Application of GIS and remote sensing digital technology to assess the possibility of northern (Panax notoginseng) distribution in the northern mountain region of Vietnam

Abstract

Panax notoginseng is a precious medicinal plant originating from the northern mountains of Vietnam. Oriental medicine uses Panax notoginseng as a remedy to treat many different problems, from improving blood circulation to reducing stress and supporting the heart. However, the Panax notoginseng plant is not abundant in nature. Therefore, the study applied digital GIS technology, remote sensing integrated with machine learning applications and used NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) to classify Sentinel-2 satellite images to identify capable areas of distributing Panax notoginseng plants, thereby developing the Panax notoginseng growing areas in the mountainous areas of Northern Vietnam. Research results show that Panax notoginseng has a large distribution in Van Ban, Bat Xat districts, Lao Cai province and various high mountain districts of Ha Giang and Cao Bang province with an overall accuracy of 89.2%, Kappa statistics with the overall Random Forest algorithm reached 0.93%.