase of rootstock growth under drought stress. The change in the shape, volume and number of root branches of the root caused by the consumption of mycorrhizae fungi was due to increased nutrient uptake and changes in the amount of plant hormones such as auxin. Growth and absorption of water and nutrients decreased under water deficient stress. Therefore, the effect of symbiosis with mycorrhizae fungi under water deficient stress conditions was more important than non-stress conditions. This has been reported in the research of various researchers.
Conclusion
The results of this study showed that with increasing water deficient stress, the amount of nutrient elements decreased except for K. The effectively of GF rootstock to mycorrhizae fungi inoculation was higher due to higher growth potential and root velocity. Nutrients that were measured in inoculated rootstocks were higher than those without inoculation. Under drought stress conditions, the amount of nutrients measured was higher in inoculated rootstocks. Inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi can lead to increase nutrients absorption with some mechanisms such as effective increase in root uptake, root length, number of lateral roots, proton production, and secretion of organic acids, siderophores, chelating compounds, and acid phosphates. Consumption of mycorrhizae fungi increased nutrient uptake and improved almond rootstock resistance to drought stress.
Introduction Industrial development has resulted in higher soils pollution with heavy metals. Plants which are subjected to heavy metals may severely lose their yield capabilities. Applying improving compounds in the soil is a new method... more
Introduction
Industrial development has resulted in higher soils pollution with heavy metals. Plants which are subjected to heavy metals may severely lose their yield capabilities. Applying improving compounds in the soil is a new method to reduce effects of heavy metals on plants growth. Biochar as a carbon rich source and salicylic acid as an important plant hormone, are two main compounds to alleviate heavy metals stresses in plants. These are the cost-effective and environmentally friendly substances for increasing the resistance of plants. Lead (Pb), as a common and extremely poisonous element in polluted soils, can be accumulated due to its non-biodegradability nature. When Pb content in plants reaches a toxic level, it can inhibit plant growth by reducing enzyme activities and photosynthesis and changing mineral nutrients balance. However, with regard to the program of expanding the area under cultivation of medicinal plants, including thyme, there is a possibility of contamination of soils in the vicinity of industrial centers and roads with lead. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of salicylic acid as a plant growth stimulant and biochar made of rapeseed wastes, as a stable organic compound, on alleviation of Pb-induced stress in thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.).
Materials and Methods
In order to investigate the effects of salicylic acid (SA) and biochar (BC) on reducing Pb stress in thyme (Thymus vulgaris L.), a factorial experiment was conducted based on a completely randomized design with three replications in the greenhouse of Razi University. The factors included Pb at three levels (0, 150, and 300 mg/kg as Pb(NO3)2), SA at three levels (0, 150, and 300 μM) and BC at three levels (0, 1 and 3% by weight). To apply the Pb treatments, the soil samples of each pot (8 kg) were sprayed with Pb(NO3)2 solutions, 4 weeks before planting, according to the contamination levels. Then, BC treatments were performed by mixing it with the soil samples. In each pot, four thyme seedlings were planted. At four-leaf stage, SA solutions were sprayed three times on foliage of the thyme plants , until the beginning of flowering. After harvesting, some characteristics of aerial and root parts of thyme, including soluble sugars and proline contents, plant height, dry weights of shoots and roots, root volume and root length were determined. All plant parameters were then averaged for each pot. Also, Pb concentrations in extracts obtained from digestion of leaf tissues, were measured by Varian AA220 atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) and comparison of means (Duncan's multiple range test) were performed using SPSS-16 software.
Results and Discussion
The results revealed that Pb stress reduced all plant characteristics, such as plant height, root volume and root length, as well as, dry weights of shoots and roots, and elevated leaf Pb concentration, proline content and soluble sugars in thyme. However, BC application resulted in improvements in growth parameters. The positive effect of BC was further enhanced when SA was sprayed onto the foliage of the thyme plants. The interaction effects of SA, BC and Pb treatments on the growth parameters of thyme, i.e, shoot dry weight, root volume, Pb concentration, soluble sugars and proline contents were significant (P < 0.01). In other words, SA and BC treatments moderated the negative effects of Pb on the growth traits. The highest Pb concentration (4.83 mg) and proline content (37.8 μmol/g) were obtained in 300 μg/kg of Pb, and SA and BC controls. Also, the highest concentration of soluble sugars (0.46 mg/kg) was found at 300 mg/kg of Pb, 300 μM SA and BC control.
Conclusion
Our results indicated the positive effects of SA and BC treatments on the growth parameters, such as; shoot and root dry weights in thyme plants, especially under Pb stress. In other words, Pb stress, while reducing all growth characteristics, increased proline content and soluble sugars in thyme. In general, it seems that under Pb stress, treatment of thyme with SA (as a plant growth regulator) and BC (as an organic matter with high viability in the soil) is a simple and appropriate method in order to increase the plant's resistance and reduce the effects of Pb toxicity on the overall growth of thyme.
Introduction Surfactants as surface-active substances with combined hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties are widely used in various fields. In soil remediation processes these substances can be used to increase the availability of... more
Introduction
Surfactants as surface-active substances with combined hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties are widely used in various fields. In soil remediation processes these substances can be used to increase the availability of organic and inorganic contaminants to improve microbial decomposition of organic pollutants or heavy metals adsorption. In recent years, researchers have been seeking to produce and use surfactants that are more environment friendly. In this regard, produced biosurfactants by microorganisms are of special importance due to their environmental benefits. Microorganisms produce a wide range of biosurfactants. Biosurfactants are extracellular compounds that can combine with metals such as zinc, copper, and cadmium and can increase the solubility of these metals and reduce their toxicity. Negatively charged anionic biosurfactants such as rhamnolipids and lipopeptides can increase heavy metals availability by combining to metals and changing the properties of soil solution. In this study, the effect of surfactant application from Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus subtilis and some chelators include sodium citrate, humic acid and Na2-EDTA on soluble cadmium in a contaminated calcareous soil was investigated.
Materials and Methods
This study was conducted as factorial in a completely randomized design in laboratory conditions at several steps separately. A calcareous soil sample was contaminated with 15 mg kg-1 cadmium from the source of Cd (NO3)2. Contaminated soil incubated for 4 weeks at field capacity. Acid deposition method was used for surfactant extraction from culture medium of Pseudomonas putida KT-2440 and Bacillus subtilis 1795. The structure of extracted biosurfactants was investigated by FTIR. Equilibrium time was obtained by determining the amount of soluble cadmium at times 6, 12, 24, 36, 72 hours by adding 1mM sodium citrate, humic acid and Na2-EDTA to the contaminated soil (ratio of 1 to 5 soil to solution).
The concentrations of 0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 1 and 2 mM of humic acid, sodium citrate and Na2-EDTA were used to determine the appropriate concentration of each chelator. To investigate the interaction of chelators and biosurfactants on soluble cadmium, an experimental was conducted as a completely randomized design with factorial arrangement design. Experimental treatments consisted of three types of chelating agents (sodium citrate, humic acid, Na2-EDTA and control), two types of surfactants from Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus subtilis, and five concentration levels of the biosurfactants (0, 25, 50, 100 mg L-1).
Results and Discussion
The highest amount of soluble cadmium (11.59 mg L-1) was observed in Na2-EDTA treatment at 72 hours, which was significant compared to the other treatments. The lowest amount of soluble cadmium was obtained through application of sodium citrate (0.205 mg L-1) at 36 hours. In all studied concentrations, Na2-EDTA had the greatest effect and sodium citrate had the least effect on soluble cadmium. While the use of Na2-EDTA at all concentrations caused a significant increase in soluble cadmium, sodium citrate had no significant effect on soluble cadmium at studied concentrations. Humic acid at concentrations higher than 0.5 mM significantly increased the soluble cadmium. Increasing the concentration of humic acid and citrate from 1 to 2 mM did not show any significant impact on soluble cadmium. At all levels of biosurfactant application, Na2-EDTA and humic acid caused a significant increase in soluble cadmium concentration. In control and sodium citrate treatments, application of biosurfactants did not cause significant difference in the concentration of soluble cadmium. The highest amount of soluble cadmium was obtained as a result of the application of Bacillus subtilis surfactant and Na2-EDTA. However, increasing the concentration of Bacillus subtilis surfactant from 25 to 100 mg L-1 had no significant effect on increasing the efficiency of Na2-EDTA.  Pseudomonas putida surfactant had no significant effect on soluble cadmium in Na2-EDTA application. While in humic acid treatment, the application of the Pseudomonas putida surfactant at the highest concentration (100 mg L-1) increased the concentration of soluble cadmium. Using Bacillus subtilis surfactant did not have effect on soluble cadmium in application of humic acid.
Conclusion
Among the studied chelators (sodium citrate, humic acid and Na2-EDTA), Na2-EDTA had the greatest effect on soluble cadmium. While sodium citrate had no significant effect on soluble cadmium. Surfactants from Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus subtilis had different effects on increasing the efficiency of studied chelators and soluble cadmium in the studied soil. In Na2-EDTA and humic acid application, surfactant from Bacillus subtilis at a concentration of 25 mg L-1 and surfactant produced by Pseudomonas putida at a concentration of 100 mg L-1 had a significant effect on soluble cadmium, respectively. It seems using biosurfactants and chelators on increasing soluble cadmium in soil can be useful for phytoremediation purposes to increase its uptake by plant. However, further research is needed.
Introduction Surface and groundwater conjunctively interact at different spatial or temporal scales within a plain. In many plain, surface and groundwater resources are used in combination in agriculture. Therefore, it is important to... more
Introduction
Surface and groundwater conjunctively interact at different spatial or temporal scales within a plain. In many plain, surface and groundwater resources are used in combination in agriculture. Therefore, it is important to accurately predict the components of groundwater and surface water balance. Despite the rapid expansion of numerical models over the past two decades, there is still a need for comprehensive and integrated assessment of surface and groundwater components. In particular, the interconnection of both surface and groundwater models is important to connect both surface and groundwater, especially the water balance in the unsaturated root zone. In this study the effect of water recharge due to deep percolation from simultaneous supply of irrigation water from surface and groundwater sources, and rainfall from the SWAT model were used to simulate groundwater balance using the combined MDOFLOW-NWT model.
Materials and Methods
In this study, the effect of recharge values obtained from the SWAT model was analyzed to simulate the fluctuation of water table, and groundwater balance components using the integrated model of MODFLOW-NWT model in the Mahabad plain. One of the important steps in quantifying the impact of irrigation management, and the change in land-use on the surface and groundwater balance was the simulated recharge due to the deep percolation of rainfall and irrigation water. This was done by the SWAT model, and was used as the boundary condition to the MODFLOW-NWT model. Calibration and validation of groundwater model were also done by trial-and-error and automatic PEST methods. The simulation period was performed for 10 years from the hydrological year of 2009-2010 to 2018-2019, from which 6 and 4 years were used as the period for calibration and validation were from 2009-2010 to 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 to 2018-2019, respectively. Groundwater balance components are naturally different for different years. Therefore, the study was conducted for dry, wet, and normal years. Hydraulic conductivity and specific yield were the used as initial calibration parameters in the MODFLOW-NWT model.
Results and Discussion
The results showed a higher hydraulic conductivity and specific yield values for the aquifer was in the southern, central, and northeastern areas of the plain, and the lowest values were in the northern and near the outlet of the plain. After the calibration process, the results showed that an average, 9% of rainfall, and 36% of irrigated water percolate to the aquifer. These observations were confirmed based on a satisfactory and acceptable estimate of the water table level of the model for both calibration and validation periods. The statistical RMSE criteria for calibration and validation periods were 0.35 and 0.34 m, respectively. Also, the results of R2 and NSE criteria were estimated as 0.94 and 0.91 for the calibration period, and 0.93 and 0.89 for the validation period, which indicates that the model was properly calibrated and was well able to simulate groundwater level. The groundwater hydrographs developed from piezometers’ readings, show that the recharge values estimated by the SWAT model, considering the change in land use and irrigation management across the plain, were able to properly simulate groundwater level across the aquifer. Specifically, the studies showed a continuous drop in groundwater level created in the southern and southwestern regions of the aquifer (piezometers of Fakhrighah, Gorg tapeh, and Serah Haji Khosh) due to the presence of high-consumption crops such as apple and alfalfa, and the higher number of operation wells.
Conclusion
The results of this study showed that the recharge values obtained from the calibrated SWAT model was crucial parameters for proper simulation of groundwater, and can significantly improve the model results. The results of the main components of the groundwater balance for different years showed that the amount of recharge due to the infiltration of rainfall, and irrigation were different for each year. Also, interactions between surface and groundwater resources vary from about 30 to 50 million cubic meters between years, indicating a significant interaction between the water resources. In general, the SWAT-MODFLOW-NWT model can be used as a practical tool for proper management of surface and groundwater resources under different management scenarios.
Introduction The watershed acts as a hydrological unit regulating the quantity and quality of the water cycle, and human beings have incurred high costs due to ignorance of this complex cycle and lack of planning of projects in terms of... more
Introduction
The watershed acts as a hydrological unit regulating the quantity and quality of the water cycle, and human beings have incurred high costs due to ignorance of this complex cycle and lack of planning of projects in terms of the relationship between water management and community development.
Knowledge of features such as maximum flood discharge is essential for the design of hydraulic structures, such as dams, spillways, bridges, and culverts, in order to reduce potential damages and predict when peak discharges will be reached in the downstream areas when discussing flood warning. Rainfall-runoff modeling is one of the key tools in hydrology to achieve flood characteristics, such as peak rate and peak time. In current research, the performance of IHACRES model using "Hydromad" R package has been implemented to simulate flow in the Shoor river basin in Ghaen on a monthly scale. The model simulation was done to investigate the effect of selecting "ARMAX" and "EXPUH" methods in the linear part of the target function. Also, the modeling process and the optimized values of the model parameters were investigated.
Materials and Methods
The Shoor river basin with an area of 2412.92 square kilometers located in Ghaen between 59 degrees and 12 minutes to 59 degrees and 14 minutes east longitude and 33 degrees and 42 minutes to 33 degrees and 45 minutes north latitude. The study catchment with an average altitude of 1420 m above sea level and an average long-term annual rainfall of 173 mm has a dry climate. This river is the largest river in Ghaenat city which flows into Khaf Salt field. In this research, the IHACRES model was implemented using the Hydromad R package. To perform the flow simulation, precipitation, flow rate and temperature data on a monthly scale during the years 1998 to 2017 were used. The IHACRES model has two parts: the first part, which converts precipitation into effective precipitation at each time stage and the second part, which converts effective precipitation into modeled flow. These sections are called nonlinear and linear modules, respectively. To implement each of the sections of nonlinear modules and linear modules according to the data and conditions in the study area, methods with different parameters can be used. In this research, in the non-linear module section, the "CWI" method and in the linear module section, "ARMAX" and "EXPUH" methods have been used for proper routing in the "reverse" calibration section. In the validation section of the "ls" method, the performance criteria of KGE, NS and R2 were used to evaluate the performance of the model in both calibration and validation process.
Result and Discussion
Comparison of obtained results in this study with previous studies showed that in terms of examining the performance of the model with the EXPUH linear method, the obtained results were consistent with the results of Sadeghi et al. (2015) and Lotfi Rad et al. (2015) and the model with the EXPUH linear method. The NS criteria has shown acceptable performance. According to the results of the model in the calibration section, in terms of evaluation criteria NS, KGE and R^2, and in terms of simulation of peak flow values and the time to peak using EXPUH method in the linear part showed better performance than ARMAX method. The value of these criteria in EXPUH method is equal to 0.86, 0.93, and 0.86, and in ARMAX method are equal to 0.7, 0.85 and 0.73, respectively. In the validation section, the evaluation criteria in EXPUH method were equal to 0.51, 0.63, and 0.54 and in ARMAX method were equal to 0.55, 0.73 and 0.65, respectively, indicating better performance of the model by ARMAX method. Comparison of the EXPUH method, and also the model with ARMAX method showed more accurate performance in terms of peak discharges, quantity and time of occurrence. The values of NS, KGE and R^2  evaluation criteria in this section were 0.51, 0.63, and 0.54 using EXPUH method and 0.55, 0.73 and 0.65 with ARMAX method, respectively.
Conclusion
According to the results, the IHACRES model using ARMAX method in the linear section resulted in more accurate performance than EXPUH method in simulation of peak flow values and time to peak.
Introduction The constructive effects of green spaces on the quality and livability of the urban environment have been reported in many studies. Therefore, using methods that can accurately estimate the evaporation of transpiration in... more
Introduction
The constructive effects of green spaces on the quality and livability of the urban environment have been reported in many studies. Therefore, using methods that can accurately estimate the evaporation of transpiration in green space can help to reduce water loss. The purpose of estimating water demand for urban green space is also different from the purpose of determining water demand for an agricultural farm. In urban green space, the goal is to maintain good growth, appearance and acceptable plant health, while biomass production is the main goal on agricultural farms. Therefore, urban green space can typically be managed using an irrigation area that is less than the amount of water needed to produce agricultural products. Due to the limited water resources in arid areas, the use of less irrigation in urban green space can be desirable to save water consumption.
Materials and Methods
The Wucols method for estimating Water requirements in green space was developed by Castello et al. (4). They developed the Wucols water taxonomy guidelines for planting green space in California. The Wucols method estimates evapotranspiration in green space using reference evapotranspiration and a set of coefficients (Species factor, density factor and microclimate factor). PF method is the minimum acceptable irrigation for green space plants that emphasizes maintaining the beauty of the plant. In this method, the water required by green space plants is considered as a percentage of ET0 so as not to reduce their appearance and performance. In this approach, PF is a regulatory factor that is actually considered instead of Kc and multiplied by ET0, except that the emphasis is on the appearance of the plant and not on its optimal growth and yield. The IPOS method has been developed by the Government of South Australia for planning and managing water needs in public open spaces, especially sports lawns and amusement parks. In this method, the water requirement of grass in urban open space is calculated. In this method, plant transpiration evaporation (ETL) is calculated by multiplying reference transpiration evaporation factors (ET0) by grass vegetation coefficient (Kc) by plant stress factor (Kst).
