Timely and reliable estimation of regional crop yield is a vital component of food security assessment, especially in developing regions. The traditional crop forecasting methods need ample time and labor to collect a...Timely and reliable estimation of regional crop yield is a vital component of food security assessment, especially in developing regions. The traditional crop forecasting methods need ample time and labor to collect and process field data to release official yield reports. Satellite remote sensing data is considered a cost-effective and accurate way of predicting crop yield at pixel-level. In this study, maximum Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) during the crop-growing season was integrated with Machine Learning Regression (MLR) models to estimate wheat and rice yields in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Five MLR models were compared using a fivefold cross-validation method for their predictive accuracy. The study results revealed that the regression model based on the Gaussian process outperformed over other models. The best performing model attained coefficient of determination (R^(2)), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE, t/ ha), and Mean Absolute Error (MAE, t/ha) of 0.75, 0.281, and 0.236 for wheat;0.68, 0.112, and 0.091 for rice, respectively. The proposed method made it feasible to predict wheat and rice 6- 8 weeks before the harvest. The early prediction of crop yield and its spatial distribution in the region can help formulate efficient agricultural policies for sustainable social, environmental, and economic progress.展开更多
基金The research is supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC)General Research(Grant number 41971386)Hong Kong Research Grant Council(RGC)General Research Fund(Grant number 12301820)+2 种基金The work is a part of PhD research funded by Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme(HKPFS)Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC)General Program(Grant number 41971386)Hong Kong Research Grant Council(RGC)General Research Fund(Grant number 12301820).
文摘Timely and reliable estimation of regional crop yield is a vital component of food security assessment, especially in developing regions. The traditional crop forecasting methods need ample time and labor to collect and process field data to release official yield reports. Satellite remote sensing data is considered a cost-effective and accurate way of predicting crop yield at pixel-level. In this study, maximum Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) during the crop-growing season was integrated with Machine Learning Regression (MLR) models to estimate wheat and rice yields in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Five MLR models were compared using a fivefold cross-validation method for their predictive accuracy. The study results revealed that the regression model based on the Gaussian process outperformed over other models. The best performing model attained coefficient of determination (R^(2)), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE, t/ ha), and Mean Absolute Error (MAE, t/ha) of 0.75, 0.281, and 0.236 for wheat;0.68, 0.112, and 0.091 for rice, respectively. The proposed method made it feasible to predict wheat and rice 6- 8 weeks before the harvest. The early prediction of crop yield and its spatial distribution in the region can help formulate efficient agricultural policies for sustainable social, environmental, and economic progress.
