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Plant function and evolutionary biology
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Linking canopy temperature and trunk diameter fluctuations with other physiological water status tools for water stress management in citrus orchards

Iván F. García-Tejero A B , Víctor H. Durán-Zuazo A , José L. Muriel-Fernández A and Juan A. Jiménez-Bocanegra A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A IFAPA Centro Las Torres-Tomejil, Ctra. Sevilla-Cazalla Km. 12.2, 41.200 Alcalá del Río, Spain.

B Corresponding author. Email: ivanf.garcia@juntadeandalucia.es

Functional Plant Biology 38(2) 106-117 https://doi.org/10.1071/FP10202
Submitted: 19 October 2010  Accepted: 26 November 2010   Published: 1 February 2011

Abstract

The continuous monitoring of crop water status is key to the sustainable management of water stress situations. Two deficit irrigation (DI) treatments were studied during the maximum evapotranspirative demand period in an orange orchard (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osb. cv. Navelina): sustained deficit irrigation irrigated at 55% crop evapotranspiration (ETC), and low-frequency deficit irrigation treatment, in which the plants were irrigated according to stem water potential at midday (Ψstem). Additionally, a control treatment irrigated at 100% of ETC was established. The daily canopy temperature (TC) was measured with an infrared thermometer camera together with measurements of trunk diameter fluctuations (TDF), Ψstem and stomatal conductance (gS). The time course of all physiological parameters and their relationships were analysed, confirming that canopy air temperature differential (TCTa) variations and TDF are suitable approaches for determining the water stress. In addition, the maximum daily shrinkage (MDS) and TCTa showed high sensitivity to water stress in comparison to Ψstem and gS. Significant relationships were found among MDS and TCTa with Ψstem and gS, for monitoring the crop water status by means of MDS vs Ψstem and TCTa vs Ψstem. Thus, the combination of these techniques would be useful for making scheduling decisions on irrigation in orchards with high variability in plant water stress.

Additional keywords: deficit irrigation, dendrometry, infrared thermometry, maximum daily shrinkage, stem water potential, stomatal conductance.


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