Results and Discussion
The results showed that the highest rate of evapotranspiration obtained by Wucols method was 83.38 mm during 21 Jun-21 Jul. Also, the rate of transpiration evaporation during one year of the experimental period was estimated to be 556.5 mm. The results of estimation of transpiration evaporation by PF method also show the maximum amount of transpiration evaporation during 21 Jun-21 Jul and is 75.55 mm. The evapotranspiration rate during one year was estimated to be 505.9 mm. For the Ipos method, the highest rate of transpiration evaporation was estimated to be 36.38 mm during 21 Jun-21 Jul and 242.9 mm during the experimental period. Gross irrigation requirement is estimated by considering 70% irrigation efficiency for each month using all three methods. For the Wucols method, the gross irrigation need during one year was estimated to be 794.8 mm. For the PF method was 722.7 mm and for the IPOS method was 346.9 mm. According to the reported irrigation records for the study area, which is 900 mm per year, the Wucols method had the closest result to the irrigation records.
Conclusion
The results showed that the Wucols method has the best and closest estimate according to the irrigation records of the study area. The gross irrigation requirement calculated by the Wucols method during a year is 794.8 mm, which is 12% less than the gross annual irrigation requirement of the studied green space. While PF and IPOS methods determined the amount of gross demand 20 and 62% less than the annual irrigation rate in the region, respectively. The results of this study show that the Wucols method for estimating the water requirement of plants in urban green space where there is a combination of different plant species is more reliable than the PF and IPOS methods due to the diversity of species, vegetation density and different climates.
Introduction: One of the most critical human issues globally is producing more food for the world's growing population. The climate of each region is an effective factor in the agricultural sector and the amount of its production. Iran is... more
Introduction: One of the most critical human issues globally is producing more food for the world's growing population. The climate of each region is an effective factor in the agricultural sector and the amount of its production. Iran is one of the world's date-producing countries, which ranks second in terms of date production and exports. This plant has 200 genera and 4000 species, each of which can adapt to arid regions and can have the highest production and economic efficiency in its proper place. It is a monocotyledonous plant from the Palmaceae family that needs at least 10 degrees Celsius for continued growth. Growth will stop at temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius, and temperatures below 4 degrees Celsius will encounter cold stress. This plant is sensitive to environmental conditions and cannot live qualitatively and quantitatively in all hot and dry regions. On the other hand, the palm tree is a plant that lives up to several hundred years, and some of its varieties bear fruit up to 200 years old, but their valuable and economic life is on average about 50 years. It is noteworthy that this tree did not produce an economic crop until ten years ago. Dates have an important role in currency exchange, job creation, food security, and strengthening global competitiveness by providing income from non-oil exports. Therefore, the construction of a palm tree is a risky long-term investment in the country. Dates have different varieties, each capable of adapting to a region of arid regions and can produce the most production and economic efficiency in its proper location. Global warming, its impact on different regions of the earth in the future, and the response of the living creatures of these regions in the last century have led planners and scientists of many disciplines, especially climatology researchers, and in particular agricultural climatologists, to understand climate conditions and design long-lived sustainable plants that can survive in future environmental conditions and have good economic returns, design programs, and awareness algorithms.
Materials and Methods: One of the best is the maximum entropy model (MaxEnt). By applying this algorithm, it can be predicted how the species will exist in different regions based on the presence of the species. The present study was conducted by field method, descriptive, and library statistics. The data used included WordClim site data (bioclimatic variables), presence data of two cultivars of date palm, Gantar and Halawi, daily meteorological data, elevation, and land slope based on the suitable land slope for palm tree cultivation, high and low temperatures, and phonological data. CCSM4 model with quadratic scenarios of 2.6, 4.5, 6.0, and 8.5 was used to predict and estimate different country regions in terms of talent for cultivation of two selected date varieties. Due to the higher value of AUC in Scenario 4.5, this scenario was considered as the selected scenario. This study is different from previous studies using the CCSM4 climatic model, new diffusion scenarios (RCP), and prediction of date distribution concerning its cultivars, while previous studies on prediction of date distribution have not paid any attention to it.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the distribution and cultivation area of Gantar and Halawi are different, and in the future, the suitable area of cultivation of Gantar cultivar will decrease, and the suitable area of cultivation of Halawi cultivar will increase. Jacknife test showed that the model successfully predicted the potential of cultivation area based on the AUC criterion and temperature-related biological variables (Bio 1, Bio 6, Bio 8, and Bio 10) had the most significant impact on the distribution modeling of cultivars. Therefore, with the rising temperature, parts of the country, especially the foothills of the plains, become more susceptible to cultivation. So that at present, when the maximum height for the optimal growth of cultivars is about 700 meters, it will reach about 1200 meters in the coming decades. At present, Iranshahr city in Sistan and Baluchestan province has the most desirable area of Gantar and Halawi cultivar cultivation. However, in the next decade, the most desirable cultivation area will be the Gontar cultivar in Ahvaz city and Halawi cultivar in Jask city. It was also found that using WorldClim site data for perennial and especially long-lived plants was not sufficient. Because in these data, high and low temperatures that can destroy the plant during its life or shorten its life and reduce the economic fruit of cultivation are not included, and of course gardening and fruit trees are a long-term investment. The risk of investing should not be increased.
Introduction: Sistan and Baluchestan Province, in southeast of Iran, is covering about 11 percent of the whole space of the country but is one of the driest provinces in Iran and its average annual rainfall is about 110 mm. The purpose of... more
Introduction: Sistan and Baluchestan Province, in southeast of Iran, is covering about 11 percent of the whole space of the country but is one of the driest provinces in Iran and its average annual rainfall is about 110 mm. The purpose of this study was to identify large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns causing extreme and widespread rainfalls during the warm seasons (spring and summer) in southeast of Iran (Sistan and Baluchestan province).
Data and Methodology: Precipitation data of 6 synoptic stations of Sistan and Baluchestan province during a 30-year statistical period (1979-1998) were obtained from Meteorological Organization of Iran (IRIMO). The intensity of precipitation based on 90th percentile threshold and widespread precipitation index of at least ≥50% of the studied area were calculated. To identify the synoptic patterns of the upper atmosphere, the ERA5 data of the ECMWF European Center of Med-Latitude Weather Forecast with spatial resolution of 0.25° × 0.25° were obtained. The collected atmospheric parameters included mean sea level pressure (mslp), geopotential height (z), specific humidity (q), zonal (U) and meridional (V) wind components, relative vorticity (rv) and omega (w) and maps of the upper atmosphere were drawn at different levels using Gards software in the domain of 10 to 70E and 10 to 90N. Regarding the two selected characteristics, three events of heavy and widespread precipitation were determined.
Results and Discussion: By analyzing the daily rainfall data over a period of 30 years (2018-1988) during the warm months of the year, the number of days with torrential and widespread rainfall in Sistan and Baluchestan province were determined. According to the index the previously defined floods and mudslides were obtained for 3 days with torrential and widespread floods that often occur in the spring, which are categorized to three main patterns including: 1- Gono Tropical Storm 2- Omega Blocking and 3 – 500 hpa trough system. The results showed that during the maximum 24-hour precipitation, in the first synoptic pattern, the southern cities of the province received the maximum precipitation due to the proximity of the storm’s core, but gradually from southern to northern latitudes, the rainfall declined considerably so that Chahbahar station had the maximum rainfall and Zabol station recorded zero rainfall. The storm is expected to move eastward as it moves to higher latitudes, but the high pressure formed on the Indian subcontinent acted as a barrier and directed the storm to the west, thus affecting the southern regions of Iran. In the second and third pattern, the location of Sistan and Baluchestan province in front of the trough axis and advection of cold weather of the northern latitudes were the main causes of instability that lead to heavy rainfall. The moisture of these rainfalls was obtained from Oman, Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean respectively. In the second pattern, the anticyclonic clockwise motions of the Arabian Sea has provided the moisture for extreme precipitation events. Common points of all three precipitation patterns are atmospheric moisture reduction in all three levels of the earth, 850 and 700 hectopascals from south to north of the province. This is mainly due to the distance from moisture sources as well as the arrangement and height of the roughness of Sistan and Baluchestan province, which has caused moisture trapping and prevented the transfer of sufficient moisture for the occurrence of torrential rains. In the second model, the amount of moisture reduction from south to north is less, which indicates the activity of the Arabian Sea high pressure and the power of this high pressure in moisture transfer. In general, with increasing altitude towards the northern regions, mainly rainfall systems have lost their moisture and unevenness has prevented the proper distribution of moisture in the province.
Conclusion: In southeastern Iran, the spatial distribution of precipitation is strongly influenced by the proximity to the sea and the location of the topographic features. Upper air levels turbulences are the most common cause of air mass rise. The main factor in reducing heavy rainfalls in northern areas of Sistan and Baluchestan is the lack of sufficient water vapor to reach these areas. Extreme rainfall is more likely to occur in spring than in summer due to the appropriate thermal gradient in southeastern Iran. Finally, the results of the study showed that the possibility of precipitation in spring compared to summer due to the appropriate temperature gradient in southeastern Iran and the activity of Siberian and Northern European high pressure, the conditions for fronting in these areas are provided. Since the humidity of the southern oceans through atmospheric rivers has been effective in the occurrence of heavy rainfall in southeastern Iran, rising temperatures in the southern oceans due to global warming can strengthen moisture flows in the future and from this route to affect the intensity of rainfall in southeastern Iran.
Introduction: Delineating landscape into homogenous units is fundamental to managing resources and delivering sustainable development. The importance of this has long been recognized as a critical issue in various studies and it has been... more
Introduction: Delineating landscape into homogenous units is fundamental to managing resources and delivering sustainable development. The importance of this has long been recognized as a critical issue in various studies and it has been examined from different aspects. In soil mapping, the geopedologic approach is used for landscape classification, which was defined by Zinck (1989). This approach differentiates landscapes into landforms to increase the purity of soil map units. Therefore, the aim of this study was preparing geopedologic maps of the study area on the level of landform phases intending to make more homogeneous soil units.
Materials and Methods: Honam sub-basin in Lorestan province is one of the most important agricultural areas in the Karkheh River watershed. Soil moisture and temperature regimes of the area were Xeric and Mesic, respectively. After a primary interpretation, a geopedology map of the study area at the landform level was prepared according to the geopedologic approach. After soil surveying, 31 profiles were excavated, described, and sampled in the largest delineation of this map. Ultimately, this landform unit was differentiated to the landform phase units using morphometric features and normalized difference vegetation index. Pedodiversity index was computed for each landform phase unit to investigate the credibility of the geopedological approach for this unit. The conditional probability of each soil family was also measured in each landform phase unit to compare statistical differences between landform phase units. Furthermore, statistical comparisons were made between the Shannon indices of each unit.
Results and Discussion: The soils of the study area were classified into seven soil families according to Soil Survey Staff (2014). Based on the geopedology map, this area includes two landscapes of Piedmont plains and valleys. These two landscapes were differentiated to 6 and 3 relief/molding, respectively. Geologically, the study area has 5 lithologic units. Finally, 22 landform units were identified in this area. The area of the widest landform with the code of Pi461 was 1223.35 ha. With individual use of NDVI, TRI, and aspect map, this landform unit was differentiated into 3 phases, and with the use of these 3 maps collectively, 11 phases were differentiated. The results showed landform map unit of Pi641 with 31 soil profiles and 7 soil families has the highest value of diversity indices, such as 1.59 for the Shannon index. In addition, this map unit is a compound map unit consisting of several soils, where the highest probability of observing soils is related to soils A and B with 32.5% probability. By differentiating this landform unit into phases, the Pi461 map unit is separated into smaller units that are more homogeneous. For example, when it is separated according to the vegetation characteristics, the three phases Pi4611 (N), Pi4612 (N), and Pi4613 (N) were differentiated that have medium, low, and high vegetation, respectively. In this case, Pi4612 (N) map unit with 75% probability of soil C observation and Pi4613 (N) map unit with 87.50% probability of soil B observation are two homogeneous map units. The Shannon index of these two units is 0.56 and 0.37, respectively, which indicates the purity of these map units. The results also showed that diversity indices and conditional probabilities, respectively, were decreased and increased in most of the landform phase map unit compared to the landform map unit. The use of normalized difference vegetation index compared to other environmental features has been effective in separating the landform phase units and preparation of homogeneous map units. So, the most probability of observing the dominant soils of the study area increased from 32.25% in the landform unit to 52.63, 75.75, and 87.50% in the landform phase unit, and the Shannon index decreased from 1.59 in the landform unit to 1.36, 0.56, and 0.37 in the landform phase units. The use of other environmental features to increase the purity of the landform phase map unit is suggested in future studies.
Conclusion: Results of using geopedological approach at landform level in the study area showed that this level is useful at highest levels of soil classification (from order to great group), but due to the complex nature of soils at lower levels of classification (family and soil series) does not have enough efficiency. Therefore, for improving the geopedology method accuracy and to present more uniform map units at lower levels of classification, landform phase maps were presented according to the environmental characteristics of the selected landform. The statistical comparisons between Shannon indices calculated for each map unit in the landform phase map showed a significant difference at the 90% probability level between most of the units, which indicates an increase in the purity of these units at the soil family level.
Introduction: In the last decade, satellite-based methods, including remote sensing and microwave methods, have been used in many studies to detect soil surface moisture regionally. Thermal remote sensing method is quite effective for... more
Introduction: In the last decade, satellite-based methods, including remote sensing and microwave methods, have been used in many studies to detect soil surface moisture regionally. Thermal remote sensing method is quite effective for checking moisture for bare soil but shows poor correlation for vegetated surfaces. In addition, there is a widespread use of this method in the presence of temperature differences during the day. Satellite imagery enables the ability to measure humidity according to the environmental conditions at the surface. Thus, compared to field measurements, remote sensing techniques are promising because they are capable of spatial measurements at a relatively low cost. Water supply is one of the main causes of evapotranspiration, which can affect it. Soil moisture can be considered as the most direct and important variable describing drought and is the main parameter describing water circulation and energy exchange between the surface and the atmosphere. Scale reduction methods for soil moisture can be divided into three main groups including satellite-based method, GIS data and model-based methods. The same methods have been used extensively in monitoring soil moisture for different spectral patterns at different wavelengths, from visible to microwave remote sensing data. Spectral reflectance decreases with increasing soil moisture in the visible and near-infrared (NIR) range. Therefore, these methods can be used to estimate soil moisture using satellite data for water budgeting and other meteorological and agricultural applications.
Materials and Methods: In this study, using the information provided by Zaki (2013), the measured humidity by the sensor was compared with the humidity obtained from the satellite. The soil moisture were measured in 16 points from an area of 13 hectares from Neyshabour plain of Khorasan Razavi province. The novelty of this study is to provide a simple method for using Landsat 7 satellite imagery to estimate the surface moisture of areas of the Earth to eliminate field sampling and optimal use for agriculture. One of the advantages of this method is the reduction of information obtained from the field as input values for crop modeling that can be used to estimate crop yield, so the moisture measured during the winter wheat crop period from November 2012 to March 2013 was used.
Results and Discussion: The placement of band numbers 3 and 4 opposite each other to calculate M, the line equation was fitted. Since satellite imagery is not performed daily by satellite, six images were extracted during the growing season. On November 12, which is actually 12 days after planting, the plant is entering the germination stage and the soil is mostly bare. Because the satellite does not receive enough reflected green light, the accuracy of the image in measuring soil moisture decreases, but after the plant grows, the green light is reflected and the amount of digital digit of band 4 is affected, as a result, the amount of moisture in the plant leaves and stem is involved in measuring soil moisture, which is consistent with the results obtained by Petropoulos et al.
Conclusion: In general, the results of this study showed that the simple and efficient Red-NIR spatial geometry model has a great ability to estimate soil surface moisture in favorable weather conditions and this method can be used for plant modeling as input data.
Introduction: Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have a broad spectrum of uses, therefore, AgNPs will be released from those products into many different ecosystems. In the last decades, AgNPs have received substantial attention due to their... more
Introduction: Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have a broad spectrum of uses, therefore, AgNPs will be released from those products into many different ecosystems. In the last decades, AgNPs have received substantial attention due to their distinctive physical and chemical properties such as high thermal and electrical conductivity, chemical stability, catalytic activity and antimicrobial properties against microbes such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses.  There are many parameters for assessment effect of toxicity due to AgNPs but soil microbial community is one of which considered being an important target for assessing the impact of manufactured nano-materials on the terrestrial environment. Toxicity of AgNPs is due to the physical interaction of AgNPs with microorganisms and the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Although as we have been known harmful effects of AgNPs on the soil bacterial community, but the most information about antimicrobial properties of AgNPs come from the routine lab instructions such as soil respiration, substrate induced respiration and microbial biomass and colony forming unite. So, the objective of this paper was to study the effects of silver nanoparticles on microbial activity using the routine lab instructions and compare with the obtained data from the molecular genetic techniques. In this paper, the quantitate population of soil bacterial was estimated using Real time qPCR with the MIQE guidelines.

