Deep Learning for Detecting Verticillium Fungus in Olive Trees: Using YOLO in UAV Imagery

Abstract

The verticillium fungus has become a widespread threat to olive fields around the world in recent years. The accurate and early detection of the disease at scale could support solving the problem. In this paper, we use the YOLO version 5 model to detect verticillium fungus in olive trees using aerial RGB imagery captured by unmanned aerial vehicles. The aim of our paper is to compare different architectures of the model and evaluate their performance on this task. The architectures are evaluated at two different input sizes each through the most widely used metrics for object detection and classification tasks (precision, recall, mAP@0.5 and mAP@0.5:0.95). Our results show that the YOLOv5 algorithm is able to deliver good results in detecting olive trees and predicting their status, with the different architectures having different strengths and weaknesses.

Verticillium wilt of olive and its control caused by the hemibiotrophic soil-borne fungus Verticillium dahliae

“…Symptoms of olive Verticillium wilt of olive can vary depending on the stage of infection, and environmental conditions. However, some common symptoms associated with Verticillium wilt of olive include (Figure 1) (Castro et al, 2020;ElDesouki-Arafat et al, 2021;Cardoni et al, 2022;Markakis et al, 2022;Mamalis et al, 2023): Wilting: Affected trees may exhibit wilting, where leaves on one or more branches or the entire tree droop and lose turgidity even when the soil has adequate moisture. Yellowing and rolling: Leaves may turn yellow or bronze, often starting at the margins or between the veins causing them to curl.…”

“…Verticillium wilt is of significant economic importance due to its widespread distribution, broad host range, and potential to cause severe damage. Here are some key reasons why Verticillium wilt is economically important (Castro et al, 2020;ElDesouki-Arafat et al, 2021;Cardoni et al, 2022;Markakis et al, 2022;Mamalis et al, 2023): Crop losses: V. dahliae can infect and cause wilt in a wide range of economically important crops, including olive trees. The disease can lead to yield losses, reduced quality of produce, and even complete crop failures, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers and growers (ElDesouki-Arafat et al, 2021).…”

“…The disease can affect a wide range of olive trees used in decoration, including trees used in landscaping and nursery trade. Thus, infected nursery stock can lead to disease spread to new locations when planted, posing a threat to Tunisian agriculture since the olive tree is a strategic crop (Mamalis et al, 2023). International trade restrictions: Verticillium wilt of olive is considered a quarantine pathogen in some regions, and its presence in crops can lead to trade restrictions and barriers for exporting countries.…”

“…Two theories have emerged in the past six decades to explain the wilt's causation: vascular occlusion and toxin involvement (Castro et al, 2020;Mamalis et al, 2023). As the pathogen breaches the plant's defenses and establishes itself in the xylem, it triggers defensive reactions including the production of tyloses and a colloidal matrix, potentially leading to vascular occlusion and subsequent wilting (ElDesouki-Arafat et al, 2021).…”

Enhancing unmanned aerial vehicle capabilities: integrating YOLO algorithms for diverse industrial applications

“…Additionally, it predicts the class probabilities of the detected object. In agriculture [3][4][5][6][7][8], UAVs equipped with YOLO models have enhanced monitoring and disease detection. Studies have shown the algorithm's effectiveness in early disease detection in crops like rice, olives, maize, and apple trees.…”