O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido com objetivo de analisar a classificação climática segundo Köppen e Thornthwaite (comparando os valores de armazenamento de água no solo, evapotranspiração real, deficiência hídrica e excedente hídrico para realização do balanço hídrico cíclico mensal), e de propor uma caracterização edafoclimática referente à região mesoclimática de Santa Maria, RS utilizando uma série histórica de 35 anos (de 1969 a 2003). De acordo com os resultados, as seguintes conclusões podem ser apresentadas: (a) a classificação climática segundo Thornthwaite ou Köppen pode ser feita com base na classe mais freqüente ou utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva e a capacidade de água disponível de 50 mm; (b) classificação climática segundo Thornthwaite: A r B\'3 a\' (classe mais freqüente) ou B4 r B\'3 a\' (utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva); (c) classificação climática segundo Köppen: Cfga (classe mais freqüente) ou Cwga (utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva); e (d) A29/42S,53/42W,95,35,11,7,27,2,20,3,5,5,471,1/5,1235,2672,1802,20,953,887,915,50: caracterização edafoclimática proposta. Isso significa que a evapotranspiração real é pelo menos 90% da evapotranspiração potencial de referência (classe A de disponibilidade hídrica), a localização geográfica é de 29o42\' (latitude sul), 53o42\' (longitude oeste) e altitude de 95 m, e que a série histórica apresenta 35 anos, sendo as temperaturas mínima e máxima mensal de 11oC (julho) e 27oC (fevereiro), a temperatura média anual de 20oC, respectivamente, com coeficiente de variação de 3%, e as chuvas mínima e máxima mensal de 5 mm (maio) e 471 mm (janeiro/maio), as chuvas mínima, máxima e média anual de 1235 mm, 2672 mm e 1802 mm, respectivamente, com coeficiente de variação de 20%, valores médios anuais de evapotranspiração potencial de referência, evapotranspiração real e excedente hídrico de 953 mm, 887 mm e 915 mm, respectivamente, adotando uma capacidade de água disponível de 50 mm. / The present work was developed with the purpose of analyzing the climatic classification by Köppen and Thornthwaite (comparing the values of soil water holding, actual evapotranspiration, water deficit and water excess for cyclic water balance using monthly data), and of proposing an edaphoclimatic characterization related to the mesoclimatic region of Santa Maria, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, using a historical series of 35 years (from 1969 to 2003). According to the results, the following conclusions can be presented: (a) the climatic classification by Thornthwaite or Köppen can be done based on the modal class or using the mean values of air temperature and rainfall and the soil water holding capacity of 50 mm; (b) the climatic classification by Thornthwaite is A r B\'3 a\' (modal class) or B4 r B\'3 a\' (using the mean values of temperature and rainfall); (c) the climatic classification by Köppen is Cfga (modal class) or Cwga (using the mean values of temperature and rainfall); and (d) A29/42S,53/42W,95,35,11,7,27,2,20,3,5,5,471,1/5,1235,2672,1802,20,953,887,915,50 is the proposed edaphoclimatic characterization. It means the actual evapotranspiration is at least 90% of the potential evapotranspiration (class A of soil water availability), the geographic localization is 29o42\' South (latitude), 53o42\' West (longitude) and altitude of 95 m, using a historic series of 35 years, being monthly minimum and maximum air temperatures of 11oC (July) and 27oC (February), the annual mean air temperature of 20oC, with coefficient of variation of 3%, and the monthly minimum and maximum rainfall of 5 mm (May) and 471 mm (January/May), the annual minimum, maximum and mean rainfall of 1235 mm, 2672 mm and 1802 mm, respectively, with coefficient of variation of 20%, and the annual mean values of potential evapotranspiration, actual evapotranspiration and water excess of 953 mm, 887 mm and 915 mm, respectively, using a soil water holding capacity of 50 mm.