Materials and Methods: In order to study the effect of silver nanoparticles on microbial activity and bacterial population in a calcareous soil, an experiment was conducted as a completely randomized design based on factorial arrangement with three replications. Experimental factors included silver slat forms (AgNPs and AgNO3), Ag concentrations (0, 0.5, 5, 10, 50, and 100 mg Ag kg-1 dry soil) and incubation time (7 and 42 days). Soil samples (Typic Haplicambids) with clay loam texture and seven percent of calcium carbonate was collected from Research Field of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Khorasan Razavi, Iran. The soil samples were amended with different concentrations of AgNPs and incubated at 25oC for 42 days. The water content of soil samples was adjusted at 70% WHC during the incubation time. After 7 and 42 days of incubation, the soil substrate-induced respiration (SIR), heterotrophic plate count (HPC), and soil urease and dehydrogenase activities were measured. Finally, based on the obtained data, the soil biological quality index was estimated using the soil biological parameters. In order to quantify the total bacterial population, DNA was extracted from soil samples and was estimated using the relative concentration of 16S rDNA gene by a quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR), with a minimum information for publication of quantitative real-time PCR experiments (MIQE) guidelines.

Results and Discussion: The results showed that with increasing the concentration of both AgNPs and AgNO3, the activity of dehydrogenase and urease in soil samples decreased during the incubation times. Microbial substrate induced respiration (SIR) and the total bacterial population in soil samples considerably declined at the end of experiment. Bacterial population in AgNPs treatments decreased compared to AgNO3 treatments but the reduction was not statistically significant. Over time, soil dehydrogenase activity and soil SIR decreased in both AgNPs and AgNO3 treatments, while soil urease activity and heterotrophic bacterial populations improved but again in heterotrophic bacterial populations was not statistically significant. The soil biological quality index was estimated from the soil biological data. AgNO3 treatments reduced the soil biological quality index compared to AgNPs treatments. In other words, the results showed that AgNO3 was more toxic to soil bacteria activity compared to AgNPs. The lowest soil urease and dehydrogenase enzyme activity and soil biological quality index were observed in the treatment of 100 mg kg-1 dry soil AgNO3 after 7 days of incubation. The application of 0.5, 5, 10, 50, and 100 mg Ag kg-1 dry soil decreased relative soil bacterial population by 22%, 40%, 59%, 73%, and 82% in AgNO3 treatment and 10%, 30%, 68%, 76%, and 86% in AgNO3 treatment compared to control after 42 days of incubation, respectively.

Conclusion: The results of this study showed that silver nanoparticles can negatively affect the enzymes involved in the nitrogen and carbon cycle. The AgNPs had less toxicity effect on the soil microbial activity compared to AgNO3. However, AgNPs was more toxic to soil bacteria populations compared to AgNO3. Different behavior AgNPs and AgNO3 in calcareous soil needs more investigations but there is no doubt that AgNPs is as an emerging contaminant and it has high toxicity potential for soil microbial community.
Introduction: Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutritional problems of plants in arid and semi-arid soils especially in calcareous soils. Iron is essential to many cellular activities, required for optimum growth and development,... more
Introduction: Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutritional problems of plants in arid and semi-arid soils especially in calcareous soils. Iron is essential to many cellular activities, required for optimum growth and development, however it is insoluble in aerated soils at neutral or basic pH, therefore, iron deficiency is common in these soils. The problem is usually solved by using iron synthetic chelates which is a very expensive option. There is, therefore, a need for cheaper and more effective alternatives to traditional Fe fertilizers. Several reports have shown that application of Fe factory by-product to soil tends to raise the availability of Fe and reduce Fe deficiency in plants. Application of organic compounds to soil may improve the solubility of the minerals containing micronutrients and correct their deficiencies in alkaline and calcareous soils. A large amount of slag is produced annually at the Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex, Kerman Province, Iran. So far, the copper slag, however, has not been tested as an Fe fertilizer in calcareous soils. Since about 53.8% of slag obtained from copper concentrate melting is composed of iron oxides, we, thus, examined the effect of copper slag along with organic compounds on the level of upper leaf iron, photosynthetic pigments, SPAD index, the activity of plant enzymes and the level of active iron in the upper leaves of sorghum by performing a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design.
Materials and Methods: In order to study the effect of copper slag (one of by-products of melting copper concentrate in Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex, Kerman Province) and organic compounds (cow manure and pistachio skin) on total leaf iron content, photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll), antioxidant enzymes activity (Guiacol Peroxidase, Glutathione peroxidase) and concentration of active iron of young leaves developed of sorghum, a pot experiment was conducted in the greenhouse with three replicates per treatment. We applied experimental treatments including 5 levels of organic matter (pistachio skin, cow manure at 2 and 4 wt. % and control sample), and 11 levels of iron (copper slag, copper slag with sulfur, copper slag with sulfur and thiobacillus, acidic slag (each 2 levels each), sequesterine, foliar application of EDTA, and control sample) to a soil sample with low iron content. At the end of the incubation period, sorghum bicolor was cultured in the above treatments. Ten seeds were sown in each pot. Seedlings were thinned to 4 when they were about 10 cm high. During the growth period, pots were irrigated with distilled water as needed. Before harvesting, SPAD, the concentration of photosynthetic pigments, level of active iron and activity of plant enzymes were also measured in fresh plant samples. Furthermore, the concentration of Fe in the leaves was measured. Analysis of variance was performed using software SAS and significant differences were determined based on LSD (Least Significant Difference Test) at p < 0.05 level.
Results and Discussion: The interaction between slag treatments and organic compounds showed that treatments of 4 wt. % of cow manure with slag of 4 times of recommended soil test value (C4S4,  and 4 wt. % of cow manure with slag of 4 times of recommended soil test value with sulfur and thiobacillus (C4S4S°T), had significant effects on increasing photosynthetic pigments pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll), SPAD index, activity of plant enzymes (Guiacol peroxidase, Glutathione peroxidase) and active iron. The highest active iron level in the young leaves developed (54.06 mg / kg) was observed in (C4S4S°T) treatment which showed a significant increase compared to the control treatment (17.14). Increased concentration of active iron was also observed due to application of treatments (slag, organic compounds and the interaction between treatments) in sorghum young leaves. The photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll), SPAD index and activity of plant enzymes (Guiacol peroxidase, Glutathione peroxidase) were more correlated with active iron in young leaves developed compared to total iron concentration in these leaves. This indicates that active iron can be used as an index to detect iron deficiency.
Conclusion: The higher level of active iron in the young leaves developed was more associated with physiological indices of sorghum as compared with total Fe concentration in these leaves. Therefore, this parameter can be used as an index to detect iron deficiency. In this study, increasing the level of slag consumed and consequently increasing Fe concentration in the leaf resulted in a significant increase in chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, carotenoids and activation of the plant enzymes.
Introduction: In many cases, after a flood, some information is needed about the flood characteristics at the upstream of a specific location where there is no hydrometric station on the river or flow discharge, and water surface level... more
Introduction: In many cases, after a flood, some information is needed about the flood characteristics at the upstream of a specific location where there is no hydrometric station on the river or flow discharge, and water surface level was not measured at the time of the flood. In reverse flood routing, calculations are performed from the downstream section step by step to the upstream section of the river and inlet hydrograph is produced based on river hydraulic characteristics and downstream hydrograph. During floods in rivers, the volume of floods gradually decreases due to infiltration into the bed and sides. This reduction in flood volume, called transmission losses, is significant in arid areas. Therefore, developed models for flood routing in seasonal rivers in arid and semi-arid regions should provide an appropriate estimate of transmission losses. In the routing process, the governing equations are combined with an equation to account for infiltration or seepage losses into the riverbed or canal. Then, by routing the flood along the interval and examining the resulting hydrographs at different points, the amount of transmission losses is determined. In the present study, which deals with the reverse hydraulic routing of floods in arid areas, the infiltration losses along the river estimated by the Green-Ampt relationship was considered in numerical models so as to perform reverse flood routing with appropriate accuracy and under hydraulic conditions of ephemeral rivers. To the best of our knowledge, so far no study has analyzed transmission losses in reverse hydraulic flood routing.
Materials and Methods: The equations governing gradual variable flows are known as the Saint-Venant equations, which include the continuity and the momentum equations. In hydraulic flow routing models, the complete form of the continuity equation is used, but the momentum equation is applied in various forms obtained by removing some components. The simplest hydraulic routing model is the kinematic wave model in which the components related to inertial forces and pressure force in the momentum equation are omitted. In the diffusion wave model, the components related to inertial forces are omitted, but the pressure force is taken into account and finally, in the dynamic wave model, the momentum equation is considered completely without simplification. In the present study, separate programs were prepared in MATLAB 2013 software for reverse hydraulic flood routing by Kinematic and dynamic wave methods. In these numerical models, by coupling the Green-Ampt infiltration equation with the continuity equation, the depth and flow rate in different places and times are calculated in the upstream direction of the flow.
Results and Discussion: In order to validate the results of the developed numerical models and to evaluate its applicability, a set of measured data known as Lane hydrograph and Bambeichi hydrograph was used. The results showed that both reverse hydraulic flood routing models produced the upstream hydrograph with appropriate accuracy. The results of the Bambeichi hydrograph data were more accurate than the Lane hydrograph due to its shorter length of the interval between upstream and downstream sections. For example, the peak discharge of inlet hydrograph calculated by the dynamic wave method for the Lane hydrograph data had an error of 7% compared to the observed value, while the error obtained for Bambeichi hydrograph data was 2%. Therefore, the accuracy of inverse routing models in estimating the volume of upstream hydrograph and consequently the amount of transmission losses was desirable especially for the Bambeichi hydrograph data. The highest error in estimating losses was 25% for the reverse kinematic model and the data related to the Lane hydrograph.
Between the two reverse hydraulic flood routing methods, the performance of the dynamic wave method was more accurate for the most numerical experiments, as the governing equations are completely solved in this method. This difference is more pronounced in the Lane hydrograph, which represents the actual conditions of an ephemeral river.
Conclusion: The accuracy of the developed numerical models was 90% in estimating the peak flow rate of the upstream hydrograph, and between 85% and 97% in estimating the time related to this discharge. The volume of the upstream hydrograph, which indicates the model performance in estimating the infiltration in the flow path, was also modeled with 75 to 98% accuracy. These results show that the numerical models simulate reverse flood routing with acceptable accuracy in ephemeral rivers, where transmission or seepage losses are significant. Due to different approaches in calculating infiltration losses, these methods can make differences for the hydrograph output of numerical models.
Introduction: Inter-basin water transfer affects the environment, culture and economy of donor and recipient basin. In this regard, one of the most important aspects are the positive and negative effects on the quality of groundwater in... more
Introduction: Inter-basin water transfer affects the environment, culture and economy of donor and recipient basin. In this regard, one of the most important aspects are the positive and negative effects on the quality of groundwater in the recipient basin.  Spatio-temporal changes of groundwater quality as the results of inter-basin water transfer, plays an important role in water resources management. Thus, this study attempts to investigate the temporal trends of groundwater quality parameters using Mann-Kendall test and Sen's slope estimator. In addition, spatial changes of groundwater quality and the effects of inter-basin water transfer were studied.
Materials and Methods: In this study, non-parametric methods and interpolation models were used to evaluate the  spatio-temporal patterns of groundwater quality parameters in the Yazd-Ardakan plain. Mann-Kendall nonparametric test and Sen's slope were used to examine the temporal trends in the span of 2000 to 2020. The interpolation models and groundwater quality index (GQI) were used to study the spatial patterns and classify the quality of groundwater. The assessment of quality parameters of all studied wells including Ca2+, Mg2+, Cl-, Na+, SO42- and TDS were studied in equal time periods. Groundwater quality measurements were performed twice a year using a volumetric method, one in spring and the other one in autumn. The World Health Organization (WHO) standard was considered to compare values of different parameters in the plain.
Results and Discussion: A decreasing trend was observed in SO42-, Na+ and TDS parameters in most wells and there was an increasing trend for Ca2+, Mg2+ and Cl- parameters. Considering WHO classification standard, all the studied parameters were in the allowable ranges except TDS. The parameter ranking showed that TDS, Cl- and Mg2+ had the greatest impact on the quality of aquifer groundwater. The Mg and TDS parameters had the highest and the lowest changes, respectively during 2000 to 2020. Results of the GQI showed that the total quality of the Yazd-Ardakan aquifer was in the moderate class and acceptable because of relatively large decrease in the groundwater in the span of the studied period. However, the decrease in groundwater quality was negligible. Changes of the quality map showed that the most negative quality changes were related to the Yazd, Taft, Meybod, Ardakan and northern regions (Chah-Afzal desert). This indicates high groundwater pumping in these areas and being located near the desert area. The most positive quality changes belonged to the central and southern part of the aquifer.
Conclusion: Comparison of the interpolation models showed that the geostatistical methods can show better results than the definitive methods in zoning groundwater quality parameters. The Kriging and IDW models were the best models and consistent with the results of the research. The quality of groundwater was acceptable, while the reduction in quality was very low and negligible in the Yazd-Ardakan aquifer during the studied period. The temporal trends of SO42-, Na+ and TDS had either a negative significant trend or no trend in the Yazd area. Considering ranking maps, TDS, Cl- and Mg2+ had high impacts on determining the GQI. These trends were positive in Yazd city and consequently the GQI maps could not confirm the negative temporal trend and zoning maps. This finding showed that the use of qualitative indicators could neutralize the effects of the parameters on each other and provide a better and acceptable result. In all, the transfer water with appropriate quality could control the increase of the TDS, SO42-, Na and caused an increase in Cl- in these areas. There are many effective factors to study water quality, so its description seems to be difficult. Therefore, using water quality indicators can provide total water quality conditions in a concise and understandable way.
Introduction: In Golestan province, despite the lack of water resources, traditional rice cultivation, a crop with high water consumption, is increasing due to economic justification. This issue has become one of the main problems of the... more
Introduction: In Golestan province, despite the lack of water resources, traditional rice cultivation, a crop with high water consumption, is increasing due to economic justification. This issue has become one of the main problems of the province's agricultural sector in recent years. In order to prepare the planting bed (puddled transplanting) in the traditional method of rice production, a significant amount of irrigation water is used before planting the seedlings in the main land. Moreover, the plant is in the water during the growing season, which causes high water losses by surface water evaporation and deep penetration. Rice direct seeding cultivation is a method that has been considered in the world for various reasons, including higher water productivity. Currently, reports indicate that more than 50% of groundwater resources are extracted and allocated annually for rice cultivation in the region investigated. In general, field information and observations indicate that the level of paddy cultivation is increasing in the province. In the past few decades, agricultural policymakers have sought to restrict and ban rice cultivation in the country, except in Gilan and Mazandaran provinces. The rationale behind this decision is high water consumption, declining groundwater aquifers and long-term instability of water resources. The developed strategy did not work effectively, as it did not consider the benefits of the farmers in the short run. The increasing trend in the area under paddy fields from 1995 to 1500 hectares per year shows the unsuccessfulness of this up-to-down strategy.
Materials and Methods: A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of rice cultivation and irrigation methods on yield, water consumption and water productivity over two rice cropping seasons (2019–2020) in northern Iran (Gorgan Agricultural Research Station). Irrigation method as the main factor in four levels (permanent flooding, intermittent as wet and dry, sprinkler, tape) and cultivation method in three levels (direct seed in dry bed, non-puddled transplanting and traditional transplanting) in the form of a strip design. The plot was based on a randomized complete block design with three replications. The applied water, yield and some yield components and water productivity were measured and calculated during the growing seasons.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that in all irrigation methods, yield was significantly reduced by changing the traditional seeding transplanting to dry seed. The amount of water applied in sprinkler and drip irrigation methods from traditional seedlings was significantly reduced as compared to direct seed seeding. Dry seed cultivation, however, consumed more water than traditional transplanting in the flood irrigation treatments (wet and dry and permanent). The highest yield (8206 kg/ha) was obtained for traditional seedling cultivation by flood irrigation, and no significant difference was observed between the yields for the other irrigation methods. In general, changing the irrigation systems had a greater effect on water consumption than changing the rice cultivation method. In addition, changing the cultivation method had a greater effect on changing the type of irrigation systems. In traditional transplanting cultivation, the yield decreased by about 14, 9 and 11%, respectively, by changing the irrigation systems from permanent flood irrigation to sprinkler, wet and dry, and drip irrigation. The highest water use was observed for flood irrigation method in direct seeding (12490 m3/ha) and direct transplanting (11967 m3/ha).
Conclusion: Currently, farmers cultivate rice by transplanting in padded land irrigated by flooding techniques in Golestan province, which results in high water consumption (about 13,000 m3/ha). By changing the irrigation method from flood irrigation to drip for traditional transplanting cultivation, water consumption decreased by about 39% and as a result water productivity increased by about 22%, albeit a 11% reduction in yield occurred. With the conversion of traditional transplanting seedling by flood irrigation to non-puddled transplanting by drip irrigation, the yield decreased by about 24% and the amount of water by about 45%, and water productivity in this case reached 0.9 kg/m3. This can be considered as the best alternative for conserving both water resources and production. If only reducing water consumption is the main priority (regardless of yield reduction), the best treatments are drip irrigation with direct seeding, non-puddled transplanting and then traditional seedling, respectively. If there is a sprinkler irrigation system in the field, this option is given priority in the direct seeding and non-puddled transplanting. If changing the irrigation system is not considered, the use of intermittent irrigation (as a wet and dry) with non-puddled transplanting, traditional methods and direct seeding are preferred, respectively.
Introduction: Prioritization of optimal water allocation of surface flow storage dams for different applications (drinking, agriculture, industry, environment, etc.) in arid and semi-arid regions such as Iran due to the range of changes,... more
Introduction: Prioritization of optimal water allocation of surface flow storage dams for different applications (drinking, agriculture, industry, environment, etc.) in arid and semi-arid regions such as Iran due to the range of changes, high flow uncertainty Reservoir inlets, and the occurrence of intermittent droughts are of great importance. For this purpose, the Fuzzy Hierarchy Process (FAHP) is proposed and used as a suitable formulation method in prioritizing water allocation in the water resources system. Therefore, in this study, prioritization of water allocation for different purposes of Shahrchai reservoir dam located upstream of Urmia metropolis has been done in a field study using fuzzy hierarchical method.
Materials and Methods: A fuzzy hierarchical process based on quantitative and qualitative effective factors has been developed. In the first stage, the problem structure was designed by determining the priority of water allocation of users, criteria, sub-criteria, and other factors. Then the decision-making hierarchy based on the problem structure (purpose, criteria, sub-criteria, factors, and options in the first to fifth levels, respectively) was defined. In the mentioned prioritization structure, the goal was determined at the first level, ie the optimal or appropriate allocation of Shahrchay reservoir dam water for different operators, and at the second level, three economic, social and environmental criteria were considered as the main criteria. At the third level, " cultivation area and gross income" and "employment and population" were considered as sub-criteria of two economic and social criteria, respectively. The main beneficiaries, namely agriculture, urban drinking, recreation and tourism, industry, environmental needs of Lake Urmia and groundwater fourth level (options) have formed the problem structure. At the next step, based on the field data or questionnaires, criteria, sub-criteria, and factors were compared in pairs using the proposed linguistic and fuzzy comparisons, and the priority of water consumption over each criterion or sub-criterion or factor were compared based on fuzzy triangular numbers. The weights were determined and ranked each using the Chang development method. At the third stage of the final ranking, the priority of water allocation was determined based on the final weight of criteria or priorities at the previous stage and the superior option was determined. Finally, a sensitivity analysis of the weight change of the criteria and the decision-making process of the problem has been performed.
Results and Discussion: A decision model based on a fuzzy approach is presented to rank the different options using Shahrchay dam water. For this purpose, firstly, using the opinions of experts and researchers, the results of a questionnaire, criteria and sub-criteria and important options in allocating water to Shahrchai Dam were determined. Secondly, using Chang's development analysis, different options were evaluated based on the mentioned criteria, sub-criteria, and factors. From a scientific point of view, because the questionnaires were presented to experts, the economic criterion is a high priority, so it is possible to attach great importance to the general conclusion about the criteria in economic attitudes and related issues. In addition, the allocation of water to the urban drinking sector with a weight of 0.33 was as the top priority, agriculture, Lake Urmia, industry, groundwater, and recreation were in the next priorities, respectively. Therefore, economic criteria and drinking water supply were recognized as the main objectives of planning and managing water resources in the metropolis of Urmia. The drinking sector is a vital factor for the survival of a community and because the drinking water of Urmia city is supplied through Shahrchai dam, so the allocation of water to this sector should be considered as the top priority. The agricultural sector was also given the second priority with less importance. The supply of water to this sector has a significant direct effect on the economy of the agricultural sector and indirectly on the entire economy of the region, which indicates the importance of the agricultural sector in the economy, living conditions of the region and the allocation of water to this sector. Comparing agricultural and industrial activities in Shahrchai catchment area, the most activity in the region is agriculture and industry is in a lower priority, which is also shown by the hierarchical results. Since Shahrchai River is one of the suppliers of water to Lake Urmia, the allocation of water to this section improves the condition of the lake and, consequently, it improves the environmental, economic, and social conditions of the region. The results also indicate the importance of Lake Urmia in relation to industry and its higher status indicates the attention of officials to the drying crisis of the Lake Urmia.
Introduction: Studies of the atmosphere over the last hundred years have shown that human activities have caused changes in the atmosphere. The tropopause is one of the layers of the atmosphere whose changes have recently been introduced... more
Introduction: Studies of the atmosphere over the last hundred years have shown that human activities have caused changes in the atmosphere. The tropopause is one of the layers of the atmosphere whose changes have recently been introduced as a sign of a human impact on climate change. The height of the tropopause is affected by its upper and lower layers (the stratosphere and troposphere). The results of the studies conducted by various researchers have shown that different factors affect the height of tropopause and its changes, which can be divided into two groups. The first group of natural factors (such as changes in solar radiation and weather due to volcanoes, etc.) and the second one is human factors (including changes in greenhouse gases, human-induced changes affecting the ozone of the stratosphere and the production of air vents from human resources, etc.). Thus, altitude tropopause is naturally influenced by spatial characteristics (e.g. latitude and altitude), time (such as the time of year and hours of the day) as well as the frequency of atmospheric actions that determine climatic conditions.
Materials and Methods: Compared to the studies performed globally, a limited number of studies concerning the tropopause have been conducted in Iran. Moreover, the applied methods and the length of the dataset were often inadequate. Therefore, in the present study, the daily data of temperature, and geopotential height from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) for 700 to 50 hpa with a spatial resolution of 0.25 × 0.25 longitude/latitude were applied from 1979 to 2018 for the detection of tropopause. Accordingly, 2491 cells covered across Iran. The LRT was used to detect tropopause. The tropopause is defined as ‘‘the lowest level at which the lapse-rate decreases to 2 ºC/km or less, provided that the average lapse-rate between this level and all higher levels within 2 km does not exceed 2 ºC /km”. In the present study, in addition to changing the position, changing the scale (variance) as well as the shape of the frequency distribution (skewness and elongation) of the tropopause pressure level in each of the pixels on Iran was investigated. To calculate skewness, and kurtosis, daily tropopause height data were used. For each of the months studied, diffraction, skewness, and elongation were extracted using daily data and finally using data during the 40 years. The extracted trends of variance, skewness, and kurtosis were examined for each month. To track the synchronicity and conformity of changes in altitude and trend of tropopause pressure level with the trend of changes in mean monthly temperature in the lower and upper levels of the tropopause and the trend of the temperature difference between the two layers around tropopause was also evaluated over 40 years. In order to evaluate the long-term trend of each of the studied indices (mean, variance, skewness, and kurtosis) in relation to the height and pressure level of the tropopause, linear regression method with least-squares error method was used.
Results and Discussion: The results of the study of altitude trend and tropopause pressure level showed that in most of the months studied and in most parts of the country, the trend of changes in tropopause pressure level was not significant at the level of 95% confidence. According to the results obtained for the winter months, it was found that the trend of a tropopause pressure level in December had no statistical significance over Iran at a 95% confidence level. In January and February, the obtained trend was not statistically significant except for southeastern areas. In the summer months, unlike the winter months, the trend of tropopause pressure levels was significant in most regions. During the summer months, in areas where the trend was significant, the trend of tropopause pressure levels was positive. Examination of the trend of tropopause height in terms of meters showed different results with pressure level. During the winter months, the trend was positive in all regions, and in January and February, this trend was significant in many areas, while the summer months did not exhibit a significant tropopause. The results of examining the trend of the low temperature of the tropopause in summer and winter months showed that the observed trend was not statistically significant in December, but in other months, a positive and significant trend was detected. Examination of the temperature trend in the high level of tropopause also showed that the temperature trend in this part of the atmosphere, like the low level of the tropopause in large parts of the country in the studied seasons, lacked statistical significance. Examination of the trend of the temperature difference between high and low levels also showed that the trend of the temperature difference between these two levels was statistically insignificant at the majority of cases. The temperature difference trend of the two levels studied in the summer months was negative and significant at most regions. In other words, the decrease in the temperature difference between low and high tropopause in these two seasons and in some areas indicates a strong decrease in tropopause. Examination of the trend of variance, kurtosis and skewness also showed that the observed trend lacked statistical significance in the two studied chapters at most areas. There was also no relationship between the surface temperature trend and changes in tropopause height.
Conclusion: The results of this study showed that tropopause had no statistically significant trend in most areas and months. Moreover, the significant trend was not related to the two temperatures around tropopause and surface temperatures.

