IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/agiwat/v221y2019icp286-302.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Modeling soil water balance and irrigation strategies in a flood-irrigated wheat-maize rotation system. A case in dry climate, China

Author

Listed:
  • Zhou, Hong
  • Zhao, Wen zhi

Abstract

Demand for irrigation water has been steadily increasing in arid regions where intensification of crop production is supported by flood-irrigation. An assessment of irrigation performance, water productivity, and irrigation schedules is critical to water conservation in dry climates. In this study, we conducted a field experiment to compare soil water balance in a flood-irrigated wheat-maize rotation system during the growing season of 2015–2016. We then modeled the soil water balance and improved irrigation strategies by coupling Hydrus-1D with the CROPWAT model, and using evapotranspiration calculated from climatic data. The calibrated Hydrus-1D model was used to simulate the temporal and spatial variation of evapotranspiration and deep percolation based on measured soil water distribution of soil profiles in the unsaturated zone. Results showed that using soil hydraulic parameters from inversion modeling can simulate soil water flow in multi-layer soil during a crop growing season. Simulation results indicated that about 36.6 and 40.6% (478.6 and 680.1 mm) of total water input in 2015 and 2016, respectively, was consumed by evapotranspiration. Furthermore, simulated deep percolation amounted for approximately 32.3 and 42.9% (403.9 and 696.6 mm) of the total amount of irrigation water in 2015 and 2016, respectively. These results indicated that only a small proportion of irrigation water was used by crops for transpiration. In addition, irrigation performance indicators such as relative water supply, relative irrigation supply, depleted fraction, and overall consumed ratio values indicated poor performance of irrigation practices in the study area. Particularly, crop yields did not increase with increases in irrigation water in flood-irrigated fields during the last ten years. Results of the CROPWAT model indicated that combinations of a fixed irrigation depth and timing, of 40 mm every 10 days, and 50 mm every 10 days were reasonable for wheat and maize, respectively, given the sandy soil in the study area. The improved irrigation strategies will limit water irrigation loss to 20% without significant effects on crop yields. This study provides an alternative approach for estimating deep percolation and crop water requirements supporting management efforts in water conservation in dry climates.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhou, Hong & Zhao, Wen zhi, 2019. "Modeling soil water balance and irrigation strategies in a flood-irrigated wheat-maize rotation system. A case in dry climate, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 221(C), pages 286-302.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:221:y:2019:i:c:p:286-302
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2019.05.011
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377418307790
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.agwat.2019.05.011?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tom Gleeson & Yoshihide Wada & Marc F. P. Bierkens & Ludovicus P. H. van Beek, 2012. "Water balance of global aquifers revealed by groundwater footprint," Nature, Nature, vol. 488(7410), pages 197-200, August.
    2. Zhao, Wenzhi & Liu, Bing & Zhang, Zhihui, 2010. "Water requirements of maize in the middle Heihe River basin, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 215-223, February.
    3. Shang, Songhao & Li, Xichun & Mao, Xiaomin & Lei, Zhidong, 2004. "Simulation of water dynamics and irrigation scheduling for winter wheat and maize in seasonal frost areas," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 117-133, August.
    4. Tan, Xuezhi & Shao, Dongguo & Liu, Huanhuan, 2014. "Simulating soil water regime in lowland paddy fields under different water managements using HYDRUS-1D," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 69-78.
    5. Kuo, Sheng-Feng & Ho, Shin-Shen & Liu, Chen-Wuing, 2006. "Estimation irrigation water requirements with derived crop coefficients for upland and paddy crops in ChiaNan Irrigation Association, Taiwan," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 82(3), pages 433-451, April.
    6. Li, Yong & Šimůnek, Jirka & Jing, Longfei & Zhang, Zhentin & Ni, Lixiao, 2014. "Evaluation of water movement and water losses in a direct-seeded-rice field experiment using Hydrus-1D," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 38-46.
    7. Stirzaker, Richard J. & Maeko, Tshepo C. & Annandale, John G. & Steyn, J. Martin & Adhanom, Goitom T. & Mpuisang, Thembeka, 2017. "Scheduling irrigation from wetting front depth," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 306-313.
    8. Tong, Ling & Kang, Shaozhong & Zhang, Lu, 2007. "Temporal and spatial variations of evapotranspiration for spring wheat in the Shiyang river basin in northwest China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(3), pages 241-250, February.
