IRRIGATION, WATER STATUS AND NUTRIENT UPTAKE IN AN APPLE ORCHARD

Trees absorb water and nutrients mainly through their root system.
Modern approaches consider the root system not only as a water- and nutrient-supplying organ, but also as a plant regulator source which has an impact on the entire physiology of the plant.
The size of the root system and its distribution pattern in a given soil are determined to a great extent by irrigation (method, frequency and amount) and its interaction with soil aeration and nutrient supply.
The flexibility of the root system and the possibility of controlling it have become of great importance in recent years since the introduction of drip irrigation and other high-frequency irrigation methods (Levin, Assaf and Bravdo, 1979; Rawlins and Raats, 1975). Trees which had been irrigated for many years by surface irrigation and had a widespread root system, adjusted their roots to a very small wetted volume of soil within one season of drip irrigation.
No reduction in vegetative growth or yield was observed (Safran, Bravdo and Bernstein, 1975). In this chapter we will deal with the effect of sprinkler and drip irrigation on the root system and the implications for water and nutrient uptake.

Symposium on Mineral Nutrition and Fruit Quality of Temperate Zone Fruit Trees

I. LEVIN, R. ASSAF, B. BRAVDO

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1980.92.33