Precision Viticulture

Grapes are the most widely grown commercial fruit crop in the world, and also one of the most popular fruit crops for horticultural production. Grape growers constantly search the ways in order to maximize their profits all over the world. It becomes to be important to use new information technologies to increase to overall returns. Precision Viticulture (PV) refers to the application of new and emerging information technologies to the production of grapes to improve the efficacy of production, maximize the quality of production, minimize the environmental footprint of production and minimize the risk associated with production for the grower and processer. Precision viticulture depends on new and emerging technologies such as global positioning systems (GPS), meteorological and other environmental sensors, satellite and airborne remote sensing, and geographic information systems (GIS) to assess and respond to variability. It can be possible that take under control such as soil fertility, fertilizer application norm, disease, water, weed, harvesting, and environmental management by precision viticulture systems in vineyard. So, to reduce inputs such as fertilizer, water, pesticides and to increase yield and quality of grape berries, we must to increase precision technologies in our vineyards. In this review, Precision Viticulture tools will be demonstrated to producing of high quality grapes. Finally, this study will also help grape growers and government agencies that provide new information and technologies such as Remote Sensing to growers in order to detect some factors affecting to maximize grape production.

El vino está de moda, no solo como producto simbólico diferenciado en los términos que explicaba Bourdieu (1984), sino también como “superalimento”, por su potencial nutritivo y concentración de antioxidantes, resveratrol o vitaminas. Numerosos estudios subrayan los beneficios del consumo moderado de vino, entre los que se encuentran la reducción de enfermedades cardiovasculares, cancerígenas o la mejora de la función cognitiva. Sin embargo, hasta la fecha no existen investigaciones que analicen las prácticas productivas y enológicas que confieren al vino este tipo de propiedades. Es, además, desconocido para el consumidor el listado de ingredientes que contiene una botella de vino, mientras que cualquier otro producto alimentario debe etiquetar cualquier tipo de aditivo. Consecuentemente, no es posible diferenciar qué vino es saludable en base a los criterios de certificación de calidad existentes.
La profunda crítica a las implicaciones de la chaptalización no resultaría quizás tan demoledora de no ser por las credenciales del autor. Yravedra es Presidente Honorario de la Organización Internacional de la Viña y el Vino (OIV). A lo largo de su vida ha desarrollado una importante defensa de la calidad del vino y de las Denominaciones de Origen, tanto españoles como internacionales, en foros como la OIV y en el Comité Científico de Denominaciones de Origen de Productos Alimentarios de la Unión Europea.

Recent studies have reported the potential of near infrared (NIR) spectral analyzers for monitoring the ripeness of grape berries alternatively to wet chemistry methods. This study covers various aspects regarding the calibration and implementation of predictive models of total soluble solids (TSS) in grape berries using laboratory and in-field collected NIR spectra.

Flavonoids are a class of bioactive compounds largely represented in grapevine and wine.
They also affect the sensory quality of fruits and vegetables, and derived products. Methods available
for flavonoid measurement are time-consuming, thus a rapid and cost-effective determination of these
compounds is an important research objective. This work tests if applying machine learning
techniques to texture analysis data allows to reach good performances for flavonoid estimation in
grape berries.
Whole berry and skin texture analysis was applied to berries from 22 red wine grape cultivars and
linked to the total flavonoid content. Three machine-learning techniques (regression tree, random
forest and gradient boosting machine) were then applied. Models reached a high accuracy both in the
external and internal validation (R² ranging from 0.75 to 0.85 for the external validation and from 0.65
to 0.75 for the internal validation, while RMSE went from 0.95 mg g-1 to 0.7 mg g-1 in the external
validation and from 1.3 mg g-1 to 1.1 mg g-1 in the internal validation).

Keskin M, YE Sekerli, SM Say, M Topcueri. 2018. Farmers’ Experiences with GNSS-Based Tractor Auto Guidance in Adana Province of Turkey. Journal of Agricultural Faculty of Gaziosmanpasa University. 35(2):172-181.

Abstract: Auto Guidance (AG) systems offer many advantages for farmers including more accuracy, more efficiency and agricultural input savings. The adoption of AG systems is increasing in many countries. Also, their adoption rate is rising in Adana province and in other regions of Turkey. The aim of this study was to assess the experiences and satisfactions of 55 out of about 110 farmers who used AG systems in Adana using face-to-face interviews. A large portion of the farmers (34.5%) had a land area of 200-300 ha followed by 50-100 ha (23.6%). The most common (49.1%) GNSS signal correction method was RTK + CORS + GSM which requires annual subscription fee. Participant farmers used the AG system mostly in tillage (98.2%) followed by planting (47.3%) and fertilization (29.1%). Most of the problems (83.3%) they faced were related to hardware. The biggest benefits provided by the system were creating straight soil ridges (98.2%), flexible working hours (92.7%), time-savings (80.0%), fuel savings (80.0%) and labor savings (50.9%). The majority of the users were "Very satisfied" (81.8%) and "Satisfied" (16.4%) with the system. However, 96.4% of them did not use other Precision Agriculture (PA) technologies and the greatest reason (54.5%) was that they did not have any knowledge about them; thus, farmers need training on other PA technologies.

