Response of Sugar Beet Plant to Ascobien, Potassium Silicate Foliar Application under Different Irrigation Regimes | ||
| Egyptian Journal of Soil Science | ||
| Volume 65, Issue 3, September 2025, Pages 1729-1743 PDF (1 M) | ||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||
| DOI: 10.21608/ejss.2025.409768.2291 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Hany S. Gharib* 1; Mohsen A. Gameh2; Mousa K. Abd- Elslam3; El-Shawadfy A. Taha3 | ||
| 1Agronomy Dept., Fac. Agric., Kafrelsheikh University, Egypt | ||
| 2Soils and Water Dept., Fac. Agric., Assiut University, Egypt | ||
| 3Delta Sugar Company, in El-Hamol, Kafrelsheikh Governorate | ||
| Abstract | ||
| Egypt imports about 1.0 million Mg for 2024 to bridge the gap between domestic production and rising consumption.Sugar beet production must be increased in the same planted area through better management of limited water resources. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of foliar application of nutrients and bioactive compounds on improving plant stress tolerance and enhancing physiological efficiency under water-deficit conditions, and investigating the role of strategic irrigation management in providing optimal soil moisture, minimizing water losses, and achieving the highest possible irrigation water use efficiency. An experiment was performed in the field at the Agricultural Research Farm of Delta Sugar Company at El-Hamol, Kafr El-Sheikh Governorate, Egypt, at the 2020/21 and 2021/22 growing seasons to study the effect of Ascobien acid, Potassium Silicate, and Lithovit foliar application on growth, yield, quality, and water use efficiency of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) cv. Cleopatra grows under different irrigation regimes. The experimental design was a strip plot. Three irrigation regimens were allocated to the horizontal plots at I1: 50%, I2: 65%, and I3: 80% depletion of the available moisture in the soil (DAM). Six foliar treatments were assigned to the vertical plots at F1:(0 (control), F2:Ascobien, F3:Potassium silicate, F4:Lithovit, F5:Potassium silicate + Ascobien, F6: Potassium silicate + Lithovit).The I1 treatment demonstrated superior performance, producing the highest plant dry weight, root weight, root yield, and sugar yield in both seasons. Conversely, the I3treatment showed the lowest yields but achieved the highest extractable white sugar percentage and juice purity while reducing impurities, including potassium, sodium, and α-amino nitrogen. The I2treatment produced the optimal balance for water use efficiency, yielding the maximum root yield per unit of water consumed. The F6 foliar application was above all other foliar treatments concerning growth parameters, plant dry weight, root and diameter, and root weight and top weight. It achieves the maximum root yield and top yield, with varying responses in the quality parameters. The F6 treatment maintained an acceptable sugar content, optimizing water use efficiency. Most growth parameters achieved maximum values from F6 treatments, such as plant dry weight, root length, root diameter, root weights, and sugar yield. Extractable white sugar percentage was increased by the I3 treatment while decreasing impurities, potassium, sodium, and α-amino nitrogen. Extractable white sugar percentage and juice purity increased by 80% DAM while decreasing impurities, potassium, sodium, and α-amino nitrogen. The highest water use efficiency for root yield was obtained at I2 when applied with F6, giving 18.19 and 18.02 kg root/m³. Similarly, white sugar water use efficiency also found its place at the peak under I2 (3.24 and 2.95 kg sugar/m³ ), where, in the case of F6 treatment, this goes up to 3.34 and 2.87 kg sugar/m³. Future research should focus on foliar spray potassium silicate + Lithovit, with refined concentrations and application timings. Further study of irrigation regimes with different depletion levels or diverse irrigation systems will improve water management strategies. | ||
| Keywords | ||
| Lithovit; Potassium silicate; Ascobien; Irrigation regime; Sugar beet | ||
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