Zoning of water requirement satisfaction index for common bean in Mato Grosso

Abstract

The aim of this study was the agroclimatic zoning of common bean in the Mato Grosso state in the second harvest. Data from 38 meteorological stations in the state and in neighboring regions were used. The zoning was based on water requirement satisfaction index (WRSI) for the common bean crop, for the three levels of available water capacity of the soils of the state (30, 50 and 75 mm) in 12 sowing periods. After generating the indexes for the municipalities, the variograms of the data were fitted in order to enable interpolation of the data for the state. Data were entered into ArcGISTM 10.0 and the ordinary kriging interpolation method was used. After generating the maps, they were clipped to the Mato Grosso State and classified as the following WRSI classes: suitable (WRSI ≥ 0.65); restricted (0.55 < WRSI < 0.65) and unsuitable (WRSI ≤ 0.55) for the stage of flowering and grain filling. It was possible to interpolate only the ten-day periods 8 to 12, because from 1 to 7 all regions of the state are suitable for cultivation. The trend of the aptitude of sowing dates is similar to the movement of the air masses active in the state, with a northwest-southeast direction of displacement.