Articles | Volume 22, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4097-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4097-2018
Research article
 | 
30 Jul 2018
Research article |  | 30 Jul 2018

Testing an optimality-based model of rooting zone water storage capacity in temperate forests

Matthias J. R. Speich, Heike Lischke, and Massimiliano Zappa

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Interactive discussion

Status: closed
Status: closed
AC: Author comment | RC: Referee comment | SC: Short comment | EC: Editor comment
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Peer-review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision
ED: Reconsider after major revisions (further review by editor and referees) (16 Mar 2018) by Nunzio Romano
AR by Matthias Speich on behalf of the Authors (06 Apr 2018)  Author's response    Manuscript
ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (19 Apr 2018) by Nunzio Romano
RR by Hubert H.G. Savenije (23 Apr 2018)
RR by Andrew Guswa (17 May 2018)
ED: Publish subject to revisions (further review by editor and referees) (23 May 2018) by Nunzio Romano
AR by Matthias Speich on behalf of the Authors (04 Jul 2018)  Author's response    Manuscript
ED: Publish as is (06 Jul 2018) by Nunzio Romano
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Short summary
To simulate the water balance of, e.g., a forest plot, it is important to estimate the maximum volume of water available to plants. This depends on soil properties and the average depth of roots. Rooting depth has proven challenging to estimate. Here, we applied a model assuming that plants dimension their roots to optimize their carbon budget. We compared its results with values obtained by calibrating a dynamic water balance model. In most cases, there is good agreement between both methods.