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A daily multi‐layered water balance model to predict water and oxygen availability in tropical cropping systems
Author(s) -
Verdoodt A.,
Ranst E.,
Ye L.,
Verplancke H.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
soil use and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.709
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1475-2743
pISSN - 0266-0032
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-2743.2005.tb00404.x
Subject(s) - water balance , environmental science , tropics , soil water , cropping , transpiration , hydrology (agriculture) , subtropics , soil science , agriculture , ecology , geology , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , photosynthesis , geotechnical engineering
. A daily multi‐layered water balance (DAMUWAB) approach has been formulated with modest input data on daily climatic records, slope gradient, physical soil properties and basic crop characteristics, for predicting the water and oxygen availability in freely drained soils of semiarid as well as subhumid tropical cropping systems. In this study, a simple one‐dimensional root extension model is coupled to a water‐uptake model that differentiates the uptake capacity of roots according to their depth. It has an intermediate level of detail between functional, 10‐day period single‐layered water balance (DESIWAB) approaches for land evaluation purposes, and the descriptive, daily water balances used in many crop growth models. Modelling capacity, functionality and expandability of DAMUWAB surpass the performance of DESIWAB. Water and oxygen shortages occurring in each compartment were found to limit water uptake and transpiration. Sensitivity analysis and comparison of DAMLWAB with the worldwide operational DESIWAB approach proved successful for model validation in the tropics and subtropics.