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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Maricopa, Arizona » U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center » Water Management and Conservation Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #139445

Title: USING REMOTE SENSING TO IMPROVE OUR UNDERSTANDING OG YIELD VARIABILITY

Author
item Barnes, Edward

Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/15/2001
Publication Date: 10/21/2001
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The increased availability of yield monitor data has demonstrated that crop production can vary significantly within a single field; however, identifying the source(s) of this variability is often a challenge. One noted advantage of remotely sensed data over yield-monitor mapping is that patterns in the crop canopy can be identified at different times during the growing season. Therefore, it is sometimes possible to link the timing of the first occurrence of a particular pattern to a known event such as a pest infestation or poor crop emergence. Several research studies have also shown that spectral data can be used to quantify the level of crop nutrient status and water stress. Relative levels of pest pressure (insect, disease, and weeds) have also been related to multispectral data with various levels of success. All of this information should be related to final yield; however, weighting the impact of each variable is not a trivial matter and cannot be accomplished by simply collecting more images in more spectral regions. Ultimately remotely sensed data will have to be integrated with analytical and crop models before they can fully contribute to a clear picture of the sources of yield variability.