Onofua et al. (2025) Deficit Irrigation and Root Zone Soil Thermal Regimes in Water Limited Agriculture: A Review

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Agriculture and Ecology Research International
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-12-23
• Authors: O.E. Onofua, Abegunrin T.P., G.O. Awe, M.A. Adejumobi, M.S. Motake, M.V. Marake, K. Seutloali-Thamae, B.A. Adeosun, F.A. Aderinto, T. B. Adebayo, I. O. Adesoye
• DOI: 10.9734/jaeri/2025/v26i6720

Research Groups

This is a systematic review; specific research groups of the authors are not provided in the text. The review synthesizes findings from various field and modelling studies.

Short Summary

This systematic review synthesizes studies from 2020 onwards to understand how deficit irrigation and water-saving practices modify soil thermal properties and coupled soil water–heat dynamics in irrigated agroecosystems. It finds that deficit irrigation typically lowers soil moisture, reduces thermal conductivity and heat capacity, and increases diurnal soil temperature ranges, while specific practices can create more thermally buffered root zones to sustain water productivity.

Objective

• To synthesize studies (2020 onwards) on how deficit irrigation and water-saving practices modify soil thermal properties and coupled soil water–heat dynamics in irrigated agroecosystems.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Irrigated agroecosystems, focusing on root-zone hydro-thermal behavior in arid and semi-arid regions.
• Temporal Scale: The review covers studies published from 2020 onwards. The reviewed studies themselves encompass various temporal scales related to crop growth cycles and irrigation events.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: The review itself is a systematic review and does not use a specific model. However, it synthesizes findings from "modelling studies" and highlights the utility of "coupled water–heat modelling" and "thermal sensing" for irrigation scheduling.
• Data sources: Major databases were used to identify eligible field and modelling studies on irrigated crops in arid and semi-arid regions. Search terms included "deficit irrigation," "soil temperature," and "soil thermal properties."

Main Results

• Deficit irrigation typically lowers soil moisture, reduces thermal conductivity and heat capacity, and increases diurnal soil temperature ranges.
• The effects of deficit irrigation on soil thermal properties are influenced by soil texture, irrigation method, and emitter placement.
• Localized and subsurface irrigation, mulches, organic amendments, and pre-season irrigation can create deeper, moist, thermally buffered root zones.
• These practices can sustain water productivity under moderate deficits, especially when integrated with coupled water–heat modelling and thermal sensing for irrigation scheduling.

Contributions

• Provides a systematic synthesis of recent evidence (from 2020 onwards) on the complex interactions between deficit irrigation, water-saving practices, and soil hydro-thermal dynamics.
• Highlights the critical, yet often overlooked, role of soil thermal properties in irrigation design for water-scarce regions.
• Identifies specific water-saving practices that can mitigate negative thermal impacts of deficit irrigation and enhance water productivity.
• Emphasizes the need for explicit incorporation of root-zone hydro-thermal behavior into future deficit irrigation design and management strategies.

Funding

Not specified in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Onofua2025Deficit,
  author = {Onofua, O.E. and T.P., Abegunrin and Awe, G.O. and Adejumobi, M.A. and Motake, M.S. and Marake, M.V. and Seutloali-Thamae, K. and Adeosun, B.A. and Aderinto, F.A. and Adebayo, T. B. and Adesoye, I. O.},
  title = {Deficit Irrigation and Root Zone Soil Thermal Regimes in Water Limited Agriculture: A Review},
  journal = {Journal of Agriculture and Ecology Research International},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.9734/jaeri/2025/v26i6720},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.9734/jaeri/2025/v26i6720}
}