Zhang et al. (2026) The Impact of Drought Events on Cropland Phenology and Vegetation Productivity in Northeast China (2001–2020)

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Agronomy
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-05-22
• Authors: Zeyu Zhang, Xiaodong Na, Xubin Li, Sunai Ma, Yizhe Wang
• DOI: 10.3390/agronomy16111031

Research Groups

Not specified in the provided text.

Short Summary

This study evaluates the impact of drought frequency and severity on cropland phenology and productivity in Northeast China from 2001 to 2020, revealing that these effects are spatially heterogeneous and strongly dependent on the season.

Objective

• To investigate the seasonally differentiated effects of extreme droughts on cropland phenology and productivity in Northeast China to better assess agro-ecosystem vulnerability.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Northeast China (specifically focusing on the Songnen Plain, Liaohe Plain, and Sanjiang Plain).
• Temporal Scale: 2001–2020.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), Run theory (for drought assessment), Savitzky–Golay (S–G) filter (for data smoothing), and Sen’s slope (for trend analysis).
• Data sources: MODIS Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) time-series products.

Main Results

• Drought Frequency: Extreme drought events were most frequent in the Songnen Plain (5.22 events per decade) and the Liaohe Plain (4.89 events per decade).
• Regional Divergence:
  • In the Songnen Plain, increasing drought metrics coincided with a shortening of the Length of Season (LOS) by $0.18\text{ d a}^{-1}$ and a decline in GPP by $9.12\text{ g C m}^{-2}\text{ a}^{-1}$.
  • In the Sanjiang Plain, a slight decline in drought metrics was associated with LOS lengthening ($0.06\text{ d a}^{-1}$) and GPP increases ($7.84\text{ g C m}^{-2}\text{ a}^{-1}$).
• Seasonal Sensitivity: Drought impacts are strongly season-dependent, with autumn droughts showing the most significant association with reductions in crop productivity.

Contributions

• The study clarifies the spatial and temporal variability of drought impacts on cropland in Northeast China, specifically highlighting the critical vulnerability of crop productivity to autumn drought events.

Funding

Not specified in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Zhang2026Impact,
  author = {Zhang, Zeyu and Na, Xiaodong and Li, Xubin and Ma, Sunai and Wang, Yizhe},
  title = {The Impact of Drought Events on Cropland Phenology and Vegetation Productivity in Northeast China (2001–2020)},
  journal = {Agronomy},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.3390/agronomy16111031},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy16111031}
}