Effect of water harvesting on growth of young olive trees in degraded Syrian dryland

Abstract

Olive (Olea europaea L.) is a drought-tolerant tree which is usually grown in areas with a Mediterranean climate that receive [350 mm of annual rainfall. However, olive growing in Syria has recently expanded into drier areas (200-300 mm annual rainfall) where irrigation resources are limited. This study, carried out between November 2002 and October 2005, aimed to investigate the response of a little known Syrian droughttolerant olive variety (Qaisi) to water harvesting and limited summer irrigation (200 l per tree) in an arid area (average annual rainfall of 210 mm) with Mediterranean climate in Syria. Soil moisture and growth of four-year-old trees were monitored regularly. Olive leaves were sampled at different stages to determine water content, specific mass, and N content. Stomatal conductance was also measured in 2005. Our results showed that water harvesting and summer irrigation improved soil moisture content, leaf water content (up to 36% higher in Sep. 2003), leaf N content (up to 45% higher in Aug. 2003, leaf stomatal conductance (up to 55% higher in Apr. 2005), and relative trunk growth rate. Water harvesting was most successful in wet years, although the water storage capacity was not enough to retain all harvested water. This study indicated that it is possible to grow drought-tolerant olive varieties in arid areas under little or no irrigation, but proper water and nutrient management should be considered for sustainable growth.

Modelling the Effects of Soil Conditions on Olive Productivity in Mediterranean Hilly Areas

“…Leaf N concentrations in our study were lower than those recorded by Tubeileh et al [39] in April for young "Qaisi" olive trees in an arid area (220 mm annual rainfall) in Aleppo Governorate, Syria, which ranged between 15 and 17 g kg −1 for rainfed and deficit-irrigated trees, respectively. Moreover, our values for leaf N, P, and K concentrations were lower than the values obtained by Dimassi et al [40] on 17 European cultivars grown in Greece.…”

Perspectives in dryland restoration: approaches for climate change adaptation

“…Microcatchments are simple structures designed to increase the surface of land (source) that supply runoff water to the planting hole (sink) by shaping small channels at both sides of the hole that direct collect runoff to it (Shachak et al 1998;Whisenant 1999). This technique is very efficient and less expensive than other watering systems that has been applied from centuries in agriculture and agroforestry systems in arid regions all around the world (Abdelkdair and Schultz 2005;Tubeileh et al 2009), and does not imply much overcost from a traditional plantation. In arid to semiarid setting reforestations, microcatchments increase soil moisture and seedling survival and growth with respect to conventional planting holes (Edwards et al 2000;Fig.…”

Water Harvesting for Improved Water Productivity in Dry Environments of the Mediterranean Region Case study: Pistachio in Turkey

“…This low‐rainfall environment of degraded Syrian dryland is, so far, the driest under which young olive trees have been reported to survive due to water harvesting, without irrigation (Tubeileh et al. ).…”