Agroclimatic mapping for olive cultivation in Brazil: pinpointing optimal growing regions

BACKGROUND

This research aimed to identify the agroclimatic zones in Brazil, excluding Rio Grande do Sul, that are suitable for olive (Olea europaea L.) cultivation, considering both climatic and topographical factors. Olives require specific conditions: moderate winter temperatures (7-15 °C), warmer summers (25-35 °C) and sufficient water during growth and fruit maturation. They can endure some drought, making them a viable option for agricultural diversification. Using daily meteorological data from 1989 to 2023 from NASA-POWER, this study analyzed variables like air temperature (minimum and maximum) and rainfall. Key climate variables were the mean air temperature in winter (T_w), spring (T_s), summer (T_su) and autumn (T_a) and total annual precipitation (Prec). Criteria for suitability included: T_w between 5 and 20 °C, T_s between 15 and 23 °C, T_su between 15 and 30 °C, T_a between 15 and 22 °C, annual precipitation over 900 mm and altitude below 900 m. Geographic information system software and Python 3.8 were employed for data analysis and zoning.

RESULTS

Results indicated that only 1.92% of the analyzed area, mainly in Minas Gerais, was suitable for olive cultivation. High temperatures and low rainfall in Brazil, particularly in the North and Midwest, make 59.56% of the country unsuitable for olive farming. Additionally, 18.58% of the land, mainly in the Northeast, faces challenges due to extreme heat (T_w) and insufficient water supply. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Neural networks in spatialization of meteorological elements and their application in the climatic agricultural zoning of bamboo

Bamboo has an important role in international commerce due to its diverse uses, but few studies have been conducted to evaluate its climatic adaptability. Thus, the objective of this study was to construct an agricultural zoning for climate risk (ZARC) for bamboo using meteorological elements spatialized by neural networks. Climate data included air temperature (T_AIR, °C) and rainfall (P) from 4947 meteorological stations in Brazil from the years 1950 to 2016. Regions were considered climatically apt for bamboo cultivation when T_AIR varied between 18 and 35 °C, and P was between 500 and 2800 mm year^-1, or P_WINTER was between 90 and 180 mm year^-1. The remainder of the areas was considered marginal or inapt for bamboo cultivation. A multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural network with a multilayered "backpropagation" training algorithm was used to spatialize the territorial variability of each climatic element for the whole area of Brazil. Using the overlapping of the T_AIR, P, and P_WINTER maps prepared by MLP, and the established climatic criteria of bamboo, we established the agricultural zoning for bamboo. Brazil demonstrates high seasonal climatic variability with T_AIR varying between 14 and 30 °C, and P varying between < 400 and 4000 mm year^-1. The ZARC showed that 87% of Brazil is climatically apt for bamboo cultivation. The states that were classified as apt in 100% of their territories were Mato Grosso do Sul, Goiás, Tocantins, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, Sergipe, Alagoas, Ceará, Piauí, Maranhão, Rondônia, and Acre. The regions that have restrictions due to low T_AIR represent just 11% of Brazilian territory. This agroclimatic zoning allowed for the classification of regions based on aptitude of climate for bamboo cultivation and showed that 71% of the total national territory is considered to be apt for bamboo cultivation. The regions that have restrictions are part of southern Brazil due to low values of T_AIR and portions of the northern region that have high levels of P which is favorable for the development of diseases.