Keywords: Cold season, Iran, Tropopause pressure level, Tropopause, Warm season
Introduction: Potential evaporation is the result of the combined effects of several meteorological elements, including air temperature, relative humidity (or vapor pressure for saturation), wind speed, sunshine hours and air pressure.... more
Introduction: Potential evaporation is the result of the combined effects of several meteorological elements, including air temperature, relative humidity (or vapor pressure for saturation), wind speed, sunshine hours and air pressure. The amount of potential evaporation depends on how these variables interact in each climate region. Potential evaporation response of each of these variables depends on the importance that variable plays in the environment. For example, in windy places, the importance of wind speeds in the potential evaporation rate increases relative to places with calm air. By changing each of these meteorological elements, while the rest of the elements react to the given change, the overall effect of these changes and reactions is reflected in the amount of potential evaporation. It is therefore obvious that the potential evaporation response to meteorological variables due to spatial and time variations of these variables is of a complex nature.
Materials and Methods: For this study, monthly data of air temperature, air pressure at sea level, wind speed, relative humidity and sunshine hours were used as independent variables and monthly data of evaporation pan at Tabriz Synoptic Station as response or dependent variable. In this study, firstly, the nonlinear and linear relationship between meteorological elements and potential evaporation were identified through Generalized Additive Model (GAM), MARSplines Model, and Generalized Linear Model (GLM), respectively. In the next step, by applying the simplex algorithm on the MARSplines model, the evaporation response gradient levels were determined individually for the meteorological variables. Also, to understand the process of pure evaporation response to each of these variables under different climatic conditions, first three weather conditions based on Tabriz Synoptic Station data were defined in three scenarios as S-1, S-2 and S-3. Then, by controlling and maintaining the meteorological variables under these three scenarios and combining the simplex algorithm with the MARSplines Model, the net evaporation reaction curves for the meteorological variables changes were evaluated.
Results and Discussion: The computational results show that in all combinations, the computational error of the GAM model is less than the GLM model. Also considering the significant variables in each model, the combination of temperature, pressure, wind speed and sunshine are considered as the best subset of the effective variables in the distribution of potential evaporation in both models. On the one hand, relative humidity in these two linear and nonlinear models, in combination with other variables, does not show a significant relationship with potential evaporation. The results of the graphs of Splin smoothing components of the GAM model show that the overall effect of temperature on the evaporation is incremental. But the unit amount of this effect increases with increasing temperature. The individual evaporation reaction against air temperature is similar to its combined reaction. It is thus clear that other meteorological variables do not play a significant role in the influence of air temperature on the evaporation gradient. The overall and hybrid effect of air pressure variations on the amount of evaporation is singular and decreasing. Instead, the individual effect of this variable on evaporation is very intense, decreasing, and partly linear. Therefore, the major influence of air pressure on evaporation in the environment is due to the performance of other variables that interfere with the relationship between these two variables. The evaporation hybrid response to wind velocity was also incremental, although the single and nonlinear evaporation response to wind velocity was not significant, but its tendency was to increase its slope with respect to wind velocity changes. Sunny hours also have a net effect on the amount of evaporation. However, the slope of the solitary effect of this variable, like wind speed, is more than its combined effect. Based on the GLM model results, except for relative humidity, the other variables have a significant linear effect on the potential evaporation. Evaporation response to changes in meteorological variables under S-1, S-2 and S-3 scenarios, while accurately determining the interaction of these variables in plotting absolute evaporation, implicitly implying the synergistic role of these variables in determining absolute evaporation. The lowest distance between the absolute values of evaporation under these three scenarios is related to air temperature, which implies less influence of air temperature than the other variables. That is, the effect of each of the meteorological variables on the amount of evaporation depends to a large extent on the relationship of this variable to other meteorological variables, if such a matter is less weighted for temperature.
Conclusion: The results of this study show that, except for air pressure, which has an increment-reducing effect on evaporation, other variables have only an incremental influence on evaporation and the intensity of this relationship has changed. This process has resulted in a nonlinear component in the relation of independent variables to evaporation. Since hybrid spline smoothing graphs determine evapotranspiration response to each of the predictor variables by eliminating the effect of other variables, therefore, consideration of the composition of these meteorological variables provides more accurate information on evaporation behavior against environmental changes. Through individually fitting evaporation against these meteorological elements, one cannot find how evaporation works against environmental changes. Comparing individual and combined evaporation responses to meteorological variables, while identifying the net effect of each of these variables, explains why evaporation responses within a given unit differ from changing meteorological variables over different times and locations.

