Abstract
While the cultivated olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is known to be sclerophyllous and effective at tolerating drought, little is known of its short-term water-use dynamics for most studies have been based on longer-term, water-balance information. We present here, for the first time, heat-pulse measurements of the sap flux measured not only within the semi-trunk of an olive tree, but also within a root excavated close to the stump. One tree in the olive grove near Seville in Spain had regularly received basin irrigation during the summer, whereas the other, growing on this deep silt loam, had been without water for over 3 months. Following a flood irrigation of 730 L to a dyked area around the tree, the regularly-irrigated olive maintained a transpiration rate of 1.65 mm3 mm−2 d−1, on a leaf area basis, for only 3 days following the irrigation. This rate was maintained for a total consumption of 110 L. It then began again to limit its rate of water use with transpiration falling below that predicted for well-watered conditions by the Penman-Monteith equation. The flow of sap in the near-surface root dropped concomitantly. Meanwhile the unirrigated tree was using water at just 0.78 mm d−1. Yet following an irrigation of 870 L it only lifted its consumption to 1.12 mm d−1, on a leaf area basis. Neither did it recover its leaf water potential following this wetting because of an inability to refill cavitated vessels. These data again show olive to be a parsimonious and cautious consumer of soil water.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Baker, J M and Allmaras, R R 1990 System for automating and multiplexing soil moisture measurements by time-domain reflectometry. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 54, 1–6.
Cabibel, B and Do, F 1991 Measures thermiques des flux de sève et comportement hydrique des arbres. II. Evolution dans le temps des flux de sève et comportement hydrique des arbres en pérsence ou non d'une irrigation localisée. Agronomie 11, 757–766.
Caspari, H W, Green, S R and Edwards, W R N 1993 Transpiration of well-watered and water-stressed Asian pear trees as determined by lysimetry, heat-pulse and estimated by a Penman-Monteith model. Agric. For. Meteorol. 67, 13–27.
Clothier, B E and Green, S R 1994 Root zone processes and the efficient use of irrigation water. Agric. Water Manage. 25, 1–12.
Cohen, Y, Fuchs, M and Cohen, S 1983 Resistance to water uptake in a mature citrus tree. J. Exp. Bot. 34, 451–460.
Eris, A and Barut, E 1995 Olive growing in Turkey. Chron. Hortic. 35, 14–16.
Fernández, J E, Moreno, F, Cabrera, F, Arrue, J L and Martín-Aranda, J 1991 Drip irrigation, soil characteristics and the root distribution and root activity of olive trees. Plant and Soil 133, 239–251.
Fernández, J E, Moreno, F and Martín-Aranda, J 1993 Water status of olive trees under dry farming and drip irrigation. Acta Hortic. 335, 157–164.
Goldhamer, D A, Dunai, J and Ferguson, L 1993 Water use requirements of manzanillo olives and responses to sustained deficit irrigation. Acta Hortic. 335, 365–371.
Granier, A 1985 Une nouvelle méthode pour la mesure des flux de sève dans le tronc des arbres. Ann. Sci. For. 42, 193–200.
Green, S R 1993 Radiation balance, transpiration and photosynthesis of an isolated tree. Agric. For. Meteorol. 64, 201–221.
Green, S R and Clothier, B E 1988 Water use of kiwifruit vines and apple trees by the heat-pulse technique. J. Exp. Bot. 39, 115–123.
Green, S R and Clothier, B E 1991 Heat pulse measurement of sap flow in trees and vines. In Proc. Sym. Sap Flow Measure., Am. Soc. Agron., Oct 27th 1991, Denver, USA. pp 11–12. Am. Soc. Agron, Madison, WI, USA.
Green, S R, McNaughton, K G and Clothier, B E 1989 Observations of night-time water use in kiwifruit vines and apple trees. Agric. For. Meteorol. 48, 251–261.
