Spectral Crop Coefficient Approach for Estimating Daily Crop Water Use

While the amount of water used by a crop can be measured using lysimeters or eddy covariance systems, it is more common to estimate this quantity based on weather data and crop-related factors. Among these approaches, the standard crop coefficient method has gained widespread use. A limitation of the standard crop coefficient approach is that it applies to “standard conditions” that are invariant from field to field. In this article, we describe a method for estimating daily crop water use (CWU) that is specific to individual fields. This method, the “spectral crop coefficient” approach, utilizes a crop coefficient numerically equivalent to the crop ground cover observed in a field using remote sensing. This “spectral crop coefficient” Ksp is multiplied by potential evapotranspiration determined from standard weather observations to estimate CWU. We present results from a study involving three farmers' fields in the Texas High Plains in which CWU estimated using the Ksp approach is compared to observed values obtained from eddy covariance measurements. Statistical analysis of the results suggests that the Ksp approach can produce reasonably accurate estimates of daily CWU under a variety of irrigation strategies from fully irrigated to dryland. These results suggest that the Ksp?approach could be effectively used in applications such as operational irrigation scheduling, where its field-specific nature could minimize over-irrigation and support water conservation.

Evapotranspiration, Yield and Crop Coefficient of Irrigated Maize Under Straw Mulch

Maize (Zea mays L.), a staple crop grown from June to September during the rainy season on the North China Plain,is usually inter-planted in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) fields about one week before harvesting of the winterwheat. In order to improve irrigation efficiency in this region of serious water shortage, field studies in 1999 and 2001, twodry seasons with less than average seasonal rainfall, were conducted with up to five irrigation applications to determineevapotranspiration, calculate the crop coefficient, and optimize the irrigation schedule with maize under mulch, as well asto establish the effects of irrigation timing and the number of applications on grain yield and water use efficiency (WUE)of maize. Results showed that with grain production at about 8 000 kg ha-1 the total evapotranspiration and WUE ofirrigated maize under mulch were about 380-400 mm and 2.0-2.2 kg m-3, respectively. Also in 2001 WUE of maizewith mulch for the treatment with three irrigations was 11.8% better than that without mulch. In the 1999 and 2001seasons, maize yield significantly improved (P = 0.05) with four irrigation applications, however, further increases werenot significant. At the same time there were no significant differences for WUE with two to four irrigation applications.In the 2001 season mulch lead to a decrease of 50 mm in the total soil evaporation, and the maize crop coefficient undermulch varied between 0.3-1.3 with a seasonal average of 1.0.

California Simulation of Evapotranspiration of Applied Water and Agricultural Energy Use in California

The California Simulation of Evapotranspiration of Applied Water （CaI-SIMETAW） model is a new tool developed by the California Department of Water Resources and the University of California, Davis to perform daily soil water balance and determine crop evapotranspiration （ETo）, evapotranspiration of applied water （ETaw）, and applied water （AW） for use in California water resources planning. ETaw is a seasonal estimate of the water needed to irrigate a crop assuming 100% irrigation efficiency. The model accounts for soils, crop coefficients, rooting depths, seepage, etc. that influence crop water balance. It provides spatial soil and climate information and it uses historical crop and land-use category information to provide seasonal water balance estimates by combinations of detailed analysis unit and county （DAU/County） over Califomia. The result is a large data base of ETc and ETaw that will be used to update information in the new California Water Plan （CWP）. The application uses the daily climate data, i.e., maximum （Tx） and minimum （Tn） temperature and precipitation （Pcp）, which were derived from monthly USDA-NRCS PRISM data （PRISM Group 2011） and daily US National Climate Data Center （NCDC） climate station data to cover California on a 4 kmx4 km change grid spacing. The application uses daily weather data to determine reference evapotranspiration （ETo）, using the Hargreaves-Samani （HS） equation （Hargreaves and Samani 1982, 1985）. Because the HS equation is based on temperature only, ETo from the HS equation were compared with CIMIS ETo at the same locations using available CIMIS data to determine correction factors to estimate CIMIS ETo from the HS ETo to account for spatial climate differences. CaI-SIMETAW also employs near real-time reference evapotranspiration （ETo） information from Spatial CIMIS, which is a model that combines weather station data and remote sensing to provide a grid of ETo information. A second database containing the available soil water holding capacity and soil depth information for all of California was also developed from the USDA-NRCS SSURGO database. The Cal-SIMETAW program also has the ability to generate daily weather data from monthly mean values for use in studying climate change scenarios and their possible impacts on water demand in the state. The key objective of this project is to improve the accuracy of water use estimates for the California Water Plan （CWP）, which provides a comprehensive report on water supply, demand, and management in California. In this paper, we will discuss the model and how it determines ETaw for use in water resources planning.

