Effect of Herbicides on Evapotranspiration of Willow Marshes in the Upper St. Johns River Basin, Florida

AbstractDuring the last 40 years, Carolina willow (Salix caroliniana Michx.) expanded into areas previously dominated by herbaceous marshes in the Upper St. Johns River basin (USJRB) of east-central Florida, United States. This change in vegetation affects evapotranspiration (ET). To quantify change...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of hydrologic engineering 2018-09, Vol.23 (9)
Main Authors: Tang, Yin, Goodding, Danny, Castro Morales, Luz M, Wang, Dingbao, Quintana-Ascencio, Pedro F, Hall, Dianne L, Fauth, John E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Case Studies
Case Study
Civil engineering
Control
Empirical equations
Evapotranspiration
Evapotranspiration models
Growing season
Herbicides
Hydrology
Marshes
Mathematical models
Parameters
River basins
Rivers
Willow
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Summary:AbstractDuring the last 40 years, Carolina willow (Salix caroliniana Michx.) expanded into areas previously dominated by herbaceous marshes in the Upper St. Johns River basin (USJRB) of east-central Florida, United States. This change in vegetation affects evapotranspiration (ET). To quantify changes in ET at the community level after willows were removed using herbicides, a two-year field experiment with a randomized complete block design was implemented. The design included an unsprayed control and two different aerially sprayed herbicide treatments and was replicated in four blocks along the Upper St. Johns River. Daily ET was estimated using the Penmen-Monteith equation from July 1, 2014, to August 31, 2016. Cumulative ET difference between the control and treated plots increased substantially during the growing season after herbicide application. Mean annual evapotranspiration was 1,368±51  mm year−1 on control plots, 1,096±137  mm year−1 on plots treated with Aquasweep or Ecomazapyr herbicide, and 968±117  mm year−1 on plots treated by Clearcast herbicide. A single-parameter annual ET model derived from a Budyko-type equation was applied to the study area, and the model parameter (ϵ) strongly correlated with willow fractional coverage in April. The empirical equation obtained from this study can be potentially used for evaluating the impacts of willow treatment and climate on long-term evapotranspiration in the study area.
ISSN:1084-0699
1943-5584
DOI:10.1061/(ASCE)HE.1943-5584.0001685