<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Content of leaf pigments such as chlorophyll a and b, chlorophyll a+b and carotenoids can provide valuable insight into the physiological performance of plants. These compounds have selective proprieties for light absorption and reflectance in the visible spectra that can be used to evaluate alternative methods to biochemical to estimate their content. Numerous studies in the literature have established correlations between these compounds, spectral reflectance and vegetation indices. Nevertheless, the appropriate use of these indices depends on plant species and cultivars. Thus, the objective of this study was to assess the most common vegetation indices for the estimation of chlorophyll a and b, chlorophyll <italic>a+b</italic> and carotenoids of three olive tree cultivars (<italic>Olea europaea</italic> L, cv. Cobrançosa, cv. Verdeal Transmontana and cv. Madural) under six irrigation treatments, using spectroscopy. The results showed that the correlation between leaf pigments and vegetation indices depends not only on the type of pigment but also on the cultivar. Among the studied cultivars, cv. Cobrançosa showed the best correlation between the “M Locherer chlorophyll” index (MLO) and chlorophyll a content (<italic>r</italic>2 = 0.66) and for the carotenoid reflectance index (CRI) 2 and carotenoids content (<italic>r</italic>2 = 0.87). Although the results are preliminary, it seems that vegetation indices could be a useful tool for leaf pigment evaluation, and to give information about plant interactions with biotic and abiotic environmental stress conditions.</p>
</abstract>

Content of leaf pigments such as chlorophyll a and b, chlorophyll a+b and carotenoids can provide valuable insight into the physiological performance of plants. These compounds have selective proprieties for light absorption and reflectance in the visible spectra that can be used to evaluate alternative methods to biochemical to estimate their content. Numerous studies in the literature have established correlations between these compounds, spectral reflectance and vegetation indices. Nevertheless, the appropriate use of these indices depends on plant species and cultivars. Thus, the objective of this study was to assess the most common vegetation indices for the estimation of chlorophyll a and b, chlorophyll a+b and carotenoids of three olive tree cultivars (Olea europaea L, cv. Cobrançosa, cv. Verdeal Transmontana and cv. Madural) under six irrigation treatments, using spectroscopy. The results showed that the correlation between leaf pigments and vegetation indices depends not only on the type of pigment but also on the cultivar. Among the studied cultivars, cv. Cobrançosa showed the best correlation between the “M Locherer chlorophyll” index (MLO) and chlorophyll a content (r2 = 0.66) and for the carotenoid reflectance index (CRI) 2 and carotenoids content (r2 = 0.87). Although the results are preliminary, it seems that vegetation indices could be a useful tool for leaf pigment evaluation, and to give information about plant interactions with biotic and abiotic environmental stress conditions.

Preliminary Assessment of the Relationship between Pigments in Olive Leaves and Vegetation Indices

Department of Agronomy, School of Agrarian and Veterinary Sciences

University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro

University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, UTAD

Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Content of leaf pigments such as chlorophyll a and b, chlorophyll a+b and carotenoids can provide valuable insight into the physiological performance of...

Preliminary Assessment of the Relationship between Pigments in Olive Leaves and Vegetation Indices

Publicado en línea: 14 oct 2022

Páginas: 517 - 525

Recibido: 26 ago 2021

Aceptado: 30 jul 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/prolas-2022-0080

Palabras clave
chlorophyll, carotenoids, spectral indices, precision agriculture

© 2022 Pedro Marques et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Preliminary Assessment of the Relationship between Pigments in Olive Leaves and Vegetation Indices

Publicado en línea: 14 oct 2022

Páginas: 517 - 525

Recibido: 26 ago 2021

Aceptado: 30 jul 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/prolas-2022-0080

Palabras clavechlorophyll, carotenoids, spectral indices, precision agriculture

© 2022 Pedro Marques et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Palabras clave
chlorophyll, carotenoids, spectral indices, precision agriculture