O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido com objetivo de analisar a classificação climática segundo Köppen e Thornthwaite (comparando os valores de armazenamento de água no solo, evapotranspiração real, deficiência hídrica e excedente hídrico para realização do balanço hídrico cíclico mensal), e de propor uma caracterização edafoclimática referente à região mesoclimática de Santa Maria, RS utilizando uma série histórica de 35 anos (de 1969 a 2003). De acordo com os resultados, as seguintes conclusões podem ser apresentadas: (a) a classificação climática segundo Thornthwaite ou Köppen pode ser feita com base na classe mais freqüente ou utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva e a capacidade de água disponível de 50 mm; (b) classificação climática segundo Thornthwaite: A r B\'3 a\' (classe mais freqüente) ou B4 r B\'3 a\' (utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva); (c) classificação climática segundo Köppen: Cfga (classe mais freqüente) ou Cwga (utilizando os valores médios de temperatura e de chuva); e (d) A29/42S,53/42W,95,35,11,7,27,2,20,3,5,5,471,1/5,1235,2672,1802,20,953,887,915,50: caracterização edafoclimática proposta. Isso significa que a evapotranspiração real é pelo menos 90% da evapotranspiração potencial de referência (classe A de disponibilidade hídrica), a localização geográfica é de 29o42\' (latitude sul), 53o42\' (longitude oeste) e altitude de 95 m, e que a série histórica apresenta 35 anos, sendo as temperaturas mínima e máxima mensal de 11oC (julho) e 27oC (fevereiro), a temperatura média anual de 20oC, respectivamente, com coeficiente de variação de 3%, e as chuvas mínima e máxima mensal de 5 mm (maio) e 471 mm (janeiro/maio), as chuvas mínima, máxima e média anual de 1235 mm, 2672 mm e 1802 mm, respectivamente, com coeficiente de variação de 20%, valores médios anuais de evapotranspiração potencial de referência, evapotranspiração real e excedente hídrico de 953 mm, 887 mm e 915 mm, respectivamente, adotando uma capacidade de água disponível de 50 mm. / The present work was developed with the purpose of analyzing the climatic classification by Köppen and Thornthwaite (comparing the values of soil water holding, actual evapotranspiration, water deficit and water excess for cyclic water balance using monthly data), and of proposing an edaphoclimatic characterization related to the mesoclimatic region of Santa Maria, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, using a historical series of 35 years (from 1969 to 2003). According to the results, the following conclusions can be presented: (a) the climatic classification by Thornthwaite or Köppen can be done based on the modal class or using the mean values of air temperature and rainfall and the soil water holding capacity of 50 mm; (b) the climatic classification by Thornthwaite is A r B\'3 a\' (modal class) or B4 r B\'3 a\' (using the mean values of temperature and rainfall); (c) the climatic classification by Köppen is Cfga (modal class) or Cwga (using the mean values of temperature and rainfall); and (d) A29/42S,53/42W,95,35,11,7,27,2,20,3,5,5,471,1/5,1235,2672,1802,20,953,887,915,50 is the proposed edaphoclimatic characterization. It means the actual evapotranspiration is at least 90% of the potential evapotranspiration (class A of soil water availability), the geographic localization is 29o42\' South (latitude), 53o42\' West (longitude) and altitude of 95 m, using a historic series of 35 years, being monthly minimum and maximum air temperatures of 11oC (July) and 27oC (February), the annual mean air temperature of 20oC, with coefficient of variation of 3%, and the monthly minimum and maximum rainfall of 5 mm (May) and 471 mm (January/May), the annual minimum, maximum and mean rainfall of 1235 mm, 2672 mm and 1802 mm, respectively, with coefficient of variation of 20%, and the annual mean values of potential evapotranspiration, actual evapotranspiration and water excess of 953 mm, 887 mm and 915 mm, respectively, using a soil water holding capacity of 50 mm.

