Commercial strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.) production in Florida relies heavily on bare-root transplants, which typically have 3–5 leaves with partially desiccated roots. Successful establishment requires sprinkler irrigation during daylight hours for the first 10–14 days, leading to substantial water consumption. To address this issue, we evaluated the efficacy of intermittent sprinkler irrigation as a water conservation strategy. We conducted field experiments over two growing seasons [Season 1 (2021–22) and Season 2 (2022–23)] in west-central Florida using three major strawberry cultivars, ‘Florida127’, ‘Florida Brilliance’, and ‘FL 16.30–128’. Plants were subjected to four different intermittent irrigation programs during establishment: 10/0 (continuous irrigation), 10/10, 10/15, and 10/20 min (on/off) from 0800 to 1800 HR for 12 days after transplanting. The impact of intermittent irrigation on marketable yield was cultivar- and season-dependent. 'Florida Brilliance' exhibited a 27 % yield increase in Season 1 but no significant difference in Season 2. By contrast, the other two cultivars exhibited no significant yield response in either season. In ‘Florida Brilliance’, marketable yield was strongly correlated with early canopy growth, suggesting that the yield increase was due partly to accelerated canopy establishment. This surprising result could be explained by the role of stress-induced leaf senescence in enhancing acclimation to adverse environmental conditions. It is speculated that increased heat stress from intermittent irrigation promotes senescence of initial leaves, facilitating nutrient translocation to the crown and subsequently accelerating the formation of new leaves and roots. Our results demonstrate that, without significant yield loss, intermittent sprinkler irrigation can reduce water use by 50–67 % during the establishment of strawberry bare-root transplants, accounting for 322–429 mm of water saving (3.2–4.3 million liters per hectare). Importantly, this water-conservation practice is easy to implement and does not negatively impact fruit quality.

中文翻译：

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草莓 （Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.） 裸根移植期间的间歇性喷灌可以节省水分，而不会损失产量和果实质量


佛罗里达州的商业草莓 （Fragaria ×ananassa Duch.） 生产严重依赖裸根移植，通常有 3-5 片叶子，根部分干燥。成功的建立需要在前 10-14 天的白天进行喷灌，这会导致大量用水。为了解决这个问题，我们评估了间歇性喷灌作为节水策略的有效性。我们在佛罗里达州中西部的两个生长季节 [第 1 季 （2021-22） 和第 2 季 （2022-23）] 中使用三个主要草莓品种 'Florida127'、'Florida Brilliance' 和 'FL 16.30-128' 进行了田间试验。植物在建立期间进行四种不同的间歇性灌溉程序：移栽后 12 天，从 0800 到 1800 小时，10/0（连续灌溉）、10/10、10/15 和 10/20 分钟（开/关）。间歇性灌溉对可销售产量的影响取决于品种和季节。“Florida Brilliance”在第 1 季的产量增加了 27%，但在第 2 季没有显着差异。相比之下，其他两个品种在两个季节都没有表现出显著的产量响应。在“佛罗里达才华”中，可销售产量与早期树冠生长密切相关，这表明产量增加部分是由于树冠建立加速。这一令人惊讶的结果可以用胁迫诱导的叶片衰老在增强对不利环境条件的适应中的作用来解释。据推测，间歇性灌溉引起的热应激增加会促进初始叶的衰老，促进养分转移到树冠，从而加速新叶和新根的形成。 我们的结果表明，在没有显着产量损失的情况下，间歇性喷灌可以在草莓裸根移植建立过程中减少 50-67% 的用水量，从而节省 322-429 毫米的用水量（每公顷 3.2-430 万升）。重要的是，这种节水做法易于实施，并且不会对水果质量产生负面影响。