PROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF MAGNETIC WATER TECHNOLOGY IN ALLEVIATING SALINITY STRESS ON GROWTH, YIELD AND BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES OF BARLEY (Hordeum vulgare, L.)

Background and Objective: Magnetic water technology is one of the promising techniques. It used to improve water and crop productivity throughout soil desalinization that assist plants in alleviating salinity stress via improving the plant antioxidative protection system.

Materials and Methods: A field trial conducted to evaluate the capability of magnetized field in improving the growth, physiological and biochemical aspects and yield attributes of barley varieties (Giza-123, Giza-128 and Giza-2000) using two magnetized brackish water sources.

Results: Irrigation with the two magnetically treated brackish-water sources surpassed irrigation with non-magnetized brackish water in all growth parameters. Giza-2000 variety gave the highest values for growth characters followed by Giza-128 and Giza-123, respectively. The three barley varieties gave more values in some Macro- and micro-elements in dry barley shoot with both magnetized brackish water than those irrigated with none-magnetized one. Irrigation with both magnetized brackish-water induced significant improvement in yield parameters reached 13.43% in plant height, 23.53% in number of spikes/m2, 10.60% in spike length, 15.11% in spike weight, 10.98% in grains weight/spike, 5.10% in number of spikelets/spike and 10.87 in 100–grains weight. Nutritive parameters in barley grains under irrigation with both magnetized brackish-water significantly increased than irrigation with non-magnetized one. Giza-2000 variety came in the first order for producing more values in the nutritive parameters.

Conclusively: Irrigation of the three barley varieties with magnetic-brackish water improved the yield parameters compared with irrigation with brackish-water with superiority of Giza-2000 variety in most tested parameters.