Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps

Enhancing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) through optimized application methods can benefit agronomic productivity and environmental sustainability. This study examined three nitrogen application strategies, flat rate, soil-based sensing, and remote sensing-based prescription maps, for corn in southea...

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Main Authors: Salman Mirzaee, Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Sensors
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3148
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author Salman Mirzaee
Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi
author_facet Salman Mirzaee
Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi
author_sort Salman Mirzaee
collection DOAJ
description Enhancing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) through optimized application methods can benefit agronomic productivity and environmental sustainability. This study examined three nitrogen application strategies, flat rate, soil-based sensing, and remote sensing-based prescription maps, for corn in southeast South Dakota, USA. Soil-based sensing utilized an electrical conductivity (EC) sensor while the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was extracted from remote sensing data using Sentinel-2 images to create different zones. In the flat-rate method, nitrogen is applied uniformly at all plots, regardless of field variations. On the other hand, the sensor-based methods recommended variable rates of nitrogen applications to address field variations. The results of the present study showed that remote sensing-based methods significantly identify field variations as different zones (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The remote sensing-based method improved NUE compared to the flat-rate method, with increases of 2.21, 29.24, 29.6, and 82.09% in zones 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. However, adjusting the spatial and temporal nitrogen requirement rates using a soil-based sensor was difficult. The findings suggest remote sensing-based method can offer nitrogen optimization by incorporating in-season environmental variability, enhancing agronomic efficiency and sustainability.
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spelling doaj-art-76cb08e51b794002b09c288d53e838022025-08-20T03:48:01ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-05-012510314810.3390/s25103148Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription MapsSalman Mirzaee0Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi1Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Sciences, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USADepartment of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Sciences, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USAEnhancing nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) through optimized application methods can benefit agronomic productivity and environmental sustainability. This study examined three nitrogen application strategies, flat rate, soil-based sensing, and remote sensing-based prescription maps, for corn in southeast South Dakota, USA. Soil-based sensing utilized an electrical conductivity (EC) sensor while the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was extracted from remote sensing data using Sentinel-2 images to create different zones. In the flat-rate method, nitrogen is applied uniformly at all plots, regardless of field variations. On the other hand, the sensor-based methods recommended variable rates of nitrogen applications to address field variations. The results of the present study showed that remote sensing-based methods significantly identify field variations as different zones (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The remote sensing-based method improved NUE compared to the flat-rate method, with increases of 2.21, 29.24, 29.6, and 82.09% in zones 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. However, adjusting the spatial and temporal nitrogen requirement rates using a soil-based sensor was difficult. The findings suggest remote sensing-based method can offer nitrogen optimization by incorporating in-season environmental variability, enhancing agronomic efficiency and sustainability.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3148flat-rate methodnitrogen environmental risksremote sensing datavariable-rate method
spellingShingle Salman Mirzaee
Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi
Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
Sensors
flat-rate method
nitrogen environmental risks
remote sensing data
variable-rate method
title Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
title_full Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
title_fullStr Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
title_full_unstemmed Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
title_short Enhancing NUE in Corn Through Optimized Sensor-Based Prescription Maps
title_sort enhancing nue in corn through optimized sensor based prescription maps
topic flat-rate method
nitrogen environmental risks
remote sensing data
variable-rate method
url https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/10/3148
work_keys_str_mv AT salmanmirzaee enhancingnueincornthroughoptimizedsensorbasedprescriptionmaps
AT alimirzakhaninafchi enhancingnueincornthroughoptimizedsensorbasedprescriptionmaps