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IMPACT OF WATER CUTBACK ON SUGARCANE PRODUCTION IN THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES 1
Author(s) -
Shih S. F.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
jawra journal of the american water resources association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.957
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1752-1688
pISSN - 1093-474X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1752-1688.1984.tb04670.x
Subject(s) - muck , saccharum , cane , environmental science , lysimeter , water table , agronomy , biomass (ecology) , yield (engineering) , irrigation , soil water , sugar , biology , geology , soil science , groundwater , biochemistry , geotechnical engineering , materials science , metallurgy
Sugarcane ( Saccharum spp.) was planted in six lysimeters containing Pahokee muck ( Lithic Mediaprist ) where water tables were maintained at 30, 60, and 90 cm depths. The main objective was to study the impact of a 40 percent water cutback (108 mm) on sugarcane production during the period near the end of the dry season (i.e., May). The water cutback treatment was simulated through manipulation of water table depth. Due to the high available water capacity of the muck soil and selection of a sugarcane cultivar ‘CP63‐588’ (which has a high tolerance of water table fluctuations), the sugarcane growth, and the yields of sugarcane biomass and sugar were not significantly different as a result of the treatments with and without 40 percent water cutback during a period of two months. This result is in good agreement with the 1981 cane yield in the Everglades Agricultural Area where a 35 percent water cutback was imposed during the 1981 drought.