Uma das tecnologias mais adotadas pelos produtores, principalmente os que têm suas lavouras situadas em região de cerrado, é a irrigação. No entanto, ainda não existe consenso sobre o manejo dessa irrigação, principalmente, com relação à quantidade de água a aplicar e na freqüência da irrigação. Objetivou-se com este trabalho verificar a influência da irrigação por gotejamento quando manejada o ano inteiro, e quando submetida à suspensão ou repouso durante os meses de julho e agosto, nas características produtivas (produtividade e renda) e de crescimento (altura e diâmetros da copa e do caule) e na qualidade física e da bebida de café. Além disso, foram testados modelos matemáticos com a finalidade de identificar aquele que melhor descreve o desempenho das plantas. Não obstante, foi efetuado o balanço hídrico climatológico diário da cultura de café e alguns índices de eficiência de uso de água. O experimento foi delineado em blocos casualizados com quatro repetições e onze tratamentos, sendo esses compostos por plantas irrigadas o ano inteiro e plantas submetidas à suspensão da irrigação durante os meses de julho e agosto, além da testemunha que não foi irrigada. As lâminas de irrigação foram obtidas com base na porcentagem da evaporação da água do tanque classe A de 40%, 80%, 120%, 160% e 200%. A coleta de dados começou em julho de 2003 e se estendeu por três anos, finalizando em maio de 2006. Conclui-se que a renda e a qualidade da bebida de café não foram influenciadas pelos tratamentos; a suspensão da irrigação durante os meses de julho e agosto melhorou sobremaneira a qualidade física do café, porém, a produtividade foi drasticamente diminuída; dentre os tratamentos submetidos ao repouso, a utilização de 80% da evaporação da água do tanque classe A promoveu a melhor combinação entre qualidade física dos grãos e produtividade; A lâmina de irrigação de 80% da evaporação da água do tanque classe A, manejada durante todo o ano, promoveu a maior produtividade média e o maior índice de eficiência no uso da água; os modelos de regressão polinomial de terceiro e segundo graus e raiz quadrada, representaram de forma satisfatória o desempenho produtivo da cultura de café em função da quantidade de água aplicada, porém o primeiro apresentou maior coeficiente de correlação; os piores resultados para altura das plantas foram aqueles proporcionados pelos tratamentos Testemunha, 40% da ECA irrigado o ano inteiro, e 40% e 120% da ECA com suspensão da irrigação em julho e agosto; para o diâmetro da copa e do caule, os piores resultados foram proporcionados pelos tratamentos Testemunha e 40% da ECA irrigado o ano inteiro; a maior eficiência no uso da água de irrigação foi conseguida pela lâmina de 40% da ECA com suspensão em julho e agosto, porém, houve diminuição na produtividade em 38,3%; o armazenamento efetivo da água do solo para o tratamento Testemunha sofreu muita variação ao longo dos anos avaliados, permanecendo abaixo de 30% no mês de setembro; nos tratamentos com suspensão na irrigação, o armazenamento efetivo da água no solo ficou abaixo de 50% no mês de agosto, por outro lado, naqueles onde a irrigação foi realizada o ano todo o armazenamento permaneceu acima de 90%, com exceção do tratamento 40%, onde o armazenamento chegou a 75% em maio de 2006. / One of the most often adopted technologies by farmers, especially those who grow their crops in the savannas, is irrigation. However, there is no consensus about this irrigation management, mostly in relation to the water volume and irrigation frequency. This study analyzed the effect of drip irrigation managed throughout the year, and when subject to suspension or fallowing in the months of July and August, on the production (yield and recovery), on growth (height and canopy and stem diameters) characteristics and on coffee physical and beverage qualities. Moreover, mathematical models were tested to identify those that best describe plant performance. Daily coffee climatological hydric balance and some efficacy indices on water use were also calculated. