Unravelling the responses of different apple varieties to water constraints by continuous field thermal monitoring
Author
Gómez-Candón, David
Mathieu, Vincent
Martinez, Sébastien
Labbé, Sylvain
Magalie, Delalande
Regnard, Jean-Luc
Publication date
2022-03-03ISSN
0304-4238
Abstract
This research aimed at analyzing the response of apple tree varieties subjected to soil water deficit and atmospheric drought in a field phenotyping platform located in the Mediterranean area. The main assumption of the study was that seasonal and daily stomatal behavior can be monitored by continuous measurement of canopy surface temperature (Ts) as a proxy of stomatal closure. To achieve the study objectives, thermal monitoring of 6 pre-commercial apple varieties was simultaneously carried out throughout one season by nadir-oriented thermo-radiometers placed 1.50 m over the tree top canopy. Two water regimes were applied to each variety during a 4-week summer period: normal irrigation (WW) vs progressive water deficit (WS). The maximum difference in Ts between water regimes was recorded daily between 11:00 and 14:20 GMT, with an earlier closure of stomata in WS trees. During the day, a more negative stem water potential (Ψstem) and a higher diurnal Ts (+1° to +2 °C) were observed on WS trees, resulting in a significant limitation of fruit growth. Tree water stress was caused by both edaphic and atmospheric droughts, in the medium and short terms respectively, with inter-varietal and inter-regime differences highlighting distinct stomatal closure behaviors. Results suggest that some of the varieties studied are well adapted to stressful summer conditions, as long as irrigation needs are met, while other varieties show a particular sensitivity to the mid-day evaporative demand, which may limit their extension. Although these results are not comprehensive enough to predict the optimal performance of varieties under different stress scenarios, the proposed methodology allows to assess the dynamics of tree response to water constraints using non-invasive thermal sensors. It opens up new perspectives for the phenotyping of apple cultivars under abiotic stress, achievable through the quantified study of their transpiration flux in response to stress scenarios. These prospects will require further in planta measurements to dissect varietal differences.
Document Type
Article
Document version
Accepted version
Language
English
Subject (CDU)
631 - Agriculture in general
Pages
39
Publisher
Elsevier
Is part of
Scientia Horticulturae
Citation
Gómez-Candón, David, Vincent Mathieu, Sébastien Martinez, Sylvain Labbé, Magalie Delalande, and Jean-Luc Regnard. 2022. "Unravelling The Responses Of Different Apple Varieties To Water Constraints By Continuous Field Thermal Monitoring". Scientia Horticulturae 299: 111013. doi:10.1016/j.scienta.2022.111013.
Program
Ús Eficient de l'Aigua en Agricultura
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- ARTICLES CIENTÍFICS [2694]
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/