The ongoing growing season in Southwest China cangenerally be described as average. In January, the condition of crops reachedthe five-year maximum level, while in February and March, it decreased sharplyand was far below average. In April, it recovered again, attaining to thefive-year average level. The NDVI profiles also reflect the poor crop conditionduring February and March, and favorable conditions in January and April. Comparedto the five-year average, precipitation increased by 4% and the averagetemperature and PAR accumulation increased by 0.3°C and 2%, respectively, whichled to an increase in biomass by 12%. The potential biomass reflects the poorlevel in North Yunnan (also shown by the VCIx map), northwest Guangxi, and westHunan, mainly due to the severe drop in precipitation. However, when comparedto the thirteen-year average, the biomass shows a minor decrease of 3%, due tofrequent droughts in the region in recent years. Almost all arable land was croppedduring the reporting period.

Figure4.11. Crop condition Southwest China region

                   (e) Maximum VCI                                                     (f) ) Cropped arable land fraction

                      Biomass