Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2, 1–12, Ljubljana 2025 doi:10.14720/aas.2025.121.2.18513 Original research article / izvirni znanstveni članek Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation Khalil AHMED 1, 2, Muhammad Faisal NAWAZ 1, Ghulam QADIR 1, Hafeezullah RAFA 1, Amar Iqbal SAQIB 1, Muhammad SARFRAZ 1, Muhammad SHAKAR 1, Muhammad Zaighum MUSHTAQ 3, Muhammad RIZWAN 1, Muhammad Qaisar NAWAZ 1, Received April 03, 2024, accepted April 08, 2025 Delo je prispelo 3. april 2024, sprejeto 8. april 2025 1 Soil salinity research institute Pindi Bhattian, Pakistan 2 Corresponding author, e-mail: khalilahmeduaf@gmail.com 3 Biochemistry section, post harvest research centre, AARI Faisalabad, Pakistan. Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation Abstract: A trial was designed to study the deleterious ef- fect of high RSC water on soil properties under rice-mustard crop rotation. Treatments included were; T1: high RSC water, T2: gypsum on the basis of RSC of water, T3: H2SO4 on the basis of RSC of water, T4: green manuring with guar, T5: farm yard manure (FYM) at the rate of 10 t. ha-1. For irrigation tube well water having (electrical conductivity (EC) 1.37 dS m-1, sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) 8.40 (mmol l-1)1/2 and RSC 7.85 me l-1) was used. The results revealed that lowest paddy (2.22 t ha−1) and grain yield (1.00 t ha−1) of rice and mustard were recorded when irrigated with high RSC water. In case of soil analysis, long-term use of high RSC water induces secondary salinity by increasing pH (1.92 %), EC (5.73 %) and SAR (35.71 %) over their initial values. Harmful effects of high RSC water were thwarted by all the treatments; however, positive effects of gyp- sum were more visible that increased crop growth and grain yield of rice-mustard crops by promoting soil properties. Gyp- sum recorded the highest paddy and grain yield (3.66 t ha−1, 1.70 t ha−1) of rice and mustard crop and decreased soil pHs (4.98 %), ECe (29.93 %) and SAR (54.54 %) over their initial values. Key words: residual sodium carbonate, rice, mustard, sa- linity, sodic water, gypsum, sulfuric acid, guar Učinek velikih vsebnosti rezidualnega natrijevega karbonata (RSC) v vodi in dodatkov na lastnosti tal v kolobarju riža in gorjušice Izvleček: Poskus je bil izveden z namenom preučiti škodljive učinke velikih vsebnosti natrijeva karbonata na last- nosti tal v kolobarju riža in gorjušice. Obravnavanja so bila; T1: velika vsebnost RSC v vodi, T2: dodatek sadre vodi z veliko vsebnostjo RSC, T3: dodatek H2SO4 vodi z veliko vsebnostjo RSC , T4: zeleno gnojenje z guarom, T5: dodatek hlevskega gnoja (FYM) v odmerku 10 t ha-1. Za namakanje je bila up- orabljena voda iz vodnjakov naslednjih lastnosti: električna prevodnost (EC 1.37 dS m-1), razmerje adsorbiranega natrija (SAR; 8.40 mmol l-1)1/2 in RSC 7.85 me l-1). Rezultati so poka- zali, da je bil najmanjši pridelek biomase (2,22 t ha−1) in zrnja (1,00 t ha−1) v kolobarju riža in gorjušice pri zalivanju z RSC vodo. Analize tal so pokazale, da je dolgotrajno namakanje z RSC vodo povzročilo sekundarno salinizacijo s povečanjem pH (1,92 %), EC (5,73 %) in SAR (35,71 %) glede na začetne vred- nosti. Škodljivi učinki namakanja z vodo z veliko vsebnostjo rezidualnega natrijeva karbonata so bili oblaženi z vsemi ob- ravnavanji vendar je bil največji pozitivni učinek opažen pri do- datku sadre zaradi izboljšanja lastnosti tal, kar je povečalo rast poljščin in pridelek zrnja riža v kolobarju riža z gorjušico. Do- datek sadre je dal največji pridelek biomase in zrnja riža (3,66 t ha−1, 1,70 t ha−1), zmanjšal pH (4,98 %), električno prevodnost (ECe ; 29,93 %) in SAR (54,54 %) glede na njihove izhodiščne vrednosti. Ključne besede: rezidualni natrijev karbonat, riž, gorjušica, slanost, slana voda, sadra, žveplena kislina, guar Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 20252 K. AHMED et al. 1 INTRODUCTION Freshwater resources has long played a critical role in production and cultivation of agricultural crops throughout history, it is primarily used as 75 % in global agriculture (Assouline et al., 2015). However, increas- ing population, industrial productions and agricultural expansion has led the huge difference between supply and demand of freshwater resources and most of the countries of the world are facing shortage of fresh water resources (Gilbert, 2018). In recent years, global warm- ing, inadequate rainfall, droughts and strong wind under climate change scenario further aggravated water scar- city and poses a great challenge to food safety and hu- man health (Kummu et al., 2010). So, to solve the prob- lem of global