remote sensing in irrigated onion production: challenges ... · remote sensing in irrigated onion...
TRANSCRIPT
Remote sensing in irrigated
onion production: Challenges
& opportunities
Hort Connections 2017
Adelaide Convention Centre
Michael Cutting, Natural Resources SA MDB Region
Project Background:
• In 2004/05 an extensive automatic weather station network was established across the SA Murray-Darling Basin region
• Primary objective was to provide land managers with real time and location specific weather data to assist with on-farm decision making
• High density of stations in key irrigation areas across the region – River Murray, Mallee
• Daily evapotranspiration data to assist with optimising irrigation scheduling
Project Background:
• Given the significant investment keen to promote the on-farm adoption of network data
• Looked into different decision support systems and tools that integrated on-ground weather data
• Collaborated on small scale trials of different remote sensing based systems including IrriEYE
IrriEYE:• IrriEYE is an irrigation advisory
service based on high resolution satellite monitoring of canopy satellite monitoring of canopy development
• IrriEYE provides farmers and water managers with real-time irrigation water needs from field and irrigation unit to district and river basin scale
• Generates crop co-efficient values that are then applied to local ETodata sourced from AWS
• Citrus, wine-grapes, almonds, stonefruit (2011 - 2013)
Remote sensing: A tool to monitor & evaluate?
• Since 2010 the SA MDB NRM Board has been involved as a Delivery Partner in the Australian Government funded On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program (OFIEP)
• OFIEP is a key water recovery initiative linked to the Murray-Darling Basin Plan
• Share of water savings generated through on-farm irrigation efficiency improvements returned to the environment
• What innovative ways could we evaluate on-farm improvements? before vs. after assessments
Remote sensing: A tool to monitor & evaluate?
• High resolution imagery (fixed wing aircraft)• Water stress mapping (ambient vs. in canopy air temp)• Note: Not deriving an irrigation volume
The IrriSAT system:
• With continuing drivers to extend weather based irrigation scheduling approaches along with monitoring and evaluation activities we started to utilise the IrriSAT system
• We were already familiar with the IrriSAT system from when it was developed through CRC for Irrigation Futures
• The IrriSAT methodology uses satellite images to determine the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) for each field
• https://irrisat-cloud.appspot.com/#
Benefits of the IrriSAT system:
• It is free! Just need a Gmail account
• Able to easily map specific patches/plots of interest
• IrriSAT system delivers regular satellite imagery – Sentinel 2 & Landsat 7/8
• Can generate a crop water balance and soil water deficit – based on inputs (irrigation + rainfall)
• Also produces a forecast of crop water use based on crop coefficients derived from the satellite imagery
Monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Crop Types: Lucerne, perennial pasture, wine grapes, onions• Irrigation Systems: Centre Pivot, Fixed Sprinklers, Border Check
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial of IrriSAT• Value add to existing work programs
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• Onion site was chosen as farmer was using weather based approach to irrigation scheduling
• Collaborated with previous work (plant based)• Good with feedback
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 9 June 2016• Sentinel 2 satellite image (10m pixel)
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 11 July 2016• Note bottom (orange) patch not yet planted
4 weeks
6 weeks
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 29 September 2016• Influence of composite images – Landsat 8 (30m)
& Sentinel 2 (10m) - different resolutions
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 7 October 2016• Landsat 8 image only – more uniformity
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 31 October 2016• Crops continuing to develop > Kc value
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 18 December 2016• Several beds not yet harvested• Not a strong signature on late planting
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 26 December 2016• NE plot harvested 04/12/16• Within crop variation visible in S plot
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• 17 January 2017• Persistence of low vigour - circle
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Onion monitoring sites in 2016/17 season:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
• Whole of season statistics• Field Visibility (%)• Comparison to actual
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
Key observations and lessons:
• Sites were largely project based• Not a formal trial• Value add to existing work
Plant: 17/06/16Harvest: 28/12/16
Plant: 18/09/16Harvest: 24/02/17
Plant: 01/06/16Harvest: 04/12/16
Cloud cover – Sentinel 2 excludes areas influenced
• Can be challenges with the IrriSATapproach to onion irrigation management:
- establishment with cover crop - not a bulky crop (biomass)
• Despite this the system provides a very visual assessment of crop uniformity –assists with troubleshooting
• We did not incorporate local AWS data but SILO evapotranspiration was very similar: 924mm (SILO) vs. 981mm (local)
• Published crop co-efficient data for onions suggest 1:1 with ETo ~ 9ML/ha
• Accurate ETo forecast = valued by farmer
thankyou