One of the main crop production factors is soil water availability; therefore, determination of soil water inputs and outputs by the water balance method can be a valuable tool for improving crop management. The aim of this study was to assess soil water balance components in the field (soil water storage variations, drainage, capillary rise and evapotranspiration) and the root system profile of Brachiaria decumbens for nine months in 2011 (March to November). The ratio between evapotranspiration (ET) and reference […]

A method for determining soil hydraulic properties of a weathered tropical soil (Oxisol) using a medium-sized column with undisturbed soil is presented. The method was used to determine fitting parameters of the water retention curve and hydraulic conductivity functions of a soil column in support of a pesticide leaching study. The soil column was extracted from a continuously-used research plot in Central Oahu (Hawaii, USA) and its internal structure was examined by computed tomography. The experiment was based on tension […]

A four replicated maize (Zea mays L.) crop irrigation management experiment was carried out in a Typic Haphortox soil of Guaíra (SP), Brazil (20°27’30”S, 48°19’30”W, 495 m) from July to December, 1994. There were three treatments: tr000 – half of the recommended amount of water was applied during the crop cycle; tr0I0 – the recommended amount of water was applied only during the intermediate stage and half of it during the initial and the final stages; and trIII – the […]