Effects of Rice Husk Charcoal on Growth and Yield Potential of Two Rice Varieties under Saline Soil Condition

Abstract

Saline soil is one of the major threats to plant production since physical and chemical properties of such a soil are unsuitable for plant growth. Hence, technologies have been developed to improve soil fertility under saline conditions. Rice husk charcoal has received much attention as a means to improve soil fertility and increase crop yield. The present study investigated the effects of rice husk charcoal and cow manure on increasing the growth and yield efficiency of two rice varieties under saline soil conditions. The experiments were conducted in a greenhouse using a completely randomized experimental design with 4 replications. Rice husk charcoal or cow manure was added at rice transplanting phase in comparison with the sole use of saline soil as follows: 1) saline soil alone, 2) rice husk charcoal at 600 kg/rai, 3) rice husk charcoal at 900 kg/rai, 4) cow manure fertilizer at 600 kg/rai and 5) cow manure fertilizer at 900 kg/rai. KDML 105 and line UBN02124-RGDU-MAS-192-2-5-5 salinity tolerance rice varieties were used. The results showed that the salinity tolerance variety exhibited higher survival rate than KDML 105. All organic material amendments resulted in higher survival rates than with no amendment. However, rice yield was more strongly affected by the soil salinity in the case of KDML-105 than in the case of the salinity tolerance variety. The applications of rice husk charcoal, both at 600 and 900 kg/rai, resulted in the highest KDML 105 rice grain yield (2.18 and 2.28 g/stem, respectively). In the case of salinity tolerance variety, rice husk charcoal at 900 kg/rai amendment resulted in a higher yield of quality rice than cow manure fertilizer at 900 kg/rai, which although resulted in a higher grain yield, led to a lower percentage of full seeds. These results illustrated that rice husk charcoal amendment could effectively increase plant nutrient use. Using organic materials to improve saline soil for rice production under saline conditions should be implemented by adding adequate nutrient materials in combination with rice husk charcoal to increase adsorption and improve chemical properties of saline soil.