Estimation of water use of mature coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) cultivars (CRIC 60 and CRIC 65) grown in the low country intermediate zone using the compensation heat pulse method (CHPM)

Wasantha S Madurapperuma,C Jayasekara,W.A.J.M De Costa,U.R Sangakkara

doi:10.4038/jnsfsr.v37i3.1211

Wasantha S Madurapperuma, C Jayasekara + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.4038/jnsfsr.v37i3.1211

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Abstract

The compensation heat pulse method (CHPM) was used to determine the diurnal variation and daily total water use of two coconut varieties (i.e. CRIC 60 and CRIC 65) growing on two contrasting land suitability classes (i.e. S2, Kurunegala series, and S4, Kuliyapitiya series) in the low- country intermediate zone (IL1) of Sri Lanka. The average daily total sap sow (F d ) of CRIC 60 and CRIC 65 on S2 were 120 and 90 L d -1 while on S4 it was 92 and 79 L d -1 respectively.

Highlights

Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is a tree crop which has a variety of uses as food, fibre and wood[1,2]
Coconut in Sri Lanka is cultivated across three main agro-ecological regions (AER); i.e. the wet zone (WZ), the intermediate zone (IZ) and the dry zone (DZ)
It is highly likely that in the present study, the lower sap flow velocities observed at 6.0 and 6.5 cm depths were due to the poor thermal contact between heat pulse needles and vascular bundles, which were less densely packed at these depths

Summary

Introduction

Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is a tree crop which has a variety of uses as food, fibre and wood[1,2]. Coconut palms are highly productive and are capable of supporting a large leaf area, in the tropics where temperatures are high and radiation and rainfall are abundant. Because coconut is grown as a rainfed crop, drought causes significant reduction in coconut yields by adversely affecting the physiology of the palm. Significant soil water deficits develop in intermediate and dry zones during the periods between the two monsoons of the year. As a result of the potentially high water use of coconut and its relatively shallow, fibrous root system, its key physiological processes and nut yield are adversely affected by drought[4,6]. The beneficial effects of irrigation on nut production have been reported by many workers[5,7,8,9]

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