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Agroecological zoning of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production in Khuzestan province using geographic information system and analytical hierarchy process
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Maryam Saleminasab   , Ahmad Koochekzadah , Ali Moshatati , Mohammad Ansari |
| Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Mollasani, Iran & Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Mollasani, Iran |
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Abstract: (578 Views) |
Introduction: During the past few decades, only a quarter of the increase in food production in the world was related to the expansion of the area under cultivation and the rest was achieved by improving the production per unit area. In today's era, due to the limited resources and the increasing population has resulted the increasing demand for food products. Thus, it is necessary to use the limited resources available in an optimal way. Agroecological zoning is considered as a necessary tool in agricultural planning. By combining the main and effective components of agriculture, it is possible to comprehensively examine the conditions of production and the environmental potentials and limitations are better investigated. Therefore, decision-makers in the agriculture sector have a comprehensive and complete road-map instead of single and scattered one, for making the right decisions (Ghaffari et al., 2012). Considering the special position of wheat in the production systems of the country, it is necessary to implement crop-specific research projects to enhance sustainable crop production and proper utilization of resources and to protect the environment.
Materials and Methods: This research is based on the application of geographic information system (GIS) to depict the suitable crops for wheat production in Khuzestan province, Iran. For this purpose, different layers of effective information on the growth and production of wheat including; topographical information (elevation above sea level, slope and slope direction), soil data (salinity, organic carbon, pH, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium contents) and climatic parameters (minimum temperature, mean temperature and maximum temperature and rainfall) were determined using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), weighted and overlapped, and the cultivation areas were estimated. Temperature layers were prepared using regression equations and nearest neighbor interpolation methods, and rainfall layer after examining different interpolation methods and choosing the appropriate method. Then, the suitable areas for wheat production were determined by matching the needs of this plant with the characteristics of the studied area by using the principles of analyitical hierarchy process and the overlap of the studied layers.
Results: In this research, different climatic, soil parameters and topography factors and the opinion of agriculture experts of Khuzestan province in the form of AHP questionnaires were used to determine suitable and unsuitable areas for wheat production and four categories were identified.
Conclusion: Aaccording to the results of this research, it can be concluded that in the relatively poor and poor lands in the south, southwest and west of the Khuzestan province, it is possible to improve the quality of the soil by carrying out a series of research and measures. Considering the restrictions in these areas, some measures such as increasing soil organic carbon and improving soil fertility, leaching and draining saline soils, setting appropriate crop rotations, using adapted cultivars tolerant to prevailed environmental stresses, increasing water productivity by modern irrigation methods can be recommended to improve the environmental conditions for production of wheat in these areas.
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| Keywords: Agroecologic capacity, Climate, Classification, Soil salinity, Topoghraphy and Wheat |
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Full-Text [PDF 1066 kb]
(181 Downloads)
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Type of Study: Scientific & Research |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2024/07/3 | Accepted: 2024/09/4 | Published: 2024/12/30
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