Irrigation Sciences and Engineering

Irrigation Sciences and Engineering

Feasibility Assessment of Water Stress Monitoring in Tomato Plants Using Spectral Indices in Greenhouse Conditions

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Anahita Hadighanavat 1
Abdolrahim Hooshmand 2
Parvaneh Tishehzan 3
Naser Alemzadeh ansari 4
Kazem Rangzan 5
1 Ph.D. student, Department of Irrigation and Drainage, Faculty of Water and Environmental, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
2 Professor, Department of Irrigation and Drainage, Faculty of Water and Environmental Engineering, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
3 Associatet Professor, Department of Environmental, Faculty of Water and Environmental Engineering, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
4 Professor, Department of Horticulture and Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
5 Professor of Remote Sensing and GIS, Faculty of Earth Sciences, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran.
10.22055/jise.2024.46568.2121
Abstract
Early detection of plant water status is crucial for effective water management planning. Remote sensing methods, particularly spectroscopy, offer a practical, reliable, rapid, and non-destructive approach to monitoring plant biochemical parameters, including water status. This study investigated the potential of several spectral water indices – WI1-4, NWI5, RDVI, NDVI, and OSAVI – for monitoring the water status of tomato plants grown in a greenhouse. The experiment involved treatments with silica nanoparticles at concentrations of 0 and 100 mg/L, combined with three irrigation regimes providing 80%, 100%, and 60% of the plants' water requirement. The findings indicated that relative leaf water content in tomato plants decreased with increasing water stress across different months and throughout the study. However, significant differences in relative leaf water content were only observed between the full irrigation treatment (100%) and the 60% irrigation treatment. Furthermore, plants treated with 100 mg/L silica nanoparticles generally exhibited higher relative leaf water content compared to those without nanoparticles. Among the spectral indices evaluated, NWI5 demonstrated the weakest correlation with relative leaf water content, while WI2 and WI1 showed the strongest. Overall, the results suggest that spectral indices can be effectively employed for rapid, non-destructive, and reliable assessment of tomato plant water status in greenhouse environments.
Keywords
Plant Water Status
Relative Water Content
Remote sensing
Spectrometry
Subjects
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Irrigation Sciences and Engineering
Volume 49, Issue 1
Spring 2026
Pages 23-42

  • Receive Date 29 March 2024
  • Revise Date 21 May 2024
  • Accept Date 10 June 2024
  • Publish Date 05 May 2026