Quantifying Water Use Efficiency in Strawberry Production Under Climatic Stress: A Review of Equations, Trends, and Modeling Tools

Strawberries are among the most water-sensitive horticultural crops because of their shallow root systems and high transpiration rates, making them particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures, irregular rainfall, and increased vapor pressure deficits under climate change. This review paper synthesizes methods for quantifying water-use efficiency (WUE) in strawberry production, including empirical equations, crop models (AquaCrop, DSSAT, and HYDRUS), and remote sensing approaches. It examines how water use, crop productivity, and WUE respond to environmental conditions and management practices. Earlier studies show that rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and increased atmospheric water demand can often reduce WUE, although responses vary depending on cultivar, management practices, and environmental conditions. In contrast, practices such as deficit irrigation, mulching, and microclimate modification may help maintain water productivity. Remote sensing tools such as the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), and Mapping Evapotranspiration at High Resolution with Internalized Calibration (METRIC) are increasingly used to evaluate evapotranspiration, crop condition, and irrigation performance from field to regional scales. Collectively, these approaches improve understanding of strawberry water use and support irrigation management under changing climatic conditions.