Data from: Hyperspectral reflectance and machine learning for multi-site monitoring of cotton growth

Two field research projects focused on cotton were conducted at the El Reno, OK and Temple, TX USDA-ARS research stations. The study at the Southern Plains research station took place in 2019 where cotton cultivars included: FiberMax 1830 GLT, FiberMax 1888 GL, FiberMax 2498 GLT, Phytogen 300 W3FE, Phytogen 350 W3FE, and Phytogen 490 W3FE. The experiment took place on Norge silt loam soil. The experimental design included a randomized complete block design with three replications and four nitrogen treatments: unfertilized, cover crop (Lathyrus sativus) with 0, 30, or 60 kg/ha of inorganic nitrogen. The experiment was planted at a seeding rate of 12 seeds/m on May 28, 2019.

The study at the Texas Gulf station incorporated four cultivars: DP 1646 B2XF, DP 2012 B3XF, DP 2239 B3XF, and DP 1646 B2XF. The experiment took place on Houston Black clay soils. The experimental design included 6-row strip plots with 0.76 m row spacings and approximately 00.1 m plant spacing at a seeding rate of 13 seeds per meter. The experiment also included a multi-planting date design that included March 28, April 11, April 22, and May 11.

These two stations collected in-situ measurements of height, node count, leaf area index (LAI), canopy cover percentage, and chlorophyll content. LAI data were collected using the LAI-2200C Plant Canopy Analyzer (LI-COR, Lincoln, NE, USA). Canopy cover data were collected using the app “Canopeo” where a ratio of plant to ground pixels were calculated. Chlorophyll content data were collected using Chlorophyll Content Meter-300 (Opti-Sciences, Hudson, NH, USA) where the unit of measure was mg/m2. Directly following these measurements a spectroradiometer (FieldSpec Pro FR: Malvern Panalytical, Westborough, MA, USA) was utilized to collect hyperspectral data from 350nm to 2500nm. The locations of both the in-situ and hyperspectral data collections were chosen at random throughout the field projects and took place in 2019 (OK) and 2022 (TX) with specific dates of collection included in the database.