The Fertilizer System Increasing the Salt Tolerance and Productivity of Cotton in The Conditions of Saline Soils in Southern Kazakhstan

Abstract

The light gray soils (serozems) of South Kazakhstan are the salt-affected soils. The reclamation and utilization of the saline soils of Kazakhstan remain to be a vital task and a topical problem in agriculture. The usage of the new fertilizer types which increase the salt resistance, growth, development and fertility of cotton, is one of the main priority areas concerning the solution of the issues related to the utilization of land resources. These researches of cotton monoculture were carried out in the years 2012 to 2014 at an experimental station (Maktaaral district, South Kazakhstan). This paper presents the outcomes of a study concerning the dynamics of soil salinization and the effect of the new PA-2 adaptogenic agent on the cotton fertility. According to the experimental data, it has been established that the light gray soils are the salt-affected soils characterized by a low content of organic matter and hydrolyzable nitrogen, and by a high percentage of labile phosphorus and exchangeable potassium. In such circumstances, the pre-sowing seed treatment and the two-times spraying of cotton plants with the PA-2 adaptogenic agent at the seedling and budding stages increase the resistance of cotton culture to the extreme environmental conditions (secondary salinization). Any adverse impacts of usage of the PA-2 adaptogenic agent on the quality of cotton fiber have not been observed.