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four repetitions and eleven treatments, which were composed by plants irrigated throughout the year, and plants subjected to irrigation suspension in the months of July and August, besides a non irrigated control. Water irrigation blades were obtained based on evaporation of the class A pan at 40%, 80%, 120%, 160% and 200%. Data collection started on July 2003 and extended for three years, ending on May 2006. It was concluded that recovery and coffee beverage quality were not affected by the treatments; suspending irrigation in July and August improved greatly coffee physical quality; however, yield decreased drastically; among the treatments subjected to fallowing, the one at 80% evaporation of class A pan, gave the best combination between cherry physical quality and yield; the irrigation blade of 80% evaporation of class A pan, managed throughout the year, gave the best average yield and the greatest water use efficacy index; the polynomial regression model of third and second degrees and the square root, represented well the yield performance of coffee as a function of water amount applied; however, the first one presented a greater correlation coefficient; the worst results of plant height were those given by the treatments non irrigated control, 40% ECA irrigated throughout the year and 40% and 120% ECA with irrigation fallowing in July and August; the worst results for canopy and stem diameters were given by the treatments non irrigated control and 40% ECA irrigated throughout the year; the greatest irrigation water use efficacy was obtained with the blade of 40% ECA with fallowing in July and August; however, there was a 38.3% decrease in yield; effective water holding in the soil for the non irrigated control varied greatly throughout the evaluation years, remaining below 30% in September; in the treatments with irrigation fallowing, effective water holding remained below 50 in August, in contrast, in those with irrigation throughout the year, water holding remained above 90% with the exception of the treatment with 40% ECA, where water holding reached 75% in May 2006.

Irrigated agriculture is the primary consumer of limited worldwide freshwater resources. Drought, growing world populations, and environmental demands compete with irrigation for freshwater resources"”threatening sustainable global food, fuel, and fiber production. This escalating global crisis demands that agriculture produce more food using less water. Traditional irrigation management has used technology to apply uniform irrigation rates across landscapes"”ignoring natural environmental variation. This provides inherent inefficiencies of over- or under- irrigation within individual fields. Variable-rate irrigation (VRI) is modern technology that employs global positioning systems and geographic information systems to match irrigation to spatially variable crop water demands within a field. Although commercially available, VRI lacks scientifically validated decision support systems to determine spatially and temporally variable crop water demand. The purpose of this research is to explore spatial and temporal variations in crop water demand to inform growers utilizing VRI. This research consists of four seasons of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production on a commercial farm in Idaho that employs a VRI system. In Chapter 1, the spatial variation of crop water productivity (CWP, the grain produced per unit of water consumed), is characterized for two seasons (2016-2017) and we propose a unique conceptual strategy for VRI management targeted at CWP. Observed CWP ranged from 4.1-21 kg ha-1 mm-1 with distinct spatial variation that, when considered together with grain yield, were shown to be useful for VRI management. During the 2017 growing season, VRI zones conserved 25% of irrigation compared to traditional uniform irrigation management. In the second chapter the spatial variation of soil water holding capacity (SWHC) was measured at 90 sampling points throughout the field. Then, during the 2016-2017 growing seasons, the spatial and temporal variation of soil moisture were modelled to characterize crop stress and its influence on grain yield. Soil within the field showed large spatial variation of SWHC, ranging from 147-369 mm. Under uniform irrigation in 2016, the natural variation of TAW created 21 day variation in the onset of crop stress throughout the field and under VRI in 2017 the onset of crop stress spanned 56 d. Surprisingly the variations in TAW did not statistically influence yield in 2016, and in 2017 the rate of irrigation predicted yield and TAW again did not statistically predict yield. This suggests that other environmental variables should be included when delineating irrigation zones and rates for VRI.

