Site-specific modeling of corn yield in the SE coastal plain
2000
Sadler, E.J. | Gerwig, B.K. | Evans, D.E. | Busscher, W.J. | Bauer, P.J.
When site-specific agriculture became technologically feasible, existing crop models made computer simulation a natural choice for predicting yield under various combinations of soil, weather, and management. However, modeling for site-specific farming may require both greater accuracy and sensitivity to more parameters than current models allow. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the DSSAT V3.5 corn model, CERES-Maize, for sensitivity to parameters important to site-specific farming. The model was unexpectedly insensitive to inputs for soil type, depth to clay, nitrogen, and plant population, suggesting areas for attention. Although it was appropriately sensitive to rainfall, indicating sensitivity to soil water content is generally correct, there are known problems with the curve number procedure that calculates runoff. The runoff routine needs improvement, and a separate routine may be needed to accommodate within-field redistribution of runoff. The model also responded to maximum air temperature, but since crop temperature varies more than air temperature, perhaps crop temperature should be calculated from air temperature and water stress. Model accuracy issues aside, accommodating spatial inputs and model runs requires enhanced interfaces. These and other suggested enhancements to the model would improve its applicability for site-specific agriculture.
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