Keskin M, YE Sekerli, SM Say, M Topcueri. 2018. Adana İlinde Çiftçilerin Uydu-Esaslı Traktör Otomatik Dümenleme Sistemi Deneyimleri. Gaziosmanpaşa Üniversitesi Ziraat Fakültesi Dergisi. 35(2):172-181.

Özet: Otomatik Dümenleme (OD) sistemleri tarımsal işlemlerde çiftçilere yüksek hassassiyet, yüksek verim ve daha az tarımsal girdi kullanımı gibi birçok yarar sağlamaktadır. OD sistemlerinin kullanımı birçok ülkede artmaktadır. Türkiye'de Adana ilinde ve diğer bölgelerde kullanımı da artmaktadır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, Adana'da OD sistemleri kullanan yaklaşık 110 çiftçiden 55'i ile yüz yüze görüşerek çiftçilerin deneyim ve memnuniyet düzeylerini değerlendirmekti. Çiftçilerin büyük bir kısmının (%34.5) 200-300 ha ve 50-100 ha (%23.6) araziye sahip olduğu tespit edilmiştir. En yaygın (%49.1) GNSS sinyal düzeltme yöntemi yıllık abonelik ücreti gerektiren RTK + CORS + GSM sistemidir. Çiftçiler, OD sistemini en fazla toprak işleme (%98.2), ekim (%47.3) ve gübreleme (%29.1) işlemlerinde kullanmaktadır. Karşılaştıkları sorunların çoğunlukla (%83.3) donanımla ilgili olduğu belirlenmiştir. Sistemin sağladığı en önemli yararların, düz toprak sırtı oluşturma (%98.2), esnek çalışma saatleri (%92.7), zamandan tasarruf (%80.0), yakıt tasarrufu (%80.0) ve işgücü tasarrufu (%50.9) olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Kullanıcıların çoğunluğu sistemden "Çok memnun" (%81.8) ve "Memnun" (%16.4) olduğunu bildirmiştir. Bununla birlikte, katılımcı çiftçilerin %96.4'ü diğer Hassas Tarım (HT) teknolojilerini kullanmamaktadır ve bunun en büyük nedeninin (% 54.5) bu sistemler hakkında bilgi sahibi olmamalarıdır. Bu sebeple, çiftçilerin diğer HT teknolojileri üzerine eğitim almaları gerekli görülmektedir.

O cultivo de produtos orgânicos, bem como seu consumo, desperta o interesse de indústrias alimentícias, como é o caso de vinícolas situadas na Serra Gaúcha. O objetivo do presente estudo é identificar e analisar os custos e os resultados de um produto orgânico desde o cultivo da matéria-prima até sua completa industrialização, e compará-los com um produto do mesmo segmento, produzido de forma tradicional, em uma vinícola da Serra Gaúcha. A metodologia utilizada foi estudo de caso, descritivo e qualitativo. Os dados constituem-se dos custos incorridos nos cultivos de uvas orgânicas e tradicionais, com base em um ano safra, e dos custos relativos aos produtos orgânicos e tradicionais elaborados por uma vinícola. Os resultados revelam que o cultivo orgânico possui um custo mais elevado que o tradicional, porém gera mais lucro, pois a uva orgânica é vendida por um valor maior que a convencional. Nos produtos fabricados pela vinícola, constatou-se que, em razão do maior custo de aquisição da matéria-prima orgânica, o produto tem custo superior ao do produto tradicional. No entanto, o preço de venda praticado no orgânico é mais elevado, fazendo com que a lucratividade dele seja superior se comparada com o produto em seu formato tradicional.

Aim: The recent availability of Sentinel-2 satellites has led to an increasing interest in their use in viticulture. The aim of this short communication is to determine performance and limitation of a Sentinel-2 vegetation index in precision viticulture applications, in terms of correlation and variability assessment, compared to the same vegetation index derived from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) was used as reference vegetation index. Methods and Results: UAV and Sentinel-2 vegetation indices were acquired for 30 vineyard blocks located in the south of France without inter-row grass. From the UAV imagery, the vegetation index was calculated using both a mixed pixels approach (both vine and inter-row) and from pure vine-only pixels. In addition, the vine projected area data were extracted using a support vector machine algorithm for vineyard segmentation. The vegetation index was obtained from Sentinel-2 imagery obtained at approximately the same time as the UAV imagery. The Sentinel-2 images used a mixed pixel approach as pixel size is greater than the row width. The correlation between these three layers and the Sentinel-2 derived vegetation indices were calculated, considering spatial autocorrelation correction for the significance test. The Gini coefficient was used to estimate variability detected by each sensor at the within-field scale. The effects of block border and dimension on correlations were estimated. Conclusions: The comparison between Sentinel-2 and UAV vegetation index showed an increase in correlation when border pixels were removed. Block dimensions did not affect the significance of correlation unless blocks were < 0.5 ha. Below this threshold, the correlation was non-significant in most cases. Sentinel-2 acquired data were strongly correlated with UAV-acquired data at both the field (R 2 = 0.87) and sub-field scale (R 2 = 0.84). In terms of variability detected, Sentinel-2 proved to be able to detect the same amount of variability as the UAV mixed pixel vegetation index. Significance and impact of the study: This study showed at which field conditions the Sentinel-2 vegetation index can be used instead of UAV-acquired images when high spatial resolution (vine-specific) management is not needed and the vineyard is characterised by no inter-row grass. This type of information may help growers to choose the most appropriate information sources to detect variability according to their vineyard characteristics. k e y w o r d s precision viticulture, remote sensing, spatial correlation, vineyard segmentation

