Analysis of the effects of soil management on runoff generation in olive orchards using a physically based model.

Abstract

A numerical model that incorporates the spatial variability of infiltration, surface storage and resistance to overland flow was developed, calibrated and validated for olive orchards. The model reproduced accurately amounts of runoff used in validation, and predicted runoff in olive orchards managed in different ways, in line with published results. The model was used to analyse the runoff generation in a virtual, 180m length, 5% steep, olive grove, using 54 different scenarios which combined three different soil types, two tree canopy sizes and nine soil management techniques (four tillage scenarios: freshly or degraded tillage with and without a compacted plough layer; no-till, and four cover crops in strips differing in width and plant density). The results of the numerical experiment showed that no-till had the highest runoff coefficient, while a dense cover crop had the lowest. Recently tilled soils also exhibited some of the lowest runoff coefficients. The effects of increasing soil cover due to a greater tree canopy on runoff were significant and caused by the greater area of high infiltration beneath the canopy. Effects of tree canopy size were less important than the impact of soil management practices on runoff.