Estimation of actual evapotranspiration over a rainfed vineyard using a 1-D water transfer model: A case study within a Mediterranean watershed

The current study aims to evaluate the capabilities of soil water balance modeling to estimate ET for very different conditions of rainfed grapevine water status, within a vineyard landscape that depicts heterogeneities in canopy, soil and water table conditions. We calibrated the HYDRUS-1D model against measurements of the soil moisture profile within seven contrasted sites, we validated HYDRUS-1D simulations against ET estimates derived from eddy covariance (EC) measurements within two contrasted sites, and we analyzed the temporal dynamics of the HYDRUS-1D ET simulations throughout almost two growth cycles for the seven sites. The calibration of HYDRUS-1D was correctly achieved, with a relative RMSE of 20% on average. Validation of HYDRUS-1D simulations against EC measurements was satisfactory, with RMSE values of about 40 W m⁻² at the hourly timescale and 0.5 mm d⁻¹ at the daily timescale. HYDRUS-1D was able to provide consistent time series of ET within the seven contrasted sites and throughout the two growth cycles. We conclude that HYDRUS-1D simulations can be used as an alternative to EC measurements within rainfed vineyards, to alleviate experimental efforts for device cost and maintenance. Further, HYDRUS-1D simulations can be used for characterizing spatial variabilities and temporal dynamics, assessing impact of pedological conditions and land use on ET, or validating remote sensing retrievals over regional extents.