A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF IRRIGATION WATER USE AND PRODUCTIVITY IN DRIP- AND SPRINKLER-IRRIGATED RICE IN THE KHOREZM REGION

A field trial conducted from 2022 to 2024 in Bogot District, Khorezm Region, compared conventional flood irrigation, drip irrigation, and sprinkler irrigation for the rice cultivar 'Lazurniy'. Under conventional flood irrigation, the control treatment, mean seasonal irrigation water application was 25,415 m³/ha and mean grain yield was 5.453 t/ha. With irrigation every other day, mean seasonal water application was 14,605 m³/ha under drip irrigation and 15,059 m³/ha under sprinkler irrigation, with corresponding grain yields of 4.783 and 4.810 t/ha. These treatments used 42.5% and 40.7% less irrigation water than the control, respectively. Irrigation water productivity was 0.215 kg/m³ in the control, 0.328 kg/m³ under drip irrigation every other day, and 0.319 kg/m³ under sprinkler irrigation every other day. The highest grain yield was recorded under conventional flood irrigation, while the highest irrigation water productivity was observed under drip irrigation every other day.