scholarly journals Water Stress and Crop Level Interactions in Relation to Nectarine Yield, Fruit Size Distribution, and Water Potentials

1999 ◽  
Vol 124 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Naor ◽  
I. Klein ◽  
H. Hupert ◽  
Y. Grinblat ◽  
M. Peres ◽  
...  

The interactions between irrigation and crop level with respect to fruit size distribution and soil and stem water potentials were investigated in a nectarine (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch. `Fairlane') orchard located in a semiarid zone. Irrigation treatments during stage III of fruit growth ranged from 0.62 to 1.29 of potential evapotranspiration (ETp). Fruit were hand thinned to a wide range of fruit levels (200 to 1200 fruit/tree in the 555-tree/ha orchard). Total yield did not increase with increasing irrigation rate above 0.92 ETp in 1996 and maximum yield was found at 1.06 ETp in 1997. Fruit size distribution was shifted towards larger fruit with increasing irrigation level and with decreasing crop level. The two highest irrigation treatments had similar midday stem water potentials. Our findings indicate that highest yields and highest water use efficiency (yield/water consumption) are not always related to minimum water stress. Total yield and large fruit yield were highly and better correlated with midday stem water potential than with soil water potential. This confirms other reports that midday stem water potential is an accurate indicator of tree water stress and may have utility in irrigation scheduling.

1995 ◽  
Vol 120 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-582 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amos Naor ◽  
Isaac Klein ◽  
Israel Doron

The sensitivity of leaf (ψleaf) and stem (ψstem) water potential and stomatal conductance (gs) to soil moisture availability in apple (Malus domestics Borkh.) trees and their correlation with yield components were studied in a field experiment. Two drip irrigation treatments, 440 mm (H) and 210 mm (L), were applied to a `Golden Delicious' apple orchard during cell enlargement stage (55-173 days after full bloom). Data collected included ψstem, y leaf, gs, and soil water potential at 25 (ψsoil-25) and 50 cm (ψsoil-50). No differences in midday ψleaf's were found between irrigation treatments. Stem water potential was higher in the H treatment than in the L treatment in diurnal measurements, and at midday throughout the season. Stomatal conductance of the H treatment was higher than the L treatment throughout the day. Stomatal conductance between 0930 and 1530 hr were highly correlated with ψstem. The H treatment increased the percentage of fruit >65 mm, and increased the proportion of earlier harvested fruit reaching marketable size compared to the L treatment. Fruit size in the first harvest and the total yield were highly correlated with ψstem. The degree of correlation between plant water stress indicators and yield component decreased in the following order: ψstem>ψsoil-25,>ψsoil-50>ψleaf. The data suggest that midday ψstem may serve as a preferable plant water stress indicator with respect to fruit size.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Berrios ◽  
Abdelmalek Temnani ◽  
David Pérez ◽  
Ismael Gil ◽  
Susana Zapata ◽  
...  

<p>The sensitivity to water stress of different plant water indicators (PWI) at different plot scales (leaf and aerial) was evaluated during the second fruit growth stage of grapefruit (<em>Citrus paradisi</em> cv. Star Ruby) trees growing in a commercial orchard for a sustainable irrigation scheduling. Trees were drip-irrigated and submitted to two irrigation treatments: (i) a control (CTL), irrigated at 100% of crop evapotranspiration to avoid any soil water limitations, and (ii) a non-irrigated (NI) treatment, irrigated as the control until the 104 days after full bloom (DAFB) when the irrigation was suppressed, until to reach a severe water stress level in the plants (around -2.3 MPa of stem water potential at solar midday). The plant water indicators studied were: stem water potential (SWP); leaf conductance (Lc); net photosynthesis (Pn), and several vegetation indices (VI) in the visible spectral region derived from an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with a multispectral sensor. The measurements were made at 9, 12 and 18h (solar time) on 50 and 134 DAFB, coinciding with a fruit diameter of 20 and 70 mm, respectively. The correlation analysis between the PWI at leaf scale (SWP, Lc and Pn) and at aerial scale showed relatively poor results, with Pearson correlation coefficients (r values) around 0.6. However, SWP presented the highest r value with the normalized difference vegetation index (NVDI), green index (GI), normalized difference greenness vegetation index (NDGI) and red green ratio index (RGRI) showing the higher coefficients 0.80, 0,80, 0.85 and 0.86, respectively. In addition, a quadratic regression curve fitting was made for the SWP and aforementioned indices, obtaining values ​​of R<sup>2</sup> around 0.7 in all cases; the best fit corresponded to SWP = - 4.869 + 15.765 NDGI - 14.283 NDGI<sup>2</sup> (R<sup>2 </sup>= 0.749) to predict SWP values between -0.5 and -2.3 MPa. Results obtained show the possibility of using certain vegetation indices to be used in the detection of water stress in adult grapefruits, and thus propose a sustainable and efficient irrigation scheduling.</p><p>Funding:</p><p>-WATER4EVER is funded by the European Commission under the framework of the ERA-NET COFUND WATERWORKS 2015 Programme</p><p>-RIS3MUR REUSAGUA is funded by the Consejería de Empresa, Industria y Portavocía of the Murcia Region under the Feder Operational Program 2014-2020</p>


