To quantify water stress on coffee trees, leaf water potential (LWP) measurements are commonly performed in a Scholander chamber; however, this methodology is restricted to research activities, due to the difficulty of measurement in the field: sampling hours at predawn and intensive work. A crop water stress index (CWSI) based on leaf temperature has been used as indicative of LWP in several crops, and thermal images can be a precious tool for mapping LWP under intensive drip‐irrigated coffee areas, in order to adjust irrigation requirements according to soil moisture spatial variability. This study aims to define the relationships between the water potential of coffee leaf based on CWSI, calculated by means of a portable infrared sensor and a thermal camera, analysing correlation, precision and accuracy indexes. The study was conducted in Piracicaba, SP, Brazil, using Coffea arabica species of the Catuaí Red variety IAC 144 that was drip irrigated using tensiometers as matric potential sensors. The observed CWSI and LWP presented good correlations in the linear and cubic models. It was concluded that the CWSI is a good indicator of the water potential of a coffee canopy and can be an alternative to measurements of LWP from the Scholander chamber. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Awareness of evapotranspiration (ET) and crop coefficient (K c) is necessary for irrigation management in coffee crops. ET and K c spatial variabilities are disregarded in traditional methods. Methods based on radiometric measurements have potential to obtain these spatialized variables. The K c curve and spatial variability of actual evapotranspiration (ET a) were determined using images from Landsat 8 satellite. We used images of young and adult coffee plantations from OLI (Operational Land Imager) and TIRS (Thermal Infrared Sensor) sensors over a two-year period. Evapotranspiration was estimated using the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL). Moreover, the reference evapotranspiration (ET o) was estimated through the Penman-Monteith method. We obtained the values for the evapotranspiration fraction (ET f), analogous to K c , according to ET and ET o values. The study was conducted in Buritis, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, in areas cropped with Coffea arabica irrigated by central pivots. A comparative analysis was made using different statistical indices. Average ET a was 2.17 mm d-1 for young coffee plantations, , and the K c mean value was 0.6. For adult coffee plantations, average ET a was 3.95 mm d-1 , , and the K c mean value was 0.85. The ET c and K c data obtained based on the SEBAL algorithm displayed similar values to studies that used traditional methods. This model has huge potential to estimate ET of different stages of coffee plantation for the region studied.

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RESUMO:Clones de seringueira (Hevea spp ) são enxertados sobre porta-enxertos oriundos de sementes de ascendência desconhecida e por isto não exteriorizara todo seu potencial genético de produção de látex. A superação desta dificuldade pode ser obtida com o enraizamento de estacas clonais. Todavia, a seringueira é considerada em seu estágio adulto como uma planta de difícil enraizamento. Estas plantas possuem na base do caule um cilindro quase contínuo de tecidos lignificados, que juntamente com barraras químicas podem dificultar o enraizamento. Atualmente, algumas plantas de difícil enraizamento, têm enraizado com a ajuda de um conjunto de técnicas modernas como estiolamento total ou localizado e estrangulamento. Este trabalho, procurou caracterizar as modificações que ocorrem em estacas clonais de seringueira submetidas àquele conjunto de técnicas. Pode-se concluir que o estrangulamento da base de estacas do clone RRIM 600, assim como sua utilização em conjunto com os dois tipos de estiolamento, promoveu alterações na atividade do câmbio vascular que produziu maior número de células parenquimáticas no floema, resultando na descontinuidade da bainha de fibras perivasculares, o que representa um indício para o favorecimento ao enraizamento das estacas. Descritores: Hevea brasiliensis, estacas, raízes adventícias, anatomia ANATOMICAL CHANGES IN RUBBER TREE CUTTINGS (Hevea brasiliensis CLONE RRIM 600) IN RESPONSE TO DIFFERENT ROOTING TECHNIQUESABSTRACT: Clones of Hevea spp are presently grafted on seedlings, because no economic method of producing clonal rootstocks by vegetative means or clonal cuttings has so far been discovered. Because of this, Hevea clones do not exteriorize their maximum genetic potential for latex production. The rooting of clonal cuttings overcomes this problem. However, Hevea is considered a plant with very poor capacity of rooting, in its mature phase. Plants have at the stem base an almost continuous cylinder of lignified tissues, which along with chemical barriers can difficult rooting. At present, rooting problems in some plant species may be overcome by a combination of new techniques as it is the case of total or local etiolation and girdling. This work has the aim to characterize the modifications occurred in clonal cuttings of Hevea when subjected to the above mentioned techniques, alone or combined. It was possible to conclude that the girdling of the cutting base from the RRIM 600 clone, as well as its utilization in combination with the other two types of etiolation, promoted drastic alterations in the sheath, as compared to the control. Moreover, girdling promoted the activity of the vascular cambio, which produced a greater number of parenquimatous cells in the phloem, resulting in a discontinuity, of the perivascular fibers sheath. Other alterations elapsed of the girdling were: the division of parenquimatous cells around of the sheath forming meristematic rings and a greater number of lenticells in comparison to the control, which can favor the rooting of the cuttings.