Comparison of the retrieving precision of potato leaf area index derived from several vegetation indices and spectral parameters of the continuum removal method

ABSTRACTLeaf area index (LAI) is one of the important variables for crop growth monitoring and yield estimating. In this article, the potato LAI was retrieved by several vegetation indices (VIs) and spectral parameters of the continuum removal method (SPCRM) to provide accurate estimates. A comparison of the two methods of retrieving precision was completed. The data source for computing VIs and SPCRM was hyperspectral reflectance data for the life cycle, derived from two potato cultivars, Favorite (early maturing variety) and Yanshu 4 (late maturing variety), through field experiments. Sensitive bands were identified to indicate seven VIs by correlation analysis. Additionally, seven SPCRM were computed. Based on these methods, the potato LAI was retrieved and tested. Meanwhile, a comparison of the retrieving precision was implemented. The results showed that compared with the filtered spectral reflectance and VIs, the correlation between the potato LAI and the continuum removal spectral reflectance and i...