scholarly journals Effects of Soil Water Deficit at Different Growth Stages on Maize Growth, Yield, and Water Use Efficiency under Alternate Partial Root-Zone Irrigation

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
Minghui Cheng ◽  
Haidong Wang ◽  
Junliang Fan ◽  
Fucang Zhang ◽  
Xiukang Wang

To investigate the effects of alternate partial root-zone irrigation (APRI) and water deficit at different growth stages on maize growth, physiological characteristics, the grain yield, and the water use efficiency (WUE), a pot experiment was conducted under a mobile automatic rain shelter. There were two irrigation methods, i.e., conventional irrigation (CI) and APRI; two irrigation levels, i.e., mild deficit irrigation (W1, 55%~70% FC, where FC is the field capacity) and serious deficit irrigation (W2, 40%~55% FC); and two deficit stages, i.e., the seedling (S) and milking stage (M). Sufficient irrigation (W0: 70%~85% FC) was applied throughout the growing season of maize as the control treatment (CK). The results indicated that APRI and CI decreased the total water consumption (ET) by 34.7% and 23.8% compared to CK, respectively. In comparison to CK, APRI and CI increased the yield-based water use efficiency (WUEY) by 41% and 7.7%, respectively. APRI increased the irrigation water efficiency (IWUE) and biomass-based water use efficiency (WUEB) by 8.8% and 25.5% compared to CK, respectively. Additionally, ASW1 had a similar grain yield to CK and the largest harvest index (HI). However, the chlorophyll and carotenoid contents were significantly reduced by 13.7% and 23.1% under CI, and by 11.3% and 20.3% under APRI, compared to CK, respectively. Deficit irrigation at the milking stage produced a longer tip length, resulting in a lower grain yield. Based on the entropy weight method and the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) method, multi-objective optimization was obtained when mild deficit irrigation (55%~70% FC) occurred at the seedling stage under APRI.

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (6) ◽  
pp. 2053-2065 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liwang Ma ◽  
Zhiming Qi ◽  
Yanjun Shen ◽  
Liang He ◽  
Shouhua Xu ◽  
...  

Abstract. Deficit irrigation has been shown to increase crop water use efficiency (WUE) under certain conditions, even though the yield is slightly reduced. In this study, the Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM) was first calibrated with measured data from a large weighing lysimeter from 1998 to 2003 at the Yucheng Experimental Station in the North China Plain for daily evapotranspiration (ET), soil water storage (0-120 cm), leaf area index (LAI), aboveground biomass, and grain yield. The calibrated model was then used to explore crop responses to ET-based irrigation management using weather data from 1958 to 2015 and identify the most suitable ET-based irrigation schedules for the area. Irrigation amount was determined by constraining irrigation to a percentage of potential crop ET (40%, 60%, 80%, and 100% ETc) at the various growth stages of wheat [planting to before winter dormancy (P-D), green up to booting (G-B), booting to flowering (B-F), and flowering to maturity (F-M)] and of maize [planting to silking (P-S) and silking to maturity (S-M)], subject to seasonal water availability limits of 100/50, 200/100, 300/150, and 400/200 mm and no water limit for wheat/maize seasons, respectively. In general, wheat was more responsive to irrigation than maize, while greater influence of weather variation was simulated on maize than on wheat. For wheat with seasonal water limits, the highest average WUE was simulated with the highest targeted ETc levels at both the G-B and B-F stages and lower targeted ETc levels at the P-D and F-M stages. However, the highest average grain yield was simulated with the highest targeted ETc levels at all four growth stages for no water limit and the 400 mm water limit, or at both the G-B and B-F stages for the 300 and 200 mm water limits. For maize, lower targeted ETc levels after silking did not significantly affect maize production due to the high season rainfall, but irrigation of 60% ETc before silking was recommended. These results could be used as guidelines for precision irrigation along with real-time weather information. Keywords: Deficit irrigation, Evapotranspiration, Growth stage, RZWQM, Water use efficiency, Wheat and maize.


2005 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 829-837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bu-Chong Zhang ◽  
Feng-Min Li ◽  
Gao-Bao Huang ◽  
Yantai Gan ◽  
Pu-Hai Liu ◽  
...  

