Plant response to irrigation with saline water in a Sicilian vineyard: results of a three-year field investigation

This paper reports the results of a three-year field investigation carried out in a vineyard located in Sicily (Mazara del Vallo, Trapani) within the framework of the Project: Evolution of cropping systems as affected by climate change (CLIMESCO). Research investigated soil-plant response to irrigation performed with water having two different salinity levels; soil hydrological characteristics, soil salinity, crop transpiration and stomatal conductance were measured in field plots. The results proved that crop transpiration and stomatal conductance were significantly affected by soil salinity conditions (expressed as electrical conductivity of the soil saturated water extract). A significant reduction in both the physiological parameters was observed in the treatment irrigated with water having higher salinity (electrical conductivity equal to 1.6 dS m–1) as compared to the treatment irrigated with water of lower salinity (electrical conductivity equal to 0.6 dS m–1).