Online-monitoring of tree water stress in a hedgerow olive orchard using the leaf patch clamp pressure probe

J.E. Fernández, C.M. Rodriguez-Dominguez, A. Perez-Martin, U. Zimmermann, S. Rüger, M.J. Martín-Palomo, J.M. Torres-Ruiz, M.V. Cuevas, C. Sann, W. Ehrenberger and A. Diaz-Espejo

Agricultural Water Management, 2011, vol. 100, issue 1, 25-35

Abstract: The need for sophisticated irrigation strategies in fruit tree orchards has led to an increasing interest in reliable and robust sensor technology that allows automatic and continuous recording of the water stress of trees under field conditions. In this work we have evaluated the potential of the leaf patch clamp pressure (LPCP) probe for monitoring water stress in a 4-year-old ‘Arbequina’ hedgerow olive orchard with 1667treesha−1. The leaf patch output pressure (Pp) measured by the LPCP probe is inversely correlated with the leaf turgor pressure (>50kPa). Measurements of Pp were made over the entire irrigation season of 2010 (April to November) on control trees, irrigated up to 100% of the crop water needs (ETc), and on trees under two regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) strategies. The 60RDI trees received 59.2% of ETc and the 30RDI trees received 29.4% of ETc. In the case of the RDI trees the irrigation amounts were particularly low during July and August, when the trees are less sensitive to water stress. At severe water stress levels (values of stem water potential dropped below ca. −1.70MPa; turgor pressure<50kPa) half-inversed or completely inversed diurnal Pp curves were observed. Reason for these phenomena is the accumulation of air in the leaves. These phenomena were reversible. Normal diurnal Pp profiles were recorded within a few days after rewatering, the number depending on the level of water stress previously reached. This indicates re-establishment of turgescence of the leaf cells. Crucial information about severe water stress was derived from the inversed diurnal Pp curves. In addition Pp values measured on representative trees of all treatments were compared with balancing pressure (Pb) values recorded with a pressure chamber on leaves taken from the same trees or neighbored trees exposed to the same irrigation strategies. Concomitant diurnal Pb measurements were performed in June and September, i.e. before and after the period of great water stress subjected to RDI trees. Results showed close relationships between Pp and Pb, suggesting that the pressure chamber measures relative turgor pressure changes as the LPCP probe. Therefore the probe seems to be an advantageous alternative to the pressure chamber for monitoring tree water status in hedgerow olive tree orchards.

Keywords: Pressure chamber; Turgor pressure; Osmotic pressure; Hydraulic architecture; Drought; Deficit irrigation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377411002228
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:100:y:2011:i:1:p:25-35

DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2011.08.015

Access Statistics for this article

Agricultural Water Management is currently edited by B.E. Clothier, W. Dierickx, J. Oster and D. Wichelns

More articles in Agricultural Water Management from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().