Research on Delineation and Assessment Methods for Cultivated Land Concentration and Contiguity in Southeastern China

Cultivated land concentration and contiguity, as a core element of agricultural modernization development, holds strategic significance for enhancing agricultural production efficiency and ensuring national food security. This study employs vector patches as research units and classifies spatial connections between patches into direct and indirect connections. We quantify six types of spatial relationships between patches using binary encoding, enabling precise delineation of concentrated contiguous cultivated land. A Patch Connectivity Index is proposed. Combined with the Patch Area Index and Patch Shape Index, an evaluation system for cultivated land concentration and contiguity is established. Using Suixi County as a case study, we investigate the spatiotemporal evolution of its cultivated land concentration and contiguity from 2019 to 2023. Overall, patch connectivity exhibits a “single-element dominant, multi-element complementary” structural pattern, while the evaluation grading of cultivated land concentration and contiguity follows a normal distribution. Between 2019 and 2023, the average patch area decreased while the average number of connections between patches increased, indicating significant improvement in cultivated land concentration and contiguity levels. By adjusting spatial relationships between patches, the effective integration and utilization of cultivated land resources can provide theoretical foundations and practical references for agricultural modernization development.