water deficit, new technical measures are being developed in the utilization of non-conventional water resources (Chen et al., 2016). Underground poor- quality water has emerged as potential alternative way source of irrigation that could relive the water pressure, almost 27 countries are utilizing underground brackish water for agricultural crops (Zhu et al., 2021). Irrigated agriculture is the primary source of Pakistan’s economy and groundwater is a big source primarily used to meet the > 40 % of countries irrigational requirements but un- fortunately 70-75  % of underground is of poor quality (Cheema et al., 2014). Brackish water irrigation changes the soil physical, chemicals and structural properties. It has been reported that irrigating with poor quality wa- ter reduces soil permeability (Li et al., 2018), increased soil electrical conductivity (Yang et al., 2020) and inter- fere with nutrient uptake (Chen et al., 2018). Sodic wa- ter may degrade the soil porosity from 8.8 to 12.5 % and 7.4–13.8 %, and bulk density from 7.4–13.8 % (Öztürk et al., 2023). Poor quality water also has a direct effect on the morphophysiological of plant (Viana et al., 2021). Water with high soluble salts and Na content may cre- ate drought conditions in rhizosphere, inhibiting water uptake, limited CO2 assimilation, stomatal closure and disrupting photosynthetic activity (Leite et al., 2017; Sá et al., 2018). Yang et al. (2020) irrigated cotton crop with saline water (1g·l−1, 3g·l−1, 6g·L−1, 9 g·l−1 and 12 g l−1). They reported that saline water causes secondary soil salini- zation by increasing salts in rootzone, soil pH increases but the cotton yield decreases as salt content increased in saline water. Similarly, it is reported by Wiedenfeld (2008) that water having EC (3.4 dS m-1) used to irrigate the sugarcane crop results in 17 % reduction in cane and sugar yield. Arora et al. (2018) studied the results of tap water having EC (0.7 dS m-1), alkli water (RSC) of 2.5 and 10 me l-1) and saline water (EC 5.0 and 10 dS m-1) on growth and grain yield performance of rice-wheat crops. They reported that alkali water builds up soil sodicity by increasing soil pH and exchangeable sodium percentage. While maximum grain mortality in rice-wheat crop was recorded when irrigation with saline water of EC (10 dS m-1) was done. Brackish water is rich source of beneficial micro- nutrients and short-term irrigation did not obviously deteriorate the soil health and can improve the quality and yield of crops (Jin et al., 2016). However, long-term brackish water irrigation may cause non-salinized soil to transform into salinized soil due to accumulation of cer- tain toxic ions in root zone that lead to serious crop yield reduction and huge changes in the physico-chemical properties of the soil (Lee et al., 2016; Cao et al., 2016; Tahtouh et al., 2019). Therefore, secondary soil saliniza- tion is mainly determined by amount and kind of dis- solved salt content of poor-quality water and utilization of brackish water has become a new problem to solve. Therefore, long run utilization of low-quality water needs to be investigated and appropriate protective measures need to framed that inhibit soil salt accumulation in soil. The damaging effect of brackish water on soil and crops can be alleviated by suitable agronomic practices, exog- enous hormone regulation, proper nutrient management and application of inorganic and organic amendments that accelerate leaching of toxic salts from root zone. Gypsum application is an inexpensive, easy to handle and effective strategy that alleviate salt stress on crops by adequately leaching toxic ion from rootzone brought by brackish water into the soil (Wang and Yang, 2017). Gyp- sum releases sufficient amount of soluble Ca2+ to replace Na+ from exchange site (Wang et al., 2017; Koralegedaraa et al., 2019). Five-year application of gypsum improves forage yield of corn, alfalfa and emergence ratios of mi- gnonettes (Wang et al., 2017). Qadir et al. (2019) evalu- ated the effect of gypsum (100 % on the basis of RSC of water), H2SO4 (50 % on the basis of RSC of water) poultry manure (10 t ha-1) and press mud (10 t ha-1) to counteract the detrimental effect of brackish water {EC = 1.17 dS m-1, SAR = 6.75 and RSC = 5.30 me l-1} on growth and yield of cotton and wheat crops. They reported that gyp- sum was most effective amendments to prevent second- ary salinization by improving ECe, pHs and SAR and cre- ate favorable soil condition for wheat and cotton crops. Rashmi et al. (2024) reported that gypsum application at the rate of 2.5 t ha-1 + FYM at rate of10 t ha-1 resulted a reduction of 45–48 % in