Summary
This study advances understanding of desert soil hydrodynamics by developing and validating a modified van Genuchten model within HYDRUS-1D using high-resolution lysimeter data from an arid ecosystem in Nevada. A modified soil water retention curve for dry conditions and a scaling method for bulk density variability improved model realism. Although the model showed promise for quantifying moisture dynamics relevant to plant growth, erosion and recharge, vapour-phase exchange processes during evaporation remain unaccounted for and warrant further investigation.
UK applicability
The findings have limited direct applicability to UK farming systems, which operate under substantially different precipitation, temperature and soil moisture regimes than arid zones. However, the methodological approaches to lysimeter calibration and soil water retention modelling may inform research on soil hydrodynamics in drier UK regions or under future climate scenarios.
Key measures
Hourly soil moisture, temperature, and mass data from weighing lysimeter; soil water retention curves; water flux through soil surface; modelled versus measured moisture dynamics
Outcomes reported
The study calibrated and validated a HYDRUS-1D model using 1-year of hourly soil moisture, temperature and mass data from a 3-metre-deep weighing lysimeter to simulate water distribution and moisture dynamics in arid zone soils. Model performance was better under precipitation than evaporation conditions, and improved evaporation simulation in wet compared to dry soil surface conditions.
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