A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula

Crespo-Cotrina, Nazaret; Pádua, Luís; Claro, André M.; Fonseca, André; Rebollo, Francisco J.; Moral, Francisco J.; Paniagua, Luis L.; García-Martín, Abelardo; Santos, João A.; Fraga, Helder

doi:10.3390/app151910605

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Open AccessArticle

A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula

by

Nazaret Crespo-Cotrina

^1,2

,

Luís Pádua

^1,3

,

André M. Claro

^1,4

,

André Fonseca

^1,4

,

Francisco J. Rebollo

⁵

,

Francisco J. Moral

⁶

,

Luis L. Paniagua

⁷

,

Abelardo García-Martín

⁷

,

João A. Santos

^1,4

and

Helder Fraga

^1,2,*

¹

Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences, Institute for Innovation, Capacity Building, and Sustainability of Agri-Food Production, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal

²

Agronomy Department, School of Agrarian and Veterinary Sciences, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal

³

Engineering Department, School of Sciences and Technology, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal

⁴

Physics Department, School of Sciences and Technology, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal

⁵

Departamento de Expresión Gráfica, Escuela de Ingenierías Agrarias, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Adolfo Suárez, s/n., 06007 Badajoz, Spain

⁶

Departamento de Expresión Gráfica, Escuela de Ingenierías Industriales, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. de Elvas, s/n., 06006 Badajoz, Spain

⁷

Departamento de Ingeniería del Medio Agronómico y Forestal, Escuela de Ingenierías Agrarias, Universidad de Extremadura, Avda. Adolfo Suárez, s/n., 06007 Badajoz, Spain

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(19), 10605; https://doi.org/10.3390/app151910605

Submission received: 3 September 2025 / Revised: 26 September 2025 / Accepted: 29 September 2025 / Published: 30 September 2025

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Satellite Image Processing for Agricultural and Environmental Monitoring)

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Abstract

Viticulture in the Iberian Peninsula is increasingly threatened by climate change, particularly rising temperatures and prolonged droughts. This study evaluates the ability of the De Martonne Index (DMI), a simple climatic aridity index based solely on temperature and precipitation, to serve as a proxy for vineyard health over a 30-year period (1993–2022). Vineyard health was assessed using the Vegetation Health Index (VHI), derived from satellite remote sensing data. DMI values were computed from bias-corrected ERA5-Land data, and VHI composites were generated from NOAA satellite imagery. Vineyard-specific outputs were isolated using land cover datasets, and a contingency analysis compared drought classifications from both indices. Results show a strong spatio-temporal correspondence between low DMI values and reduced VHI, with agreement rates for severe/extreme drought conditions reaching up to 56% under the most restrictive DMI thresholds. In the analyzed period, years such as 1995, 1997, 2005, 2009, and 2012, showed over 20% of vineyard areas affected by moderate-to-severe/extreme drought. The spatial analysis revealed that northern and northwestern regions of the peninsula experienced less drought stress, while central and southern areas were more frequently affected. This approach demonstrates that the DMI alone can provide a reliable assessment of vineyard health, potentially enabling its direct use with seasonal forecasts, which are generally available for temperature and precipitation, to anticipate drought impacts and support adaptation in viticulture. The proposed methodology is scalable and transferable to other crops and regions, serving as a tool for climate adaptation strategies in viticulture.

Keywords: grapevine; Vitis vinifera L.; vegetation indices; earth observations; multi-temporal analysis; Portugal; Spain

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MDPI and ACS Style

Crespo-Cotrina, N.; Pádua, L.; Claro, A.M.; Fonseca, A.; Rebollo, F.J.; Moral, F.J.; Paniagua, L.L.; García-Martín, A.; Santos, J.A.; Fraga, H. A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula. Appl. Sci. 2025, 15, 10605. https://doi.org/10.3390/app151910605

AMA Style

Crespo-Cotrina N, Pádua L, Claro AM, Fonseca A, Rebollo FJ, Moral FJ, Paniagua LL, García-Martín A, Santos JA, Fraga H. A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula. Applied Sciences. 2025; 15(19):10605. https://doi.org/10.3390/app151910605

Chicago/Turabian Style

Crespo-Cotrina, Nazaret, Luís Pádua, André M. Claro, André Fonseca, Francisco J. Rebollo, Francisco J. Moral, Luis L. Paniagua, Abelardo García-Martín, João A. Santos, and Helder Fraga. 2025. "A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula" Applied Sciences 15, no. 19: 10605. https://doi.org/10.3390/app151910605

APA Style

Crespo-Cotrina, N., Pádua, L., Claro, A. M., Fonseca, A., Rebollo, F. J., Moral, F. J., Paniagua, L. L., García-Martín, A., Santos, J. A., & Fraga, H. (2025). A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula. Applied Sciences, 15(19), 10605. https://doi.org/10.3390/app151910605

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A Simple Aridity Index to Monitor Vineyard Health: Evaluating the De Martonne Index in the Iberian Peninsula

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