The vegetation supported by the Witteberg and Dwyka Groups south of Worcester is a diverse mosaic of fynbos-, renosterveld- and succulent karoo vegetation units sustained by a winter-rainfall pattern. Elytropappus rhinocerotis (renosterbos) dominated plant communities are found on finer grained soils derived from the various mudrock-dominated formations of the Witteberg Group, a Passerina truncata (gonnabos) dominated shrubland with large Protea shrubs and / or small Protea trees where the substrate is largely influenced by the sandstone-dominated formations of the Witteberg Group, a grass dominated Capeochloa arundinacea (Olifantgras) shrubland where both mudrock-dominated and sandstone-dominated formations influence the substrate as a result of folding, a karoo Hirpicium integrifolium (Haarbossie) dominated shrubland where succulents are in abundance on the Dwyka tillite, and a distinct Thamnochortus bachmannii restio-dominated sandveld in areas where deep aeolian sand had accumulated. The differences in vegetation communities are mainly based on geology with consequent soil characters and degree of rockiness, as well as topography, moisture availability and the water holding capacity of the soil. Although slope, aspect and elevation can sometimes be associated with specific plant communities, geology, soil pH and rock cover are the principal elements responsible for shaping the vegetation mosaic. Rather than a broad ecotone, the vegetation of the study area is understood as a complex mosaic mountain vegetation entity. / Environmental Sciences / Ph. D. (Environmental Sciences)

Uma das tecnologias mais adotadas pelos produtores, principalmente os que têm suas lavouras situadas em região de cerrado, é a irrigação. No entanto, ainda não existe consenso sobre o manejo dessa irrigação, principalmente, com relação à quantidade de água a aplicar e na freqüência da irrigação. Objetivou-se com este trabalho verificar a influência da irrigação por gotejamento quando manejada o ano inteiro, e quando submetida à suspensão ou repouso durante os meses de julho e agosto, nas características produtivas (produtividade e renda) e de crescimento (altura e diâmetros da copa e do caule) e na qualidade física e da bebida de café. Além disso, foram testados modelos matemáticos com a finalidade de identificar aquele que melhor descreve o desempenho das plantas. Não obstante, foi efetuado o balanço hídrico climatológico diário da cultura de café e alguns índices de eficiência de uso de água. O experimento foi delineado em blocos casualizados com quatro repetições e onze tratamentos, sendo esses compostos por plantas irrigadas o ano inteiro e plantas submetidas à suspensão da irrigação durante os meses de julho e agosto, além da testemunha que não foi irrigada. As lâminas de irrigação foram obtidas com base na porcentagem da evaporação da água do tanque classe A de 40%, 80%, 120%, 160% e 200%. A coleta de dados começou em julho de 2003 e se estendeu por três anos, finalizando em maio de 2006. Conclui-se que a renda e a qualidade da bebida de café não foram influenciadas pelos tratamentos; a suspensão da irrigação durante os meses de julho e agosto melhorou sobremaneira a qualidade física do café, porém, a produtividade foi drasticamente diminuída; dentre os tratamentos submetidos ao repouso, a utilização de 80% da evaporação da água do tanque classe A promoveu a melhor combinação entre qualidade física dos grãos e produtividade; A lâmina de irrigação de 80% da evaporação da água do tanque classe A, manejada durante todo o ano, promoveu a maior produtividade média e o maior índice de eficiência no uso da água; os modelos de regressão polinomial de terceiro e segundo graus e raiz quadrada, representaram de forma satisfatória o desempenho produtivo da cultura de café em função da quantidade de água aplicada, porém o primeiro apresentou maior coeficiente de correlação; os piores resultados para altura das plantas foram aqueles proporcionados pelos tratamentos Testemunha, 40% da ECA irrigado o ano inteiro, e 40% e 120% da ECA com suspensão da irrigação em julho e agosto; para o diâmetro da copa e do caule, os piores resultados foram proporcionados pelos tratamentos Testemunha e 40% da ECA irrigado o ano inteiro; a maior eficiência no uso da água de irrigação foi conseguida pela lâmina de 40% da ECA com suspensão em julho e agosto, porém, houve diminuição na produtividade em 38,3%; o armazenamento