Soil Moisture Flow Modeling with Water Uptake by Plants (Wheat) under Varying Soil and Moisture Conditions
Publication: Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 135, Issue 3
Abstract
A variably saturated soil moisture flow model is developed for planted soils with depth varying properties by incorporating a nonuniform macroscopic root water uptake function. The model includes spatial and temporal variation of the root density with dynamic root growth for simulating water uptake by plants along with the impact of soil moisture availability. The governing partial differential moisture flow equation integrated over the depth with a plant water uptake term is solved numerically by the implicit finite difference method using an iterative scheme. The model is first tested for barren soils for two profiles considering constant and depth varying soil characteristics under constant inflow condition. The results obtained are later tested with experimental data available in the literature. A nonuniform plant water uptake term is subsequently incorporated in the model and water uptake by wheat plants under different soil moisture availability conditions is studied. Finally, the moisture flow model is validated with field data of rain fed wheat (Triticum aestivum) using a dynamic root growth model for a layered root zone soil profile. The simulated soil moisture regime of the layered root zone shows a reasonably good agreement with the observed data.
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Acknowledgments
The writers acknowledge the Commission of the European UnionEU for extending the financial support to this research as part of the EU-Asia Link Project. The writers are also grateful to Dr. Rakesh Gupta, Scientist, Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, India for providing weather data of the study area.
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Information
Published In
Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 135 • Issue 3 • June 2009
Pages: 375 - 381
Copyright
© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Jan 21, 2008
Accepted: Oct 27, 2008
Published online: May 15, 2009
Published in print: Jun 2009
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