ABSTRACT
Saline soils, also known as solonchaks, are those that contain appreciable amounts of soluble salts so as to interfere with plant growth. Saline soils are formed whenever climate, soil, and hydrological conditions favour accumulation of soluble salts in the rootzone. Climate is the single most important factor and plays a pivotal role in plant response to soil salinity. In general, a close relationship exists between the critical depth of groundwater and its salt content in order to cause salinisation of the surface soil. Salinity measurement in the field is done with the help of porous-matrix salinity sensor, four-electrode units, and magnetic resonance techniques. Salt-affected soils are common in arid and semi-arid regions that receive inadequate and irregular precipitation to accomplish leaching of salts originally present in the soil profile. Management of the soils centres around preventing the ingress of sea water through high tides, rise in water table, and back flow into the rivers and estuaries.