exchangeable sodium percent- age and 3–6 % in bulk density of sodic soil leading to higher crop yield in soybean (1.21 Mg ha-1) and mustard (1.39 Mg ha-1). Green manuring with leguminous crops is very careful and effective sustainable means to prevent soil sa- linization. Short-lived plants with low C:N ratio decom- posed easily and demonstrate positive impacts on soil Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 2025 3 Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation health by enhancing soil fertility status, improve water holding capacity, aeration and inhibit soil salt accumula- tion (Shah et al., 2011). Incorporation of sesbania in salt affected soils during rice-wheat crop rotation improved soil salinity and sodicity indices and grain yield of both crops (Rizwan et al., 2018). Green manuring with guar and sesbania had positive effect on soil health by up-lift- ing nitrogen, phosphorus and organic carbon contents, improved water holding capacity, aeration, porosity, and microbial activities (Ibrahim et al., 2000; Shindo and Ni- shio, 2005). Reduction in fresh water resources of country force farming community to explore poor-quality under- ground water, therefore in our study we used high RSC water to explore its effect on physicochemical properties of the soil and to develop a feasible preventive measure to control secondary salinization and ensure crop growth. 2 MATERIALS AND METHODS 2.1 SITE DESCRIPTION The present study was conducted for four years (2016-20), following rice-mustard crop rotation, at SSRI, Pindi Bhattian, Punjab, Pakistan located at latitude 31.8950° N and longitude 73.2706° E). A field (Table 1) {(pHs = 8.82, ECe = 4.71 dS m -1, sodium adsorption ratio = 26.82 (mmol l-1)1/2, hydraulic conductivity = 0.67 cm hr-1 and bulk density = 1.37 Mg m-3} was selected and prepared. An experiment was laid out in RCBD arrange- ment with four replications using plot size 6 x 4 m2. Dur- ing the period of (2016-20), the mean weather conditions were: sunshine hours ranging from 14h and 8 min to 7 h and 36 min, relative humidity ranges from 36.2 ± 2.8 % to 73.2 ± 4.8 % and temperature 14.5 ± 2.5 °C minimum temperature and 42.6 ± 3.5 °C maximum temperature. 2.2 TREATMENTS AND CROP ROTATION The treatments applied were: T1 = high RSC tube well water (No amendement), T2 = gypsum application on the basis of RSC of tube well water, T3 = H2SO4 appli- cation on the basis of RSC of tube well water, T4 = green manuring with guar, T5 = FYM @ 10 t ha -1. Cluster bean or locally known as guar (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub.) seed @ 50 kg ha-1 was sown in 2nd week of May and incorporated after 45 days of sowing in respective treat- ment plots. Gypsum (30 mesh size, 80 % pure, 1 kg/plot/ year) and FYM (Total N (%) 0.96, Total P2O5 (%) 0.27, Total K (%) 0.75 and pH 7.88, 24 Kg/plot/ year) were ap- plied one-month prior rice transplanting followed by ir- rigation and H2SO4 (96  % pure, 0.3 l/plot) was applied with every irrigation. Amendments were applied once in a year before transplanting of rice. Poor-quality ground water with high residual sodium carbonate pumped from tub well located at study site was used for all treatments (Table 2). On average 16 irrigations for rice and 4 irriga- tions for mustard crop at the rate of 7.5 cm were applied in each season. During Kharif season, rice (‘Shaheen Basmati’) nursery at the age of 30 days was shifted in the field dur- ing second week of July and during Rabi season, mus- tard crop (Brassica Juncea ?Khanpur Raya’) was sown during November. Fertilizers @150-85-60 and 70-70- 60 NPK (kg ha-1) was broadcasted to rice and mustard crops. Phosphatic and potassium fertilizers were applied as basal dose and nitrogen was broadcasted in three in- stallments. Other cultural and plant protection measures were taken equally when required. Data regarding crop growth and yield was recorded and crops harvested at maturity. 2.3 SOIL AND WATER ANALYSIS Composite soil samples were collected. Samples were air dried, ground, sieved and stored in bottles after the harvest of every crop and analyzed for pH, ECe, SAR, hydraulic conductivity and bulk density using U.S. Sa- linity Laboratory Staff (1954). Soil pH of saturated paste was measured through pH meter (Microcomputer pH- vision cole parmer model 05669-20). Conductivity meter (WTW conduktometer LF 191) was used to measure the EC of water and soil extract. Na+ contents were meas- ured using flame photometer (digiflame code DV 710) and Ca2+, Mg2+ were measured through titration. Sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) was calculated as follows where ionic concentration of the saturation extracts is given in mmole l-1. SAR = Na+ / [(Ca2++ Mg2+)/2]1/2. Hydrometer method (Bedaiwy, 2012) was used for textural class de- termination. CO3 2- and HCO3 - were determined via titra- tion with standard H2SO4. Residual sodium carbonate (RSC) was calculated by (Eaton, 1950) as follows: RSC= (CO3 2- and HCO3 -)- (Ca2++ Mg2+). 