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Normalization of the crop water stress index to assess the within-field spatial variability of water stress sensitivity

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Abstract

This paper presents a novel methodology for identifying homogeneous areas within high-frequency drip-irrigated orchards and for defining the most sensitive and resistant areas of the field to water stress. The methodology proposed here is based on the assessment of water status at the tree level during mild water stress using remote sensing derived indicators which provide valuable information about the spatial distribution of the response to water stress within an orchard. The areas more resistant to water stress will maintain a good water status, while those prone to water stress will develop initial symptoms of water deficit. The study was performed over three different peach orchards that were evaluated from 2 to 3 years. Water status was monitored using high-resolution thermal imagery acquired before and after the onset of water stress. The Thermal Sensitivity Index (TSI), derived from the difference of the CWSI and the cumulated reference evapotranspiration between the two dates, demonstrated to be well related to the increase of stem water potential. The spatial distribution of TSI enables the identification of sensitive areas within a peach orchard, a first step for establishing precision drip irrigation programs.

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Acknowledgements

Authors acknowledge Rafa Romero, Alberto Vera and David Notario for their technical support with imagery acquisition and processing; and José S. Rubio-Asensio, Margarita Parra, Ignacio Buesa, Alejandro Martínez, Antonio Yeves, Felipe Sanz, David Hortelano and Diego Guerra for their help with field measurements.

Funding

This research was funded in the frame of the collaborative international consortium IRIDA financed under the ERA-NET Cofund Water-Works 2014 Call with Spanish national funds from the Agencia Estatal de Investigación grant PCIN-2015-263. This ERA-NET is an integral part of the 2015 Joint Activities developed by the Water Challenges for a Changing World Joint Programme Initiative (Water JPI) JPIWaterWaterWorks 2014. Funding from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (AGL2017-90666‐REDC and RTI2018-096754-J-I00) is also acknowledged. V.G.-D. was supported by a postdoctoral scholarship from the ‘Ramon y Cajal’ programme Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (RYC2018-024994-I).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (IAS), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Alameda del Obispo s/n, 14004, Cordoba, Spain

    Victoria Gonzalez-Dugo & Pablo J. Zarco-Tejada

  2. Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences (FVAS), School of Agriculture and Food, Melbourne School of Engineering (MSE), University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Pablo J. Zarco-Tejada

  3. Dpto. Riego, Centro de Edafología y Biología Aplicada del Segura (CEBAS-CSIC), P.O. Box 164, 30100, Murcia, Spain

    Diego S. Intrigliolo & Juan-Miguel Ramírez-Cuesta

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  1. Victoria Gonzalez-Dugo
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  2. Pablo J. Zarco-Tejada
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  3. Diego S. Intrigliolo
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  4. Juan-Miguel Ramírez-Cuesta
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Correspondence to Victoria Gonzalez-Dugo.

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Gonzalez-Dugo, V., Zarco-Tejada, P.J., Intrigliolo, D.S. et al. Normalization of the crop water stress index to assess the within-field spatial variability of water stress sensitivity. Precision Agric 22, 964–983 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11119-020-09768-6

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