Soil Systems (Jan 2024)

Spatiotemporal Modeling of Soil Water Dynamics for Site-Specific Variable Rate Irrigation in Maize

  • Bere Benjamin Bantchina,
  • Kemal Sulhi Gündoğdu,
  • Selçuk Arslan,
  • Yahya Ulusoy,
  • Yücel Tekin,
  • Xanthoula Eirini Pantazi,
  • Konstantinos Dolaptsis,
  • Charalampos Paraskevas,
  • Georgios Tziotzios,
  • Muhammad Qaswar,
  • Abdul Mounem Mouazen

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/soilsystems8010019
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 1
p. 19

Abstract

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This study aimed to simulate dynamic irrigation management zones (MZs) in two maize fields for a variable rate hose reel fertigation machine (VRFM) with a four-section boom control. Soil moisture content was measured from nine and four soil moisture sensors in Field 1 (8.2 ha) and Field 2 (2.5 ha), respectively, on different dates during the 2022 crop season. Three and five MZs scenarios were simulated per irrigation and the theoretical maps were processed for implementation. The application maps fitted to the VRFM showed significant spatiotemporal variations in irrigation requirements. For instance, in Field 1, 3-MZ modelling showed that the areas requiring high (H), medium (M), and low (L)-level irrigation on 21 July were 1.60, 4.84, and 1.85 ha, respectively, even though the farmer applied uniform rate over the whole field. H-level sub-areas ranged between 1.22 ha (25 July) and 3.25 ha (7 July), showing a coefficient of variation (CV) of 43.32% for the three MZs, whereas H-level sub-areas for the five MZs varied from 0.41 ha (2 July) to 1.49 ha (7 July) with a CV value of 48.84%. High levels of within-field variability can be addressed using precise and dynamic irrigation MZs fitted to the irrigation technology used.

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