Soil & Water Resources Institute

Miltiadis Iatrou

Senior Research Scientist

Plant Physiology

Plant nutrition using modern methods and technologies

📍 Research Unit of Thermi

Email: miatrou@elgo.gr

Phone: 2310 473429 | Int: 301

23 Publications

293 Citations

11 h-index

Academic Profiles

Scholar S Scopus ORCID RG ResearchGate LinkedIn

Dr. Miltiadis Iatrou is a researcher at the Institute of Soil and Water Resources of ELGO-Dimitra (Greece), specializing in soil science, precision agriculture, remote sensing, and agricultural artificial intelligence. He holds a degree in Agronomy from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, an MSc in Plant Sciences from the University of Reading, and a PhD in Soil Science from the University of Reading (2011). His work focuses on developing AI-driven systems that integrate soil, climatic, hydrological, and geospatial data to support optimized fertilization, sustainable nutrient management, and improved crop performance. His research interests further include analytical soil chemistry and computer vision for predicting plant stress and nutrition through remote sensing. Dr. Iatrou has contributed to major research projects involving UAV and satellite crop monitoring, digital soil mapping, nitrogen-stress detection, and epidemiological modeling for vector-borne diseases. His participation in the EMPROS project supported the award-winning EYWA early-warning system, which received the 2022 Horizon EU Innovation Prize. He has also been involved in soil surveys, GIS-based mapping, and the development of decision-support tools for precision agriculture. His professional background includes roles at Ecodevelopment S.A. (2015–2023), Geoanalysis S.A. (2013–2015), and the Soil Science Institute of Thessaloniki (2011–2013). Since 2023 he has served as a researcher at ELGO-Dimitra. He works extensively with Python, particularly PyTorch and Fastai, for the development of machine-learning models. Dr. Iatrou has authored 22 peer-reviewed journal articles (h-index 11, 278+ citations), serves as a reviewer and Guest Editor in scientific journals, and develops open-source tools including the phosadsorption machine-learning library on PyPI and a GitHub repository for phosphorus-adsorption modeling.

Karydas, C., Iatrou, M., & Mourelatos, S. (2025). Yield Data Management in Rice Cultivation in Precision Agriculture Terms: The Greek Paradigm. AgriEngineering, 7(12). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering7120413

https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering7120413

Karydas, C., Iatrou, M., & Mourelatos, S. (2025). An Innovative Process Chain for Precision Agriculture Services. Computers, 14(6). https://doi.org/10.3390/computers14060234

https://doi.org/10.3390/computers14060234

Iatrou, M., Tziachris, P., Bilias, F., Kekelis, P., Pavlakis, C., Theofilidou, A., Papadopoulos, I., Strouthopoulos, G., Giannopoulos, G., Arampatzis, D., Vergos, E., Karydas, C., Beslemes, D., & Aschonitis, V. (2025). Data-Driven and Mechanistic Soil Modeling for Precision Fertilization Management in Cotton. Nitrogen (Switzerland), 6(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/nitrogen6020029

https://doi.org/10.3390/nitrogen6020029

Tziachris, P., Louka, P., Metaxa, E., Iatrou, M., & Tsiouplakis, K. (2025). A Comparative Analysis of Machine Learning and Pedotransfer Functions Under Varying Data Availability in Two Greek Regions. Agriculture (Switzerland), 15(11). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15111134

https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15111134

Iatrou, M., & Papadopoulos, A. (2025). Machine Learning vs. Langmuir: A Multioutput XGBoost Regressor Better Captures Soil Phosphorus Adsorption Dynamics. Crops, 5(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/crops5040055

https://doi.org/10.3390/crops5040055

Iatrou, M., Tziouvalekas, M., Tsitouras, A., Evangelou, E., Noulas, C., Vlachostergios, D., Aschonitis, V., Arampatzis, G., Metaxa, I., Karydas, C., & Tziachris, P. (2024). Analyzing the Impact of Storm ‘Daniel’ and Subsequent Flooding on Thessaly’s Soil Chemistry through Causal Inference. Agriculture (Switzerland), 14(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040549

https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14040549

Karydas, C., Chatziantoniou, M., Stamkopoulos, K., Iatrou, M., Vassiliadis, V., & Mourelatos, S. (2023). Embedding a precision agriculture service into a farm management information system - ifarma/PreFer. Smart Agricultural Technology, 4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atech.2023.100175