2.4 STATISTICAL ANALYSES Recorded crop data was subjected to analysis of variance. Treatment means comparison was calculated by LSD Test at 5  % probability level (Steel et al., 1997) using STATISTIX 8.1 package software. Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 20254 K. AHMED et al. 3 RESULTS 3.1 EFFECTS OF HIGH RSC WATER AND AMENDMENTS ON SOIL PROPERTIES Soil analysis data revealed that long term use of high RSC water negatively affected the soil properties while all the remedial strategies used considerably improved the soil physico-chemical properties. Irrigation with high RSC water resulted a gradual increase in soil pHs value at the end of every season and after four years of experimen- tation an increase of 1.92 % over initial soil pHs value was observed with continuous use of high RSC water (Table 3). Meanwhile, all the remedial strategies thwarted the negative impact of high RSC water and significantly in- fluenced soil pHs. From the treatments maximum reduc- tion of 5.44 % in pHs was recorded with H2SO4 followed by gypsum (4.98 %), whereas, FYM and green manuring reduces the pHs value by 3.17 % and 3.06 % respectively at the end of experiment. Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil electric conductivity ECe is shown in (Table 4). Data indicated that soluble salts are brought into soil with continuous irrigation with high RSC water and salt accumulated in the upper soil surface, therefore an increase of 5.73 % in ECe with respect to initial value was recorded in control treatments at the end of study. However, at the same time amendments application can prevent the salt accumulation in top soil by accelerating the salt leaching process. Maximum improvement in soil salinity status was observed with gypsum application as a reduction of 54.54  % in ECe was noted in this treat- ment. While H2SO4, guar and FYM showed a reduction of 49.40  %, 41.05  %, 46.71  % respectively in ECe over initial value at the end of experiment. Similar trend was recorded in the case of soil SAR, irrigation with high RSC water (7.85 me l-1) without any amendment elevated soil SAR by 35.71 % at the end of experimentation as com- pared to initial value (Table 5). Whereas, SAR was un- der safe range (≤  15) in all other treatments receiving amendments. It was observed that maximum reduction in soil SAR (54.54 %) was for gypsum followed by H2SO4 (49.40  %), while Guar and FYM recorded a reduction Parameter Value Units Electrical conductivity of soil extract (ECe) 4.71 (dS m -1) pH of soil saturated paste (pHs) 8.82 - Sodium absorption ratio (SAR) 26.82 (mmol l-1)1/2 Hydraulic conductivity (HC) 0.67 (cm hr-1) Bulk density (BD) 1.37 (Mg m-3) Available phosphorus 8.50 mg kg-1 Organic matter 0.62 % Available potassium 105 mg kg-1 Textural class sandy loam - Parameters Value Units Electrical conductivity of irrigation water (ECiw ) 1.37 (dS m -1) Sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) 8.4 (mmole l -1)1/2 Residual sodium carbonate (RSC) 7.85 (me l-1) Total dissolved solids (TDS) 877 (mg l-1) CO3 2- Nill (me l-1) HCO3- 11.25 (me l-1) Ca2+ + Mg2+ 3.40 (me l-1) Na+ 10.93 (me l-1) Cl- 4.0 (me l-1) Table 1: Initial soil analysis Table 2: Water Analysis Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 2025 5 Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation Treatments 1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year + % increase or -%decrease over initial value High RSC water 8.84 8.90 8.96 8.99 (+1.92) Gypsum @ RSC of water 8.58 8.46 8.41 8.38 (-4.98) H2SO4 @ RSC of water 8.57 8.46 8.39 8.34 (-5.44) Green manuring with guar 8.72 8.68 8.66 8.55 (-3.06) FYM @ 10 t ha-1 8.70 8.65 8.61 8.54 (-3.17) Table 3: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil pHs Treatments 1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year +% increase or -% decrease over ini- tial value High RSC water 4.75 4.81 4.85 4.98 (+5.73) Gypsum @ RSC of water 3.48 3.37 3.32 3.30 (-29.93) H2SO4 @ RSC of water 3.87 3.84 3.79 3.70 (-21.44) Green manuring with guar 3.91 3.87 3.85 3.80 (-19.32) FYM @ 10 t ha-1 3.92 3.86 3.81 3.76 (-20.16) Treatments 1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year +% increase or -% decrease over initial value High RSC water 30.70 32.20 33.50 36.40 (+35.71) Gypsum @ RSC of water 16.80 15.30 14.40 12.19 (-54.54) H2SO4 @ RSC of water 17.65 16.40 15.30 13.57 (-49.40) Green manuring with guar 19.40 17.80 17.50 15.81 (-41.05) FYM @ 10 t. ha-1 18.20 17.30 16.80 14.29 (-46.71) Table 5: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil SAR Table 4: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil ECe of 41.05 % and 46.71 % respectively compared to initial value of SAR. Among physical properties, soil bulk density (BD) slightly increased (8.02 %) with continuous irrigation of high RSC water, whereas it decreased by all the applied amendments. BD decreased (about 15.32  %) with gyp- sum application, whereas, H2SO4, Guar and FYM showed a reduction of 14.59 %, 10.94 % and 11.67 % respectively (Table 6). On contrary, an opposite trend was observed in case of HC. Upon irrigation with high RSC water a reduction of 11.94 % was noted but at the same time gyp- sum and H2SO4 surpassed the hydraulic conductivity by an increase of 26.86 % and 25.37 % respectively over its initial value (Table 7). 3.2 EFFECT OF HIGH RSC WATER AND AMEND- MENTS ON GROWTH AND PADDY YIELD OF RICE Analysis of four years pooled data showed that use of high RSC water significantly (p < 0.05) affected the rice crop growth while simultaneously all the amendments thwarted the detrimental effects of high RSC water (Ta- ble 8). As far as plant height of rice crop was concerned Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 20256 K. AHMED et al. maximum plant height (135.33 cm) was observed with application of gypsum application on RSC basis followed by sulphuric acid application. Farm yard manure @ 10 t ha-1 and green manuring with guar were statistically (p < 0.05) non-significant. While, least plant height (124.00 cm) was recorded in treatment where field was irrigated with high RSC water without any amendment. Produc- tive tiller data showed that maximum productive tiller/ m2 (235.33) was observed by H2SO4 application followed by gypsum on of RSC basis, however, both amendments were non-significant (p < 0.05) from each other (Table 8). High RSC water adversely affected productive tillers and lower numbers of productive tiller were recorded with use of high RSC water (220). Gypsum and H2SO4 produced the highest panicle length (16.66 cm) that was statistically (p < 0.05) non-significant with other treat- ments and minimum panicle length was noted in control (Table 8). Paddy yield was also significantly influenced by different treatments, data in Table 9 revealed that amend- ments had pronounced effect on yield attribute and all the organic and inorganic amendments exhibited an an- tistress effect against deleterious impact of high RSC wa- ter (Table 9). Gypsum application on RSC basis produces significantly (p < 0.05) more paddy yield (3.66 t ha−1) which was similar with H2SO4 application on the basis of RSC of water (3.62 t ha−1) followed by FYM @ 10 t ha-1 (3.35 t ha−1) and green manuring with guar (3.20 t ha−1). High RSC water irrigation without any amendment re- sulted minimum paddy yield of 2.22 t ha−1. Same trend was recorded for straw yield and 1000 grain mass (Table 9). Gypsum application recorded the highest mean value for straw (7.96 t ha−1) and 1000 grain mass (28.33 g) how- ever, difference was non-significant with H2SO4 applica- tion. On contrary lower mean value for straw (4.16 t ha−1) and 1000 grain mass (19.66 g) was divulged in control plot irrigated with high RSC water. 3.3 EFFECT OF HIGH RSC WATER AND AMEND- MENTS ON GROWTH AND YIELD OF MUS- TARD Information in Table 10 & 11 showed that use of amendment relieves the drastic effects of high RSC wa- ter on growth and yield of mustard crop. An obvious increased in plant height of mustard was observed with use of amendments (Table 10). Maximum plant height (155 cm) and number of branches/plant (26.66) were ob- served with gypsum application; however, values were at par (p < 0.05) with H2SO4 followed by green manuring with guar. While minimum plant height (119.33 cm) and number of branches/plant (17.33) were observed in con- Treatments 1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year +% increase or -% decrease over initial value High RSC water 0.66 0.64 0.60 0.59 (-11.94) Gypsum @ RSC of water 0.72 0.77 0.81 0.85 (+26.86) H2SO4 @ RSC of water 0.72 0.76 0.79 0.84 (+25.37) Green manuring with guar 0.71 0.73 0.75 0.76 (+13.43) FYM @ 10 t ha-1 0.70 0.73 0.76 0.78 (+16.41) Table 6: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil bulk density Treatments 1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year +% increase or -% decrease over initial value High RSC water 1.37 1.41 1.46 1.48 (+8.02) Gypsum @ RSC of water 1.28 1.22 1.19 1.16 (-15.32) H2SO4 @ RSC of water 1.27 1.24 1.22 1.17 (-14.59) Green manuring with guar 1.34 1.29 1.26 1.22 (-10.94) FYM @ 10 t ha-1 1.33 1.29 1.25 1.21 (-11.67) Table 7: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on soil hydraulic conductivity Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 2025 7 Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation trol. Similarly, the highest pods plant-1 (258) and grains pods-1 (13) were produced with gypsum application while, irrigation with high RSC water negatively affect- ed these attributes and recorded minimum pods plant-1 (227.33) and grains pods-1 (7.33). Data showed (Table 11) that the highest grain yield (1.70 t ha−1) and 1000-grain mass (8.81 g) was recorded with gypsum application on RSC basis which was statistically (p < 0.05) at par with H2SO4 application on RSC basis followed by FYM @ 10 t ha-1, which was at par with green manuring with guar. While minimum grain yield (1.0 t ha−1) and 1000-grain weight (6.06 g) were recorded in control (brackish water). 4 DISCUSSION 4.1 EFFECT OF HIGH RSC WATER ON SOIL PROPERTIES Fresh water resources of the country are not enough to meet the agricultural requirements because of increased cropping intensity and drought condition. Therefore, use of unconventional water resources in ad- dition to fresh water resources is necessary and ground water pumping is need of the time. However, under- ground water is generally inferior to canal water and may vary in quality depending upon type and quantity of dis- solved salts. So, there is need for development and adop- tion of such technologies that can ensure the safe utiliza- tion of low-quality water and prevent the salt deposition. Therefore, an attempt has been made to study the harm- ful effects of high RSC water and efficiency of different amendments on physico-chemical properties of soil for rice-mustard rotation. Continuous use of high RSC water without any amendment slightly increased the electrical conductiv- ity, it was obvious effect of dissolved salts in high RSC water that accumulated in top soil due to lack of leaching and upward movement caused by soil evaporation and induces secondary salinization (Huo et al., 2017; Yang et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2019). A build of salt load in surface soil was also reported by Arora et al. (2018) in rice-wheat cropping system when irrigated with saline Treatments Plant height (cm) Number of productive tillers (m−2) Panicle length (cm) High RSC water 124.00 D 220.00 C 12.66 B Gypsum @ RSC of water 135.33 A 232.67 A 16.66 A H2SO4 @ RSC of water 133.00 B 235.33 A 16.66 A Green manuring with guar 128.33 C 227.00 B 15.33 A FYM @ 10 t ha-1 129.33 C 225.00 B 14.66 AB Treatments Paddy yield (t ha−1) Straw yield (t ha−1) 1000-grain mass (g) High RSC water 2.22 C 4.16 D 19.66 D Gypsum @ RSC of water 3.66 A 7.96 A 28.33 A H2SO4 @ RSC of water 3.62 A 7.70 AB 27.00 AB Green manuring with guar 3.20 B 6.93 C 23.66 C FYM @ 10 t ha-1 3.35 B 7.03 BC 24.66 BC Table 8: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on rice growth (Average of four seasons) Different letters in the same column indicate significant differences by LSD at p ≤ 0.05 Table 9: Effect of high RSC water on and amendments rice growth (Average of four seasons) Different letters in the same column indicate significant differences by LSD at p ≤ 0.05 Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 20258 K. AHMED et al. and alkali water. A rise in pH was also noted in this treat- ment, a possible reason for this increment was presence of HCO3 - and Na+ in applied irrigation water which led to increase in pH (Jalali and Ranjbar 2009; He et al., 2018). Similar results were recorded earlier by Choudhary et al. (2011) that long-term use of high RSC alkali water (12.5 me l-1) increased soil pH by 2.2 units under rice-wheat rotation in Punjab. Similarly (Yang et al., 2020) reported an increase of 0.37 unit in soil pH with irrigation of 12 g l-1 brackish water treatment. Nearly similar trend was observed in case of SAR, that increased 35.71 % from its initial value. These results were supported by earlier find- ings that application of sodic and saline water without any preventive measures increased the sodicity of soil and de- teriorate soil physical properties (Bajwa and Choudhary, 2014; Mwubahaman et al., 2024). High residual alka- linityof irrigation water had adverse effect of sodification due to high exchangeable sodium contents as compared to exchangeable calcium and magnesium (Choudhary et al., 2011; Arora et al., 2018). similar results were recorded by Liu et al. (2018) that irrigation with saline water (3 g l-1) increased