Omer Perach, Ph.D. candidate at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. As a result of his creative research, he has taken tremendous leaps forward in empowering chickpea farmers. Perach has created a new instrument to bring formulaic field applications under the guidance of her advisor, Dr. Ittai Herrmann, at the Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture. To do so, he combined high-resolution Sentinel-2 satellite imagery with weather data.
Perach’s research hones in on machine learning models that attempt to predict field-wide physiological conditions in chickpeas. His modeling work incorporates remote sensing to estimate critical plant health factors such as Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Leaf Water Potential (LWP). This provides farmers unprecedented visibility into their crops’ health and precise needs. This study is especially timely given that water stress levels can greatly reduce the yield potential of any crop.
These models developed by Perach were highly accurate in predicting Leaf Area Index. Importantly, they did an excellent job of parsing various levels of possibly water-stressed plants from totally non-stressed ones. The team led the research at 17 commercial fields. This technology was implemented on a larger scale as the first large-scale application of satellite imagery technology to chickpea farming. This cutting-edge solution is a powerful example of how data science can be successfully paired with agronomy to guide better agricultural practices.
From there, Perach shines as the research’s lead author, having grown to assume the role of environmental protector. This research has recently appeared in the European Journal of Agronomy. His research does not merely contribute to academic understanding. They offer real, tangible solutions for farmers who are looking to adopt more environmentally sustainable crop management strategies. Photo via Perach’s Instagram Perach’s tool represents the power of advanced technology and niche data analysis. It helps them decide on the spot to improve productivity and sustainability while growing chickpeas.