Green, S R and Clothier, B E 1995 Root water uptake by kiwifruit vines following partial wetting of the root zone. Plant and Soil 173, 317–328.
Green, S R, McNaughton, K G, Greer, D H and McLeod, D J 1995 Measurement of the increased PAR and net all-wave radiation absorption by an apple tree caused by applying a reflective ground covering. Agric. For. Meteorol. 76, 163–183.
Hinckley, T M, Brooks, J R, Čermák, J, Ceulemans, R, Kučera, J, Meimzer, F C and Roberts, D A 1994 Water flux in a hybrid poplar stand. Tree Physiol. 14, 1005–1018.
Landsberg, J J and Powell, D B B 1973 Surface exchange characteristics of leaves subject to mutual interference. Agric. Meteorol. 13, 169–184.
Larsen, F E, Higgins, S S and Al Wir, A 1989 Diurnal water relations of apple, apricot, grape, olive and peach in an arid environment (Jordan). Sci. Hortic. 39, 211–222.
Lo Gullo, M A and Salleo, S 1988 Different strategies of drought resistance in three Mediterranean sclerophyllous trees growing in the same environmental conditions. New Phytol. 108, 267–276.
McAneney, K J and M J, Judd 1983 Observations of kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis Planch.) root exploration, root pressure, hydraulic conductivity, and water uptake. N.Z. J. Agric. Res. 26, 507–510.
Michelakis, N and Vougioucalou, E 1988 Water used, root and top growth of olive trees for different methods of irrigation and levels of soil water potential. Olea 19, 17–31.
Moreno, F, Vachaud, G and Martín, J 1983 Caracterización hidrodinámica de un suelo de olivar. Fundamento teórico y métodos experimentales. Anal. Edaf. Agrobiol. 42, 695–721.
Moreno, F, Vachaud, G, Martín-Aranda, J, Vauclin, M and Fernández, J E 1988 Balance hidrico de un olivar con riego gota a gota. Resultados de cuatro años de experiencias. Agronomie 8, 521–537.
Natali, S, Xiloyannis, C and Angelini, P 1985 Water consumptive use of olive trees (Olea europaea) and effect of water stress on leaf water potential and diffusive resistance. Acta Hortic. 171, 341–351.
Sakuratani, T 1981 A heat balance method for measuring water flux in the stem of intact plants. J. Agric. Meteorol. 37, 9–17.
Salleo, S, Lo Gullo, M A and Oliveri, F 1985 Hydraulic parameters measured in 1-year-old twigs of some Mediterranean species with diffuse-porous wood: Changes in hydraulic conductivity and their possible functional significance. J. Exp. Bot. 36, 1–11.
Sinclair, T R, Murphy, C E and Knoerr, K R 1976 Development and evaluation of simplified models for simulating canopy photosynthesis and transpiration J. Appl. Ecol. 13, 813–829.
Steinberg, S L, McFarland, M J and Worthington, J W 1990 Comparison of trunk and branch sap flow with canopy transpiration in pecan J. Exp. Bot. 41, 653–659.
Swanson, R H and Whitfield, D W A 1981 A numeric analysis of heatpulse velocity theory and practice. J. Exp. Bot. 32, 221–239.
Tardieu, F and Davies, W J 1993 Integration of hydraulic and chemical signalling in the control of stomatal conductance and water status of droughted plants. Plant Cell Environ. 16, 341–349.
Thompson, R G, Tyree, M T, Lo Gullo, M A and Salleo, S 1983 The water relations of young olive trees in a mediterranean winter: Measurements of evaporation from leaves and water conduction in wood. Ann Bot. 52, 399–406.
Thorpe, M R, Warrit, B and Landsberg, J J 1980 Responses of apple leaf stomata: A model for single leaves and a whole tree. Plant Cell Environ. 3, 23–27.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Moreno, F., Fernández, J.E., Clothier, B.E. et al. Transpiration and root water uptake by olive trees. Plant Soil 184, 85–96 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00029277
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00029277