Considering soil water content, nutrients movement, phenology and plant growth with reference to development of functional foods in a lysimeter study

Abstract

Lysimeter is equipped with mechanisms for weighing by load cells enable automated measurements, and the signals resulting from weight changes in the system due to evaporation that are generally recorded in a data acquisition system. According to methods of measuring water content, lysimeters may be divided into weighing lysimeter and non-weighing lysimeter. The weighing lysimeters provide scientists the basic information for research related to evapotranspiration, and they are commonly divided into two types, continuous weighing and intermittent weighing. Weighing lysimeters have been used to quantify precipitation (P) not only in the form of rain or snow, but also dew, fog and rime, and also to determine actual evapotranspiration (ET). Compared to laboratory experiments, out-door lysimeter studies have advantages, like being closer to field environment conditions, it is possible to grow plants and therefore to study the fate of chemicals in soil/plant systems, transformations and leaching. The limitations are costy, which depend on design, variable experimental conditions, such as environmental/ climatic parameters, which are normally not controlled, the soil spatial variability is normally less, they are not suitable for every plant species and even every soil type. The objective of lysimeter is defining the crop coefficient (Kc), which used to convert ETr into equivalent crop evapotranpiration (ETc) values, and determing agronomical characteristics of crops, which are planted in the field of lysimeter. The duration of a lysimeter study is determined by the objective of the study, but for different crops, it should normally be at least two years. Weighing lysimeters using load cells have the advantage of measuring the water balance in the soil over a short time and with good accuracy. Precipitation should be recorded daily at the lysimeter site. All weather data like air temperature, solar radiation, humidity and potential evporation should be obtained onsite, and the frequency and time of measurements should be at least daily.