efetivo da água do solo para o tratamento Testemunha sofreu muita variação ao longo dos anos avaliados, permanecendo abaixo de 30% no mês de setembro; nos tratamentos com suspensão na irrigação, o armazenamento efetivo da água no solo ficou abaixo de 50% no mês de agosto, por outro lado, naqueles onde a irrigação foi realizada o ano todo o armazenamento permaneceu acima de 90%, com exceção do tratamento 40%, onde o armazenamento chegou a 75% em maio de 2006. / One of the most often adopted technologies by farmers, especially those who grow their crops in the savannas, is irrigation. However, there is no consensus about this irrigation management, mostly in relation to the water volume and irrigation frequency. This study analyzed the effect of drip irrigation managed throughout the year, and when subject to suspension or fallowing in the months of July and August, on the production (yield and recovery), on growth (height and canopy and stem diameters) characteristics and on coffee physical and beverage qualities. Moreover, mathematical models were tested to identify those that best describe plant performance. Daily coffee climatological hydric balance and some efficacy indices on water use were also calculated. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four repetitions and eleven treatments, which were composed by plants irrigated throughout the year, and plants subjected to irrigation suspension in the months of July and August, besides a non irrigated control. Water irrigation blades were obtained based on evaporation of the class A pan at 40%, 80%, 120%, 160% and 200%. Data collection started on July 2003 and extended for three years, ending on May 2006. It was concluded that recovery and coffee beverage quality were not affected by the treatments; suspending irrigation in July and August improved greatly coffee physical quality; however, yield decreased drastically; among the treatments subjected to fallowing, the one at 80% evaporation of class A pan, gave the best combination between cherry physical quality and yield; the irrigation blade of 80% evaporation of class A pan, managed throughout the year, gave the best average yield and the greatest water use efficacy index; the polynomial regression model of third and second degrees and the square root, represented well the yield performance of coffee as a function of water amount applied; however, the first one presented a greater correlation coefficient; the worst results of plant height were those given by the treatments non irrigated control, 40% ECA irrigated throughout the year and 40% and 120% ECA with irrigation fallowing in July and August; the worst results for canopy and stem diameters were given by the treatments non irrigated control and 40% ECA irrigated throughout the year; the greatest irrigation water use efficacy was obtained with the blade of 40% ECA with fallowing in July and August; however, there was a 38.3% decrease in yield; effective water holding in the soil for the non irrigated control varied greatly throughout the evaluation years, remaining below 30% in September; in the treatments with irrigation fallowing, effective water holding remained below 50 in August, in contrast, in those with irrigation throughout the year, water holding remained above 90% with the exception of the treatment with 40% ECA, where water holding reached 75% in May 2006.

This study estimated monthly and annual Net Primary Productivity (NPP), an important indicator of carbon sequestration, in the Conterminous US from 1997 to 2007 using Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach. Vegetation condition, temperature, precipitation, photosynthetically active radiation and soil water holding capacity were used as model’s inputs. NPP values were lower than mean annual values during the year 2000 to 2003 which was probably due to extreme drought conditions during these years. Higher NPP per square meter was generally found in Savannah and Subtropical eco-divisions whereas Tropical/Subtropical deserts had the lowest NPP. Southeastern states had the highest NPP per square meter thus, made the highest contribution to the terrestrial carbon sequestration in US. Since the vegetation is one of the main factors in NPP and thus carbon sequestration, the results of this study could help in various environmental policy decisions on forest and cropland management at the state, EPA and federal levels.

