Soil moisture dynamics of apple orchards in Loess Hilly Area of northern Shaanxi Province

Knowledge on the variation in soil moisture is critical for the scientific management of orchards, the efficient utilization of limited rainfall and the improvement of fruit production and fruit quality. In this study, a comprehensive soil moisture monitoring method was used in combination with FDR, neutron moisture meter and oven-drying to determine the general characteristics of soil moisture in loess hilly apple orchards of northern Shaanxi Province. Also the variation in soil moisture at different sampling sites around orchard trees and the environmental effects of different dry-farming measures (e.g., straw mulching, ridge film mulching with furrow rainwater harvesting and organic fertilizer mulching) were investigated in 6-year-old 'Fuji' apple orchard for the period from April 2015 to June 2016 in Mizhi County in Shaanxi Province. The results showed that seasonal drought was quite severe, especially during the shoot growth and young fruit development stages. The degree of soil drought in spring was highly dependent on soil water storage in the last winter. Soil moisture in the 0-60 cm soil layer (root-zone layer) varied with rainfall and had seasonal variation characteristics, but lagged behind that of rainfall. The effect of rainfall on the variation of soil moisture weakened with increasing soil depth. Soil moisture in soil layer below 200 cm was relatively stable, but soil desiccation occurred in 6-year-old apple orchard in the hilly region. There was an obvious low humidity layer in the 90-300 cm soil, where volumetric soil water content was less than 12% for the whole year. Soil moisture increased with increased sampling distance from apple tree. While the regression equations of soil moisture between apple plants and between apple tree rows (y) with distance to apple tree were respectively y=0.010 5x+6.870 2 (R²=0.996 6) and y=0.014x+7.691 2 (R²=0.982 7), the mean soil moisture for the sites was closest to the one 105 cm away from the tree Soil moisture at different sites from tree between rows was significantly higher than that at equivalent distance between plants (P < 0.05). Compared with CK (no mulching or irrigation), dry-farming measures such as the straw mulching, ridge film mulching and furrow rainwater harvesting and organic fertilizer mulching effectively improved soil moisture environment. To a certain extent, these dry-farming measures were recommended for dealing with the issue of soil water supply and demand, especially during plant growing season. Among the measures, ridge film mulching and furrow rainwater harvesting had the highest degree of preservation of soil moisture. Thus ridge film mulching and furrow rainwater harvesting was recommended as the most effective agricultural measure in preserving soil moisture in rainfed apple orchards in Loess Hilly Areas of northern Shaanxi Province.