    9. Zwart, Sander J. & Bastiaanssen, Wim G. M., 2004. "Review of measured crop water productivity values for irrigated wheat, rice, cotton and maize," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 115-133, September.
    10. Bouman, B. A. M. & Tuong, T. P., 2001. "Field water management to save water and increase its productivity in irrigated lowland rice," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 11-30, July.
    11. Ji, Xi-Bin & Kang, Er-Si & Chen, Ren-Sheng & Zhao, Wen-Zhi & Zhang, Zhi-Hui & Jin, Bo-Wen, 2007. "A mathematical model for simulating water balances in cropped sandy soil with conventional flood irrigation applied," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(3), pages 337-346, February.
    12. Xi, Benye & Bloomberg, Mark & Watt, Michael S. & Wang, Ye & Jia, Liming, 2016. "Modeling growth response to soil water availability simulated by HYDRUS for a mature triploid Populus tomentosa plantation located on the North China Plain," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 243-254.
    13. Liu, S. & Yang, J.Y. & Zhang, X.Y. & Drury, C.F. & Reynolds, W.D. & Hoogenboom, G., 2013. "Modelling crop yield, soil water content and soil temperature for a soybean–maize rotation under conventional and conservation tillage systems in Northeast China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 32-44.
    14. Dechmi, F. & Playan, E. & Faci, J. M. & Tejero, M., 2003. "Analysis of an irrigation district in northeastern Spain: I. Characterisation and water use assessment," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 61(2), pages 75-92, June.
    15. Roost, N. & Cai, X.L. & Turral, H. & Molden, D. & Cui, Y.L., 2008. "Adapting to intersectoral transfers in the Zhanghe Irrigation System, China: Part II: Impacts of in-system storage on water balance and productivity," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(6), pages 685-697, June.
    16. Beyene, Abebech & Cornelis, Wim & Verhoest, Niko E.C. & Tilahun, Seifu & Alamirew, Tena & Adgo, Enyew & De Pue, Jan & Nyssen, Jan, 2018. "Estimating the actual evapotranspiration and deep percolation in irrigated soils of a tropical floodplain, northwest Ethiopia," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 42-56.
    17. Shimelis Setegn & V. Chowdary & B. Mal & Fikadu Yohannes & Yasuyuki Kono, 2011. "Water Balance Study and Irrigation Strategies for Sustainable Management of a Tropical Ethiopian Lake: A Case Study of Lake Alemaya," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 25(9), pages 2081-2107, July.
    18. Li, Wenlong & Li, Weide & Li, Zizhen, 2004. "Irrigation and fertilizer effects on water use and yield of spring wheat in semi-arid regions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 67(1), pages 35-46, June.
    19. Roost, N. & Cai, X.L. & Molden, D. & Cui, Y.L., 2008. "Adapting to intersectoral transfers in the Zhanghe Irrigation System, China: Part I. In-system storage characteristics," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(6), pages 698-706, June.
    20. Li, Zi-Zhen & Li, Wei-De & Li, Wen-Long, 2004. "Dry-period irrigation and fertilizer application affect water use and yield of spring wheat in semi-arid regions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 65(2), pages 133-143, March.
    21. Huang, Qiuqiong & Rozelle, Scott & Lohmar, Bryan & Huang, Jikun & Wang, Jinxia, 2006. "Irrigation, agricultural performance and poverty reduction in China," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 30-52, February.
    22. Cassel Sharmasarkar, F. & Sharmasarkar, S. & Miller, S. D. & Vance, G. F. & Zhang, R., 2001. "Assessment of drip and flood irrigation on water and fertilizer use efficiencies for sugarbeets," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 241-251, January.
    23. Tan, Xuezhi & Shao, Dongguo & Gu, Wenquan & Liu, Huanhuan, 2015. "Field analysis of water and nitrogen fate in lowland paddy fields under different water managements using HYDRUS-1D," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 67-80.
    24. Jiang, Yao & Xu, Xu & Huang, Quanzhong & Huo, Zailin & Huang, Guanhua, 2015. "Assessment of irrigation performance and water productivity in irrigated areas of the middle Heihe River basin using a distributed agro-hydrological model," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 67-81.
