ABSTRACT
Consumptive water use is defined as the total quantity of water used in a given period of time as transpiration from the crop shoots and leaves, the water evaporated from the wetted soil or crop surfaces, and the small amount of water used in the building of plant tissue. In general, less than 1% of the consumptive water use is incorporated into plant tissue (i.e., split in the light reaction of photosynthesis and then incorporated), so consumptive water use is often used synonymously with the term evapotranspiration (sum of evaporation and transpiration). The principal factors affecting the magnitude of consumptive water use are the amount and orientation of actively transpiring plant tissues, atmospheric conditions, soil-water reserves, and soil texture.