Grain yield and water use efficiency (WUE) of spring wheat ( Triticum aestivum L.) in arid environments can be improved by applying irrigation selectively to allow soil water deficits to develop at non-critical stages of crop development. Field experiments were conducted on a loam soil in Zhangye district, northwest China in 2003 and 2004 to determine the grain yield, yield components, and water use characteristics of spring wheat in response to regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) schemes. Wheat grown under the RDI schemes produced 17% (in 2004) and 29% (in 2003) higher grain yield than wheat grown under water deficit-free control (5.6 t ha-1 in 2003 and 6.2 t ha-1 in 2004). Among six RDI schemes studied, wheat having a high water deficit at the jointing stage, but free from water def icit from booting to grain-filling produced highest grain yield in both 2003 (7.95 t ha-1) and 2004 (7.26 t ha-1). Compared with the control, wheat plants grown under the RDI schemes received 59 mm (or 15%) less water via irrigation, but they either extrac ted 41 mm more (or 74%) water from the soil profile (in 2003) or lowered (16%) evapotranspiration (ET) (in 2004). Grain yield increased as ET increased from 415 to 460 mm, and declined beyond 460 mm. The WUE values varied from 0.0116 to 0.0168 t ha-1 mm-1, and wheat grown under the RDI had 26% greater WUE compared with the control. Grain yield and WUE of spring wheat can be greatly improved by regulated deficit irrigation with reduced amounts of water. This practice is particularly valuable in arid regions where wheat production relies heavily on irrigation. Key words:


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Gomaa ◽  
Essam E. Kandil ◽  
Atef A. M. Zen El-Dein ◽  
Mamdouh E. M. Abou-Donia ◽  
Hayssam M. Ali ◽  
...  

AbstractIn Egypt, water shortage has become a key limiting factor for agriculture. Water-deficit stress causes different morphological, physiological, and biochemical impacts on plants. Two field experiments were carried out at Etay El-Baroud Station, El-Beheira Governorate, Agriculture Research Center (ARC), Egypt, to evaluate the effect of potassium silicate (K-silicate) of maize productivity and water use efficiency (WUE). A split-plot system in the four replications was used under three irrigation intervals during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Whereas 10, 15, and 20 days irrigation intervals were allocated in main plots, while the three foliar application treatments of K-silicate (one spray at 40 days after sowing; two sprays at 40 and 60 days; and three sprays at 40, 60, and 80 days, and a control (water spray) were distributed in the subplots. All the treatments were distributed in 4 replicates. The results indicated that irrigation every 15 days gave the highest yield in both components and quality. The highly significant of (WUE) under irrigation every 20 days. Foliar spraying of K-silicate three times resulted in the highest yield. Even under water-deficit stress, irrigation every fifteen days combined with foliar application of K-silicate three times achieved the highest values of grain yield and its components. These results show that K-silicate treatment can increase WUE and produce high grain yield requiring less irrigation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 127-135
Author(s):  
Ekubay Tesfay Gebreigziabher

Irrigation water availability is diminishing in many areas of the Ethiopian regions, which require many irrigators to consider deficit-irrigation strategy. This study investigated the response of maize (Zea mays L.) to moisture deficit under conventional, alternate and fixed furrow irrigation systems combined with three irrigation amounts over a two years period. The field experiment was conducted at Selekleka Agricultural Research Farm of Shire-Maitsebri Agricultural Research Center. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications was used. Irrigation depth was monitored using a calibrated 2-inch throat Parshall flume. The effects of the treatments were evaluated in terms of grain yield, dry above-ground biomass, plant height, cob length and water use efficiency. The two years combined result indicated that  net irrigation water applied in alternate furrow irrigation with full amount irrigation depth (100% ETc AFI) treatments was half (3773.5 m3/ha) than that of applied to the conventional furrow with full irrigation amount (CFI with 100% ETc) treatments (7546.9 m3/ha). Despite the very significant reduction in irrigation water used with alternate furrow irrigation (AFI), there was insignificant grain yield reduction in maize(8.31%) as compared to control treatment (CFI with100% ETc). In addition, we also obtained significantly (p<0.001) higher crop water use efficiency of 1.889 kg/m3 in alternate furrow irrigation (AFI), than that was obtained as 0.988 kg/m3 in conventional furrow irrigation (CFI). In view of the results, alternate furrow irrigation method (AFI) is taken as promising for conservation of water (3773.5 m3/ha), time (23:22'50" hours/ha), labor (217.36 USD/ha) and fuel (303.79 USD/ha) for users diverting water from the source to their fields using pump without significant trade-off in yield.


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