# What is NDVI mapping and how it helps your farm

> Practical guide to NDVI mapping with drones — what it measures, how to read the map, when it's worth it and how much it costs in Romania.

_Published 2026-04-06 by Ciprian Mihalache — ProxyDrone_

Canonical URL: https://proxydrone.eu/en/blog/what-is-ndvi-mapping

---

## The short answer

**NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) is a plant health map calculated from multispectral imagery — it shows exactly where your crop is thriving and where it's stressed.** The drone flies over the field with a camera that measures how much red light the plant absorbs (active photosynthesis) and how much near-infrared light it reflects (healthy leaves). The formula `(NIR - RED) / (NIR + RED)` gives a score between -1 and +1 for every pixel.

## How to read the map

The NDVI map is colour-coded from red (severe stress) to dark green (peak health):

| NDVI range | Colour | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 0.7–1.0 | Dark green | Healthy crop, high leaf density |
| 0.5–0.7 | Medium green | Normal growth |
| 0.3–0.5 | Yellow-green | Reduced growth, possible stress |
| 0.1–0.3 | Yellow-orange | Water stress, disease or nutrient deficiency |
| -0.1–0.1 | Red | Bare soil, dead plant or water |

**What you see in 5 minutes on a 50-hectare NDVI map**: stressed zones, early disease patches, parcels that need irrigation, areas with too-low plant density.

## When NDVI is worth ordering

NDVI is useful at key moments in the season:
- **Right after emergence** — check density uniformity
- **Before fertilisation** — apply variable-rate nitrogen where it's needed
- **During critical stress periods** — drought, heat wave, pest outbreak
- **Before harvest** — estimate yield and prioritise zones
- **For APIA and insurance claims** — document damage with technical evidence

For technical details about the map and exports see the [NDVI and multispectral mapping service page](/en/services/ndvi-multispectral).

## How much it costs in Romania

On ProxyDrone, **NDVI mapping starts at 80 RON per hectare** with a prescription report included. For larger areas (100+ hectares) the per-hectare price drops due to operator efficiency. You receive the result in 24–48 hours, ready to import into John Deere, Trimble or Climate FieldView, or exported as shapefile/KML.

## What you get in the report

- NDVI map in GeoTIFF and PNG format
- Variable-rate prescription map for fertilisation
- Exports for John Deere Operations Center, Trimble, Climate FieldView
- Per-zone statistics (area, mean NDVI, standard deviation)
- Interpretive comment — e.g. "zone X likely shows nitrogen deficiency stress"

## Why not satellite

Free satellites (Sentinel-2) have 10 metre/pixel resolution and pass every 5 days. A drone delivers **5 cm/pixel** resolution and can be dispatched exactly when you need it. For a wheat field hit by septoria, the difference between detecting a 2-metre patch (drone) and a 20-metre patch (satellite) can be the window in which you save the parcel with a targeted treatment.

## Frequently asked questions

**Do I need expertise to read the map?** No — the report includes plain-language interpretation and concrete recommendations.

**Can I track evolution over time?** Yes — ordering NDVI monthly shows clear trends and treatment effects.

**Does my data stay private?** Yes, the maps and reports are accessible only to you and the operator assigned to the job.

Book your first NDVI scan directly in the [app](/app/register?role=client) or see the [FAQ](/en/faq) for more details.