Field experiments were conducted at the experimental farm of El-Karada water management research station, Kafr El-Sheikh Governorate during 2008 and 2009 summer seasons to study the impact of farm water management on the cotton yield and economic benefit for irrigation water unit. To attain this goal, different methods of planting and different irrigation treatments were investigated on the Giza 86 v. cotton. A split – plot design with four replicates were used, the main – plots were furrow and bed (ridge) planting methods. While , four irrigation treatments were allocated in the sub-plots , which were irrigation at FC % ,90 % FC ,85 % FC and 80 % FC . The main results in this study can be summarized as follows: -
The bed planting method had the minimum values of water applied and water consumptive use compared with the furrow planting method for all irrigation treatments. Using the bed planting method instead of furrow planting method saved about 396 m3 per fed (15.6%) with irrigation at 80 % FC.
The maximum values of crop coefficient crop and field water use efficiencies, seed cotton yield and net profit for water unit had been obtained with the bed planting method for all irrigation treatments and two growing seasons. But, the minimum values had been given with the furrow planting method for all different irrigation treatments.
The data also indicated that irrigation treatments had significant effect on the traits under study , where 80 % FC irrigation treatment gave the minimum values of water applied , water consumptive use and net profit for water applied unit compared with the other different irrigation treatment for two planting methods .
Respecting the crop and field water use efficiencies in addition to crop coefficient, the irrigation at 80 % FC recorded the maximum values compared with the other irrigation treatments for two different planting methods.
Interactions between planting methods and water applied treatments were significantly. Where as the minimum values of water applied 2151.2 m3/fed, water consumptive use 1576 m3/feddan and cost of water applied unit (0.34 LE/m3 and 1314 LE/Fed) had been obtained with the bed planting method and irrigation at 80 % FC. On the other hand, the maximum values of crop coefficient (0.67), field and crop water efficiencies (0.52 and 0.72 kg/m3) had been achieved with the bed planting method and irrigation at 80 % FC.