Water requirements of drip irrigated tomatoes in CentralCalifornia

摘要

Accurate estimation of crop water requirements (CWR) is essential to optimize water use efficiency and develop efficient irrigation scheduling practices. This is particularly important in Central California where continuous droughts have accentuated the need to conserve water and improve on-farm water management. The most accurate method to determine CWR is with precision weighing lysimeters, which measure actual crop evapotranspiration (ETa). Thus, the objectives of this study were to determine ETadata, develop new crop coefficients (Kc), and evaluate the relationship between Kc and crop ground cover for processing tomatoes grown under subsurface drip irrigation. The study was conducted on a clay loam soil. Average ETa, Kc, and ground cover data will be presented. Relationship between Kc and ground cover will also be evaluated.