Keywords: Evaporation, Hybrid model, Nonlinear, Scenario simplex algorithm, Smoothing component
Introduction: Drought is an extreme climate effect and a creeping phenomenon which directly affects the human life. A drought analysis usually requires characterizing drought severity, duration and frequency (SDF). These characteristic... more
Introduction: Drought is an extreme climate effect and a creeping phenomenon which directly affects the human life. A drought analysis usually requires characterizing drought severity, duration and frequency (SDF). These characteristic variables are commonly not independent, so this phenomenon is a complex natural disaster and climate change makes it likely to become more frequent and immense in many areas across the world. Therefore, in drought analysis, it is needed to investigate its multivariate nature and spatial variability clearly. Copula, as a model of multivariate distribution, has been used widely in hydrological studies. As the standardized precipitation index (SPI) is more accessible than other indices, it is the most commonly used indicators for analyzing the SDF of meteorological drought. Here, the study has two major focuses: 1) Fitting drought characteristics from SPI to appropriate copulas, then using fitted copulas to estimate conditional drought severity distribution and joint return periods for both historical and future time periods in Fars province. 2) Inquiring the effects of climate change on the frequency and severity of meteorological drought.
Materials and Methods: Among the weather stations of Fars province, six synoptic stations were selected, which had longer historical data than others. The data used included 24-hour precipitation during 15 (2004-2018) to 33 (1986-2018) years. Three steps were carried out. Stage one: downscaling of outputs of the large scaling (CanESM2) based on two intermediate (RCP4.5) and pessimistic (RCP8.5) scenarios using SDSM, ver. 4.2.9 during the period of 2020 to 2050. Stage two: calculation of SPI and drought characteristics in the base and future periods (2050-2020). Stage three: extracting SDF curves for the base and future periods under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios using copula. The SPI was used to extract the drought duration and drought severity in the Fars province using GCM models under two selected scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) from the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) scenarios. The gamble copula function was used to construct the joint distribution function for evaluating the drought return periods in the study area. Because short-term drought prediction is more practical than long-term prediction, we used the 1-month SPI for the copulas-based analysis. Drought severity and duration were calculated based on computed SPI values by using the past available data. Drought duration is defined as successive months with SPI value less than -1 and drought severity as the accumulative SPI value during the period with successive SPI value less than -1. The normal and log-normal functions were selected as the candidate distribution function for drought duration and drought severity.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the frequency of drought occurrence in the Fars province will increase during the period of 2020-2050 under the both two scenarios. In the RCP8.5 scenario, the duration of the drought will also increase. The increase and decrease of monthly rainfall in RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 were 2.8 and 6.5%, respectively. The duration of the drought were obtained to be 5.25, 5.5 and 6 days at Shiraz station, with a 2 and 5 years return period, in the baseline and future periods under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively. These values were estimated to be 4, 3.5 and 5 days at Bavanat Station. It is expected that the precipitation will decrease at Shiraz station under the two scenarios. Similarly, this amount is expected to increase and decrease at Bavanet station in the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively.
Conclusion: Changing droughts based on climate change is important in many aspects. In this study, the performance of two-variable statistical distribution of severity and duration of drought was investigated based on the copula function. The comparison of the drought period calculated using the SPI showed that due to the climate change, the frequency of drought periods is expected to increase in the base and future periods. The results showed that the value of the precipitation changes in the RCP8.5 scenario is higher than the RCP4.5 scenario. Generally, the performance criteria showed that the SDSM had a good performance for the past and the future periods in Fars province for precipitation data. It is expected that with consideration of the amendments in the sixth report of the IPCC, more precision can be obtained in precipitation modeling. Therefore, reviewing the output of the SDF curves with the availability of the results of this report is suggested.

