Soil salinity and climate change have a negative impact on global food production and security, especially in arid regions with limited water resources. Despite the importance of planting methods, irrigation, and soil amendments in improving crop yield, their combined impact on saline soil properties and cereal crop yield is unknown. Therefore, the current study investigated the combined effect of soil amendments (i.e., compost, C and zeolite, Z) and planting methods such as raised bed (M1) and conventional (M2), and different fractions of leaching requirements from irrigation water, such as 5% (L1) and 10% (L2), on the soil physio-chemical properties and wheat and maize productivity in an arid region. The combined application of C + Z, L2, and M1 decreased soil salinity (EC) and sodicity (ESP) after wheat production by 37.4 and 28.0%, respectively, and significantly decreased by these factors by 41.0 and 43.0% after a maize growing season. Accordingly, wheat and maize yield increased by 16.0% and 35.0%, respectively under such a combination of treatments, when compared to crops grown on unamended soil, irrigated with lower leaching fraction and planted using conventional methods. This demonstrates the significance of using a combination of organic and inorganic amendments, appropriate leaching requirements and the raised bed planting method as an environmentally friendly approach to reclaiming saline soils and improving cereal crop production, which is required for global food security.

Sandy soil covers a significant portion of Egypt’s total land area, representing a crucial agricultural resource for future food security and economic growth. This research adopts the hypothesis of maximizing the utilization of secondary products for soil improvement to reduce ecosystem pollution. The study focuses on assessing the impact of combining phosphogypsum and modified biochar as environmentally friendly soil amendments on loamy sand soil quality parameters such as soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, nutrient levels, and wheat yield. The treatments were T₁: the recommended NPK fertilizer (control); T₂: 2.5 kg phosphogypsum m⁻² soil; T₃: 2.5 kg rice straw biochar m⁻² soil; T₄: 2.5 kg cotton stalk biochar m⁻² soil; T₅: 2.5 kg rice-straw-modified biochar m⁻² soil; T₆: 2.5 kg cotton-stalk-modified biochar m⁻² soil; and T₇ to T₁₀: mixed phosphogypsum and biochar treatments. The results revealed that the combined use of phosphogypsum and modified cotton stalk biochar (T₁₀) significantly enhanced soil organic carbon (SOC) by 73.66% and 99.46% in both seasons, the soil available N both seasons by 130.12 and 161.45%, the available P by 89.49% and 102.02%, and the available K by 39.84 and 70.45% when compared to the control treatment. Additionally, this treatment led to the highest grain yield of wheat (2.72 and 2.92 Mg ha⁻¹), along with a significant increase in straw yield (52.69% and 59.32%) compared to the control treatment. Overall, the findings suggest that the combined use of phosphogypsum and modified biochar, particularly cotton-stalk biochar, holds promise for improving loamy sand-soil quality and wheat productivity.

Soil salinity has a negative impact on the biochemical properties of soil and on plant growth, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. Using arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Glomus versiform) and foliar spray from compost tea as alleviating treatments, this study aimed to investigate the effects of alleviating salt stress on the growth and development of maize and wheat grown on a saline–sodic soil during the period of 2022/2023. Six treatments were used in the completely randomized factorial design experiment. The treatments included Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF₀, AMF₁) and varied concentrations of compost tea (CT₀, CT₅₀, and CT₁₀₀). AMF colonization, the bacterial community and endosphere in the rhizosphere, respiration rate, growth parameters, and the productivity were all evaluated. The application of AMF and CT, either separately or in combination, effectively mitigated the detrimental effects caused by soil salinity. The combination of AMF and CT proved to be highly efficient in improving the infection rate of AMF, the bacterial community in the rhizosphere and endosphere, growth parameters, and grain yield of maize and wheat. Therefore, it can be proposed that the inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi with compost tea in saline soils is an important strategy for enhancing salt tolerance in maize and wheat plants through improving microbial activity, the infection rate of AMF, and overall maize and wheat productivity.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) productivity in saline soils is often constrained by nutrient imbalance, water scarcity, and ionic stress, particularly in arid regions such as the Nile Delta of Egypt. This study evaluated the combined effects of biochar (2.4 t ha⁻¹) and 1% foliar seaweed extract under varying nitrogen application levels on soil chemical properties, wheat growth, yield, nutrient uptake, and N-use efficiency indices over two consecutive winter seasons (2023/2024 and 2024/2025). A factorial field experiment with three replicates was conducted using four nitrogen rates: 0%, 50%, 75%, and 100% of the recommended application (168 kg N ha⁻¹), combined with four treatments: control, seaweed extract, biochar, and their integration. Combined analysis showed that the highest grain yield was obtained under full nitrogen with biochar and seaweed extract (7085.75 kg ha⁻¹), although this was not significantly different from several integrated treatments, particularly those involving 75% nitrogen with amendments. The 75% N + biochar + seaweed extract treatment achieved comparable yield while significantly improving nitrogen-use efficiency indices, including recovery efficiency, agronomic efficiency, and partial factor productivity. Biochar and seaweed extract improved soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, and nutrient availability, while electrical conductivity was not significantly affected. These results indicate that nitrogen input can be reduced by up to 25% without yield loss when combined with these amendments, while enhancing nutrient-use efficiency. However, conclusions regarding salinity stress mitigation remain indirect due to the absence of physiological measurements. Overall, this integrated approach supports more sustainable wheat production in saline soils.