Relationships between the dynamics of the durum wheat water content and its phasic development in a Mediterranean climate, for remote sensing purposes

摘要

The temporal evolution of the water content of durum wheat ( Triticum durum L.) canopies was investigated. The water contents of leaves, stems and ears of durum wheat plants were measured on various cultivars, under various hydric treatments and for several years in the Southeast of France. Because of the variability observed between these classes of organs, the water content is expressed as the percentage of the fresh weight for each class, from which the total water content of the canopy is deduced. The water content of the organs is then modelled as a function of a decimal phenological scale, defined as the cumulative degree-days canopy temperature accumulated between key phenological stages. The phenological stage emerges as the main variable governing the time course of the relative water content. The simulated values are in good agreement with the measurements and the uncertainties of the model are comparable with experimental ones.