support this hypothesis. In all of the cultivars studied, the transport of water by
the roots increased in response to deficit irrigation (Fig. 1). In all cases, K+
leaf accumulation was adequate (>1% DW) (Mengel and Kirby, 2001) (Table 1), indicating that this effect cannot be
attributed to K+ starvation. Indeed, the same response was
observed in root water transport in the cultivar Olimpia when
the plants were subjected to moderate water stress by PEG (Fig. 4A andTable 2). The water stress induced by PEG was probably too mild toresult in anyeffecton growth or root water transport in thecultivar Jazzy.