The low productivity of saline water irrigation is the main factor limiting the expansion of their use in agriculture. For this purpose, a pot experiment was conducted outdoor at the Experimental Station of the Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University aiming to evaluate the protective effect of humic acid and compost extract (water, EDTA or KOH) application on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and onion (Allium cepa L.) grown under salinity stress in a sandy soil. Saline water irrigation at concentration of 2.1dS m-1 for lettuce and 1.8 dS m-1 for onion was compared with freshwater irrigation as the control treatment. Results showed that saline water irrigation led to a significant reduction in yield characteristics and NPK concentrations in lettuce and onion as compared with the control treatment. The ameliorative effect of humic acid application led to maximize the investigated parameters as compared with the un-amended treatment. Compost extracts had a protective effect against salinity stress with superiority to EDTA-extracted compost. The combined application of humic acid with EDTA-extracted compost was the optimum treatment for reducing the harmful effect associated with irrigation with saline water resources. Finding from this study suggested that the complementary approach for salinity stress management should be focused on phyllosphere beside rhizosphere.