Estimation of Regional Evapotranspiration in Alpine Area and Its Response to Land Use Change:A Case Study in Three-River Headwaters Region of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau,China

Three-River Headwaters （TRH） region involved in this paper refers to the source region of the Changjiang （Yangtze） River, the Huanghe （Yellow） River and the Lancang River in China. Taking the TRH region of the Qing- hai-Tibet Plateau as a case, the annual evapotranspiration （ET） model developed by Zhang et al. （2001） was applied to evaluate mean annual ET in the alpine area, and the response of annual ET to land use change was analyzed. The plant-available water coefficient （w） of Zhang＇s model was revised by using vegetation-temperature condition index （VTCI） before annual ET was calculated in alpine area. The future land use scenario, an input of ET model, was spa- tially simulated by using the conversion of land use and its effects at small regional extent （CLUE-S） to study the re- sponse of ET to land use change. Results show that the relative errors between the simulated ET and that calculated by using water balance equation were 3.81% and the index of agreement was 0.69. This indicates that Zhang＇s ET model based on revised plant-available water coefficient is a scientific and practical tool to estimate the annual ET in the al- pine area. The annual ET in 2000 in the study area was 221.2 ram, 11.6 mm more than that in 1980. Average annual ET decreased from southeast to northwest, but the change of annual ET between 1980 and 2000 increased from southeast to northwest. As a vast and sparsely populated area, the population in the TRH region was extremely unbalanced and land use change was concentrated in very small regions. Thus, land use change had little effect on total annual ET in the study area but a great impact on its spatial distribution, and the effect of land use change on ET decreased with in- creasing precipitation. ET was most sensitive to the interconversion between forest and unused land, and was least sen- sitive to the interconversion between cropland and low-covered grassland.

Soil water resources use limit in the loess plateau of China

Soil water is a key factor limiting plant growth in water-limited regions. Without limit of soil water used by plants, soil degradation in the form of soil desiccation is easy to take place in the perennial forestland and grassland with too higher density or productivity. Soil water resources use limit (SWRUL) is the lowest control limit of soil water resources which is used by plants in those regions. It can be defined as soil water storage within the maximum infiltration depth in which all of soil layers belong to dried soil layers. In this paper, after detailed discussion of characteristics of water resources and the relationship between soil water and plant growth in the Loess Plateau, the definition, quantitative method, and practical applications of SWRUL are introduced. Henceforth, we should strengthen the study of SWRUL and have a better understanding of soil water resources. All those are of great importance for designing effective restoration project and sustainable management of soil water resources in water- limited regions in the future.

Three industries and water consumption of Beijing

Beijing has been experiencing a severe shortage of water. At present serious wastes of water resources result from the unreasonable structure of water uses in various industries sectors. The current conditions of the municipal water use structure and its changes in the industrial sectors were analysed and discussed in terms of the indicators, such as direct water use coefficient, complete water use coefficient, water use multiplier and water reuse rate, by taking a year of 1990s as the base year. Some response strategies for water conservation have been studied and the corresponding recommendations were put forward. All of these have provided a basis for coordinating the relationship between aquatic environment and economic growth in this city, establishing a system for rational utilization of water resources, and promoting the implementation of a strategy for sustainable development.

Simple weighing lysimeters for measuring evapotranspiration and developing crop coefficients

Knowledge of cotton crop evapotranspiration(ET)is important in scheduling irrigations,optimizing crop production,and modeling ET and crop growth.The ability to measure,estimate,and predict ET and cotton crop water requirements can result in better satisfying the crop’s water needs and improving water use efficiency.Weighing lysimeters have been used for many years to measure and study water use,and to develop crop-coefficient functions necessary in estimating ET.Electronic weighing lysimeters,consisting of a steel outer tank and inner tank,electronic loadcell assemblies,and a PVC drain system,were designed,constructed,and installed.Each lysimeter cost approximately US$1700(in 2001)in materials,required two people and 40 hours of labor to construct,and were installed by two people using minimal excavation and hand tools.Daily ET data for cotton were collected from 2003 to 2006 to quantify cotton water-use and to develop crop coefficient functions.Seasonal water use ranged generally from 2 to 8 mm/d.Seasonal water-use patterns varied considerably among growing seasons due to variable environmental and crop-growth conditions,making determination of an“average”crop-coefficient function difficult.

