Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of heat waves and drought events, with dire consequences for agroecosystems of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. Farmers of the region generally irrigate their crops with water from river reservoirs, but during drought or extreme weather conditions they are often forced to rely on lower quality saline water from aquifers to maintain high soil moisture conditions and avoid productivity losses. Despite attempts to maintain near optimal soil moisture conditions throughout the growing season, we have seen evidence that high atmospheric vapor pressure deficits (VPD) and low soil moisture during recent extreme events have decreased plant water availability and productivity. How elements of the Critical Zone, such as soil morphology, structure, and salinity modulate the response of these highly water-subsidized managed agro-ecosystems in the face of increasing pressures from extreme weather and increasing soil degradation remains poorly understood. Here we will implement a continuous tree growth, soil-plant water status, and canopy temperature monitoring system at two proximally located experimental pecan (Carya illinoinensis) orchards (Ivey Farm, TX, USA and El Arete Farm, Chihuahua, Mexico) located in two of the largest irrigated agro-ecosystem clusters of the Chihuahuan desert. In combination with carbon, water, micrometeorological, and plant physiology measurements already being made at these sites, this system will enable us to investigate the mechanisms by which atmospheric aridity and hydrological drought interact with the Critical Zone to impact agro-ecological productivity, soil health, and carbon cycling.