Components of the water balance in soil with sugarcane crops

P.J. Ghiberto, P.L. Libardi, A.S. Brito and P.C.O. Trivelin

Agricultural Water Management, 2011, vol. 102, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: The objective of this study was to analyze the components of the water balance in an Ultisol, located in the municipality of Jaboticabal, SP, Brazil (21°20′20″S, 48°18′35″W), that was cultivated with sugarcane. The monitoring was performed during the agricultural cycle of the first ratoon between 11/16/2006 and 7/9/2007. Three treatments were established in four blocks with doses of ammonium sulfate, as follows: Treatment 1 (T1), without fertilizer; Treatment 2 (T2), 100kgha−1 of nitrogen (N) and 114kgha−1 of sulfur (S); and Treatment 3 (T3), 150kgha−1 of N and 172kgha−1 of S. Rainy precipitation (P) in the area was measured with a rain gauge. The soil water storage (H) and the soil water storage variations (ΔH) were determined by the gravimetric method, and the internal drainage (D)/capillary rise (CR) at a depth of 0.9m was quantified by the water flux density using the Darcy–Buckingham equation. The actual evapotranspiration (ETa) was calculated as follows: ETa=P−D+CR±ΔH. During the study period, the amount of rainfall was 1406mm, 121mm greater than the historic average for the region (1285mm), with a notable peak in the month of January of 402mm (historic average: 251mm). The internal drainage was 300mm under T1, 352mm under T2, and 199mm under T3, and this was relevant during times with elevated P, when the actual H was greater than the field capacity H. The actual evapotranspiration (T1: −897.7mm, T2: −847.5mm, and T3: −970.8mm) and the water use efficiency (T1: −131.3kgmm−1, T2: −146.6kgmm−1, and T3: −127.5kgmm−1) did not differ among the treatments. The dispersion of D was greater than the other components of the water balance, especially during the period of elevated P, with the errors of this process propagated in the estimation of ETa. Despite of this propagated standard deviation of ETa, it accounted less than 15% of the total ETa, showing that the method may be conveniently used in field studies with sugarcane crops.

Keywords: Tensiometry; Nitrogen fertilizer; Saccharum spp.; Evapotranspiration; Hydraulic conductivity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:102:y:2011:i:1:p:1-7

DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2011.09.010

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