Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data
This study developed an approach for remote estimation of Vegetation Fraction (VF) and Flower Fraction (FF) in oilseed rape, which is a crop species with conspicuous flowers during reproduction. Canopy reflectance in green, red, red edge and NIR bands was obtained by a camera system mounted on an un...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2016-05-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/8/5/416 |
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| author | Shenghui Fang Wenchao Tang Yi Peng Yan Gong Can Dai Ruhui Chai Kan Liu |
| author_facet | Shenghui Fang Wenchao Tang Yi Peng Yan Gong Can Dai Ruhui Chai Kan Liu |
| author_sort | Shenghui Fang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This study developed an approach for remote estimation of Vegetation Fraction (VF) and Flower Fraction (FF) in oilseed rape, which is a crop species with conspicuous flowers during reproduction. Canopy reflectance in green, red, red edge and NIR bands was obtained by a camera system mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) when oilseed rape was in the vegetative growth and flowering stage. The relationship of several widely-used Vegetation Indices (VI) vs. VF was tested and found to be different in different phenology stages. At the same VF when oilseed rape was flowering, canopy reflectance increased in all bands, and the tested VI decreased. Therefore, two algorithms to estimate VF were calibrated respectively, one for samples during vegetative growth and the other for samples during flowering stage. The results showed that the Visible Atmospherically Resistant Index (VARIgreen) worked most accurately for estimating VF in flower-free samples with an Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 3.56%, while the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI2) was the best in flower-containing samples with an RMSE of 5.65%. Based on reflectance in green and NIR bands, a technique was developed to identify whether a sample contained flowers and then to choose automatically the appropriate algorithm for its VF estimation. During the flowering season, we also explored the potential of using canopy reflectance or VIs to estimate FF in oilseed rape. No significant correlation was observed between VI and FF when soil was visible in the sensor’s field of view. Reflectance at 550 nm worked well for FF estimation with coefficient of determination (R2) above 0.6. Our model was validated in oilseed rape planted under different nitrogen fertilization applications and in different phenology stages. The results showed that it was able to predict VF and FF accurately in oilseed rape with RMSE below 6%. |
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| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-24T04:21:30Z |
| publishDate | 2016-05-01 |
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| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-085dab0e742f4985ae08423f1d118b742022-12-21T17:15:47ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922016-05-018541610.3390/rs8050416rs8050416Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle DataShenghui Fang0Wenchao Tang1Yi Peng2Yan Gong3Can Dai4Ruhui Chai5Kan Liu6School of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, ChinaSchool of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, ChinaSchool of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, ChinaSchool of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, ChinaSchool of Resources and Environmental Science, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, ChinaSchool of Remote Sensing and Information Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430079, ChinaDivision of Mathematical Sciences, Wuhan Institute of Physics and Mathematics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430071, ChinaThis study developed an approach for remote estimation of Vegetation Fraction (VF) and Flower Fraction (FF) in oilseed rape, which is a crop species with conspicuous flowers during reproduction. Canopy reflectance in green, red, red edge and NIR bands was obtained by a camera system mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) when oilseed rape was in the vegetative growth and flowering stage. The relationship of several widely-used Vegetation Indices (VI) vs. VF was tested and found to be different in different phenology stages. At the same VF when oilseed rape was flowering, canopy reflectance increased in all bands, and the tested VI decreased. Therefore, two algorithms to estimate VF were calibrated respectively, one for samples during vegetative growth and the other for samples during flowering stage. The results showed that the Visible Atmospherically Resistant Index (VARIgreen) worked most accurately for estimating VF in flower-free samples with an Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 3.56%, while the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI2) was the best in flower-containing samples with an RMSE of 5.65%. Based on reflectance in green and NIR bands, a technique was developed to identify whether a sample contained flowers and then to choose automatically the appropriate algorithm for its VF estimation. During the flowering season, we also explored the potential of using canopy reflectance or VIs to estimate FF in oilseed rape. No significant correlation was observed between VI and FF when soil was visible in the sensor’s field of view. Reflectance at 550 nm worked well for FF estimation with coefficient of determination (R2) above 0.6. Our model was validated in oilseed rape planted under different nitrogen fertilization applications and in different phenology stages. The results showed that it was able to predict VF and FF accurately in oilseed rape with RMSE below 6%.http://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/8/5/416vegetation fractionflower fractioncanopy reflectanceunmanned aerial vehicleoilseed rape |
| spellingShingle | Shenghui Fang Wenchao Tang Yi Peng Yan Gong Can Dai Ruhui Chai Kan Liu Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data Remote Sensing vegetation fraction flower fraction canopy reflectance unmanned aerial vehicle oilseed rape |
| title | Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data |
| title_full | Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data |
| title_fullStr | Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data |
| title_short | Remote Estimation of Vegetation Fraction and Flower Fraction in Oilseed Rape with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Data |
| title_sort | remote estimation of vegetation fraction and flower fraction in oilseed rape with unmanned aerial vehicle data |
| topic | vegetation fraction flower fraction canopy reflectance unmanned aerial vehicle oilseed rape |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/8/5/416 |
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