Decision Support System for Selecting Mung Bean Cultivation Sites in Central Thailand Based on Soil Suitability Class

Abstract

Information to aid the selection of suitable cultivated areas remains meager for mung bean, despite it being a socio-economically important legume crop in Thailand. Hence, a user-friendly soil assessment tool is required to help properly choose planting areas. We aimed to provide a decision support system for mung bean cultivation in central Thailand. Soil suitability classes were performed using relevant factors and data essential for mung bean cultivation in 22 provinces in central Thailand. A decision support system was developed as soil map and mobile phone application using data based on soil suitability classes. Information of mung bean growth and yield grown in experimental fields with different soil suitability classes was used for preliminary validation. The main areas were very suitable (S1) and moderately suitable (S3) for mung bean plantation, accounting for 1,319,841 and 1,327,804 ha, respectively. The number of pods per plant and yield per plant of mung bean were higher in S1 areas (12.83–16.65 pods per plant and 8.35–12.43 g/plant, respectively) than in S3 areas. The mung bean yield was also greater in S1 areas (1613.8–2158.7 kg/ha) than in S3 areas (735.8–1138.6 kg/ha). The findings suggest the possibility of using developed decision support system.