Abstract

HERNANDEZ A., David Ricardo; MATEUS C., Diana  and  ORDUZ-RODRIGUEZ, Javier Orlando. Climatic characteristics and water balance of the Tahiti acid lime (Citrus latifolia Tanaka) in five production locations of Colombia. rev.colomb.cienc.hortic. [online]. 2014, vol.8, n.2, pp.217-229. ISSN 2011-2173.

The Tahiti acid lime is grown from sea level to 1,200 m a.s.l., which results in variability for the ecological conditions that influence the potential of this crop. In order to identify which climatic factors can affect growth performance, fruit quality and target market, this study was initiated in five production locations in Colombia: Santander (a farm in Lebrija), Piedmont Meta (the Research Center -{R.C.}- La Libertad), the high Magdalena Valley (R.C. Nataima), Valley of Cauca (R.C. Palmira) and the dry Caribbean (R.C. Caribia). The climate information was obtained from the multiyear database Ideam. The water balance was observed and the periods of excess and deficiency were determined, along with the accumulated heat units (HU) and temperature variations in the months of high and low precipitation. It was found that marked differences in climate can affect the quality characteristics of this fruit. The zones with the higher average temperatures and higher levels of evaporation and crop evapotranspiration (ETc) were R.C. Caribia and R.C. Nataima; the latter had a greater variation in the daily temperature delta and a higher accumulation value of HU. The location with the lowest average temperature was Lebrija, with less variation in the daily temperature delta, and the lowest accumulation of HU. The climate information indicates the need for the implementation of irrigation in R.C. Caribia, R.C. Nataima and R.C. Palmira.

Keywords : ecophysiology; agroclimatology; heat units; tropics.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )