Precision agricultural technology for advanced monitoring of maize yield under different fertilization and irrigation regimes: A case study in Eastern Hungary (Debrecen)

Abstract

Precision agricultural (PrA) technology relies on the utilization of special equipment to access real time observations on plant health status, chlorophyll, nitrogen content, and soil moisture content. In this research new PrA technology (i.e., SPAD (Soil Plant Analysis Development), and UAV-based NDVI (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-based Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) were used to monitor maize yield based on different filed trials in eastern part of Hungary. Our study aimed to examine the utilization of PrA technology specifically SPAD and UAV-based NDVI measurements for monitoring maize GY under irrigated and rainfed experimental setups in Hungary with varied nitrogen treatment for the year 2022. The results showed that the SPAD increased in all treatments (14.7 %; p < 0.05) from V6–V8 in the rainfed treatments, decreased significantly (p < 0.05) by 13.9 % (R1) and 30.6 % (R3). However, implementation of irrigation significantly increased the SPAD values in majority of treatments. Also, results reveal that, under irrigated and rainfed conditions the highest UAV-based NDVI value (0.703, 0.642) was obtained in V12 (A120 treatment) and highest NDVI value (0.728, 0.662) was obtained in Vn (A120 treatment). Remarekedly, irrigation led to significant differences (p < 0.05) of UAV-based NDVI values compared with none irrigated. On the other hand, implementation of 120 kg N ha−1 before sowing led to highest GY, especially under irrigated conditions (8.649 Mg ha−1). The overall mean GY under rainfed treatment was 6.256 Mg ha−1, while under irrigated treatment it increased by 37.2 % and reached 8.581 Mg ha−1 (p < 0.05). In conclusion, PrA technology will support farmers in making informed decisions regarding fertilization strategies and timing, which will in turn maximize yield and minimize risk.