Code for analyzing AquaCrop outputs, underlying the publication: Optimal Sowing Windows under Rainfall Variability in Rainfed Agriculture in West Africa

This research aims to identify safe sowing windows for smallholder farmers in West Africa. While existing approaches focus on sowing early in the season after the first rain events, we analyzed crop response to water availability for a wide range of sowing dates, covering the entire rainfall season (May to November). AquaCrop, the FAO crop simulation model was used. The model takes as input weather information (rainfall, evapotranspiration, min, and max temperature, all at a daily scale), soil profile and texture, and management practices (no application of fertilizer, rainfed agriculture, etc.). 9 output files are generated after the simulation with different data but 3 are mainly used for the analysis. The Crop file (Crop.out) contains information about crop phenology and most importantly yield and biomass build-up and water stress levels reducing leaf expansion or inducing stomatal closure. The Run file (Run.out) contains the main summary and aggregated variables (yield, water, runoff, transpiration, etc.) of the simulations. The Prof file (Prof.out) contains the water content in the effective root zone, at the field capacity, and the permanent wilting point. The Python codes to analyze Prof and Run outputs of the AquaCrop simulations are in the file AquaCrop_v6.1_Tahmo_Maize_Water Bal.ipynb. The file AquaCrop_v6.1_Tahmo_Maize_Phenology.ipynb contains the codes to analyze the Crop files. Optimal Window.ipynb combines all the different onset approaches together. ET0_analysis - Tahmo.ipynb contains the codes to analyze the weather data, and dry spells and also plot these variables.