Precision Agriculture Using Remote Sensing and GIS for Peanut Crop Production in Arid Land
M. M. El-Sharkawy *
Department of Soil and Water, Faculty of Agriculture, Beni Suef University, Egypt
A. S. Sheta
Department of Soil, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, Egypt
M. S. Abd El-Wahed
Department of Soil, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, Egypt
S. M. Arafat
Department of Agricultural Applications, National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences, Cairo, Egypt
O. M. El Behiery
Department of Arid Land, Faculty of Agriculture, Ain Shams University, Egypt
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Precision agriculture is a farming management approach for a whole field with a potentiality to solve some of management problems based on observing and measuring field crops variability using more accurate and timely information of agricultural resources. Site-specific management for farming operations and data mining using good sampling design is an effective tool on precision agriculture while remote sensing facilities are perfect tools to assess the land cover, crop situation and status as well as their changes. This work aimed to identify management zones for Peanut crop using precision agriculture management practices. GIS, GPS, sensors and soil sampling are the major technological components which were used for that purpose. The results showed that using variable rate technology and management zones for Peanut crop production is greatly responsible for lowering cost of input and decreasing environmental impact using the least amount of chemicals necessary. Furthermore, soil suitability was successfully employed to simulate soil characteristics effect on canopy structure and final yield.
Keywords: Precision agriculture, peanut, remote sensing GIS and