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Updated: Feb 17, 2026

A Method to Preserve Wetland Roots and Rhizospheres for Elemental Imaging

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Published on: February 15, 2021

Deep rooted apple trees decrease groundwater recharge in the highland region of the Loess Plateau, China.

Zhiqiang Zhang¹, Min Li¹, Bingcheng Si²

¹Key Laboratory of Agricultural Soil and Water Engineering in Arid and Semiarid Areas, Ministry of Education, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China.

The Science of the Total Environment

|December 10, 2017

Summary

Converting cropland to apple orchards significantly reduces groundwater recharge. This land use change, while increasing soil water storage, may threaten long-term water sustainability.

Keywords:

Chloride mass balance Groundwater recharge Land use change Soil water deficit

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Area of Science:

Hydrology
Ecology
Agricultural Science

Background:

Estimating groundwater recharge under deep-rooted vegetation is challenging.
Deep-rooted plants significantly impact soil water dynamics and recharge.
Land use change from shallow to deep-rooted systems alters hydrological processes.

Purpose of the Study:

Develop a method to estimate groundwater recharge beneath deep-rooted vegetation.
Quantify the impact of converting cropland to apple orchards on groundwater recharge.
Assess the sustainability of this land use change.

Main Methods:

Combined water mass balance and chloride mass balance (CMB).
Calculated groundwater recharge under cropland using CMB.
Determined soil water storage deficit under apple orchards.

Main Results:

Conversion to apple orchards decreased soil water storage by 776-1117mm.
Groundwater recharge under cropland averaged 58 mm/year (10% of precipitation).
Groundwater recharge under apple orchards was <3% of precipitation.

Conclusions:

Converting cropland to apple orchards substantially decreases groundwater recharge.
This reduction in recharge could jeopardize the sustainability of apple orchards.
Further research is needed to understand long-term hydrological impacts.