BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct. 6
By Klavdiya Romakayeva - Trend:
In recent years, in Uzbekistan, the number of saline soils under the influence of secondary salinization has increased from 48.2 to 64.4 percent, Trend reports citing uzdaily.uz.
According to FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations), saline soils occupy vast areas in the world amount to about 25 percent of the entire land surface. FAO's experts are confident that soil salinization, both natural and secondary in the conditions of irrigated agriculture, is one of the factors that enhance the desertification process. However, it is both a cause and a consequence of other agricultural problems.
Within the framework of the “Integrated management of natural resources in drought-prone and saline agricultural landscapes of Central Asia and Turkey” project this year Centaur beet variety will be grown on an area of one hectare, and in 2021 seed production and cultivation of this crop on farms will be launched.
In Uzbekistan, the project partners are the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Water Resources, the State Forestry Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and Uzhydromet (The Centre of Hydrometeorological Service at Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan).
A significant part of the irrigated land in Uzbekistan is saline to one degree or another. In recent years, the amount of saline soils under the influence of secondary salinization has increased from 48.2 to 64.4 percent. It is a salinity that is one of the main factors in reducing yields.
The introduction of new promising salt-tolerant crops in saline areas of the region will dramatically increase productivity. Thus, the new variety of Centaur salt-tolerant beets is resistant to salinity and drought, and the yield of root crops is 1,000-1,500 centners per hectare, which is about 30-50 percent higher than that of local varieties. Another advantage of this variety is that the aerial part of the root is 60 percent, which makes it easy to harvest by hand.
A lot of also has been done in the Kamashinsky district of the Kashkadarya region. Pistachio is one of the most drought-resistant tree and shrub species, which lives up to 1,000 years.
Taking these features into account, at the suggestion of FAO experts, the authority of the Kamashinsky district allocated 2,500 hectares of land for planting this crop on both sides of the road connecting the villages of Kyzyltepa and Kokbulak.
To carry out the work under the FAO project, 250 kg of pistachio seeds were delivered. In total, in the spring of 2020, pistachios were planted in a total area of more than 800 hectares. It is planned that in 2021 these pistachio fields will be leased out to the local population on a long-term basis through an auction.
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