ARS | Publication request: SPECTRAL INDICES FOR THE DETECTION OF CANOPY PROPERTIES FOR GROWTH AND YIELD ANALYSIS ACROSS FIELDS

Submitted to: Intnl Conference On Geospatial Information In Agriculture And Forestry
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: November 7, 2001
Publication Date: November 7, 2001
Citation: HATFIELD, J.L., OESTERREICH, W., PRUEGER, J.H. SPECTRAL INDICES FOR THE DETECTION OF CANOPY PROPERTIES FOR GROWTH AND YIELD ANALYSIS ACROSS FIELDS. INTNL CONFERENCE ON GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION IN AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY. 2001. CD-ROM. ANN ARBOR, MI. ALTARUM AGRICULTURE CONFERENCES.

Technical Abstract: Estimation of canopy properties from remotely sensed signals offers the potential of being able to assess variation within fields, among fields, or across years. Over the past 30 years there have been several different indices developed that utilize reflectance from broad-band sensors. These sensors have been either hand-held, boom-mounted, aircraft, or satellite-based systems. Canopy properties that have been estimated with these units have included leaf area index, total biomass, intercepted light, or ground cover. We have been using tractor-based, boom-mounted systems to measure reflectance from corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Gylcine max L. Merr.) canopies throughout the season to quantify leaf area indices, light interception, rate of senescence, and ground cover. These data are then used to compare the response of different management systems across soil or N management practices. Using reflectance based spectral indices, e.g, soil-adjusted vegetative index, normalized difference vegetative index, or the red-near-infrared ratio, has shown that we can quantify crop response to management treatments. Ground-based system provides confidence for the aircraft or satellite observations for complete fields.