Soil Temperature Dynamics under Subsurface Water Retention in Light-textured Soils
Zahraa Khaled Kamel Al-Salihi *
Department of Soil Sciences and Water Resources, College of Agriculture, University of Wasit, Iraq.
Ali Jawad Kadhim Al-Saraji
Department of Soil Sciences and Water Resources, College of Agriculture, University of Wasit, Iraq.
Afrah Mahdi Salih
Department of Soil Sciences and Water Resources, College of Agriculture, University of Wasit, Iraq.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
A field experiment was conducted during the spring season of 2024 to investigate the temporal thermal distribution in the water retention treatment, compare it to other management treatments, and examine the thermal variation with depth in coarse-textured soil. The field soil had a sandy loam texture and flat topography, classified into a subgroup of typical torpsamms according to Soil Taxonomy (19). The experiment was designed according to a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with four replicates and four treatments: water retention, organic matter, tillage, and no-tillage. The treatments were randomly distributed and white corn was planted. The results showed that soil temperatures increased from a depth of 0.15 m and increased with depth. When comparing the water retention treatments T1 with the tillage treatment (control), the highest temperature was 24.9 and 27.1 °C for depths 0.30 and 0.45 m, while the organic matter treatment (T2) recorded higher temperatures, reaching 23.5, 24.9 and 26.6 °C. The no-tillage treatment (control) also produced the lowest temperatures, reaching 20.6 and 21.10 °C.
Keywords: Temporal variation, soil temperature, subsurface water retention, Thermal variation