Submitted to: Concise Encyclopedia of Temperate Zone Tree Fruits
Publication Type: Popular Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: January 9, 2003
Publication Date: N/A
Technical Abstract: Yield and plant growth are reduced more by water deficits than any other limiting factor in the plant's environment. Daily water deficits that occur during hot periods of the day, as well as seasonal deficits of water, alter the plant's morphology, physiology, productivity, and quality as a food product. Water deficits increase a plant's susceptibility to insect and disease damage. An understanding of plant water relations aids in diagnosing conditions that limit plant growth and development. Plant breeders utilize knowledge of how plants morphologically, biochemically, and physiologically adjust to water stress in order to adapt new cultivars to their environment.