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soil - Lublin

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Water uptake and stomatal diffusive resistance<br />

Experiments performed in growth chamber allowed controlling <strong>soil</strong> physical<br />

conditions and precise measurements of water uptake and eliminating the effects of<br />

different weather conditions. Under conditions of sufficient water supply, total<br />

water use decreased with increasing <strong>soil</strong> compaction level while root water uptake<br />

rate was highest in moderately compacted <strong>soil</strong> owing to higher unsaturated hydraulic<br />

conductivity and greater water movement towards the roots and better root-<strong>soil</strong><br />

contact area. However, increased water uptake rate was insufficient to entirely compensate<br />

the reduction in total root length and resulted in reduced total water uptake.<br />

Water uptake depends on spatial distribution of <strong>soil</strong> compaction. Split root<br />

experiment showed that in treatment with root system of wheat seedlings split to loose<br />

and strongly compacted (vertically divided by plastic wall) reduced water uptake in<br />

compacted compartment was partly compensated for by greater water use in loose<br />

compartment (Fig. 3.).<br />

50<br />

L/L<br />

Cumulative water use (ml)<br />

40<br />

30<br />

20<br />

10<br />

0<br />

L(L/SC)<br />

SC(L/SC<br />

1 5 9 13 17 21 25<br />

Fig. 3. Cumulative water<br />

use from loose and strongly<br />

compacted <strong>soil</strong> compartments<br />

(after Lipiec et al.<br />

2002).<br />

Days after planting<br />

In treatment with loose and moderately compacted <strong>soil</strong> compartments the compensatory<br />

effect was less pronounced. Root water use efficiency was higher from<br />

compartments with moderately compacted than loose and strongly compacted <strong>soil</strong>.<br />

This indicates plasticity of root water absorption in response to localized <strong>soil</strong> compaction.<br />

The alterations in the root water use efficiency are of great importance in<br />

modelling plant water use (Novak, 1995; Walczak. et al., 1997).<br />

Stomatal resistance responses to <strong>soil</strong> compaction relate to <strong>soil</strong> water status. In<br />

growth chamber with transient wetting the stomatal resistance and its variation<br />

over the growth period were markely higher in severely compacted <strong>soil</strong> than in low<br />

or medium compacted <strong>soil</strong>. Substantial increase of stomatal resistance in most<br />

compacted <strong>soil</strong> occurred when <strong>soil</strong> matric potential increased from approximately<br />

400hPa (increasing <strong>soil</strong> moisture) (Lipiec et al., 1996). The highest stomatal diffusive<br />

resistance in most compacted <strong>soil</strong> has also been reported in dry period (Lipiec,<br />

Gliński, 1997). Some authors (Tardieu, 1994) stated that abscissic acis increase in<br />

plants grown in compacted <strong>soil</strong> is a result of root dehydration due to a limited water<br />

supply to the roots. Ali et al. (1999) reported that the increased leaf stomatal<br />

resistance occurred even before a measurable change in leaf water potential.<br />

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