Charakterisierung und Quantifizierung des standörtlichen Wasserhaushaltes eines Obstbaustandortes unter künstlicher Bewässerung auf der Querfurter Platte

Abstract

This study has been carried out within the scope of regional climate change studies and necessary adaptation strategies for land use. From a geoecological point of view, the related effects on the landscape water regimes are of particular interest. An increasingly applied adaptation strategy to extended droughts is irrigation. However, the hydro-climatological and soil-related consequences of this measure are relatively unknown. For this reason, the local water cycle of an orchard under drip irrigation was analysed on the Querfurt plateau (Germany) during the growing season 2011. The aim was to investigate the effects and potential impacts of this kind of irrigation and land use on the regional water balance in a low-precipitation area. The analyses were carried out in apple orchards of different stand age (4 and 15 years). To quantify and characterise the water balance of the apple tree stands, relevant pedological, soil hydrological, and plant morphological properties and climatic parameters were measured and analysed for correlations. Results show that the favourable pedological and soil hydrological properties at the study site allow for an efficient use of low precipitation and irrigation amounts – despite the high evaporation rates. Thus, the impact of this type of adaption strategy on the landscape water regime in the study area is estimated to be small.