title: Model development for prediction of soil water dynamics in plant production.
abstract: Optimizing water use in agriculture and medicinal plants is crucially important worldwide. Soil sensor-controlled irrigation systems are increasingly becoming available. However it is questionable whether irrigation scheduling based on soil measurements in the top soil could make best use of water for deep-rooted crops. In this study a mechanistic model was employed to investigate water extraction by a deep-rooted cabbage crop from the soil profile throughout crop growth. The model accounts all key processes governing water dynamics in the soil-plant-atmosphere system. Results show that the subsoil provides a significant proportion of the seasonal transpiration, about a third of water transpired over the whole growing season. This suggests that soil water in the entire root zone should be taken into consideration in irrigation scheduling, and for sensor-controlled irrigation systems sensors in the subsoil are essential for detecting soil water status for deep-rooted crops.
authors.affiliation: Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, China.
authors.forename: Zhengfeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, China.
authors.forename: Huixia
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Ningbo Institute of Technology, Zhejiang University, Ningbo, China.
authors.forename: Kefeng
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D057914:Agricultural Irrigation; D000465:Algorithms; D001937:Brassica / Q000254:growth & development; D018556:Crops, Agricultural; D017753:Ecosystem; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000378:metabolism; D018526:Plant Transpiration; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics*; D012621:Seasons; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D014867:Water / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D012987:Soil; D014867:Water