Keywords: Drought period, SDSM, Severity–duration–frequency curve, Standardized Precipitation Index
Introduction: The behavior of daily changes in temperature is not straightforward. We first drew the curve of this variable on a normal day. It can be seen that the distribution of this variable was not normal. The curve of this variable... more
Introduction: The behavior of daily changes in temperature is not straightforward. We first drew the curve of this variable on a normal day. It can be seen that the distribution of this variable was not normal. The curve of this variable was a skewed curve to the right. Therefore, the equal coefficients could be used only as approximation for estimating daily average temperature. Climatic conditions of the meteorological stations were also another parameter to be considered. This research presents a new method for estimating daily average of temperature in three climatic regions of Iran. The patterns for the sample stations in each climatic region were presented separately.
Materials and Methods: E. Eccel (2012) developed algorithms to simulate the relative humidity of the minimum daily temperature in 23 weather stations in the ALP region of Italy. In this research, the base pattern was calibrated by temperature and precipitation measurement.
Ephrath, et al. (1996) developed a method for the calculation of diurnal patterns of air temperature, wind speed, global radiation and relative humidity from available daily data. During the day, air temperature was calculated by:
(1)

(2)


where S (t): Dimensionless function of time, DL: Day Length h, LSH: the time of maximum solar high h, ta: Current air Temperature, P: the delay in air Tmax with respect to LSH h.
Farzandi, et al. (2012) presented more accurate patterns for estimating daily relative humidity from humidity of Iranian local standard hours and daily precipitation variables, the minimum, maximum and average daily temperature in coastal regions. The purpose was to present linear and nonlinear patterns of daily relative humidity separately for different months (12 patterns) and annually in coastal regions (the Caspian Sea, the Persian Gulf, and the Oman Sea). Rezaee-Pazhand, et al. (2008) introduced new patterns for estimating daily average temperature in arid and semiarid regions of Iran. Final pattern has interception and new coefficients for estimate daily average of temperature.
(3)

Veleva, et al. (1996) showed that the atmospheric temperature-humidity complex (T-HC) of sites located in a tropical humid climate cannot be well characterized by annual average values. Better information is given by the systematic study of daily changes of temperature (T) and relative humidity (RH), which can be modeled with linear and parabolic functions. Farzandi et al. (2011) divided Iran into three climatic clusters used in the present work. First a classification which provides climatological clustering. This clustering was used the data of annual relative humidity, temperature, precipitation, altitude, range of temperature, evaporation and three indices of De Martonne, Ivanov and Thornthwaite. Iran was partitioned into three clusters i.e. coastal areas, mountainous range and arid and semi-arid zone. Several clustering methods were used and around method was found to be the best. Cophenetic correlation coefficient and Silhouette width were validation indices. Homogeneity and Heterogeneity tests for each cluster were done by L-moments. The “R”, software packages were used for clustering and validation testes. Finally clustering map of Iran was prepared using “GIS”. The data of 149 synoptic stations were used for this analysis. Systematic sampling was done to select sample stations. The linear regression model was fitted after screening and data preparation. A model was presented for estimating daily average of temperature in each climatic region and sampling stations in each cluster. The best models were presented by reviewing the required statistics and analyzing the residuals. The calibration and comparison of the presented patterns in this paper with commonly applied models were undertaken to calculate the mean squared error. “SPSS.22” software was used for analysis.
Results and Discussion: The coefficient of determination (R2) and the Fisher statistics show that the patterns have a good ability to estimate the daily average of temperature. The daily average temperature pattern confirmed an interception in the equations. Standardized coefficients showed that predictor variables were not weighted in all of the patterns. The average values of the residuals in each pattern was zero. According to the graphs, stabilization of variance can be seen based on the residual on each pattern in each cluster. The mean squared error  is a measure of the applicability of patterns. The accuracy of the estimating daily average temperature by the recommended models in three climates was confirmed by calculating the mean squared error. The proposed patterns of this study had less error than common patterns.  Thus, the patterns have a good ability to estimate daily average temperature.
Conclusion: The maximum temperature in calculating daily average of temperature is more effective than the minimum temperature. The standardized coefficient (Beta) of the daily average temperature patterns in coastal cluster was 48.2% for the minimum temperature and 51.8% for the maximum temperature. The largest influence of the maximum temperature was 63.1% in mountainous cluster for estimating daily average temperature. Range of the interception in the equations was from -1.735 to 0.26. The independent assumption of the residual was confirmed with the acceptable value of Durbin-Watson statistics. The average of the residuals in each patterns was zero. According to the graphs stabilization of variance can be seen based on the residual on the each pattern in each cluster. The proposed patterns were calculated according to mathematical principles but the common patterns did not consider these mathematical principles. The mean squared error (MSE) of the proposed patterns are less than common patterns. Therefore, the patterns presented in this study are more powerful than common patterns. The largest difference between the proposed patterns and the common patterns for estimate the daily average of temperature was 24% in mountainous cluster. Climatic clustering was done for states.  The monthly and annual average temperature can be reliably estimated by using the data of sample stations in each state. These findings can be used to estimate daily, monthly and annual average of relative humidity in three climates and sample stations. In addition, one can employ the method for estimating daily, monthly and annual average of relative humidity and temperature based on around climatological clustering of Iran and other stations. Annual relative humidity, temperature, precipitation, altitude, range of temperature, evaporation can also be applied to estimate daily, monthly and annual average of temperature and relative humidity more accurately.

Keywords: Daily average of temperature, Maximum temperature, Minimum temperature, Regression model, Systematic sampling
Introduction: Awareness of the physical, chemical and biological quality of soil in agriculture and natural resources is essential for optimal land management and achieving maximum economic productivity. Soil has various functions,... more
Introduction: Awareness of the physical, chemical and biological quality of soil in agriculture and natural resources is essential for optimal land management and achieving maximum economic productivity. Soil has various functions, including crop production ability, carbon storage, water retention, nutrient cycling, water filtering and etc. Thereby, the quality of soils can be taken into consideration depended on the purpose of their use. The soil quality indices are often regional; therefore, a set of indices cannot be used consistently to determine soil quality in all areas. In this study, the Nemero Soil Quality Index (NQI), the Weighted Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIw), and the Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIa) were determined using the total data set (TDS) and minimum data set (MDS) and the impact of properties affecting the soil quality and the yield of irrigated wheat were investigated, in Nazarabad region.
Materials and Methods: This study was carried out in 26000 hectares of Nazarabad agricultural lands, known as an area with irrigated farms in western Alborz province. The Nazarabad area was sub-divided into a network consisting of 95 squires of 1650 m × 1650 m. The surface soil (0-30 cm) was sampled from the farms located in the middle of each squire (9+5 soil samples from 95 farms) and the irrigated wheat was sampled from 32 farms. Then, soil physical properties including sand, silt, and clay percentages, soil structural stability (MWD), bulk density (BD), particle density, soil porosity (F), field capacity (FC) and permanent wilting point (PWP), available water (AW), saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and soil chemical properties including salinity (EC), pH, organic matter (OM), equivalent calcium carbonate (TNV), available phosphorus )Pava(, available potassium )Kava(, sodium absorption ratio (SAR) and soil microbial respiration (SMR) were measured. Effective properties on soil quality were selected using SPSS 24 by principal component analysis method (PCA). For this purpose, components with Eigen values greater than one were selected and in each component, properties with high loading coefficient up to 10% lower than the highest loading coefficient were selected MDS affecting soil quality. Then, the Nemero Soil Quality Index (NQI), the Weighted Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIw) and Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIa) were determined using TDS and MDS. For validating soil quality indices, the correlation between the yield of irrigated wheat and NQI, IQIa and IQIw indices were determined in MDS and TDS.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the correlation between the soil quality indices (NQI, SQIw and SQIa( using TDS and MDS were significant (p <0.01). In addition, a significant correlation was observed between methods of MDS and TDS in IQIw (r=0.76), IQIa (r=0.73) and NQI (r=0.68) indices. According to the results, there was a significant correlation (p <0.01) between the yield of irrigated wheat and IQIw (r=0.68), IQIa (r=0.67) and NQI (r=0.62) using MDS method; and using TDS method this correlation values were 0.61, 0.58 and 0.58, respectively. The results indicated that using NQI, SQIw and SQIa indices based on MDS, 42, 57 and 57% of the study area were in very high quality category and 29, 25 and 24% were in high quality category, respectively. However, using NQI, SQIw and SQIa indices based on TDS, 16, 16 and 18% of the study area were in very high quality class and 42, 39 and 45% were in high quality class, respectively.
Conclusion: The results showed that in Nazarabad region, the yield of irrigated wheat was affected by texture, Pava, B, SAR, Bd and TNV. There was no significant difference between IQIw and IQIa and NQI indices. In addition, the correlation between soil quality indices based on MDS and total data set was significant, and the correlation between the yield of irrigated wheat and the soil quality indices was stronger while using MDS rather than the use of TDS. Therefore, it seems that the use of MDS is more appropriate due to better results and fewer properties and less cost. According to the results obtained from Nazarabad region using NQI and SQIw indices, nearly 82% and 72% of the area are in the very high and high quality class, about 6% and 8% are in the moderate quality class and about 7% are in very low and low quality class, respectively. The studied area is less restricted in terms of physical properties such as soil texture and bulk density. Consequently, due to the high quality of soils in Nazarabad region, it is possible to improve the yield of wheat by proper management

Keywords: Additive soil quality index, Nemero Quality Index, Principal component analysis, The yield of wheat
Introduction: Awareness of the physical, chemical and biological quality of soil in agriculture and natural resources is essential for optimal land management and achieving maximum economic productivity. Soil has various functions,... more
Introduction: Awareness of the physical, chemical and biological quality of soil in agriculture and natural resources is essential for optimal land management and achieving maximum economic productivity. Soil has various functions, including crop production ability, carbon storage, water retention, nutrient cycling, water filtering and etc. Thereby, the quality of soils can be taken into consideration depended on the purpose of their use. The soil quality indices are often regional; therefore, a set of indices cannot be used consistently to determine soil quality in all areas. In this study, the Nemero Soil Quality Index (NQI), the Weighted Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIw), and the Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIa) were determined using the total data set (TDS) and minimum data set (MDS) and the impact of properties affecting the soil quality and the yield of irrigated wheat were investigated, in Nazarabad region.
Materials and Methods: This study was carried out in 26000 hectares of Nazarabad agricultural lands, known as an area with irrigated farms in western Alborz province. The Nazarabad area was sub-divided into a network consisting of 95 squires of 1650 m × 1650 m. The surface soil (0-30 cm) was sampled from the farms located in the middle of each squire (9+5 soil samples from 95 farms) and the irrigated wheat was sampled from 32 farms. Then, soil physical properties including sand, silt, and clay percentages, soil structural stability (MWD), bulk density (BD), particle density, soil porosity (F), field capacity (FC) and permanent wilting point (PWP), available water (AW), saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and soil chemical properties including salinity (EC), pH, organic matter (OM), equivalent calcium carbonate (TNV), available phosphorus )Pava(, available potassium )Kava(, sodium absorption ratio (SAR) and soil microbial respiration (SMR) were measured. Effective properties on soil quality were selected using SPSS 24 by principal component analysis method (PCA). For this purpose, components with Eigen values greater than one were selected and in each component, properties with high loading coefficient up to 10% lower than the highest loading coefficient were selected MDS affecting soil quality. Then, the Nemero Soil Quality Index (NQI), the Weighted Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIw) and Additive Soil Quality Index (SQIa) were determined using TDS and MDS. For validating soil quality indices, the correlation between the yield of irrigated wheat and NQI, IQIa and IQIw indices were determined in MDS and TDS.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that the correlation between the soil quality indices (NQI, SQIw and SQIa( using TDS and MDS were significant (p <0.01). In addition, a significant correlation was observed between methods of MDS and TDS in IQIw (r=0.76), IQIa (r=0.73) and NQI (r=0.68) indices. According to the results, there was a significant correlation (p <0.01) between the yield of irrigated wheat and IQIw (r=0.68), IQIa (r=0.67) and NQI (r=0.62) using MDS method; and using TDS method this correlation values were 0.61, 0.58 and 0.58, respectively. The results indicated that using NQI, SQIw and SQIa indices based on MDS, 42, 57 and 57% of the study area were in very high quality category and 29, 25 and 24% were in high quality category, respectively. However, using NQI, SQIw and SQIa indices based on TDS, 16, 16 and 18% of the study area were in very high quality class and 42, 39 and 45% were in high quality class, respectively.
Conclusion: The results showed that in Nazarabad region, the yield of irrigated wheat was affected by texture, Pava, B, SAR, Bd and TNV. There was no significant difference between IQIw and IQIa and NQI indices. In addition, the correlation between soil quality indices based on MDS and total data set was significant, and the correlation between the yield of irrigated wheat and the soil quality indices was stronger while using MDS rather than the use of TDS. Therefore, it seems that the use of MDS is more appropriate due to better results and fewer properties and less cost. According to the results obtained from Nazarabad region using NQI and SQIw indices, nearly 82% and 72% of the area are in the very high and high quality class, about 6% and 8% are in the moderate quality class and about 7% are in very low and low quality class, respectively. The studied area is less restricted in terms of physical properties such as soil texture and bulk density. Consequently, due to the high quality of soils in Nazarabad region, it is possible to improve the yield of wheat by proper management

