The author has identified the following significant results. This project is to identify and map cotton fields in the southern deserts of California. Cotton in the Imperial, Coachella, and Palo Verde Valleys is heavily infested by the pink bollworm which affects both the quantity and quality of cotton produced. In California the growing season of cotton is regulated by establishing planting and plowdown dates. These procedures ensure that the larvae, whose diapause or resting period occurs during the winter months, will have no plant material on which to feed, thus inhibiting spring moth emergence. the underflight data from the U-2 aircraft has shound that it is possible to detect the differences between a growing, a defoliated, and plowed down field providing the locations of the fields are known. The ERTS-1 MSS data are being analyzed using an I2S optical color combiner to determine which combinations of dates and colors will identify cotton fields and thus provide the data needed to produce maps of the fields for the forthcoming season

Coleman, V. B.

Johnson, C. W.

Lewis, L. N.

English

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This paper was presented at the ER'1'S-1 symposium, March, 1973
and also a' the annual meetings of the Association of Pacific Coast
GeographerF in June of this yrar. Five copies have been sent es
specified iiz the contract.
Lowell N, Lewis, Prjncipal Investigator
'Virginia B. Coleman, Research Associate
Citrus Research Canter./Agricultural Experiment Station
•	 University of California, Riverside
Riverside, California	 925t?2
Contract ivo, NASA- 11e 5'1
GSFC ID. UN609
.^u^ust t3, 1973
(E73-1C^15t)	 ^;VALrJATIO[v JF firMUT'L 5EIvSINr^
IN CCNTPCL OF PINK f30LLldCl^t9 IN COTTON
(CaliY.arnia [Jniv,)	 tl p fiC ^3,`.'^^
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E1/AZ,C7A7'IUN OF REAfUTF, SENSING IN CONTR01. OF FINK BOLLWORM IN COTTONl
Vix•ginia â . Coleman, Claude ^,^. Johnson, and Lowell N. Lewis
Citrus Research Center /Agricultural Experiment Station, Depar.tmenC of.
Geography, and Citrus Research Center •/Af^ricultural Experiment Station,
University of California, Riverside 92502
ABSTRACT
1'he purpose of our project is to identify and map cotton
' fi.elds in the soutriern deserts of California. Cotrton in the
Imperial, Coachella, and Pala Verde Valleys is heavily infes^
ted by the pink bollworm which affect 3 both. the quantity ar.d
quality of the cotton produced. The California State Depart-
:y ".	 ment of. Agriculture, therefore, has regulated the growing sea-
son of cotton by establishing planting and plowda Ta^n dates.
These procedures ensure that the larvae, whose diapause or
resting period occurs during the winter months, will have no
plant material on which to feed, thus inhibiting spring moth
emergenceR
There are approximately 800,000 acres of cotton in Cali-
farnia and they are mapped yearly by ground su n^ •ey teams. A
more practical means of ^ccomplisliing treat objective seemed
necessary and satellite data from ERTS-1 was considered a vi-
able alternative.
The underflight data from the U -2 aircraft has sho^^an that
we can detect the differences between a growing, a defoliated,
^'.	 and a plowed down field provs^ding that we know where the fields
are. The ERTS-1 multispectral scanner (MSS) data are being
analyzed using an I 2S ( Internatianal Imaging Systems) optical
color combiner to determine which combinations of dates and
•	 colors will identify cotton fields anal thus provide the data
needed to produce maps of the fields for the forthcoming cot-
ton season.
1. BACTCGROUND
Our study sites, the Imperial, Coachella, and Palo Verde Valleys,
are heavily infested with pink bollworm (Fig. 1 and 2). The pest affects
both the quantity and quality of cotton produced by boring into the cot-
ton boll and consuming the cotton seed, thus all _^,' ng other pests and
diseases to enter the boll and either destroy the cotton fiber or prevent
the boll from opening. Research is continuing on chemical and biological
controls, but 3 satisfactory system has not been found. At present, ^:he
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Figure 1. The Coachella Valley is located north of the Sal.to;^ Sea
and the Imperial Valley to the south. The international border
between `lexico and California is easily seen at [he southern end of
the Imperial Valley.
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Figure 2. The Palo Verde Valley (upper center) is J.ocatFd along
the Colorado Jtiver bordering Arizona. The Imperial Valley is
located in the lower left hand corner.
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only effective means of control appears to be the plowdo^m procedure,
This method provides that the pink bollworm larvae are allowed no plant
taterial on which to feed during the diapause or resting period in the
winter. months. The California State Department of Agriculture has, tliere-
:fore, established host-free periods for all the cotton distrir..ts in Cal-
:tfornia. Cotton may not be planted until a given date and it• must be
^^icked, tree remaining plant material shredded and plowed underground,
land aI.1 gin trash disposed of by a certain date. Thus, tl>e pink boll-
worm larvae are deprived of food during the diapause stage and spring
tooth emergence should be greatly reduced.
There are approximately 800,000 acres of cotton grown annually in
the Stare of G'alifot^nia. All the fields are mapped by ground survey
teams avid then monitored throughot.it the season to ensure compliance with
state law. This procedure is extremely time consuming and therefore re-
stricts or prevents the performance of other tasks vital to the rest of
California°s agricultnze..
The pink bollworm has not yet become a problem in the San Jaaquin
Valley where 90% of California°s cotton is grotan, but there are indica-
tions that the pest may soon become a major problem. Amore efficient
