• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.883-902
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• 2023

Water is critical to the health and productivity of fruit trees. Efficient monitoring of water stress is essential for optimizing irrigation practices and ensuring sustainable fruit production. Short-range sensing can be reliable, rapid, inexpensive, and used for applications based on well-developed and validated algorithms. This paper reviews the recent advancement in fruit tree water stress detection via short-range sensing, which can be used for irrigation scheduling in orchards. Thermal imagery, near-infrared, and shortwave infrared methods are widely used for crop water stress detection. This review also presents research demonstrating the efficacy of short-range sensing in detecting water stress indicators in different fruit tree species. These indicators include changes in leaf temperature, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content, and canopy reflectance. Short-range sensing enables precision irrigation strategies by utilizing real-time data to customize water applications for individual fruit trees or specific orchard areas. This approach leads to benefits, such as water conservation, optimized resource utilization, and improved fruit quality and yield. Short-range sensing shows great promise for potentially changing water stress monitoring in fruit trees. It could become a useful tool for effective fruit tree water stress management through continued research and development.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.276-282
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• 2017

Purpose: This paper presents the effects of soil drought stress during the growing season and pre-harvest period on tree growth and fruit quality of "Yumi" peach, an early season cultivar. Methods: Soil drought stresses were treated with four levels of -30, -50, -60, and -70 kPa during long term (LT) and short term (ST). For LT treatments, soil water was controlled for nine weeks from May 1 to July 5, which was assumed as the full growing season. For ST treatments, soil water was controlled for four weeks from June 10 to July 5, which was assumed as the pre-harvest season. Tree growth and leaf photosynthesis were measured, and fruit characteristics such as fruit weight and diameter, soluble solid and tannin contents, and harvest date were investigated. Results: Soil water deficit treatments caused a significant reduction in tree growth, leaf photosynthesis, and fruit enlargement. LT water stress over -60 kPa during the full growing season caused significant reduction in tree growth, including shoot length, trunk girth, leaf photosynthesis, and fruit enlargement. ST water stress over -60 kPa during the pre-harvest period also induced significant reduction in leaf photosynthesis and fruit enlargement, while tree growth was not reduced. In terms of fruit quality, water stress over -50 kPa significantly reduced fruit weight, increased soluble solid and tannin contents, and delayed harvest time in both LT and ST treatments. Conclusions: As a result, it is assumed that LT water stress over -60 kPa can reduce both tree growth and fruit enlargement, whereas ST water stress over -50 kPa can reduce fruit enlargement without reducing tree growth. From an agricultural perspective, moderate water deficit like -50 kPa treatments could have positive effects, such increased fruit soluble solid contents along with minimal reduction in fruit size.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.264-273
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• 2016

This study was conducted to find out the influence of water stress from May to June on photosynthesis, shoot growth and fruit quality of apple trees. Fuji'/M.9 apple trees were root pruned at full bloom (30th April), parallel to the row of 30 cm or 60 cm from the trunk, to one side or both sides of trunk. The average value of afternoon leaf water potential from May to June of the no root pruning was maintained over -1.80 MPa, but that of root-pruning treatments was maintained under -1.80 MPa. In the comparison of average value of leaf water potential from May to June by root-pruning degree, the root pruning both sides at 30 cm from trunk was lowest (-2.06 MPa), followed by the root pruning both sides at 60 cm (-2.02 MPa) and the root pruning one side at 30 cm (-1.91 MPa). Root pruning one side at 30 cm or both sides at 60 cm reduced photosynthetic rate from May to June by 80% or 65%, respectively, compared with no root pruning. So, the degree of decreasing total shoot length or average fruit weight compare to the no root pruning of the root pruning one side at 30 cm was 25% or 11%, respectively, and those of the root pruning both sides at 30 cm was 45% or 15%, respectively. However, the soluble solid content and fruit color of the root pruning was higher than those of the no root pruning, and those of the root pruning both sides was higher than root pruning one side. These results indicate that the fruit enlargement was decreased when the average value of average leaf water potential from May to June was under -1.80 MPa, and the shoot growth was decreased when that was under -2.00 MPa.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.164-169
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• 2006

This study was conducted for 10 days from 17 July to 26 July in 2005 to measure the amount of xylem sap flow under short-term variation of soil moisture regimes at -20 kPa, -50 kPa and -80 kPa in eight-year-old 'Fuji'/M.9 apple trees with different fruit loads. Fruit load was adjusted as three different treatments with standard (100%), 1/2 times (50%) and 2 times (200%) on the basis of optimum fruiting number per tree as the standard fruit load of Fuji cultivar. Trees with standard fruit load during the experimental period showed higher xylem sap flow at -50 kPa of soil moisture regimes than those of trees with 1/2 times and 2 times fruit load. Trees with 1/2 times and 2 times fruit load had similar patterns of the diurnal changes of xylem sap flow, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), and maximum evapotranspiration (ETm). However, trees with 2 times fruit load at -50 kPa and -80 kPa of soil moisture regimes produced lower amount of xylem sap flow than ETm. Trees with standard fruit load produced $1.06{\sim}3.93$ L/tree more amount of xylem sap flow than ETm at all soil moisture regimes. But xylem sap flow of tees with 2 times fruit load had 21% lower at -50 kPa and $31{\sim}36%$ lower at -20 kPa and -80 kPa of soil moisture regimes, respectively than that of trees with standard fruit load. Shoot growth and leaf area were significantly the highest in trees with standard fruit load while those of trees with 2 times fruit load recorded significantly lowest. Leaf water potential of trees with standard fruit load was lower than that of trees with 1/2 times and 2 times fruit load. It indicated that tees with standard fruit load had higher water use for transpiration than other treatments and tees with 2 times fruit load received more stress for the transpiration process under low soil moisture regimes. Consequently, 'Fuji'/M.9 apple trees, the fruit load and soil moisture should be maintained optimum to increase xylem sap flow and transpiration during higher growth period.