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atech.2023.100175

Iatrou, M., Karydas, C., Tseni, X., & Mourelatos, S. (2022). Representation Learning with a Variational Autoencoder for Predicting Nitrogen Requirement in Rice. Remote Sensing, 14(23). https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14235978

https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14235978

Iatrou, M., Karydas, C., Iatrou, G., Pitsiorlas, I., Aschonitis, V., Raptis, I., Mpetas, S., Kravvas, K., & Mourelatos, S. (2021). Topdressing nitrogen demand prediction in rice crop using machine learning systems. Agriculture (Switzerland), 11(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11040312

https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11040312

Karydas, C., Iatrou, M., Kouretas, D., Patouna, A., Iatrou, G., Lazos, N., Gewehr, S., Tseni, X., Tekos, F., Zartaloudis, Z., Mainos, E., & Mourelatos, S. (2020). Prediction of antioxidant activity of cherry fruits from UAS multispectral imagery using machine learning. Antioxidants, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox9020156

https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox9020156

Karydas, C., Iatrou, M., Iatrou, G., & Mourelatos, S. (2020). Management zone delineation for site-specific fertilization in rice crop using multi-temporal rapideye imagery. Remote Sensing, 12(16). https://doi.org/10.3390/RS12162604

https://doi.org/10.3390/RS12162604

Aschonitis, V., Karydas, C. G., Iatrou, M., Mourelatos, S., Metaxa, I., Tziachris, P., & Iatrou, G. (2019). An integrated approach to assessing the soil quality and nutritional status of large and long-term cultivated rice agro-ecosystems. Agriculture (Switzerland), 9(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture9040080

https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture9040080

Iatrou, M., Karydas, C., Iatrou, G., Zartaloudis, Z., Kravvas, K., & Mourelatos, S. (2018). Optimization of fertilization recommendation in Greek rice fields using precision agriculture. Agricultural Economics Review, 19(1), 64–75. https://doi.org/Article

https://doi.org/Article

Iatrou, G., Mourelatos, S., Gewehr, S., Kalaitzopoulou, S., Iatrou, M., & Zartaloudis, Z. (2017). Using multispectral imaging to improve berry harvest for wine making grapes. Ciencia e Tecnica Vitivinicola, 32(1), 33–41. https://doi.org/10.1051/ctv/20173201033

https://doi.org/10.1051/ctv/20173201033

Karydas, C., Gewehr, S., Iatrou, M., Iatrou, G., & Mourelatos, S. (2017). Olive plantation mapping on a sub-tree scale with object-based image analysis of multispectral UAV data; Operational potential in tree stress monitoring. Journal of Imaging, 3(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/jimaging3040057

https://doi.org/10.3390/jimaging3040057

Iatrou, M., & Papadopoulos, A. (2016). Influence of nitrogen nutrition on nitrate levels of strawberry leaf blades and petioles. Journal of Plant Nutrition, 39(8), 1131–1136. https://doi.org/10.1080/01904167.2015.1084006

https://doi.org/10.1080/01904167.2015.1084006

Iatrou, M., & Papadopoulos, A. (2016). Influence of nitrogen nutrition on yield and growth of an everbearing strawberry cultivar (cv. Evie II). Journal of Plant Nutrition, 39(11), 1499–1505. https://doi.org/10.1080/01904167.2015.1109119

https://doi.org/10.1080/01904167.2015.1109119

Iatrou, M., Papadopoulos, A., Papadopoulos, F., Dichala, O., Psoma, P., & Bountla, A. (2015). Determination of Soil-Available Micronutrients using the DTPA and Mehlich 3 Methods for Greek Soils Having Variable Amounts of Calcium Carbonate. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 46(15), 1905–1912. https://doi.org/10.1080/00103624.2015.1068322

https://doi.org/10.1080/00103624.2015.1068322

Papadopoulos, A., Papadopoulos, F., Tziachris, P., Metaxa, I., & Iatrou, M. (2014). Site specific agricultural soil management with the use of new technologies. Global Nest Journal, 16(1), 59–67. https://doi.org/10.30955/gnj.001203

https://doi.org/10.30955/gnj.001203

Papadopoulos, F. H., Metaxa, E. G., Iatrou, M. N., & Papadopoulos, A. H. (2014). Evaluation of performance of full-scale duckweed and algal ponds receiving septage. Water Environment Research, 86(12), 2309–2316. https://doi.org/10.2175/106143014X14062131178754

https://doi.org/10.2175/106143014X14062131178754

Iatrou, M., Papadopoulos, A., Papadopoulos, F., Dichala, O., Psoma, P., & Bountla, A. (2014). Determination of Soil Available Phosphorus using the Olsen and Mehlich 3 Methods for Greek Soils Having Variable Amounts of Calcium Carbonate. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 45(16), 2207–2214. https://doi.org/10.1080/00103624.2014.911304

https://doi.org/10.1080/00103624.2014.911304

21 publications

As Principal Investigator

FERTIPRO PI National

Innovative Fertilization Protocol for Peach Orchards at the A.S.O.P. Velvento - DIMITRA, for Precision Fertilizer Application and the Enhancement of Environmental and Social Sustainability

Dec 2024 → Dec 2026

Miltiadis Iatrou

Academic Profiles

As Principal Investigator

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