2007 ◽  
Vol 58 (7) ◽  
pp. 670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark G. O'Connell ◽  
Ian Goodwin

Crop water relations, vegetative and reproductive growth, and soil water status were studied during 2 seasons to determine the effectiveness of partial rootzone drying (PRD) in a mature micro-irrigated pear orchard in the Goulburn Valley, Australia. PRD treatments were 50% (PRD50) and 100% (PRD100) of predicted crop water requirement (ETc) applied on one side of the tree alternated on a 14-day cycle compared with a Control treatment, which received 100% of ETc irrigated on both sides of the tree. Irrigation was applied daily by micro-jets to replace ETc estimated using reference crop evapotranspiration (ETo) and a FAO-56 crop coefficient of 1.15 adjusted for tree size. The PRD50 regime applied 174–250 mm for the season v. 347–470 mm for both the Control and PRD100 treatments. Irrigation maintained a well watered rootzone under the emitter compared with the drying profiles of the alternated wet/dry irrigated zones of the PRD treatments. There was no significant benefit of PRD100 compared with the Control irrigation regime. Similar vegetative growth (canopy radiation interception), reproductive growth (fruit growth rate, final fruit size, yield), fruit quality (total soluble solids, flesh firmness), and crop water relations (midday leaf conductance, midday leaf and stem water potential) were measured between the Control and PRD100. Trees under the PRD50 regime showed symptoms of severe water stress, that being greater fruit drop, reduced fruit size, lower yield, reduced leaf conductance, and lower leaf and stem water potential. The 50% water saving afforded by PRD50 led to a yield penalty of 16–28% compared with the Control and PRD100. PRD50 fruit failed to meet commercial cannery requirements due to poor fruit size. We conclude from an agronomic basis that deficit PRD irrigation management is not recommended for micro-irrigated pear orchards on fine-textured soils in the Goulburn Valley, Australia.


Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 3596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcos Carrasco-Benavides ◽  
Javiera Antunez-Quilobrán ◽  
Antonella Baffico-Hernández ◽  
Carlos Ávila-Sánchez ◽  
Samuel Ortega-Farías ◽  
...  

The midday stem water potential (Ψs) and stomatal conductance (gs) have been traditionally used to monitor the water status of cherry trees (Prunus avium L.). Due to the complexity of direct measurement, the use of infrared thermography has been proposed as an alternative. This study compares Ψs and gs against crop water stress indexes (CWSI) calculated from thermal infrared (TIR) data from high-resolution (HR) and low-resolution (LR) cameras for two cherry tree cultivars: ‘Regina’ and ‘Sweetheart’. For this purpose, a water stress–recovery cycle experiment was carried out at the post-harvest period in a commercial drip-irrigated cherry tree orchard under three irrigation treatments based on Ψs levels. The water status of trees was measured weekly using Ψs, gs, and compared to CWSIs, computed from both thermal cameras. Results showed that the accuracy in the estimation of CWSIs was not statistically significant when comparing both cameras for the representation of Ψs and gs in both cultivars. The performance of all evaluated physiological indicators presented similar trends for both cultivars, and the averaged differences between CWSI’s from both cameras were 11 ± 0.27%. However, these CWSI’s were not able to detect differences among irrigation treatments as compared to Ψs and gs.


