Assessment of Peanut Germplasm Under Initial Drought Stress.

Water deficit and high temperature are serious threats to peanut production in the Southwestern U.S. Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is the second most important legume in the world, with U.S. being the third largest producer.The annual worth of peanut production exceeds $1 billion to farmer and $6 billion to U.S economy. Decreased availability of irrigation water in major production regions in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico require the developmentof a sustainable method for crop production under water-limited water conditions. We are investigating the  combined effects of heat and water deficit on physiological traits, yield, and quality attributes in peanut grown under a scheduled deficit irrigation scheme. Ten genotypes selected for heat and water deficit stress tolerance were evaluated at two locations in west Texas. In addition to yield and quality assessment, leaf-level gas-exchange was used to characterize plant response to abiotic stress (heat and water-deficit) that occurred between irrigation events. An analysis of the physiological and morphologicial response of this germplasm will be presented along with potential irrigation schemes for peanut production in water-limited environments