    25. Li, Yu-Lin & Cui, Jian-Yuan & Zhang, Tong-Hui & Zhao, Ha-Lin, 2003. "Measurement of evapotranspiration of irrigated spring wheat and maize in a semi-arid region of north China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 1-12, June.
    26. Jalota, S. K. & Arora, V. K., 2002. "Model-based assessment of water balance components under different cropping systems in north-west India," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 57(1), pages 75-87, September.
    27. Jinjiao Lian & Mingbin Huang, 2015. "Evapotranspiration Estimation for an Oasis Area in the Heihe River Basin Using Landsat-8 Images and the METRIC Model," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 29(14), pages 5157-5170, November.
    28. Goyal, R. K., 2004. "Sensitivity of evapotranspiration to global warming: a case study of arid zone of Rajasthan (India)," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 1-11, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Henrique Figueiredo Moura da Silva, Evandro & Boote, Kenneth J. & Hoogenboom, Gerrit & Gonçalves, Alexandre Ortega & Junior, Aderson Soares Andrade & Marin, Fabio Ricardo, 2021. "Performance of the CSM-CROPGRO-soybean in simulating soybean growth and development and the soil water balance for a tropical environment," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 252(C).
    2. Yi, Jun & Li, Huijie & Zhao, Ying & Shao, Ming'an & Zhang, Hailin & Liu, Muxing, 2022. "Assessing soil water balance to optimize irrigation schedules of flood-irrigated maize fields with different cultivation histories in the arid region," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 265(C).
    3. Kumar, Hemendra & Srivastava, Puneet & Lamba, Jasmeet & Diamantopoulos, Efstathios & Ortiz, Brenda & Morata, Guilherme & Takhellambam, Bijoychandra & Bondesan, Luca, 2022. "Site-specific irrigation scheduling using one-layer soil hydraulic properties and inverse modeling," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 273(C).
    4. Huang, Ya & Zhang, Zhe & Li, Zhenhua & Dai, Danqiong & Li, Yanping, 2022. "Evaluation of water use efficiency and optimal irrigation quantity of spring maize in Hetao Irrigation District using the Noah-MP Land Surface Model," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 264(C).
    5. Feng, Zhuangzhuang & Miao, Qingfeng & Shi, Haibin & Feng, Weiying & Li, Xianyue & Yan, Jianwen & Liu, Meihan & Sun, Wei & Dai, Liping & Liu, Jing, 2023. "Simulation of water balance and irrigation strategy of typical sand-layered farmland in the Hetao Irrigation District, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 280(C).
    6. Tenreiro, Tomás R. & García-Vila, Margarita & Gómez, José A. & Jimenez-Berni, José A. & Fereres, Elías, 2020. "Water modelling approaches and opportunities to simulate spatial water variations at crop field level," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    7. Amin, M.G. Mostofa & Mahbub, S.M. Mubtasim & Hasan, Md. Moudud & Pervin, Wafa & Sharmin, Jinat & Hossain, Md. Delwar, 2023. "Plant–water relations in subtropical maize fields under mulching and organic fertilization," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 286(C).
    8. Li, Danfeng, 2020. "Quantifying water use and groundwater recharge under flood irrigation in an arid oasis of northwestern China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ji, Xi-Bin & Kang, Er-Si & Chen, Ren-Sheng & Zhao, Wen-Zhi & Zhang, Zhi-Hui & Jin, Bo-Wen, 2007. "A mathematical model for simulating water balances in cropped sandy soil with conventional flood irrigation applied," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(3), pages 337-346, February.
    2. Singh, Ajay & Krause, Peter & Panda, Sudhindra N. & Flugel, Wolfgang-Albert, 2010. "Rising water table: A threat to sustainable agriculture in an irrigated semi-arid region of Haryana, India," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 97(10), pages 1443-1451, October.
    3. Bessembinder, J.J.E. & Leffelaar, P.A. & Dhindwal, A.S. & Ponsioen, T.C., 2005. "Which crop and which drop, and the scope for improvement of water productivity," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 73(2), pages 113-130, May.
    4. Darzi-Naftchali, Abdullah & Karandish, Fatemeh & Šimůnek, Jiří, 2018. "Numerical modeling of soil water dynamics in subsurface drained paddies with midseason drainage or alternate wetting and drying management," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 197(C), pages 67-78.