2001 ◽  
Vol 126 (2) ◽  
pp. 252-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amos Naor

Interrelations between water potential and fruit size, crop load, and stomatal conductance were studied in drip-irrigated `Spadona' pear (Pyrus communis L) grafted on quince C (Cydonia oblonga L.) rootstock and growing in a semi-arid zone. Five irrigation rates were applied in the main fruit growth phase: rates of 0.25, 0.40, 0.60, 0.80, and 1.00 of “Class A” pan evaporation rate. The crop in each irrigation treatment was adjusted to four levels (200 to 1200 fruit per tree) by hand thinning at the beginning of June 1999. The crop was harvested on 1 Aug. 1999, and fruit size was determined by means of a commercial sorting machine. Soil, stem, and leaf water potentials and stomatal conductance were measured during the season. Crop yield was highly correlated with stem and soil water potentials. The highest midday stem water potential was lower than values commonly reported for nonstressed trees, and was accompanied by high soil water potential, indicating that the maximal water absorption rate of the root system under those particular soil conditions was limited. Stomatal conductance was highly correlated with leaf water potential (r2 = 0.54), but a much better correlation was found with stem water potential (r2 = 0.80). Stomatal conductance decreased at stem water potentials less than -2.1 MPa. Both stem water potential and stomatal conductance were unaffected by crop load under a wide range of irrigation rates.


HortScience ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 50 (7) ◽  
pp. 1070-1074 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lenny Wells

Pecan [Carya illinoinensis (Wangenh.) K. Koch] tree stem water potential (ψ), shoot length, nut yield, and nut quality for the following treatments were evaluated in a commercial pecan orchard in Berrien County, GA; 1) current recommended irrigation schedule, 2) a reduced early season irrigation schedule, and 3) non-irrigated control. Water Stress on pecan occurred at ≈−0.78 MPa using the pressure chamber to measure stem water potential. Regression analysis suggests that irrigation scheduling for mature pecan trees may be needed when volumetric water content reaches 10% on Tifton loamy sand soil. Water stress in pecan is correlated with soil moisture from budbreak through the end of nut sizing. Pecan trees bearing a moderate to heavy crop load may undergo water stress during the kernel-filling stage regardless of soil moisture level. Therefore, it is suggested that water stress during the kernel-filling period is a function of nut development, crop load, or both in addition to soil moisture. The reduced early season irrigation schedule provided a 38% reduction in irrigation water use with no significant effect on pecan tree water stress, yield, or quality, suggesting that pecan trees can tolerate moderate early season water stress with no effect on pecan yield or quality under southeastern U.S. environmental conditions.


HortScience ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denise Neilsen ◽  
Gerry Neilsen ◽  
Sunghee Guak ◽  
Tom Forge

Uncertain water supplies resulting from changing climatic conditions in western North America led to this investigation of the role of crop load reduction in maintaining performance of high-density ‘Ambrosia’ apple (Malus ×domestica) on M.9 rootstock. A split-plot experimental design was imposed for three growing seasons (2007–09) with six replicates of four main plot irrigation treatments and three crop load subplots comprised of three trees. Four season-long irrigation (Irr) treatments were applied through 2 × 4 L·h−1 drip emitters per tree and included Irr1) control [100% evapotranspiration (ET) replacement], Irr2) 50% ET replacement, Irr3) 50% ET replacement to half the emitters, and Irr4) an increasingly severe treatment commencing at 50% ET replacement (once every 2 days) in 2007 and progressing to 25% and 18% ET replacement, 2008–09. Three target crop loads were established annually, 4–5 weeks after bloom as low (2.5, 3, and 3.75), medium (4.5, 6, and 7.5), and high (9, 12, and 15) fruit/cm2 trunk cross-sectional area (TCSA) 2007–09, respectively, by hand thinning around 4 weeks after bloom. Volumetric soil moisture contents generally reflected the amount of water applied and ranged from 20% for control (Irr1) to <10% for Irr4. Both irrigation and crop load treatments affected midday stem water potential more than leaf photosynthesis and stomatal conductance (gS). By the 2nd and 3rd year stem potential values for irrigation treatments ranged from a maximum of −1.0 to −1.3 MPa for Irr1 to minimums ≤-2.0 MPa for Irr4. gS decreased as midday stem potential decreased, but at any given stem potential value was greater at high crop loads, presumably in response to an increased demand for photosynthates. Fruit size decreased as crop load increased, but as irrigation deficits became more severe, fruit size was more closely correlated with stem water potential than gS. Consequently, fruit size was controlled by two mechanisms, competition for photosynthates and the effects of plant water status on gS. Negative linear relationships between crop load and average fruit size were used to determine the crop load required to produce an average fruit size of 200 g at different irrigation deficits. It was not possible to achieve adequate fruit size when applications were very low, as at 18% to 25% ET in Irr4. Crop load reduction around mid-June had no negative consequences for fruit quality, enhancing fruit color, and soluble solids concentration (SSC) and did not affect the incidence of sunburn, internal breakdown or bitter pit at harvest.


