ISSN:
1432-1319
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
Notes:
Summary There has been renewed interest in cultivating guayule (Parthenium argentatum G.) for rubber production. Water use, growth and rubber yields of four guayule selections (593, 11.591, 11 646 and 4265 XF) were evaluated for two years in nonweighing field lysimeters at El Paso, TX. Four irrigation treatments were evaluated; these involved irrigation when about 40, 60 or 90% of available water was depleted, and the fourth treatment was irrigated at 60% depletion using saline water containing 3,300 mg of dissolved salts per liter. Water use for the two year period for these treatments amounted to 219, 147, 96 and 132 cm, respectively, plus biennial rainfall of 32 cm. Shrub and resin yields increased linearly with increasing irrigation, while rubber contents generally decreased with irrigation. Resultant rubber yields were highest under the lowest stress treatment, yielding about 840 kg/ha. Rubber yields with other treatments averaged 560 kg/ha with no significant yield differences among the tested selections. The salt treatment increased rubber contents of the shrubs, but caused reductions in shrub and rubber yields. Guayule plants survived well under low soil moisture, but water requirement to produce unit quantities of biomass was high (about 15 cm to produce one ton of dry shrub per ha). Guayule should not be regarded as a low water consuming crop if high yields per land area are to be achieved.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00272548
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