Suitable soil moisture contents for water use efficiency and saponins accumulation in Panax notoginseng

Objective:The moisture content in the soil directly affects the yield and quality of Panax notoginseng,especially at the age of three years old.However,the suitable moisture for the growth of P.notoginseng is unknown.In this study,the effects of different soil moisture on the growth of P.notoginseng were studied.Methods:Four different water treatments(0.45 field capacity(FC),0.60 FC, 0.70 FC, and 0.85 FC) were set up in Shilin County,Yunnan Province,China.The water consumption and daily dynamic of water consumption were determined daily(from April 21 to October 18,2012),and the daily dynamic of water consumption under different weather conditions(sunny and rainy) was determined.The transpiration coefficient and water use efficiency were calculated through dry matter accumulation and total water consumption.Accumulation of saponins of roots of P.notoginseng were analyzed by HPLC after treated,and the soil moisture content suitable for the growth of P.notoginseng was estimated by regression fitting of the active ingredient accumulation and the soil moisture content.Results:The water consumption of 0.85 FC,0.70 FC,0.60 FC and 0.45 FC were 2.89,3.68,3.37 and 2.73 kg/plant per day,respectively.The water consumption of P.notoginseng from June to August was greater than other months.The daily dynamic of water consumption on sunny days and sunny days after rain showed a "double peak" feature,and it showed a "single peak" feature on rainy days.The water uses efficiency(WUE) of 0.85 FC,0.70 FC,0.60 FC and 0.45 FC were 2.51,3.32,4.59,3.39 gDW/kg H_(2)O,respectively.The increase of soil moistu re content would reduce the WUE of P.notoginse ng.With the increase of soil water content,the content of notoginsenoside R_(1) and ginsenoside Rg_(1) did not change significantly,while the content of ginsenoside Rb_(1) and Rd showed a decreasing trend.Conclusion:Soil moisture content significantly affected the water consumption of P.notoginseng,and when it was 56.4% of the maximum water holding capacity in the field,the sum of the four saponins of 100 strains of P.notoginseng was the highest.

Water Consumption of Seven Forage Cultivars under Different Climatic Conditions in the North China Plain

The objectives of this study were to determine the characteristics of water consumption of seven forage cultivars, ryegrass （Secale cereale L.）, triticale （×Triticosecale Wittmack）, sorghum hybrid sudangrass （Sorghum biolor× Sorghum Sudanense c.v.）, ensilage corn （Zea mays L.）, prince’s feather （Amaranthus paniculatus L.）, alfalfa （Medicago sativa L.）, and cup plant （Silphium perfoliatum L.）, in response to climate variability （especially precipitation）. Field experiments were conducted at Yucheng Integrated Experiment Station from 2005 to 2009. Fifteen irrigated lysimeters were used to measure evapotranspiration （ET） and crop coefficient （Kc） of these seven forage varieties under ample water supply. The mean Kc for alfalfa is 1.08, and the mean Kc for other forage varieties ranges from 0.79 to 0.94. Kc for hibernating forage is higher in wet years than that in dry years, followed by normal years, while for annual forage, Kc is higher in dry years than in normal years, and is the lowest in wet years. For perennial varieties the order is normal years, dry years, and wet years. Among the annual varieties, ensilage corn is the first choice due to its highest average forage N yield and water use efficiency （WUE）. Sorghum hybrid sudangrass is another forage cultivar that grows well under all climatic conditions. It can achieve 1.08-2.31 t ha-1 y-1 N yield under all circumstances. Prince’s feather is sensitive to climate change and its N yield dropped below half even when ample water was applied in dry and normal years. Ryegrass and triticale have the advantage of growing in the fallow phase after cotton is harvested in the North China Plain （NCP） and the latter performed better. For perennial varieties, alfalfa performed better than cup plant in dry years. With ample irrigation, alfalfa can achieve higher biomass and WUE under arid climate condition, but excessive rain caused reduction in production.