Effect of water deficit in different growth stages on stem sap flux of greenhouse grown pear-jujube tree

The effects of water deficit in different fruit growth stages on the variation of stem sap flux of 6-year old greenhouse-grown pear-jujube trees were investigated. Treatments included sufficient water supply during the whole fruit-growing period (T1), mild water deficit during the flowering–fruit setting stage (T2), moderate water deficit during the fruit rapid growth stage (T3) and severe water deficit during the fruit maturing stage (T4). Results showed that significant compensation effect on stem sap flux after re-watering was observed in T2, but not in T3 and T4 stages. At the end of rapid growth stage, the diurnal variation of stomatal conductance generally had a similar trend as that of stem sap flux, but with a distinct midday depression from 12:00 to 14:00 p.m. In addition, a linear relationship between the relative available soil water content (RAWC) and the ratio of daily stem sap flux to that of sufficient water treatment was observed (R2 = 0.4489).