Olive Crown Porosity Measurement Based on Radiation Transmittance: An Assessment of Pruning Effect

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Author
Castillo-Ruiz, Francisco J.
Castro García, Sergio
Blanco Roldán, Gregorio L.
Sola Guirado, Rafael Rubén
Gil Ribes, Jesús
Publisher
MDPIDate
2016Subject
Olea europaea L.Leaf area density
Leaf area index
Gap fraction
Radiation balance
Trunk shaker
Canopy shaker
Mechanical pruning
Harvesting
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Show full item recordAbstract
Crown porosity influences radiation interception, air movement through the fruit orchard,
spray penetration, and harvesting operation in fruit crops. The aim of the present study was to develop
an accurate and reliable methodology based on transmitted radiation measurements to assess the
porosity of traditional olive trees under different pruning treatments. Transmitted radiation was
employed as an indirect method to measure crown porosity in two olive orchards of the Picual
and Hojiblanca cultivars. Additionally, three different pruning treatments were considered to
determine if the pruning system influences crown porosity. This study evaluated the accuracy
and repeatability of four algorithms in measuring crown porosity under different solar zenith angles.
From a 14 to 30 solar zenith angle, the selected algorithm produced an absolute error of less
than 5% and a repeatability higher than 0.9. The described method and selected algorithm proved
satisfactory in field results, making it possible to measure crown porosity at different solar zenith
angles. However, pruning fresh weight did not show any relationship with crown porosity due
to the great differences between removed branches. A robust and accurate algorithm was selected
for crown porosity measurements in traditional olive trees, making it possible to discern between
different pruning treatments.