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.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
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.
References
Allen, R. G., Pereira, L. S., Raes, D., and Smith, M. (1998). “Crop evapotranspiration.” FAO Irrigation and Drainage Paper No. 56., FAO, Rome, Italy.
Ambrose, J. R. B., and Roesch, S. E. (1982). “Dynamic estuary model performance.” J. Envir. Engrg. Div., 108, 51–57.
Bhagat, R. M. (1991). “Hydraulic characteristics of an Alfisol-field studies.” Crop Res., 4, 102–110.
Bhagat, R. M., and Acharya, C. L. (1988). “Soil-water dynamics during wheat growth under different management practices.” J. Ind. Soil Sci. Soc., 36, 389–396.
Brooks, R. H., and Corey, A. T. (1964). “Hydraulic properties of porous media.” Hydrology Paper No. 3, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, Colo.
Calder, I. R., Harding, R. J., and Rosier, P. T. W. (1983). “An objective assessment of soil-moisture deficit models.” J. Hydrol., 60, 329–355.
Cardon, G. E., and Letey, J. (1992). “Plant water uptake terms evaluated for soil water and solute movement models.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 32, 1876–1880.
Cowen, I. R. (1965). “Transport of water in the soil-plant-atmosphere system.” J. Appl. Ecol., 2, 221–239.
Cushman, J. H. (1979). “An analytical solution to solute transport near root surfaces for low initial concentration. I: Equations development.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 43, 1087–1090.
Feddes, R. A., et al. (2001). “Modeling root water uptake in hydrological and climate models.” Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 82, 2797–2809.
Feddes, R. A., Kowalik, P., Malinka, K. K., and Zaradny, H. (1976). “Simulation of field water uptake by plants using a soil water dependent root extraction function.” J. Hydrol., 31, 13–26.
Feddes, R. A., Kowalik, P. J., and Zaradny, H. (1978). “Water uptake by plant roots.” Simulation of field water use and crop yield, Wiley, New York, 16–30.
Field, M. (1983). “The meteorological office rainfall and evaporation calculation system—MORECS.” Agric. Water Manage., 6, 297–306.
Gardner, W. R. (1958). “Some steady state solutions of unsaturated moisture flow equations with applications to evaporation from a water table.” Soil Sci., 85, 228–232.
Gardner, W. R. (1964). “Relation of root distribution to water uptake and availability.” Agron. J., 56, 41–45.
Gardner, F. P., Pearce, R. B., and Mitchell, R. L. (1985). Physiology of crop plants, Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa.
Green, S. R., Kirkham, M. B., and Clothier, B. E. (2006). “Root uptake and transpiration: From measurements and models to sustainable irrigation.” Agric. Water Manage., 86, 165–176.
Haverkamp, R., Vauclin, M., Touma, J., Wieranga, P. J., and Vachaud, G. (1977). “A comparison of numerical simulation models for one-dimensional Infiltration.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 41, 285–294.
Hillel, D., Talpaz, H., and Van Keulen, H. (1976). “A macroscopic approach of water uptake by a non-uniform root system, and of water and salt movement in the soil profile.” Soil Sci., 21, 242–255.
Hills, R. G., Porro, I., Hudson, D. B., and Wierenga, P. J. (1989). “Modeling one-dimensional infiltration into very dry soils. I: Model development and evaluation.” Water Resour. Res., 25(6), 1259–1269.
Hopmans, J. W., and Bristow, K. L. (2002). “Current capabilities and future needs of root water uptake and nutrient uptake modeling.” Advances in Agronomy, 77, 103–183.
Lai, C. T., and Katul, G. (2000). “The dynamic role of root-water uptake in coupling potential to actual transpiration.” Adv. Water Resour., 23, 427–439.
Leary, G. J., Connor, D. J., and White, D. H. (1985). “A simulation model of the development, growth and yield of the wheat crop.” Agricultural System, 17, 1–26.
Li, K. Y., De Jong, R., and Boisvert, J. B. (2001). “An exponential root-water-uptake model with water stress compensation.” J. Hydrol., 252, 189–204.
Mathur, S., and Rao, S. (1999). “Modeling water uptake by plant roots.” J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 125(3), 159–165.
Merrill, S. D. (1992). “Pressurized-wall minirhizotron for field observation of root growth dynamics.” Agron. J., 84, 755–758.
Molz, F. J. (1981). “Models of water transport in the soil plant system.” Water Resour. Res., 17(5), 1245–1260.
Molz, F. J., and Remson, I. (1970). “Extraction term models of water soil moisture use by transpiring plants.” Water Resour. Res., 6(5), 1346–1356.
Nimah, M. N., and Hanks, R. J. (1973). “Model for estimating soil water, plant and atmospheric interrelations. I: Description and sensitivity.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc., 37, 522–532.
Perrochet, P. (1987). “Water uptake by plant roots—A simulation model. I: Conceptual model.” J. Hydrol., 95, 55–61.
Prasad, R. (1988). “A linear root water uptake model.” J. Hydrol., 99, 297–306.
Rao, S., and Mathur, S. (1994). “Modeling heavy metal (cadmium) uptake by soil-plant root system.” J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 125(1), 89–96.
Ritchie, J. T. (1972). “Model for predicting evaporation from a row crop with incomplete cover.” Water Resour. Res., 8(5), 1204–1213.
Smith, M. (1992). “CROPWAT: A computer program for irrigation planning and management.” FAO Irrigation and Drainage Paper No. 46, FAO, Rome, Italy.
Taylor, H. M., and Klepper, B. (1978). “The role of rooting characteristics in the supply of water to plant.” Advances in Agronomy, 30, 99–128.
Tracy, J. C., and Marino, M. A. (1989). “Solute movement through root-soil environment.” J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 115(4), 608–625.
van Dam, J. C., Rooij, G. H., Heinen, M., and Stagnitti, F. (2004). “Concepts and dimensionality in modeling unsaturated water flow and solute transport.” Unsaturated zone modelling: Progress, challenges and applications, Kluwer Academic, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, Vol. 6, 1–36.
van Genuchten, M. T. (1980). “A closed-form equation for predicting the hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated soils.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 44, 892–898.
Whisler, F. D., Klute, A., and Millington, R. J. (1968). “Analysis of steady state evaporation from a soil column.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. Proc., 32, 167–174.
Wu, J., Zhang, R., and Gui, S. (1999). “Modeling soil water movement with water uptake by roots.” Plant Soil, 215, 7–17.
Yadav, B. K., and Mathur, S. (2008). “Modeling soil water extraction by plants using non-linear dynamic root density distribution function.” J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 134(4), 430–436.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Copyright
© 2009 ASCE.
History
Received: Jan 21, 2008
Accepted: Oct 27, 2008
Published online: May 15, 2009
Published in print: Jun 2009
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.