AquaCrop Model Validation for Simulation Wheat Productivity under Water Stress Condition

ABSTRACT

In Egypt, wheat is one of the most consumed cereal crops. Egypt is classified in the 12th position for wheat productivity countries globally. Two field experiments were implemented at Dar El-Ramad farm, Faculty of Agriculture, Fayoum University, Egypt, during the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 seasons. The trials investigated the effects of ridge width for planting in wide ridges 120 cm (beds) and 60 cm ridges, flat planting (basins), and three irrigation scheduling regimes based on cumulative pan evaporation, i.e. 1.0, 0.8, and 0.6 coefficients of CPE, on wheat yield (Giza 168) and its components and some crop–water relations. The purpose of this research is to explore the validation of the AquaCrop model (version 6.1) to simulate grain wheat, biological yield, and their water productivity under suggested treatments. Statistical indicators (R², RMSE, NRMSE, NSE, and D) were 0.96, 97.3, 1.58, 0.94, and 0.98 in the first season, respectively, and followed a similar trend in the second season. Similarly, the values of R², RMSE, NRMSE, NSE, and D for grain water productivity were 0.98, 0.02, 1.39, 0.98, and 0.99 in the 2015/16 season, respectively, and in the 2016/17 season were 0.99, 0.03, 2.00, 0.99, and 0.99, respectively.

KEYWORDS:

• Wheat
• water deficit
• water productivity
• AquaCrop model
• statistical indicators

Acknowledgments

The authors sincerely appreciate the Soils, Water and Environment Research Institute, ARC, for financial support to achieve this field trial; Faculty of Agriculture, Fayoum University, for providing the place to conduct the trial; and the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, USA, for all their support to complete and finish the simulation part of this investigation. Finally, the authors would like to thank cultural affairs and mission sector in Egypt to give them an opportunity to connect with each other.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).