Almond Yield Prediction Performance

To evaluate models’ performance in predicting almond yield, the predicted and observed individual tree yield from the reserved testing samples were compared, and the coefficient of determination (R²), Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), and RMSE normalized by averaged yield measurement (NRMSE) were calculated. Statistics of these metrics were reported based on 5-fold cross validation.
For the model with highest accuracy, its capability to capture the within-field yield variations, such as overall spatial patterns, row to row variations, and tree to tree variations along selected transects was also evaluated. For all harvested rows, the yield distribution for all trees within each individual row was analyzed based on CNN estimations. Furthermore, three transects that are perpendicular to the row orientation of the orchard were randomly selected to examine the inter-row yield variations. The locations of the selected transects are shown in Figure 4 highlighted in blue lines.