Effects of irrigation characteristics and plant morphological features on interception of sprinkler water by maize plants

Plant interception significantly affects canopy-related eco-hydrological processes (evapotranspiration, transpiration, and soil water intake) and the development of precise irrigation schedules. In maize plants, the motion of sprinkler water droplets on leaves under different irrigation conditions influences the canopy interception mechanism. In this study, indoor experiments were performed to evaluate the interception capacity of maize plants under varying sprinkler irrigation conditions at different plant growth stages using sprinkler intensity and droplet diameter as independent variables. A water balance method was used to calculate the interception losses at different growth stages of maize plants under different sprinkler irrigation conditions. Predictive models for interception were developed based on the relationships between the physical parameters of sprinkler water and the plant morphological parameters with the interception amount. Results showed that during the growing season, the mean values of the interception amount and rate of maize plants were 2.31 mm and 13.47%, respectively. The interception amount and rates of sprinkler water by the plants varied with plant growth. Furthermore, the greater the sprinkler intensity and the smaller the droplet size, the greater the canopy interception. Compared with other morphological parameters of the plants, the effects of plant surface area on interception were highly apparent, and plant surface area was selected to characterize the morphological characteristics of the whole plant as it pertained to interception. In addition, we developed ‘interception amount versus plant surface area’ power function regression models with high prediction accuracy based on different sprinkler intensities and droplet diameters. The research findings hold value as references in guiding the development of precise sprinkler irrigation schedules with optimized physical characteristics, thereby improving the practical usage of sprinkler irrigation water.