Pedosphere 25(1): 57--71, 2015
ISSN 1002-0160/CN 32-1315/P
©2015 Soil Science Society of China
Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press
| Black locust transpiration responses to soil water availability as affected by meteorological factors and soil texture |
WU Yuan-Zhi1,2, HUANG Ming-Bin2 and D. N. WARRINGTON2 |
1Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water and Soil Conservation and Environmental Protection, Linyi University, Linyi 276000 (China)
2State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland farming on the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A & F University, Yangling 712100 (China) |
| ABSTRACT |
| On the Loess Plateau of China, a dry soil layer may form due to excess transpiration, leading to degradation of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) stands. In order to better manage projects involving black locust, this study was intended to investigate the response of black locust transpiration rate to soil water availability as affected by meteorological factors using two representative soils (loamy clay and sandy loam) on the Loess Plateau. Four soil water contents were maintained for black locust seedlings grown in pots initially outdoors and then in a climate-controlled chamber, by either drying or irrigating the pots. In both environments, daily transpiration rates were related by a power function to air temperature and by a logistic function to reference evapotranspiration (ET0). Transpiration rates were more susceptible to changes in the meteorological conditions in the sandy loam than in the loamy clay soil. The transpiration rate in the well-watered treatment was greater for black locust grown in the sandy loam than in the loamy clay soil. Normalized transpiration rates were unaffected by ET0 until a critical value of soil water content (θc) was attained; the θc value decreased significantly for the loamy clay soil but increased significantly for the sandy loam soil when ET0 increased. These suggested that the effect of the meteorological condition on the transpiration characteristics of black locust was dependent on soil texture. |
| Key Words: loamy clay, dry soil layer, evaporative demand, Loess Plateau, reference evapotranspiration, sandy loam, temperature, vapor pressure deficit |
| Citation: Wu, Y. Z., Huang, M. B. and Warrington, D. N. 2015. Black locust transpiration responses to soil water availability as affected by meteorological factors and soil texture. Pedosphere. 25(1): 57-71. |
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