OENO One ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth A. Shackel

<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Aims</strong>: To describe the relation of various water status measures of woody perennial plants (predawn and midday stem and leaf water potential), to indices of physiological activity such as leaf conductance, vegetative growth and fruit growth and composition.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Methods and results</strong>: Almonds were exposed to three levels of irrigation over three years, and midday stem water potential (SWP) and leaf conductance, collected at approximately weekly intervals, is reported for the third year of the study. A strong linear increase in both leaf conductance and trunk growth occurred with increasing SWP, and this relation was consistent both within and between treatments. A similarly positive linear relation was found between SWP and fruit size in pear, with a negative relation between SWP and fruit soluble solids and fruit color. In grapevine, SWP was found to be uniform across all lower canopy positions tested (trunk, cordon and near the base of current year shoots) and positively correlated to early season shoot growth even before irrigation treatments were applied. Midday SWP was found to be more sensitive than midday leaf water potential (LWP) for detecting treatment differences over the course of the season, but both were well correlated to average seasonal leaf conductance within and between irrigation treatments. Predawn SWP and LWP were not as well correlated to average seasonal leaf conductance, but the most important factor determining midday leaf conductance was wind speed, indicating that grape leaf stomatal responses are quite sensitive to this environmental factor.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Conclusion</strong>: In a wide variety of woody crop species midday stem water potential (SWP) has been found to be a valuable tool for quantifying the degree of water stress experienced by the plant, and for understanding the physiological responses of the plant to water limited conditions. In grapevine, SWP detected irrigation differences over 1 month sooner than midday leaf water potential when the number of vines used and the number of samples taken were the same for both methods, and SWP had a higher correlation to leaf conductance than predawn leaf or stem water potential.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Significance and impact of study</strong>: SWP as a standard method for quantifying water stress in grapevine and other crops will aid research in the development of reliable management practices to improve crop productivity and quality.</p>


2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. e0804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Houssem Memmi ◽  
Jose F. Couceiro ◽  
Carmen Gijón ◽  
David Pérez-López

Little information is available on the diurnal behaviour of water potential and leaf conductance on pistachio trees despite their relevance to fine tune irrigation strategies. Mature pistachio trees were subject to simultaneous measurements of stem water potential (Ψx) and leaf conductance (gl) during the day, at three important periods of the irrigation season. Trees were grown on three different rootstocks and water regimes. An initial baseline relating Ψx to air vapor pressure deficit (VPD) is presented for irrigation scheduling in pistachio. Ψx was closely correlated with VPD but with a different fit according to the degree of water stress. No evidence of the variation of Ψx in relation to the phenology of the tree was observed. Furthermore, midday Ψx showed more accuracy to indicate a situation of water stress than predawn water potential. Under well irrigated conditions, gl was positively correlated with VPD during stage II of growth reaching its peak when VPD reached its maximum value (around 4 kPa). This behaviour changed during stage III of fruit growth suggesting a reliance of stomatal behaviour to the phenological stage independently to the tree water status. The levels of water stress reached were translated in a slow recovery of tree water status and leaf conductance (more than 40 days). Regarding rootstocks, P. integerrima showed little adaptation to water shortage compared to the two other rootstocks under the studied conditions.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document