soil pH value, ESP, and SAR. Adverse effects of low-quality water on chemical properties were directly translated into soil physical properties. Soil bulk density was negatively influenced by continuous use of high RSC water and increased by 8.02 % from its initial value. This increase in bulk density may be attributed to, Na replac- es Ca from exchange sites which causes soil dispersion (Qadir and Schubert, 2002; Kahlon et al., 2012; Qadir et al., 2001). HC was negatively related with water sodic- ity, high Na+ contents in irrigation water deteriorate soil structure, cause dispersion of soil aggregates and block soil pores thus reducing hydraulic conductivity (Wu and Wang, 2010; Kang et al., 2014). 4.2 EFFECT OF AMENDMENTS ON SOIL PROP- ERTIES It is clear from results that addition of amendments counteracted the detrimental effects induced by long term use of low-quality water and prevent the accumula- tion of salts in upper surface layers. All the amendments substantially improved physico-chemicals properties of soil; however, beneficial effects of gypsum were more vis- ible than all others treatments. Salinity indices pH, EC, and SAR were significantly improved by gypsum applica- tion as compared to their initial values. These positives effects of gypsum could be due to that high amount of Ca2+ replaces the exchangeable Na+ on the exchange site and leaching it out from root zone (Sharma and Minhas, 2005). Sufficient leaching of Na+ leads to lower values of pH, EC, and SAR, furthermore, replacement of hy- drated monovalent Na+ by divalent Ca2+, increased soil aggregation and reorganized soil structure subsequently improved the soil bulk density and hydraulic conductiv- Treatments Plant height (cm) Number of branches plant-1 Number of pods plant-1 High RSC water 119.33 C 17.33 C 227.33 D Gypsum @ RSC of water 155.00 A 26.66 A 258.00 A H2SO4 @ RSC of water 153.33 A 24.33 AB 250.00 AB Green manuring with guar 137.67 B 21.33 BC 240.67 C FYM @ 10 t ha-1 135.00 B 20.66 BC 248.33 BC Table 10: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on mustard growth (Average of four seasons) Different letters in the same column indicate significant differences by LSD at p ≤ 0.05 Treatments Number of grains pods-1 Grain yield (t ha−1) 1000-grain mass (g) High RSC water 7.33 D 1.00 C 6.06 B Gypsum @ RSC of water 13.00 A 1.70 A 8.81 A H2SO4 @ RSC of water 11.33 B 1.68 A 8.79 A Green manuring with guar 9.00 C 1.35 B 7.01 B FYM @ 10 t ha-1 9.66 C 1.38 B 7.49 AB Table 11: Effect of high RSC water and amendments on mustard growth (Average of four seasons) Different letters in the same column indicate significant differences by LSD at p ≤ 0.05 Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 2025 9 Effect of high residual sodium carbonat (RSC) water and amendments on soil properties under rice-mustard (Brassica juncea ‘Khanpur Raya’) rotation ity. Similar results were reported by Amer and Hashem (2018) that application of only gypsum and along-with with other amendments improved soil physico-chemi- cals properties like infiltration rate, soil porosity, bulk density, EC and SAR. Gypsum application is a rapid, vi- able and effective approach for improving pH, EC, and ESP of sodic soils (Koralegedaraa et al., 2019; Yong-gan et al., 2021). Previous studies demonstrated that posi- tive effects of gypsum on soil physico-chemicals proper- ties may remained from 12 to 17 years (Tirado-Corbalá et al., 2019; Zhao et al., 2019). H2SO4 also significantly improved soil salinity indices (pH, EC, and SAR), BD and HC. H2SO4 is an indirect source of Ca 2+ in calcare- ous soils, it reacts with the native CaCO3 and releases Ca2+ in the soil solution that probably replaced the Na+ from exchange sites (Abdelhamid et al.,2013). Conse- quently, soil phyico-chemical properties were improved after leaching of Na+ and dissolved salts from the root zone. Comparable outcomes were observed by Qadir et al., (2019) that H2SO4 @ 50 % application on RSC basis counteracted negative effects of brackish (5.30 me l-1) water and improved soil properties and cotton-wheat yield. Shaaban, et al. (2013) in a field study also con- cluded that H2SO4 was the best of the amendments for decreasing damaging effects of saline irrigation water and enhancing the productivity and quality of rice crop grown on saline soil. Use of organic amendments like FYM and green manuring is also an effective measure against sodicity build up in soil (Pang et al., 2010). Organic matter after decomposition release CO2 and organic acids that decreased the precipitation of Ca2+, displace Na+ on the exchange site, accelerate leaching of soluble salts leading to a decline in pH, EC, and SAR (Liu et al., 2017; Ahmad et al., 2018; Ding et al., 2019). Leaching of larger Na+ enhanced soil structure stabil- ity and improved soil bulk density and hydraulic con- ductivity (Hammer et al., 2015; Ding et al., 2019). Ding et al. (2019) stated that organic amendments could be successfully used to mitigate the soil salinity and to im- prove soil physico-chemical properties. Similar results were recorded by Yang et al. (2019) that straw incorpo- ration decreased the BD by 1.6 %–4.7 %, in the 0-30 cm soil layer. 