Determination of evapotranspiration and basal crop coefficient of alfalfa with a weighing lysimeter

The aim of this study was to determine the evapotranspiration and basal crop coefficient of alfalfa with a weighing lysimeter. Lysimeter experiments were conducted at Ankara Research Institute of Rural Services, Turkey during 1995–1997. Penman–Monteith, Makkink (FAO-radiation (FAO-Rad)) and Penman-FAO methods performed satisfactorily for estimating the reference evapotranspiration of alfalfa in semi-arid climate conditions. Measured evapotranspiration rates were 1470, 1557 and 1161 mm in 1995, 1996 and 1997, respectively. Basal crop coefficients were computed from evapotranspiration measurements and weather data. The estimated values of the basal crop coefficients for alfalfa at the four growth stages of an individual cutting period were 0.71, 1.78 and 1.51 for initial, mid and late season, respectively.