Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques

Soil and water pollution caused by excessive use of fertilizers and resource scarcity are critical issues in modern horticulture. Although laboratory tests are reliable, they take time and use chemical reagents that must be disposed of and complex protocols. Monitoring plant nutrient status through...

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Main Authors: Pedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer, Alessandro Carella, Roberto Massenti, Raudhatul Fadhilah, Riccardo Lo Bianco
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-02-01
Series:Horticulturae
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/2/182
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author Pedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer
Alessandro Carella
Roberto Massenti
Raudhatul Fadhilah
Riccardo Lo Bianco
author_facet Pedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer
Alessandro Carella
Roberto Massenti
Raudhatul Fadhilah
Riccardo Lo Bianco
author_sort Pedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer
collection DOAJ
description Soil and water pollution caused by excessive use of fertilizers and resource scarcity are critical issues in modern horticulture. Although laboratory tests are reliable, they take time and use chemical reagents that must be disposed of and complex protocols. Monitoring plant nutrient status through technologies that allow continuous and rapid assessment is crucial for precise resource management. Several proximal and remote sensors that use different physico-chemical principles to monitor plant nutrient status are available nowadays. However, these technologies still have important operative and structural limitations that must be overcome. The aim of this review is to summarize the current status and latest developments in proximal and remote sensors capable of monitoring plant and soil nutrients, focusing on sensor types, principles, applications, and their strengths and weaknesses. Electrochemical proximal sensors allow continuous monitoring of nutrients in the plant sap or in the soil solution but work on a single spot basis. Instruments based on optical sensors allow immediate measurements and quick analysis, but do not work on a continuous basis. On the other hand, remote sensors, such as drone-mounted cameras and satellite systems, are based on large-area imaging and can be used to estimate crop nutrient status by processing images at different wavelengths. Finally, combining proximal and remote techniques may be needed to achieve very accurate monitoring of plant and nutrient status.
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spelling doaj-art-77e0fae1d45c48a4b993c5224405089e2025-08-20T02:44:50ZengMDPI AGHorticulturae2311-75242025-02-0111218210.3390/horticulturae11020182Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing TechniquesPedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer0Alessandro Carella1Roberto Massenti2Raudhatul Fadhilah3Riccardo Lo Bianco4Department of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences (SAAF), University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences (SAAF), University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences (SAAF), University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalyDepartment of Chemistry, Universitas Muhammadiyah Pontianak, Pontianak 78123, IndonesiaDepartment of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences (SAAF), University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, ItalySoil and water pollution caused by excessive use of fertilizers and resource scarcity are critical issues in modern horticulture. Although laboratory tests are reliable, they take time and use chemical reagents that must be disposed of and complex protocols. Monitoring plant nutrient status through technologies that allow continuous and rapid assessment is crucial for precise resource management. Several proximal and remote sensors that use different physico-chemical principles to monitor plant nutrient status are available nowadays. However, these technologies still have important operative and structural limitations that must be overcome. The aim of this review is to summarize the current status and latest developments in proximal and remote sensors capable of monitoring plant and soil nutrients, focusing on sensor types, principles, applications, and their strengths and weaknesses. Electrochemical proximal sensors allow continuous monitoring of nutrients in the plant sap or in the soil solution but work on a single spot basis. Instruments based on optical sensors allow immediate measurements and quick analysis, but do not work on a continuous basis. On the other hand, remote sensors, such as drone-mounted cameras and satellite systems, are based on large-area imaging and can be used to estimate crop nutrient status by processing images at different wavelengths. Finally, combining proximal and remote techniques may be needed to achieve very accurate monitoring of plant and nutrient status.https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/2/182biosensorsprecision fertilizationoptical sensorselectrochemical sensorsUAVsatellite images
spellingShingle Pedro Tomas Bulacio Fischer
Alessandro Carella
Roberto Massenti
Raudhatul Fadhilah
Riccardo Lo Bianco
Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
Horticulturae
biosensors
precision fertilization
optical sensors
electrochemical sensors
UAV
satellite images
title Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
title_full Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
title_fullStr Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
title_full_unstemmed Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
title_short Advances in Monitoring Crop and Soil Nutrient Status: Proximal and Remote Sensing Techniques
title_sort advances in monitoring crop and soil nutrient status proximal and remote sensing techniques
topic biosensors
precision fertilization
optical sensors
electrochemical sensors
UAV
satellite images
url https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/2/182
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AT robertomassenti advancesinmonitoringcropandsoilnutrientstatusproximalandremotesensingtechniques
AT raudhatulfadhilah advancesinmonitoringcropandsoilnutrientstatusproximalandremotesensingtechniques
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