Adelaide University scientists have developed a novel technique of Partial Rootzone Drying which fools agricultural crops into maintaining food production on half the irrigation. The technique has profound implicatiions for countries where water scarcity and salinity are agricultural problems. Turning Salt And Water Into Wine Dryland salinity and declining river systems. Together they paint a bleak picture for Australia's agriculture. The federal government's recent initiative will look for ways to tackle both, but some players are already well ahead of the game.
Plants can process a vast amount of water.
In a process called transpiration, they suck water up through their roots and expel it from their leaves through stomates, small cells that open or close to increase or reduce water loss. A rainforest can release enough water in this way to form a cloud above it. In this setting, anything that reduces river water irrigation without compounding the problems of saline soils has got to be a winner. Partial Rootzone Drying, or PRD, has emerged as just such a technology. If part of the grapevine's root system is slowly dried, but the remaining roots kept well watered, the vine is fooled in thinking that most of its roots are drying out.