Root distribution, orientation and root length density modelling in Eucalyptus and evaluation of associated water use ef
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Root distribution, orientation and root length density modelling in Eucalyptus and evaluation of associated water use efficiency Romeet Saha1 · Harish Singh Ginwal1 · Girish Chandra2 · Santan Barthwal1 Received: 6 May 2019 / Accepted: 14 January 2020 © Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract A mathematical model was used in this study to simulate the root architecture comprising of both structural and geometric components, to reproduce the morphogenetic behaviour of the commercially important Eucalyptus genotypic root distribution pattern over time. Profile trench wall method was used to map the root intersection density of six genotypes over a period of 2 years and subsequently root length density was modelled from the root impact data, along with actual measurements from soil cores. Clones of vegetative origin showed higher penetration and proliferation capacity than those of seedling origin. Eucalyptus tereticornis and Eucalyptus camaldulensis showed greater horizontal and vertical spread than reciprocal hybrids. A major portion of the root system was confined in the 0–0.3 m depth and all the genotypes showed decreasing root length density with increasing depth. The estimated depth at which 50% of the roots were concentrated varied between 10 and 30 cm. Water use efficiency of the plants showed a positive correlation with penetration capability thereby suggesting the possible reclamation strategies by identifying potentially deeprooted genotypes. The modelled root distribution patterns from the present study could be incorporated into agroforestry systems for better tree-crop compatibility as well as for sitespecific selection of genotypes. Keywords Root length density · Eucalyptus · Root distribution · Root architecture · Water use efficiency
* Santan Barthwal [email protected] Romeet Saha [email protected] 1
Division of Genetics and Tree Improvement, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248195, India
2
Statistics Division, ICFRE, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248006, India
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New Forests
Introduction Root distribution is of critical significance in providing mechanical stability to trees (Schmid and Kazda 2002) and absorption of heterogeneously distributed nutrients (Lynch 1995). But quantifying root distribution pattern is extremely difficult in field conditions due to high variability between species, changing architecture according to soil characteristics (Chopart and Rodrigues 2008), highly labour intensive methodologies and inaccuracy due to their below-ground nature (Davis and Jacobs 2005). Box (1996) described different methodologies of studying root distribution pattern and root length density (RLD) in field conditions but their demanding technicality and high cost often becomes a deterrent in studying root system in field setup. RLD is the length of roots per unit volume of soil and even though it is conceptually simple, the actual estimation is extremely difficult (Pierret et al. 2007). Biased and atypical distribution of roots
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