A research on determining the effects of different soil properties on cropland spectral reflectance values

In the conditions of Central Anatolia, there are significant differences in the reflection characteristics of the products which are widely cultivated on soils with different characteristics. In this study, the effect of soil characteristics on reflection values of wheat, barley, potato, chickpea, sugar beet, pumpkin, corn, alfalfa cultivated fields as well as pasture areas. In the research, the effect of soil properties on reflections were evaluated in different phenological stages of targeted crop pattern. Different satellite images were used in the research were downloaded for one year. The average pixel digital numbers of the cultivated areas were calculated by image processing software and the necessary maps were produced by GIS based programs. The results of the research showed that, if the soil properties are taken into account, the plants can be more accurately identified. At the beginning of the phenological phase of the vegetation, the soil has a predominant on pixel digital number, depending on the low rate of soil coverage. However, depending on the plant calendar and the physiology of the plant, the rate of covering the soil increases and effects of the soil properties decreases on reflection values of plants. As a result of the project, important data about the effects of different soil properties were obtained. These data will be included in a reference catalog that can be used at national level. Thus, the accuracy rate was increased in vegetation identification and mapping studies.