Adaptación a la sequía y necesidades hídricas de Eucalytus globulus Labill. en Huelva

Abstract

Eucalyptus glubulus is a widely used species in forest plantations for wood production. It is adapted to live on poor soils under Mediterranean climate with oceanic influence. It supports some degree of water stress but not extreme temperatures exceeding 40 ºC or -5 ºC. Its cultivation in the province of Huelva is seriously limited by the frugality of the soils and the summer drought, and it is attacked by pests such as Phoracantha spp., particularly virulent under water stress conditions. In this work, we analyzed the results of several experiments, carried out in nurseries and in field plots, regarding to the response of E. globulus clones to water stress and its water consumption needs. As for other biotic or abiotic stresses, the species showed genetic variability (at clonal level) in their resistance to water stress, which offers the possibility to further develop and improve breeding programs. Under water stress conditions, it reacts by coming into play avoidance mechanisms (leaf morphology, stomatal closure, vulnerability to xylem cavitation, etc..) and tolerance mechanisms (osmotic and elastic adjustment). However, the degree of variation of each of the above cited parameters differed between clones, showing different strategies among them. This can be used when establishing the selection criteria in relation to the purpose of each breeding program (resistance to be attacked by Phoracantha spp., production and water use efficiency, resistance to threshold values of water stress, etc.)