Paper Citing:

Muharrem Keskin, Yunus Emre Sekerli. 2016. Awareness and adoption of precision agriculture in the Cukurova region of Turkey. Agronomy Research 14(4): 1307–1320.

Abstract:

Adoption of precision agriculture (PA) technologies has an increasing trend in developed countries. However, it is not well known in developing countries including Turkey. No study was reported on the awareness of PA in Turkey before. The objectives of this study were to assess the awareness of PA in the Cukurova region of Turkey using an interview survey study and also to briefly inform each survey participant about these technologies. The study was conducted with 164 participants that were agricultural engineers, farm equipment dealers and farmers. 90.2% of all participants reported that they followed new trends in agriculture. However, 51.8% of all participants indicated that they did not hear the term 'PA' before. Only 29.3% of the participants who heard the term 'PA' knew its concept. Internet was the most important means to gather information on new technologies. Most three well-known technologies by all participants were satellite positioning (GPS) (81.7%), geographical information systems (GIS) (69.5%) and remote sensing (61.0%) as the least known two ones were variable rate application (33.5%) and soil sampling and mapping (34.8%). In addition, a training brochure was handed out to each participant and the PA technologies were explained. 97.6% of the participants expressed that these technologies would be somehow beneficial for agriculture in Turkey. 88.4% of the participants wanted to get more detailed training on these technologies. Also, information on recent developments in the adoption of PA technologies is included in the paper.

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Muharrem Keskin, Yunus Emre Sekerli. 2016. Awareness and adoption of precision agriculture in the Cukurova region of Turkey. Agronomy Research 14(4): 1307–1320.

Hassas Tarım Teknolojilerinin (HTT) kullanım düzeyi (adaptasyonu) gelişmiş ülkelerde artan bir eğilimdedir. Ancak bu teknolojiler Türkiye de dahil olmak üzere gelişmekte olan ülkelerde yeterince bilinmemektedir. Türkiye’de Hassas Tarım Teknolojilerinin (HTT) bilinirlik ve kullanım düzeyi konusunda daha önce herhangi bir çalışma yapılmamıştır. Bu çalışmanın amacı; Çukurova bölgesinde Hassas Tarım Teknolojilerinin bilinirlik düzeyinin yüzyüze anket çalışması ile belirlenmesi ve aynı zamanda çalışmada yer alan katılımcıların Hassas Tarım Teknolojileri konusunda kısaca bilgilendirilmesidir. Çalışmada ziraat mühendisleri, tarım makineleri bayileri ve çiftçileri kapsayan toplam 164 kişi ile görüşülmüştür. Katılmcıların %90.2’si tarımda yenilikleri takip edttiğini bildirmiştir. Ancak %51.8’si Hassas Tarım Teknolojileri terimini daha önce duymadığını bildirmiştir. Daha önce Hassas Tarım Teknolojileri terimini duyan katılımcıların ise sadece %29.3’ü Hassas Tarım Teknolojilerinin neyi kapsadığını bilmektedir. Internetin yeni teknolojiler hakkında bilgi topmada en önemli araç olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Katılımcılar tarafından en fazla bilinen üç Hassas Tarım Teknolojisinin uydu esaslı konum belirleme (GPS) (%81.7), coğrafik bilgi sistemleri (CBS) (%69.5) ve uzaktan algılama (%61.0) olduğu, en az abilinen iki tanesinin ise değişken düzeyli giridi uygulama (%33.5) ve toprak örnekleme ve haritalama (%34.8) olduğu belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca çalışmada, tüm katılımcılara Hassas Tarım Teknolojileri konusunda 4 sayfalık bir tanıtım broşürü verilmiş ve konu kısaca açıklanmıştır. Katılımcıların %97.6’sı Türkiye’de bu teknolojilerin tarıma yarar sağlayacağını bildirmiştir. Katılımcıların %88.4’ü konu hakkında daha fazla eğitim almak istediğini bildirmiştir. Ayrıca, yayında Türkiye’de Hassas Tarım Teknolojilerinin (HTT) mevcut durumda kullanım durumuna ilişkin bilgiler de verilmiştir.