Crop condition in the Loess region was better than the five-year average and the last year during the monitoring period. When compared with the average, precipitation and temperature increased by 34% and 0.7°C, respectively, while radiation decreased 4%, as expected from the above average rainfall. The potential biomass increased by 18%when compared with the five-year average as a result of both favorable rainfall and temperature. Winter wheat was sowed in October, and it is currently dormant.The NDVI clusters and profiles confirm that crop condition was above average in more than 75% of the areas, especially in northwest of Henan and Fen-Wei Plains in Shaanxi and Shanxi Provinces. In the most east of Gansu and the adjacent regions in Shaanxi, province, crop condition was below average when compared with the recent five years due to droughts. The value of the maximum VCI was 0.83 and and the highest maximum VCI is observed in southern Ningxia. The cropped arable land fraction was below average(-4%), which indicate that crop condition is good but that the cultivated area decreased.

Figure4.8. Crop condition China Loess region, October 2014-January 2015

(a)Crop condition development graph based on NDVI

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

(d)Maximum VCI                                                        e)Biomass