Comparative effects of vertical tube and traditional surface drip irrigation on Haloxylon ammodendron growth

Yanwei Fan, Jinhong Shi, Xingpeng Tang, Junsheng Lu and Zhenchang Wang

Agricultural Water Management, 2024, vol. 303, issue C

Abstract: Haloxylon ammodendron is a pioneering tree species for windbreak and sand fixation and improving the ecological environment. However, its cultivation faces substantial challenges, including low survival rates and slow growth. Designing a scientifically reasonable irrigation method is crucial to ensure the survival and healthy growth of H. ammodendron. Therefore, a field cylinder experiment with two drip irrigation methods — vertical tube surface drip irrigation (PSDI) and traditional surface drip irrigation (TSDI) — was conducted from May 2022 to May 2023 to explore the effects of irrigation methods on H. ammodendron growth. Additionally, three tube diameters (D = 90, 110, and 160 mm) and three burial depths (B = 10, 15, and 20 cm) were designed in PSDI to reveal the response of H. ammodendron growth to different tube parameters. The results showed that PSDI improved soil moisture content in the 5–40 cm layer while reducing soil temperature, demonstrating a more pronounced effect on water retention and temperature control. Throughout the growing season, when each indicator reached its maximum value, PSDI resulted in increases in plant height, stem diameter, crown width, new shoot length, and number of new shoots by 61.3 %, 45.1 %, 44.4 %, 37.8 %, and 24.6 % compared to TSDI, respectively. Additionally, PSDI increased total fresh and dry weights, aboveground fresh and dry weights, and underground fresh and dry weights by 30.5 % and 39.3 %, 31.9 % and 42.5 %, and 26.4 % and 27.6 %, respectively, while decreasing the root-to-shoot ratio by 15.4 %. The optimal growth indicators and biomass were achieved with a tube diameter of 160 mm and a burial depth of 15 cm under PSDI. On this basis, an empirical model to predict the growth dynamics of H. ammodendron was developed and showed consistency with measured values. These findings provide a theoretical basis for optimizing PSDI design and its application in plant sand-fixation engineering.

Keywords: Irrigation method; Sand fixing seedlings; Growth index; Vertical tube parameters; Growth model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:303:y:2024:i:c:s0378377424003810

DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2024.109046

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