The efficient use of water for drip irrigation will depend, among other factors, the correct monitoring of water in the soil profile. This work aimed to characterize root zones of effective root length and effective root water uptake and also to indicate the correct sensors location in the soil profile for drip irrigation management in banana crop during the production stage of the first cycle. The experiment was carried out at the Embrapa Cassava & Tropical Fruits, under different systems: T1 - one lateral per plant row with two 4 L h-1 emitters per plant; T2 - one lateral per plant row with four 4 L h-1 emitters per plant; T3 - one lateral per plant row as line source, with five 4 L h-1 emitters per plant. The results showed that the more appropriate regions for soil water sensor placement in treatments T1, T2 and T3, should correspond to zones limited by distances and depths of 0.2 m and 0.4 m, 0.5 m and 0.35 m, 0.55 m and 0.35 m, respectively.
soil moisture; irrigation management; tensiometry; drip irrigation
