Water utilization strategy of Ziziphus jujuba under different sand cover thicknesses based on stable isotope tracing

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2023.0295

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims Sand cover conditions in arid zones significantly affect soil water status, which in turn affects the utilization of soil water by vegetation. However, little is known about the water uptake strategies of Ziziphus jujuba under different sand cover conditions and its dynamic response to input water.

Methods In this study, the water utilization strategies of Z. jujuba under different sand cover thicknesses and their responses to input water were investigated using the hydroxide stable isotope method combined with a Bayesian mixed model (MixSIAR).

Important findings We found that the peak of soil water content (SWC) appeared on the 2nd day after irrigation in the non-sand-covered sample plots, on the 4th day after irrigation in the 5 cm sand-covered sample plots, and on the 6th day after irrigation in the 10 and 15 cm sand-covered sample plots. Sand cover significantly increased the SWC, and enhanced the water retention of the soil. The oxygen stable isotope composition (δ¹⁸O) and hydrogen stable isotope composition (δ²H) were -5.4‰- -2.2‰ and -76.1‰- -61.0‰ in the non-sand-covered sample plots, and -5.6‰- -3.0‰ and -61.0‰- -75.7‰ in the sand-covered sample plots, respectively. The 2nd, 4th, and 6th day after irrigation, the percentage of water utilization by Z. jujuba in the 0-10 cm soil layer without sand cover (16.2%, 9.1%, 10.0%) was stable compared with that in the 5, 10, 15 cm sand-covered sample plots (73.0%, 54.5%, 37.0%; 49.0%, 46.2%, 22.8%; 27.1%, 36.1%, 21.4%) and sand-covering measures increased the date palm’s water utilization of the 0-10 cm soil water. The sand mulching measures increased the utilization of 0-10 cm soil water by Z. jujuba, i.e. there was a lag in the utilization of deep soil water by Z. jujuba. The above results show that sand mulching can effectively improve the water retention of soil and influence the water utilization strategy of plants, which has implications for the adaptation of plants to local drought conditions and other environmental changes.

Key words: isotopes, sand cover thickness, Bayesian modeling, soil water, Ziziphus jujuba, water utilization

LI Bei-Bei, ZHANG Ming-Jun, CHE Cun-Wei, LIU Ze-Chen, ZHONG Xiao-Fei, ZHANG Yuan-Yuan, ZHANG Yu. Water utilization strategy of Ziziphus jujuba under different sand cover thicknesses based on stable isotope tracing[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2024, 48(9): 1202-1212.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.17521/cjpe.2023.0295

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2024/V48/I9/1202

Figures/Tables 6

Fig. 2 Spatial and temporal variation of soil water content (SWC) in Ziziphus jujuba sample plots under different sand cover thicknesses. A, Without sand cover. B, With 5 cm of sand cover. C, With 10 cm of sand cover. D, With 15 cm of sand cover. Blue line represents soil water content over time, red line represents soil water content over depth.

Table 1 Mean soil water content (SWC) of Ziziphus jujuba soils under different sand cover thicknesses after irrigation

覆砂厚度 Sand thickness (cm)	土层 Layer of soil (cm)	SWC (%)
覆砂厚度 Sand thickness (cm)	土层 Layer of soil (cm)	2023-05-11	2023-05-13	2023-05-15
0	0-30	6.4	7.1	5.5
0	30-100	7.8	7.6	6.9
5	0-30	11.8	12.6	10.6
5	30-100	13.9	13.8	13.1
10	0-30	12.0	13.4	11.7
10	30-100	14.8	14.7	14.8
15	0-30	13.0	14.1	13.2
15	30-100	16.2	17.4	16.4

Fig. 3 Distribution of soil water isotope ratios under different sand cover thicknesses. GMWL, global meteoric water line; IWL, input water line; LMWL, local meteoric water line.

Fig. 4 Characteristics of oxygen stable isotope composition (δ18O) variations of soil water under different sand cover thicknesses. a, without sand cover; b, with 5 cm of sand cover; c, with 10 cm of sand cover; d, with 15 cm of sand cover; e, before irrigation.

Table 2 Changes in isotope composition (‰) at different soil depths after irrigation occurred at different sand cover thicknesses

覆砂厚度 Sand thickness (cm)	土层 Layer of soil (cm)	同位素 Isotope	2023-5-11	2023-5-13	2023-5-15
0	0-30	²H	-64.6	-61.0	-63.8
		¹⁸O	-3.1	-2.2	-2.7
	30-100	²H	-76.1	-74.4	-75.0
		¹⁸O	-5.4	-5.3	-5.4
5	0-30	²H	-71.6	-69.6	-61.0
	0-30	¹⁸O	-4.3	-3.9	-3.0
	30-100	²H	-73.4	-74.5	-73.6
	30-100	¹⁸O	-5.2	-5.5	-5.4
10	0-30	²H	-71.2	-71.8	-67.4
	0-30	¹⁸O	-4.4	-4.4	-3.6
	30-100	²H	-72.2	-74.3	-72.0
	30-100	¹⁸O	-5.1	-5.3	-5.3
15	0-30	²H	-72.1	-72.9	-72.2
	0-30	¹⁸O	-4.6	-4.8	-4.4
	30-100	²H	-74.7	-75.7	-73.8
	30-100	¹⁸O	-5.3	-5.6	-5.4

Fig. 5 Contribution of soil water to water uptake by Ziziphus jujuba roots with different sand cover thicknesses. a, without sand cover; b, with 5 cm of sand cover; c, with 10 cm of sand cover; d, with 15 cm of sand cover; e, before irrigation.

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