Location: Agricultural Water Efficiency and Salinity Research Unit
Project Number: 2036-61000-019-014-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Sep 1, 2025
End Date: Mar 31, 2027
Objective:
Enhance farmer prosperity in the Western U.S. through development of improved salt tolerant crop varieties and genetics, as well as associated precision irrigation and salinity management practices.
Approach:
Farmer prosperity in the arid and semi-arid Western U. S. depends on irrigation and on high-yielding, salinity-resistant crops. This cross-disciplinary (plants, water, soil) project will investigate interactions of plant genetics and irrigation and salinity management practices for the purposes of informing management decision-making around crop selection and management, enabling more efficient and profitable utilization of water and soil resources, enhancing farmer prosperity.
USDA-ARS in Riverside, CA is investigating the genetic and physiological mechanisms that lead to salt tolerance in crops such as avocado, almond, alfalfa, spinach, and guar. Different genotypes are being screened for their resilience to salt, and a connection between their physiological performance and the underlying biological processes are being established. Global shifts in gene expression when exposed to salinity are being analyzed, allowing the identification of specific genes involved in salinity tolerance unique to each crop.
In this project, detailed geochemical maps of farmer fields will be developed for the purpose of illuminating functional relationships between irrigation water and salinity management practices and the soil conditions that affect growth for the crops noted above, with the goal of designing management practices that optimize growth conditions for crops and maximize yields and profits.