Published in Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXIX, Issue 1
Written by Claudiu-Daniel UTOIU, Bogdan DRAGANCEA, Elena UTOIU, Mihai GÎDEA
Climate change and increasing environmental constraints require more precise and adaptive approaches to crop protection. This study investigates the use of integrated unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for early weed detection and site-specific management in arable crops. Multispectral UAV data were collected during key crop development stages and processed to produce high-resolution RGB, NIR and vegetation index-based orthophotoplans. Spatial analysis techniques were applied to distinguish crop rows from weedinfested
areas and to evaluate the intensity and distribution of infestations. The results show that combining UAV-derived data with GIS analysis allows accurate identification of weed patterns at field level and supports targeted management decisions. Field observations were used to validate remote sensing outputs and to improve interpretation accuracy. The proposed approach contributes to reducing unnecessary agrochemical applications while maintaining effective weed control. Overall, the study demonstrates that UAV-GIS integration can provide a reliable decision-support tool for sustainable weed management and climate-resilient arable farming systems.
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{simplepopup popup="false" name="Citation104"}UTOIU C.D., DRAGANCEA B., UTOIU E., GIDEA M. 2026, INTEGRATED UAV AND GIS-BASED TECHNOLOGIES FOR EARLY DETECTION AND SITE-SPECIFIC MANAGEMENT OF WEEDS IN ARABLE CROPS UNDER CLIMATE CHANGE CONDITIONS. Scientific Papers. Series A. Agronomy, Vol. LXIX, Issue 1, ISSN 2285-5785, 856-860. {/simplepopup}