Optimization of Irrigation of Wine Grapes with Brackish Water for Managing Soil Salinization

Water scarcity and quality are critical impediments to sustainable crop production. In this study, HYDRUS-2D was calibrated using field measurements of water contents and salinities in the soil under wine grapes irrigated with river water (Rw, 0.32 dS/m). The calibrated model was then used to evaluate the impact of (a) four different water qualities ranging from 0.32 (Rw) to 3.2 dS/m (brackish water, Gw) including blended (Mix) and monthly alternating (Alt) irrigation modes; (b) two rainfall conditions (normal and 20% below normal); and (c) two leaching options (with and without 30 mm spring leaching irrigation) during the 2017–2022 growing seasons. Irrigation water quality greatly impacted root water uptake (RWU) by wine grapes and other water balance components. Irrigation with brackish water reduced average RWU by 18.7% compared to river water. Irrigation with blended water or from alternating water sources reduced RWU by 8.8 and 7%, respectively. Relatively small (2.8–8.2%) average annual drainage (Dr) in different scenarios produced a very low (0.05–0.16) leaching fraction. Modeling scenarios showed a tremendous impact of water quality on the salts build-up in the soil. The average electrical conductivity of the saturated soil extract (ECe) increased three times with Gw irrigation compared to Rw (current practices). Blended and alternate irrigation scenarios showed a 21 and 28% reduction in ECe, respectively, compared to Gw. Irrigation water quality substantially impacted site-specific actual basal (Kcb act) and single (Kc act) crop coefficients of grapevine. Threshold leaching efficiency estimated in terms of the salt mass leached vs. added (LEs; kg/kg) for salinity control (LEs > 1) was achieved with LFs of 0.07, 0.12, 0.12, and 0.15 for the Rw, Mix, Alt, and Gw irrigations, respectively. Applying annual leaching irrigation (30 mm) before bud burst (spring) in the Mix and Alt with Rw and Gw scenarios was found to be the best strategy for managing irrigation-induced salinity in the root zone, lowering the ECe to levels comparable to irrigation with Rw. Modeling scenarios suggested that judicious use of water resources and continuous root zone monitoring could be key for salinity management under adverse climate and low water allocation conditions.