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4.1 Introduction
Water scarcity is particularly affecting food production and availably, which is the
one of the main pillars of food security. Nowadays, Egypt suffers from food gaps in
many crops. Production-consumption gaps exist for wheat (Ouda and Zohry 2017),
maize (Zohry and Ouda 2017a), faba bean (Zohry and Ouda 2017b), and edible oil
crops (Zohry and Ouda 2018). To narrow the gap between production and consumption of these crops, untraditional innovations need to be implemented.
The cultivated area in Egypt consists of two types according to soil characteristics and water resources: the old lands and the new lands (see Chap. 2 for more
details). The old lands cover a total area of 2.38 million hectares, or about 68% of
the total cultivated area. It located in the Nile Valley and Delta Regions and it has
been cultivated a long time ago. It is characterized by having alluvial soils (clay to
loamy). The Nile River is the main source for irrigation in the old lands. The new
lands cover 1.01 million hectares and located mainly on both the east and west
fringes of the Nile Delta, as well as scattered over various areas in the country. It is
characterized by being sandy and calcareous soils. Thus, the total cultivated area in
Egypt is amounted to 3.39 million hectares.
The cultivated area of winter crops occupied 3.25 million hectares. Egypt cultivates large number of crops, with variable cultivated area. Surface irrigation is the
irrigation system prevailing in the old lands, which is the main user of irrigation
water. The winter crops consume around 21.70 billion cubic meters (Ouda and
Zohry 2018). The irrigation application efficiency of surface irrigation is between
50% and 60%, which endure large losses of this valuable resource to groundwater.
To attain win-win situation, namely facing water scarcity and increasing food
security, changing traditional agricultural management practices and replacing it
with practices could increase the production of unit land and water should be
accomplished. Reduction of water losses to the groundwater under surface irrigation could be attained by conducting raised beds cultivation, instead of the traditional cultivation (cultivation in basins or on furrows).
In raised beds cultivation, water is sent through the ditches dug between the beds
to provide water to plants, where water seep into raised beds through capillary
action. It was documented, in previous research in Egypt, that raised beds cultivation for many crops can save 20–30% of the applied irrigation water (Abouelenein
et al. 2009, 2010; Karrou et al. 2012; Khalil and Abouelenein 2012; Zohry et al.
2019). Furthermore, Ahmad et al. (2009) reported that raised beds cultivation
increased water use efficiency, where 20–25% of irrigation water was saved. It also
provided better opportunities to leach salts from the beds (Bakker et al. 2010).
Hobbs et al. (2000) demonstrated that raised beds planting significantly contributed
in improving water distribution and efficiency and reduced weed infestation, lodging and seed rate without sacrificing yield. Sing et al. (2010) found lower water
consumption and higher wheat yield under raised beds planting than under conventional flat beds planting due to decrease in irrigation amount.
In addition to the role of raised beds cultivation in reducing the harmful effect of
water scarcity under surface irrigation, it plays an important role in increasing land
S. Ouda et al.
4.1 Introduction
Water scarcity is particularly affecting food production and availably, which is the
one of the main pillars of food security. Nowadays, Egypt suffers from food gaps in
many crops. Production-consumption gaps exist for wheat (Ouda and Zohry 2017),
maize (Zohry and Ouda 2017a), faba bean (Zohry and Ouda 2017b), and edible oil
crops (Zohry and Ouda 2018). To narrow the gap between production and consumption of these crops, untraditional innovations need to be implemented.
The cultivated area in Egypt consists of two types according to soil characteristics and water resources: the old lands and the new lands (see Chap. 2 for more
details). The old lands cover a total area of 2.38 million hectares, or about 68% of
the total cultivated area. It located in the Nile Valley and Delta Regions and it has
been cultivated a long time ago. It is characterized by having alluvial soils (clay to
loamy). The Nile River is the main source for irrigation in the old lands. The new
lands cover 1.01 million hectares and located mainly on both the east and west
fringes of the Nile Delta, as well as scattered over various areas in the country. It is
characterized by being sandy and calcareous soils. Thus, the total cultivated area in
Egypt is amounted to 3.39 million hectares.
The cultivated area of winter crops occupied 3.25 million hectares. Egypt cultivates large number of crops, with variable cultivated area. Surface irrigation is the
irrigation system prevailing in the old lands, which is the main user of irrigation
water. The winter crops consume around 21.70 billion cubic meters (Ouda and
Zohry 2018). The irrigation application efficiency of surface irrigation is between
50% and 60%, which endure large losses of this valuable resource to groundwater.
To attain win-win situation, namely facing water scarcity and increasing food
security, changing traditional agricultural management practices and replacing it
with practices could increase the production of unit land and water should be
accomplished. Reduction of water losses to the groundwater under surface irrigation could be attained by conducting raised beds cultivation, instead of the traditional cultivation (cultivation in basins or on furrows).
In raised beds cultivation, water is sent through the ditches dug between the beds
to provide water to plants, where water seep into raised beds through capillary
action. It was documented, in previous research in Egypt, that raised beds cultivation for many crops can save 20–30% of the applied irrigation water (Abouelenein
et al. 2009, 2010; Karrou et al. 2012; Khalil and Abouelenein 2012; Zohry et al.
2019). Furthermore, Ahmad et al. (2009) reported that raised beds cultivation
increased water use efficiency, where 20–25% of irrigation water was saved. It also
provided better opportunities to leach salts from the beds (Bakker et al. 2010).
Hobbs et al. (2000) demonstrated that raised beds planting significantly contributed
in improving water distribution and efficiency and reduced weed infestation, lodging and seed rate without sacrificing yield. Sing et al. (2010) found lower water
consumption and higher wheat yield under raised beds planting than under conventional flat beds planting due to decrease in irrigation amount.
In addition to the role of raised beds cultivation in reducing the harmful effect of
water scarcity under surface irrigation, it plays an important role in increasing land
S. Ouda et al.