Estimates of tree root water uptake from soil moisture   profile dynamics

Jackisch, Conrad; Knoblauch, Samuel; Blume, Theresa; Zehe, Erwin; Hassler, Sibylle K.

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5787-2020

Articles | Volume 17, issue 22

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5787-2020

© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5787-2020

© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 17, issue 22

Research article

|

24 Nov 2020

Research article |

| 24 Nov 2020

Estimates of tree root water uptake from soil moisture profile dynamics

Conrad Jackisch, Samuel Knoblauch, Theresa Blume, Erwin Zehe, and Sibylle K. Hassler

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5787-2020-supplement

Data sets

Rhizosphere soil moisture dynamics and sap flow - determining root water uptake in a case study in the Attert catchment in Luxembourg C. Jackisch, and S. K. Hassler https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2019.030

Model code and software

Rootwater Python Package: Initial release C. Jackisch https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3556433

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Short summary

We developed software to calculate the root water uptake (RWU) of beech tree roots from soil moisture dynamics. We present our approach and compare RWU to measured sap flow in the tree stem. The study relates to two sites that are similar in topography and weather but with contrasting soils. While sap flow is very similar between the two sites, the RWU is different. This suggests that soil characteristics have substantial influence. Our easy-to-implement RWU estimate may help further studies.