means of monitoring cotton fields than ground survey is needed in order
to prevent the spread of the pink bollworm. The use of satellite data
appears to be the only .feasible alternative a*_ this time.
2. T^'THODS OF IPTVESTIGATIUN
Two methods of investigation are being employed to identify and map
cotton fields. ?'he first method involves the use of the crop calendar,
Claude J, ohnson (Department of Geography, University of. California at Kiv-
ersfde) is using this procedure to identify and map all crops in the Im-
perial Valley,
essentially, the procedure is to map the status of each field, i.H.,
bare, wet, cropped, plowed, or harvested, from ERTS-1 imagery. A statis-
tical analysis is eh en performed by computer to establish the rrobability
of a given crop in a given field at a given time. For example, fields
tkaat are bare in August, in vegetative crop by September and t3ctober, and
are not harvested until June and July are sugar beet fields. Cotton, be-
cause of its state regulated season which coincident with no other
crap, is considered to be ea:^il^ ►
 identifiable.
The secr^nd method, which is being used for the Coachella and Palo
Verde Valleys, relies principally on all bare fields evident in Janua.r'y
^^'	 and February photography. All fields which are bare at these times could
ti	 potentially be cotton fields (Fig. 3). Cotton cannot be planted in the
Coachella or Palo Verde V311ays until February 28, thus any crops appear-
ing prior to that date in any of the bare fields are not likely i.o be
cotton. hero fields which begin to sho^r crops in Late riarch and early
.•1
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Figure 3, Potential cotton fields mapped from the March 30, 1973 ERTS-1
imagery. TheRe will be undated using May 4, 1973 imagery and field
checked in August, 1973.
April are most likely to be cotton. Only minimal field checking would
be necessary for fields less thrn forty acres since cotton is not usual-
ly planted in smaller acreages.
The plowdown date, December 15 in all three valleys, is, of course,
the most critical date. The various stages of cotton harvesting, defoli-
ation, picking, and shredding, are discernible on the U-2 underflight
photography but are not identifiable on ERTS-1 imagery. However, once
the location of all cotton fields is known, it is possible to tell. whether
or not a field is bare on December 15 because a plowed field can be eas-
ily identified on ERTS-1 imagery.
3. IMAGERY
The U-2 underflight photography and the ERTS-1 data have been very
complementary. The U-2 color infrared (CIR) photography taken from the
RC-10 camera has been particularly useful for updating base maps and for
identifying the various stages of cotton harvesting: lavendar for defol-
iated and picked fields, pinkish brown for shredded fields, and dark grey
for plowed fields. The photography also provides a check on ERTS-1 im-
agery interpretation to ensure accuracy of the status of a given field.
Color combining of ERTS-1 data is considered essential to this pro-
§ect. The 9" x 9" positive transparencies are color combined using the
Diazochrome. process. In this method, bands 4, 5, and 7 are exposed re-
spectively to yellow, magenta, and cyan Diazochrome acetate sheets, then
developed in ammonia vapor. The sheets are then superimposed and a sim-
ulated CIR transparency is produced. The second method uses the I 2S (In-
;`	 to rnational Imaging Systems) optical color combiner. Bands 4, 5, and 7
from the 70 mm positive transparencies are superimposed optically to pro-
vide simulated color infrared.
The ERTS-1 data in addition to being color combined to simulate CIR
can also be combined in other ways to give additional information. For
instance, if the percentage of change from cropped to harvested fields
between one month and another is needed, the following procedure can be
used. Band 7 from two different months, for instance, September and Derem-
ber, are color combined in green and red respectively. The combined
product gives the following results: bright green fields have crops in
September, but not in December; bright red field---crops in December but
not in September, light colored fields indicate a crop in the field at
both times, but there has been a change in status, i.e., a crop is begin-
ning to emerge or has recently been harvested; dark colored fields indi-
cate either no change in the status of a crop or that a field has been
fallow for the entire period.
4. RESULTS
Although complete results will not be available until the March,
April, and May imagery have been analyzed, we are expecting to achieve
80-90% accuracy in identifying cotton fields for the coming season.
Maps showing the location of probable cotton fields in each of the
three valleys will be produced in July and compared with the maps pre-
pared by the ground survey teams for the agricultural commissioners.
If the accuracy is tolerable, the commissioners have indicated they
would consider satellite mapping to be an efficient alternative to
their present methods, and would consider using it on a regular basis
if the receipt of imagery were more timely.
The real test of these techniques will come when they are tested
4
in an area such as the San Joaquin Valley which, like wany places in the
world, is not uniquely cloud-free as are the deserts of southern Calif-
ornia. If these techniques, the use of satellite data with minimal
underflight and grour4 survey support, can be used reliably in the San
Joaquin Valley, then the use of satellite data for agricultural. manage-
ment programs becomes a practical tool. for the user and releases a great
deal. of manpower needed for other tasks.
r'
'`he authors gratefully acknowledge the support provided by NASA for
Contract Ito. NAS5-21771 awarded to Lowell N. Lewis.
4


Evaluation of remote sensing in control of pink bollworm in cotton

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