Assessing the water requirement, crop coefficient and water use efficiency of Fortuynia bungei Boiss. under arid environment

Water in arid and semi-arid regions is the most important ecological factor, determining the growth and development of plant species. Therefore, for optimal growth of plants, effective use of water resources should always be considered. In order to investigate the crop water requirement and water stress effects on Fortuynia bungei Boiss, a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three treatments and three replications was implemented in the Natural Resources and Agricultural Research Station of Yazd Province in 2011. The treatments included 100, 50 and 25% of soil moisture field capacity (FC). Results showed that water deficit significantly (p<0.01) affected evapotranspiration and Water Use Efficiency (WUE) of Fortuynia bungei. The evapotranspiration rates in 100, 50 and 25% of field capacity were 4.8, 3.7 and 2.3 mm, respectively. The crop coefficients in 100, 50 and 25% of field capacity were 0.666, 0.519 and 0.325, respectively. The lowest water use efficiency was in the treatment of 25% FC with 0.3 gr. dry weight per 1 liter of water. The highest water use efficiency was in the treatment of 50% FC with 0.53 gr. dry weight per 1 liter of water.