Soil evaporation from drip-irrigated olive orchards

Evaporation from the soil (E_s) in the areas wetted by emitters under drip irrigation was characterised in the semi-arid, Mediterranean climate of Córdoba (Spain). A sharp discontinuity in E_s was observed at the boundary of the wet zone, with values decreasing sharply in the surrounding dry area. A single mean value of evaporation from the wet zone (E_sw) was determined using microlysimeters. Evaporation from the wet zones of two drip-irrigated olive orchards was clearly higher than the corresponding values of E_s calculated assuming complete and uniform soil wetting (E_so), demonstrating the occurrence of micro-scale advection in olive orchards under drip irrigation. Measurements over several days showed that the increase in evaporation due to microadvection was roughly constant regardless of location and of the fraction of incident radiation reaching the soil. Thus, daily evaporation from wet drip-irrigated soil areas (E_sw) could be estimated as the sum of E_so and an additive microadvective term (T_MA). To quantify the microadvective effects, we developed variable local advective conditions by locating a single emitter in the centre of a 1.5 ha bare plot which was subjected to drying cycles. E_sw increased relative to E_so as the soil dried and advective heat transfer increased evaporation from the area wetted by the emitter. The microadvective effects on E_s were quantified using a microadvective coefficient (K_sw), defined as the ratio between E_sw and E_so. A model was then developed to calculate T_MA for different environmental and orchard conditions. The model was validated by comparing measured E_sw against simulated evaporation (E_so+T_MA) for different soil positions and environmental conditions in two drip-irrigated olive orchards. The mean absolute error of the prediction was 0.53 mm day^-1, which represents about a 7% error in evaporation. The model was used to evaluate the relative importance of seasonal E_s losses during an irrigation season under Córdoba conditions. Evaporation from the emitter zones (E_sw) represented a fraction of seasonal orchard evapotranspiration (ET), which ranged from 4% to 12% for a mature (36% ground cover) and from 18% to 43% of ET for a young orchard (5% ground cover), depending on the fraction of soil surface wetted by the emitters. Estimated potential water savings by shifting from surface to subsurface drip ranged from 18 to 58 mm in a mature orchard and from 28 to 93 mm in a young orchard, assuming daily drip applications and absence of rainfall during the irrigation season.     

Aboveground respiratory CO2 effluxes from olive trees (Olea europaea L.)

The accurate assessment of respiration by woody vegetation, still a challenge in plant productivity models, is generally a problem of correctly scaling-up the process from organs to the whole plant. We used a large (41.6 m³), canopy chamber to enclose mature olive trees and to measure aboveground respiration (R _ag ) under natural environmental conditions in an irrigated olive orchard in Córdoba (Spain). The 3-year study assessed nocturnal and seasonal R _ag patterns in terms of temperature (T), plant dry matter composition, and phenology. The relative contributions of maintenance and growth respiration to R _ag were determined empirically via an independent experiment. Although short-term variations in R _ag rates were explained mainly by T variations, over seasonal time-scales this relationship was modulated by the vegetative composition of the olive trees and the contribution of growth respiration to R _ag when the plants, in different seasons, allocated most of the new assimilates to actively growing shoots, flowers or fruits. Leaf mass and fruit load were the main determinants of R _ag , which was weakly affected by differences in woody biomass since woody tissue respiration accounted for just 15 % of R _ag . Respiration in olive trees during fruit setting periods is composed of approximately 30 % growth and 70 % maintenance. This study provides an independent evaluation of how, and to what degree, seasonally varying plant organ composition determines total respiration. Improved modelling of ecosystem respiration can be achieved by accounting for plant biological patterns characterising energy-requiring growth and maintenance processes, since biochemical kinetics alone cannot explain the observed seasonal variability.     

Establishment of two indigenous timber species in dairy pastures in Costa Rica

A silvopastoral model that combines the production of pasture herbage with valuable native timber species has potential to simultaneously address the multiple goals of reforestation, conservation of native species and enterprise intensification. The objective of this study was to design, establish and monitor early growth of a silvopastoral experiment on a dairy farm in the north Atlantic zone of Costa Rica. Two indigenous timber species, Vochysia guatemalensis and Hyeronima alchorneoides were planted with and without the tropical pasture legume, Arachis pintoi in a split plot design, (2 × 2) factorial arrangement of treatments with four replications. After the first two years, V. guatemalensis was significantly taller (3.1 m) than H. alchorneoides (2.5 m). The mean root collar diameter for V. guatemalensis was significantly larger (6.5 cm) than H. alchorneoides (4.5 cm). Two-year establishment was acceptable for the tree component (83 to 85% survival) but poor for A. pintoi (2 to 8% of the sward). The most important pest affecting the establishment of the timber species was the leaf cutter ant, Atta cephalotes. An insect larvae, Cosmopterix sp., severely damaged 39% of the V. guatemalensis trees by repeatedly attacking their apical meristems. The two-year establishment data was insufficient to accurately predict future wood volume. A hypothetical economic analysis concluded that the silvopastoral system must average at least 1.2 m³ wood volume/paddock/year (20 m³/ha/year) throughout the first ten years of growth to assure a positive economic return from timber. The experiment is planned for a ten year period, which corresponds to the estimated rotation length for harvesting the timber species. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Effect of grazing severity on perennial ryegrass herbage production and sward structural characteristics throughout an entire grazing season

The objective of this study, which was part of a larger grazing‐systems experiment, was to investigate the cumulative impact of three levels of grazing intensity on sward production, utilization and structural characteristics. Pastures were grazed by rotational stocking with Holstein–Friesian dairy cows from 10 February to 18 November 2009. Target post‐grazing heights were 4·5 to 5 cm (high; H), 4 to 4·5 cm (intermediate; I) and 3·5 to 4 cm (low; L). Detailed sward measurement were undertaken on 0·08 of each farmlet area. There were no significant treatment differences in herbage accumulated or in herbage harvested [mean 11·3 and 11·2 t dry matter (DM) ha^?1 respectively]. Above the 3·5 cm horizon, H, I and L swards had 0·56, 0·62 and 0·67 of DM as leaf and 0·30, 0·23 and 0·21 of DM as stem respectively. As grazing severity increased, tiller density of grass species other than perennial ryegrass (PRG) decreased (from 3,350 to 2,780 and to 1771 tillers m^?2 for H, I and L paddocks respectively) and the rejected area decreased (from 0·27 to 0·20 and to 0·10 for H, I and L paddocks respectively). These results indicate the importance of grazing management practice on sward structure and quality and endorse the concept of increased grazing severity as a strategy to maintain high‐quality grass throughout the grazing season. The findings are presented in the context of the need for intensive dairy production systems to provide greater quantities of high‐quality pasture over an extended grazing season, in response to policy changes with the abolition of EU milk quotas.