Long-term effects of saline irrigation water on growth, yield, and fruit quality of ‘Valencia’ orange trees
A. M. Grieve A B , L. D. Prior A C D and K. B. Bevington AA NSW Department of Primary Industries, PO Box 62, Dareton, NSW 2717, Australia.
B Current address: Forests NSW, Pennant Hills, NSW 2120, Australia.
C Current address: School for Environmental Research, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, NT 0909, Australia.
D Corresponding author. Email: lynda.prior@cdu.edu.au
Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58(4) 342-348 https://doi.org/10.1071/AR06198
Submitted: 14 June 2006 Accepted: 19 January 2007 Published: 12 April 2007
Abstract
Citrus is regarded as a salt-sensitive crop, but its yield response to salinity is affected by variety, rootstock, duration of salt exposure, irrigation management, soil type, and climate. This study quantified the yield response of mature Valencia [Citrus sinensis (L. Osbeck)] orange trees on sweet orange (C. sinensis) rootstock to increased levels of sodium chloride in irrigation water in the Sunraysia area of the Murray Valley in south-eastern Australia. The orchard was planted on a loamy sand and trees were irrigated and fertilised with a well-managed under-tree microsprinkler system. Four levels of salt, ranging from the river-water control (0.44 dS/m) to 2.50 dS/m, were applied over a 9-year period. Overall yield effects were smaller than expected, and did not conform well to the often used bent-stick model. Relative to the control, yield was initially higher (by up to 9%) in the intermediate salt treatments, and 3% lower in the highest treatment. However, relative yields of salinised trees decreased with time, and in the final year of the experiment, yield of the highest salt treatment was 9% lower than the control. Yield increases in the intermediate treatments resulted from increases in fruit number. All 3 salt treatments decreased average fruit weight by 4% and decreased juice content but increased juice sugar and acid content. Salt treatment strongly reduced trunk growth, and the effect increased with time. Our results show that with appropriate irrigation management, soils, and rootstocks, citrus trees can maintain productivity at salinity levels of 2.0 dS/m or more, but fresh fruit profitability is likely to be lower because of a reduction in average fruit size.
Additional keywords: River Murray, semi-arid irrigation area, multi-model inference, salinity.
Acknowledgments
We gratefully acknowledge the skilful and dedicated assistance of many colleagues over the years of this experiment, especially Wayne Shields and Sue Cox. We thank Corey Bradshaw and Julian Taylor for statistical advice. We also thank Jim Syvertsen for many helpful comments on the manuscipt. The trial was supported primarily by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, with additional funding provided by the Australian Government through the Australian Water Resources Advisory Program. The Riverlink Tri-State Salinity Project, funded by River Murray Water Catchment Management Board, National Program for Sustainable Irrigation, and MDBC, provided a grant to support the analysis and writing of this paper, and we thank Rob Stevens and Gerrit Schrale for organising this.
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