De nombreuses recherches se focalisent sur l'étude des aires de distribution des espèces qui se décalent vers des conditions plus adaptées à leurs besoins physiologiques sous l'effet du changement climatique. Le choix des indices utilisés pour caractériser l'écologie des espèces et définir leur vulnérabilité au réchauffement en cours est souvent conditionné par leur disponibilité, alors qu'il devrait être basé sur les connaissances en écophysiologie qui les concernent. D'autre part, la résolution spatiale parfois grossière utilisée n'est pas toujours pertinente au regard de l'échelle à laquelle les processus biologiques se déroulent. Dans ce cadre, l'objectif de ce travail est de cartographier à fine résolution spatiale les bilans en eau des sols et leurs différentes composantes à l'échelle des forêts de France, et d'évaluer leur intérêt pour modéliser la distribution ou la productivité des espèces au regard des indices traditionnellement utilisés. Dans un premier temps, nous avons modélisé et cartographié les différentes composantes du bilan en eau des sols, et tout particulièrement le rayonnement solaire et la réserve utile maximale en eau (RUM) des sols forestiers à partir des relevés de l'Inventaire Forestier National (IFN). Ces données ont été combinées avec des températures et des précipitations pour spatialiser le bilan en eau des sols forestiers de France. Les principaux résultats montrent l'importance de la nébulosité dans la prise en compte du calcul du rayonnement solaire, et l'inefficacité des indices dérivés de l'exposition pour en simuler les valeurs à l'échelle de la France. Nous avons également déterminé qu'il est possible de réaliser avec des informations simples à collecter une carte des RUM des sols forestiers de France. Elle permet de prédire la croissance des essences avec une efficacité comparable aux valeurs relevées sur des placettes et d'améliorer la modélisation de la distribution de certaines essences. Enfin, nous démontrons que les calculs de bilans en eau qui prennent en compte la réserve en eau des sols sont plus efficaces que les bilans hydriques climatiques ou les pluies, particulièrement pour ce qui concerne les espèces hygrophiles ou xérophiles. Ces résultats laissent penser que l'importance de l'eau a été sous-estimée dans l'analyse de la distribution des espèces et l'étude des conséquences du changement climatique sur les plantes. Les données produites permettent de progresser dans la connaissance de l'écologie des espèces et de mieux caractériser la vulnérabilité des espèces, ouvrant la porte à la création d'outils plus fonctionnels pour aider les gestionnaires à évaluer les impacts du changement de climat et à s'y adapter. / Numerous researches focus on species distribution shifts toward ecological conditions most suited to plants under climate change. Ecological indices used to characterize species ecology and to define their vulnerability over broad areas are often at coarse resolution and are determined by data availability. The aim of this work was to map soil water balance and its different components at a fine spatial resolution, and to evaluate their interest to model plant distribution and growth over the whole French forests. We firstly modeled and mapped the solar radiation and the soil water holding capacity of forest soils. These data were combined with temperatures and precipitation to map the soil water balance. For solar radiation, the main results showed that this parameter is only accurately predicted at the French scale when cloudiness is taken into account. We also showed that soil water holding capacity can be mapped at the French scale using the basic information collected on numerous plots from the French national forest inventory. Values extracted from the soil water holding capacity map allowed predicting tree species growth with efficiency similar to values estimated on plots. We also demonstrated soil water balance is more efficient than climatic water balance or precipitation to model species distribution, mainly for hygrophilous and xerophilous species. These results suggest importance of available water could be underestimated when determining the ecological niche of species. These maps allow to improve species ecology knowledge and to help in the determination of their vulnerability area to climate change.

Irrigated agriculture is the largest user of freshwater in a world experiencing increased water scarcity and water demands. Variable rate irrigation (VRI) aims to use water efficiently in crop production, resulting in good yields and water conservation. With VRI, the grower is able to employ custom irrigation rates for different parts of a field. Adoption of VRI has been limited due to the complexity of matching irrigation to spatiotemporal crop water needs and the cost/benefit economics of VRI equipment. The goal of this study was to quantify spatiotemporal variability of VWC in a field that has uniform soil type and discuss the driving factors that contribute to that variability. Soil samples were acquired at 66 and 87 locations during the 2019 growing season at two study sites. Soil samples from 32 and 48 locations within each study site were selected to be analyzed for soil texture properties. The USGS Web Soil Survey was also referenced. Both, the USGS data and the data collected for this project showed very uniform soils across both fields. The objectives of this study were i) to show variability of VWC within fields that contain uniform soil texture using univariate Local Moran’s I (LMI) and ii) to compare static VRI zones based on spatial patterns of readily available field data that might serve as surrogates for VRI zones created from measured variation of soil volumetric water content (VWC). Management zones created using readily available field data had reasonable correlations with VWC. In both study sites, elevation was found to be the best variable for delineating VRI zones that imitate measured VWC.