Keywords: Additive soil quality index, Nemero Quality Index, Principal component analysis, The yield of wheat
Introduction: Calcareous soils are described as soils containing quantities of calcium carbonate which have an enormously effect on the soil properties (physical, consisting of soil water relations and soil crusting, or chemical... more
Introduction: Calcareous soils are described as soils containing quantities of calcium carbonate which have an enormously effect on the soil properties (physical, consisting of soil water relations and soil crusting, or chemical consisting of the availability of plant nutrients) and plant growth. Calcareous soils arise clearly in arid and semi-arid areas due to rare precipitation and little leaching. It has been evaluated that these soils contain over one-third of the world's surface zone and their CaCO3 content ranged from a few to 95%. Calcareous soils faced many challenges such as shortage of organic matter, low structure stability, low water holding capacity, low CEC, high pH, surface crusting and cracking and great infiltration rate which cause loss of essential plant nutrients via leaching or deep percolation. Another problem in calcareous soils is low availability of plant nutrients particularly phosphorous and micronutrients specially zinc, iron and manganese, and a nutritional imbalance between elements such as potassium, magnesium and calcium. Although a calcareous soil is dominated by free lime, it could also incorporate large quantities of iron, aluminum, and manganese. These metals provide more strong sorption sites for phosphorus and are mostly more significant in controlling phosphorus solubility in calcareous soils than calcium carbonate itself. Under such severe conditions, desired yield levels are difficult to attain. Calcareous soils lack the organic matter required for optimal crop yield. Therefore, numerous studies have made efforts to increase the availability of nutrients in the soils through different treatments. Common methods for dealing with these deficiencies, is the use of chemical fertilizers that have the risk of environmental pollution in addition to the high cost and low efficiency. Oxidation of sulfur leads to sulfuric acid formation which can decrease the soil pH and increase dissolution of insoluble soil minerals and release of essential plant nutrients. Furthermore, the addition of organic amendments improves the soil chemical and physical properties, initiates nutrient cycling, and provides a functioning environment for vegetation.
Materials and Methods: The objective of this research was to increase solubility of nutrient elements in a calcareous soil considering nine treatments (i.e., control (Blank), Soil + Humic Acid (HA), Soil + Sulfuric Acid (H2SO4 ), Soil + Thiobacillus (T), Soil + Sulphur (Sº), Soil + Sulphur + Thiobacillus (Sº +T), Soil + Vermicompost (VC), Soil + Vermicompost + Thiobacillus (VC+T) and Soil + Sulphur + Vermicompost + Thiobacillus (Sº +VC+T)). The experimental design was factorial arrangement in randomized complete block, with all the treatments replicated three times. All the treatments were incubated under the laboratory condition for 90 days in 25 ± 2 °C and 70% of water holding capacity by distilled water. During the incubation period, the moisture of the samples was kept at 70% FC by daily addition of deionized water based on weight loss. At the end of incubation period the pH value, electrical conductivity (EC), available form of macro elements (K, P and N) and micro elements (Zn, Mn, Fe and Cu) were determined in all treatments by standard methods.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that, the soil pH value significantly decreased in Sº+T and Sº+VC+T treatments, in com\pared to the blank. While, the EC of these treatments significantly increased with respect to the blank. The results also showed that most of the treatments have been able to increase the solubility of the nutrients. However, the effect of Sº +VC+T treatment on increasing the availability of studied soil nutrients and decreasing pH value was more significant than the other treatments.
Conclusion: Analysis of  the results obtained from this study using classical statistic methods showed that applying a single treatment cannot remove all obstacles to increase nutrient availability in calcareous soils. This may be attributed to high buffering capacity of calcareous soils and complexity of factors which control mineral solubility and nutrient availability. While, treatments that simultaneously provide soil organic matter and lower pH (such as Sº+VC+T) can significantly remove barriers to increase nutrient uptake in these soils. As a result, the simultaneous application of organic fertilizers, elemental sulfur and Thiobacillus bacteria can be a promising approach to increase the solubility of nutrients in calcareous soils and to increase the quantitative and qualitative growth of plants in these soils.

Keywords: Calcareous soils, Humic acid, Sulphur, Thiobacillus bacteria, Availability of nutrient elements, Vermicompost
Introduction: Today, soil pollution is an important environmental issue that should be taken into account. Industrial activities cause pollution and accumulation of heavy metals in the soil. Soil pollution significantly reduces the... more
Introduction: Today, soil pollution is an important environmental issue that should be taken into account. Industrial activities cause pollution and accumulation of heavy metals in the soil. Soil pollution significantly reduces the quality of the environment and threatens human health. Heavy metals are one of the most important pollutants in the environment, which has received a lot of attention in recent decades. Heavy metal pollution is a serious problem in developing countries and urban areas. Among heavy metals, lead is found in large amounts in the Earth's crust, which has several effects on human health and the environment. Lead is a non-essential element for the plants and one of the most important pollutants, which is toxic even at very low concentrations. Its presence in the culture medium has a negative effect on germination rate, water status in the plant, dry root weight and aerial part of the plant, photosynthesis, absorption of nutrients and enzymatic activity. Much research has been done to use alternative and modern methods to clean the environment of heavy elements. One way to stabilize heavy metals in the soil is to use biochar. Due to its cation exchange capacity and high specific surface area, biochar is able to reduce the pollution caused by organic pollutants and heavy metals, stabilize heavy metals and improve the condition of plants and soil in terms of pollution. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of modified biochars rice husk and almond soft husk on lead desorption kinetics in contaminated calcareous soil.
Materials and Methods: To conduct this research, a sufficient amount of soil from a depth of zero to 30 cm was collected from the farm of Shahid Bahonar Agricultural College in Kerman. Physical and chemical properties of the studied soil were measured after air drying and passing through a 2 mm sieve. To prepare the biochars (rice husk and almond soft husk), the residues, after collection, were air-dried and ground and then packaged in aluminum foil to limit the oxygenation process. They were then placed in an oven at 500 0C for four hours to produce a charcoal called biochar. Also, to prepare the modified biochar (NaOH and HNO3), one gram of biochar was added to 100 ml of distilled water and then 10 ml of concentrated acid (or 10 g of alkali) was added to it. Stirring at 60 0C for 24 hours. Finally, it was filtered using a centrifuge and washed several times with distilled water to neutralize the pH. The produced powder was dried at 70 0C for 24 hours. The lead desorption kinetics experiment was studied at several times (5, 15, 30, 60, 120, 240, 480, 960, 1440 and 2880 minutes) in two levels of biochar (0 and 4 wt %) and three levels of lead (0, 300 and 600 mg kg-1), which were incubated for 5 months under field moisture in a greenhouse.
Results and Discussion: The kinetics results showed that the desorption of lead has the same pattern in all the time studied. Early rapid desorption occurred in the early desorption times (initial 30 minutes) followed by low-velocity desorption (8 hours) and finally, equilibrium was observed in the treated and control samples. The significant difference between the amount of lead released from the treated soils and control indicated a positive effect of both used engineered biochars on reducing lead desorption. The highest amount of lead desorption was observed in soil without biochar, while the lowest desorption rate occurred in treatments of rice husk and almond soft husk modified by sodium hydroxide. The application of modified biochar rice husk highly reduced lead desorption, compared to modified biochar almond soft husk.
Conclusion: According to the results, the modified biochar with sodium hydroxide caused a significant reduction in lead desorption compared to other treatments, and this reduction was more in biochar rice husk than the almond soft husk one. It can be stated that rice husk biochar has been more successful than almond soft husk biochar due to its more porous structure and cation exchange capacity. Among the equations used for lead desorption estimation, the two-constant rate equation was selected as the best model for data fit due to high explanatory coefficient (R2) and low standard error (SE). According to the above, the use of biochar can be recommended as a modifier in lead contaminated soils.

Keywords: Almond soft husk, Lead, Nitric acid, Rice husk, Sodium hydroxide
Introduction: Freezing-Thawing (FT) cycle is one of the processes that affects runoff generation. It is therefore necessary to control its negative effects due to specific topographic and climatic situation of Iran. However, there is no... more
Introduction: Freezing-Thawing (FT) cycle is one of the processes that affects runoff generation. It is therefore necessary to control its negative effects due to specific topographic and climatic situation of Iran. However, there is no documented research about positive effects of vegetation cover on controlling detrimental effects of (FT) cycle yet. The present study aimed to explain the affectability of runoff generation from vegetation cover in small experimental plots under FT cycle.
Materials and Methods: In order to conduct this study, the soil was collected from Badranlou region located in 10 km west of Bojnourd in north Khorasan province. In this study, iron plots with Plexiglas walls with high ability to withstand lateral stresses and thermal insulation with dimensions of 0.5×0.5 m and a height of 0.3 m and a gradient of 20 percent in accordance with the general slope of the maternal area of the soil were used. The soil was passed from 4 mm sieve after air drying and then was placed in the prepared plots. Thirty plots were prepared for the entire selected plants species and transferred to the greenhouse and three species of A. trichophorum, M. sativa and L. prenne were planted. The species were then allowed until completing the main part of the phenological stages to maximally mimic the natural conditions governing the region. A FT cycle including three days of freezing and two consequent days of thawing and rainfall simulation with 72 mm h-1 in 30 min in three plots with vegetation cover was formulated similar to the study area situation. The entire experiments were conducted in three replicates. Similar control plots were also arranged for comparison purposes. Runoff components were measured in two minutes (three-time steps after runoff), three minutes (three second steps), five minutes until the end of the incident (three last steps) and five minutes after the end of the event. After measuring and recording the amount of runoff generation at the end of each rain event, the total amount of runoff generation in different treatments of rangeland species under FT cycle was recorded.
Results and Discussion: The result showed that the treated plots of M. sativa, A. trichophorum, and L. prenne significantly (P<0.05) reduced runoff generation by 0.97, 0.72 and 0.32 times compared with control treatments, respectively. The different effects of L. prenne and A. trichophorum species on runoff generation under the freeze-thaw cycles was confirmed. However, M. sativa did not have significant effect in reducing the amount of runoff generation compared with the control. The effect of FT cycle due to performance of ice lenses and formation of active melting layer in the soil surface was controlled owing to the presence of litter and adhesion of the surface layer of soil under treatments of M.sativa, A.trichophorum and L.Prenne. Besides, according to the measurement unlike the M. sativa, the main parts of root in two gramineae species of A. trichophorum and L. prenne were distributed superficially and caused more cohesion and improvement in soil aggregation. The runoff generation reduced in the presence of L. prenne more than the other two species. Based on the different studies, the percentage of fiber in gramineae species is more than broad-leaved species. Therefore, the presence of more fiber in A. trichophorum and L. prenne litters and subsequently their more resilience can be an effective factor in the relative reduction of runoff generation. In addition, the results of the study showed that the presence of vegetation on the soil surface increased the accumulation of fine grains on the soil surface and, if the soil remains intact, increases the stability of the soil structure. The accumulation of fine crops in the soil creates a large network of small roots in the soil and the soil particles become more adhesive. Due to the presence of the small roots in L. prenne species, there is the soil greater adhesion and further reduction of runoff in the presence of this plant.
Conclusion: The results of this study verified that plant cultivation can have significant effects on reducing runoff. In this regard, Lolium prenne had maximum benefit on reduction of runoff and soil loss induced by FT cycle due to better formation of superficial root system.

Keywords: Freezing-thawing cycle, Rangeland species, Runoff, Soil loss