Influence of the localized irrigation in the water uptake of the rootstock lemon 'cravo' in adult plants of lime 'Tahiti'.

Author(s)

Carmello Crisafulli Machado

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Piracicaba.
• Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALA/BC)
• Defense date: 2000-03-01
• Advisor: Rubens Duarte Coelho

Abstract

This work was carried out at the experimental area of irrigation at the Departamento de Engenharia Rural-ESALQ USP ("Areão" farm); in Piracicaba - SP, in a six-years old 'Tahiti' lime orchard. The research focused on two basic objectives: 1) study the spatial distribution and the root's activity of rootstock lemon 'Cravo' in adult plants of lime 'Tahiti', non-irrigated and 2) study the physiological adaptation at the localized irrigation of the same rootstock under different percentages of wetted area in the soil aimming to measure the increase of the root's activity under tropical conditions without fertirrigation. The work was developed in three different stages: a) the spatial distribution measurement of the root's system at rootstock lemon 'Cravo' opening trenchs in the field: b) root's activity measurement in function of the moisture variation in the soil profile under irrigation or rain at 100% of the canopy projection area and c) root's activity measurement with localized irrigation in 24,4% and 12,25% of the canopy projection area through the new proposed methodology: supertensiometer with constant head. The results showed that approximately between 44 and 52% of the total length of the roots of the rootstock lemon 'Cravo' in a non-irrigated condition is situated in the xv layer between o and 25 cm at the soil surface. The total length extrapolated of the roots measured to the three-dimensional volume shows that the greastet quantity of roots is situated from the middIe to the end of the canopy projection in a non-irrigated condition, showing that any farmer careIessness in the weeds control, it will prompt to a hard competition by water and nutrients, with probable reduction in the orchard productivity. The water uptake activity by the rootstock lemon 'Cravo' non-irrigated, in the Iayer between O to 25cm depth has been the responsible by 68 to 74% in the absorbed solution volume. This value is greater in approximately 24% to the total length of the roots in this layer (44 - 52%) showing that the shallow roots exhibit higer water uptake capacity and hydraulic conductivity. The rootstock lemon 'Cravo' adaptation of the aduIt plant at the localized irrigation, without the fertirrigation in the climatic conditions of the São Paulo state, demanded approximately 100 days to increase between 30 and 40% yours water absorption capacity comparing a plant with 24,2% and the other with 12,2% of the irrigated canopy projection. (AU)