The reporting period covers the flowering and harvest of winter wheat in southwestern China. Summer crops (including semi-late rice, late rice and maize) are still growing. According to the regional NDVI profile, crop conditions remained close to average level before mid-May but dropped below the 5-year average after May.

On average, rainfall was above the fifteen-year average (RAIN +16%), whereas radiation was below (RADPAR -8%). Temperature was close to average as well (TEMP -0.2 °C). The resulting BIOMSS was 9% below average mainly due to less radiation and local floods. The cropped arable land fraction remained at the same level as in the previous five years, which indicated there was no change in crop planting for this period. 

According to the NDVI departure clustering map and the profiles, conditions were close to average from mid-April to June, except in Guizhou and neighboring areas in eastern Chongqing, which recorded low NDVI values. RADPAR was also below average for Guizhou (-8%) and eastern Chongqing (-14%).  Average NDVI throughout the monitoring period was observed in eastern Sichuan and Yunnan, where radiation was below average and precipitation above average (See Annex A.11). The maximum VCI reached 0.92, indicating that peak conditions were comparable to the previous five years. At the level of major production zones, the negative impact of above average rainfall and increased cloud cover is expected to be limited. 

Some local flooding due to heavy precipitation and the mixture of positive, but predominantly negative departures from the long-term average indicate slightly below-average crop conditions. 

Figure 4.16 Crop condition Southwest China region,  April - July 2020

(a) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI

(b) Spatial NDVI patterns compared to 5YA    (c) NDVI profiles

(d) Maximum VCI

(e) Biomass departure

(f) Time series rainfall profile

(g) Time series temperature profile