Мақола

Assessment of the Maize Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI) Using Drone-Acquired Data Across Different Phenological Stages

Mpho KapariEnvironmental Studies & Tourism, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, Cape Town 7535, South AfricaMbulisi SibandaEnvironmental Studies & Tourism, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, Cape Town 7535, South AfricaJames MagidiGeomatics Department, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria 0001, South AfricaTafadzwanashe MabhaudhiCentre for Transformative Agricultural and Food Systems (CTAFS), School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South AfricaSylvester MpandeliDepartment of Environmental, Water and Earth Sciences, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria 0029, South AfricaLuxon NhamoCentre for Transformative Agricultural and Food Systems (CTAFS), School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 3209, South Africa

2025en

ABI

Аннотация

The temperature-based crop water stress index (CWSI) is the most robust metric among precise techniques that assess the severity of crop water stress, particularly in susceptible crops like maize. This study used a unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to remotely collect data, to use in combination with the random forest regression algorithm to detect the maize CWSI in smallholder croplands. This study sought to predict a foliar temperature-derived maize CWSI as a proxy for crop water stress using UAV-acquired spectral variables together with random forest regression throughout the vegetative and reproductive growth stages. The CWSI was derived after computing the non-water-stress baseline (NWSB) and non-transpiration baseline (NTB) using the field-measured canopy temperature, air temperature, and humidity data during the vegetative growth stages (V5, V10, and V14) and the reproductive growth stage (R1 stage). The results showed that the CWSI (CWSI < 0.3) could be estimated to an R2 of 0.86, RMSE of 0.12, and MAE of 0.10 for the 5th vegetative stage; an R2 of 0.85, RMSE of 0.03, and MAE of 0.02 for the 10th vegetative stage; an R2 of 0.85, RMSE of 0.05, and MAE of 0.04 for the 14th vegetative stage; and an R2 of 0.82, RMSE of 0.09, and MAE of 0.08 for the 1st reproductive stage. The Red, RedEdge, NIR, and TIR UAV-bands and their associated indices (CCCI, MTCI, GNDVI, NDRE, Red, TIR) were the most influential variables across all the growth stages. The vegetative V10 stage exhibited the most optimal prediction accuracies (RMSE = 0.03, MAE = 0.02), with the Red band being the most influential predictor variable. Unmanned aerial vehicles are essential for collecting data on the small and fragmented croplands predominant in southern Africa. The procedure facilitates determining crop water stress at different phenological stages to develop timeous response interventions, acting as an early warning system for crops.

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DOI: 10.3390/drones9030192

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