4.3 CROPS GROWTH AND YIELD Parameters like growth and yield of rice and mus- tard crops were meaningfully influenced by all treat- ments. Irrigation with high RSC water significantly re- duced plant height, grain yield and 1000-grain mass of rice and mustard crop as compared to other treatments. Reduction in growth and yield contributing parameters may be associated with accumulation of salts with con- stant use of low-quality water that deteriorate the phys- ico-chemical properties of soil. Secondary salinization in root zone reduces absorption of water by crops, re- sults ion toxicity, nutritional imbalance, affect stomatal conductance and photosynthetic activity (Rahm et al., 2018; Wang et al., 2019; Munns and Tester, 2008; Sá et al., 2019). Similar, results were observed by Praxedes et al. (2022) that saline water (4.5 dS m-1) irrigation may reduce grain yield from 26 % to 54 % in cowpea. Alkali water (10.0 me l-1) reduced grain yield of rice up to 87 % in saline soil (Arora et al., 2018). Gypsum application not only counteracted negative effects of high RSC water but also showed the highest value for most of the stud- ied parameters of rice and mustard crops. Better crops growth performance may be corelated with ameliorat- ing gypsum effects on soil properties. Gypsum applica- tion increased soil organic matter (Wang et al., 2017), improved nutritional status of soil and microbial activ- ity (Zhao et al., 2019; Ekholm et al., 2024), these fac- tors promote plant growth and subsequently final grain yield. Previous studies also demonstrated the improved yield in barley and rice (Amer and Hashem, 2018) and alfalfa (Yong-gan et al., 2021) with gypsum application in salt-affected soil. H2SO4 mobilizes the native CaCO3 of soil and provides Ca in soil solution, which in turn alleviate the ill effect of high RSC water and improved physico-chemical properties. Consequently, crop took the advantages of improved soil conditions in this treat- ment and produced more yield over control. H2SO4 @ 50 % application on RSC basis counteracted negative ef- fects of high RSC (5.30 me l-1) water and improved soil properties and cotton-wheat yield (Qadir et al., 2019). Shaaban, et al. (2013) in a field study also concluded that H2SO4 was best of the amendments for decreasing damaging effects of saline irrigation water and enhanc- ing the productivity and quality of rice crop grown on saline soil. Green manuring and FYM application also improved all the yield traits as compared to control. Ad- dition of organic matter also improved microbial activi- ties, soil organic matter and other properties (Urbaniak et al., 2017). Organic matter alleviated the adverse of high RSC water by increasing chelation of toxic Na, wa- ter holding capacity of soil and improved soil BD and HC (Liu et al., 2017). Rice and mustard crops were ben- efited by these positive effects of organic matter on soil environment leading to increased grain yield and other agronomic attributes. Ding et al. (2020) suggested that addition of organic matter is a successful management approach for improving the nutrient uptake and wheat productivity in salt-affected soil which reinforced our findings. Acta agriculturae Slovenica, 121/2 – 202510 K. AHMED et al. 5 CONCLUSION Findings of the current study highlighted that long- term use of high RSC water could deposit the salts and induce secondary salinity by increasing pH, EC and SAR which adversely affected the growth and yield of rice and mustard crops. Harmful effects of high RSC water were thwarted by all amendments and can be used as preven- tive measures against salinity-sodicity development. Among all amendments, positive effects of gypsum were more visible that increased growth and yield of rice- mustard crops by promoting soil properties. Efficiency of different amendments to alleviate adverse effects of high RSC water can be arranged as such gypsum> H2SO4 > FYM > green manuring with guar. Therefore, it is recom- mended that farmers should apply gypsum on the basis of RSC of water for safe use of poor-quality high RSC water. 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