Difficulties of using Darcy-Buckingham's model to estimate unsaturated soil water flux densities are shown using field data collected in a Alfisol ("terra roxa estruturada") at Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil. The experiment consists of the establishment of water balances on 25 experimental plots of 5 m x 5 m, aligned along a 125 m transect. The deep drainage component of the water balances is estimated using soil water content data obtained through neutron probe readings and soil water potential data measured with mercury manometer tensiometers. The work shows the great difficulty of estimating drainage fluxes, which is mainly related to (1) the exponential relation between soil hydraulic conductivity and soil water content or soil water potential, and (2) soil spatial variability.
soil hydraulic conductivity; Darcy's equation