    5. Feng, Zhuangzhuang & Miao, Qingfeng & Shi, Haibin & Feng, Weiying & Li, Xianyue & Yan, Jianwen & Liu, Meihan & Sun, Wei & Dai, Liping & Liu, Jing, 2023. "Simulation of water balance and irrigation strategy of typical sand-layered farmland in the Hetao Irrigation District, China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 280(C).
    6. Jalota, S.K. & Singh, K.B. & Chahal, G.B.S. & Gupta, R.K. & Chakraborty, Somsubhra & Sood, Anil & Ray, S.S. & Panigrahy, S., 2009. "Integrated effect of transplanting date, cultivar and irrigation on yield, water saving and water productivity of rice (Oryza sativa L.) in Indian Punjab: Field and simulation study," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(7), pages 1096-1104, July.
    7. Sharma, Bharat & Molden, D. & Cook, Simon, 2015. "Water use efficiency in agriculture: measurement, current situation and trends," IWMI Books, Reports H046807, International Water Management Institute.
    8. Tan, Xuezhi & Shao, Dongguo & Gu, Wenquan & Liu, Huanhuan, 2015. "Field analysis of water and nitrogen fate in lowland paddy fields under different water managements using HYDRUS-1D," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 67-80.
    9. Mustafa, S.M.T. & Vanuytrecht, E. & Huysmans, M., 2017. "Combined deficit irrigation and soil fertility management on different soil textures to improve wheat yield in drought-prone Bangladesh," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 191(C), pages 124-137.
    10. Araya, A. & Prasad, P.V.V. & Gowda, P.H. & Afewerk, A. & Abadi, B. & Foster, A.J., 2019. "Modeling irrigation and nitrogen management of wheat in northern Ethiopia," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 216(C), pages 264-272.
    11. Li, Danfeng, 2020. "Quantifying water use and groundwater recharge under flood irrigation in an arid oasis of northwestern China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    12. Yi, Jun & Li, Huijie & Zhao, Ying & Shao, Ming'an & Zhang, Hailin & Liu, Muxing, 2022. "Assessing soil water balance to optimize irrigation schedules of flood-irrigated maize fields with different cultivation histories in the arid region," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 265(C).
    13. Sharma, Bharat & Molden, D. & Cook, Simon, 2015. "Water use efficiency in agriculture: measurement, current situation and trends," Book Chapters,, International Water Management Institute.
    14. Xu, Xu & Jiang, Yao & Liu, Minghuan & Huang, Quanzhong & Huang, Guanhua, 2019. "Modeling and assessing agro-hydrological processes and irrigation water saving in the middle Heihe River basin," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 152-164.
    15. Li, Yong & Šimůnek, Jirka & Jing, Longfei & Zhang, Zhentin & Ni, Lixiao, 2014. "Evaluation of water movement and water losses in a direct-seeded-rice field experiment using Hydrus-1D," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 38-46.
    16. Ishfaq, Muhammad & Farooq, Muhammad & Zulfiqar, Usman & Hussain, Saddam & Akbar, Nadeem & Nawaz, Ahmad & Anjum, Shakeel Ahmad, 2020. "Alternate wetting and drying: A water-saving and ecofriendly rice production system," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    17. Cao, Jingjing & Tan, Junwei & Cui, Yuanlai & Luo, Yufeng, 2019. "Irrigation scheduling of paddy rice using short-term weather forecast data," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 213(C), pages 714-723.
    18. Zhao, Nana & Liu, Yu & Cai, Jiabing & Paredes, Paula & Rosa, Ricardo D. & Pereira, Luis S., 2013. "Dual crop coefficient modelling applied to the winter wheat–summer maize crop sequence in North China Plain: Basal crop coefficients and soil evaporation component," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 93-105.
    19. Choudhury, B.U. & Singh, Anil Kumar & Pradhan, S., 2013. "Estimation of crop coefficients of dry-seeded irrigated rice–wheat rotation on raised beds by field water balance method in the Indo-Gangetic plains, India," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 20-31.
    20. Kaiwen Chen & Shuang’en Yu & Tao Ma & Jihui Ding & Pingru He & Yao Li & Yan Dai & Guangquan Zeng, 2022. "Modeling the Water and Nitrogen Management Practices in Paddy Fields with HYDRUS-1D," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-18, June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:221:y:2019:i:c:p:286-302. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/agwat .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.