The furry-looking insects start their development smaller than the head of a pin, but the caterpillars soon develop an appetite for cotton as big as the crop.

To demonstrate the insects’ destructive power, Clemson University entomologist Jeremy Greene planted two cotton varieties — one genetically modified to provide protection from caterpillars, one not — in a demonstration field at the Edisto Research and Education Center.

The non-protected cotton was planted in a pattern that spelled the word “Tigers.” Aerial photographs taken near harvest show that while the genetically modified crop survived intact, the unprotected plants provided three square meals a day for the crop-hungry herbivores.

The demonstration crop was planted in late May last year and grew through the summer.

“We wanted to show the kind of damage caterpillars can do when they’re allowed to eat unprotected cotton freely,” Greene said.

Cotton is a multimillion dollar crop in the Palmetto State involving hundreds of farms and thousands of jobs.

Nearly all cotton varieties planted in South Carolina contain genes found in the naturally occurring Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, that help the plant make its own insecticide.

Bt cotton is genetically modified with specific genes from Bacillus thuringiensis. Think of it as in-plant insecticide, Greene said. This technology has been commercially available since 1996, but improvements over the years have enhanced the control of major pests.

The plant makes the proteins just like the bacterium does. The particular strain of Bacillus thuringiensis available in cotton, which was planted for the demonstration, works only on immature lepidopterans, or caterpillars. Lepidoptera is the insect order for moths and butterflies. The toxic proteins have no ill effects on other organisms.

“During 2010, we had a very high population of bollworm that infested cotton acres at the Edisto research center,” Greene said. “We planted a non-Bt variety where you see the word ‘Tigers’ and a two-gene Bt cotton where you see the fluffy white cotton lint.”

The striking difference in appearance is due to bollworms eating all of the green cotton bolls in the non-Bt variety that did not have protection from the insects.

Greene applied no insecticides to control caterpillars in this field, so the difference between the Bt and non-Bt varieties is illustrated clearly.

A color-coded yield map, produced by precision agriculture specialist Will Henderson at the Edisto center, illustrates the crop after harvest using one of the center’s pickers that is equipped with a yield monitor. The map shows “good” yields in green and “bad” yields in red.

The damage potential of important lepidopteran species, such as bollworm, is not new, Greene said. Moths have flown into fields, laid eggs and hatched as injurious caterpillars for decades.

Transgenic Bt technology and its improvement over the years are relatively recent advances that represent effective, economical and environmentally friendly control of these insects in agriculture, he said.

“We know what they can do to non-Bt cotton versus Bt cotton — the photographs speak for themselves,” Greene said.

Research agronomist at MU’s Greenley Research Center in northeast Missouri Kelly Nelson says that ag operations in the U.S. create 58 percent of the world’s nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes 300 times more to global warming than carbon dioxide. His work is focusing on the placement and source of fertilizers to reduce that nitrous oxide number.

“The fertilizer placement for a no-till system would be, for dry fertilizers, would be broadcast applied over the soil surface. We thought with a strip-till system we can till a small area, usually about 12 inches wide, usually less than 30 percent of the field, and maintain good soil cover, and apply that fertilizer in a band right under the plant so it has easy access to the fertilizer.”

He says using an enhanced-efficiency polymer coated urea and non-coated urea, they were able to test in a clay pan soil, where there is very poor internal drainage and fertilizer loss can be substantial.

“We saw that over the entire growing season, we were emitting about 2.4 to 3.8 percent of the nitrogen applied as nitrous oxide.” Nelson says that while it doesn’t seem like a big number, it shows how much greenhouse gas can be emitted into the atmosphere. Plus, he says this system was able to increase yields. “We were seeing that our strip-till system was increasing yields by about 50 bushels to the acre (in corn), compared to our no-till system.” And it reduced greenhouse gas emissions by about 25 percent, compared to no-till systems.

Nelson admits that they didn’t compare the amount of emissions for running the extra equipment in the strip-till versus no-till operation, but that would be a comparison of CO2 emissions, and as stated earlier, much less impactful when you are considering greenhouse gases. Plus, the increased yields should help make up any differences by increasing the amount of carbon sequestration going on in the higher yielding strip-till operations.

He credits new, advanced precision agriculture equipment and practices for even making this kind of work possible.

“Getting the right product at the right time in the right place, that’s what we’re working toward. Precision ag is moving us in that direction.”

Listen to my interview with Kelly here: Kelly Nelson, MU research agronomist

The Nebraska Agricultural Technologies Association (NeATA), founded in 2001 by innovative Nebraska farmers, ranchers, agribusiness representatives and the University of Nebraska Extension, has compiled another great conference.

Need a technology makeover? How about using Nitrogen more wisely? Do you want to learn how to tell your story and share your values with consumers? How about learning a better way to select crop genetics? Check out the upcoming program, and book your trip now.

For Facebook users, find NeATA here and add them as a favorite.

The University of Missouri will sponsor three free breakfast workshops on wireless soil-moisture monitoring for timing irrigation. The workshops will feature representatives from six leading manufacturers of wireless sensors.

The workshops will take place Jan. 18 in Kennett, Jan. 19 in Sikeston and Jan. 20 in Columbia.

“The price of wireless technology has decreased so much in recent years that the annual cost for complete wireless systems can be as low as three to six dollars per acre,” said Joe Henggeler of MU’s Commercial Agriculture Program and workshop coordinator. “It won’t take too much extra cotton, corn or soybeans to pay for that investment.”

MU specialists and others will provide information on types of sensors, how far they can transmit signals and their usefulness to farmers. Company representatives will briefly explain their products.
Use of wireless sensors by 500 farmers in Nebraska has shown an average pump savings of $25 per acre for corn and $19 per acre for soybeans. Missouri survey results show that irrigators who use sensors have yields that are much higher than irrigators who do not use the wireless technology, Henggeler said.

Computer workstations linked to Google Earth will be available for use by farmers and company representatives. Farmers will be able to zoom to aerial views of their farms to see where to place sensors, measure the distances involved and observe if there are obstructions that may block signals.

The companies to be represented at the workshops are Campbell Scientific, Decagon Devices, Irrometer Company, John Deere Water, Onset Computer Corporation and Smartfield. Smartfield manufactures an infrared canopy temperature sensor that can determine when a crop needs to be watered.

Data is gathered 24/7 on the crop’s moisture conditions and is displayed on the computer as graphs. Almost all of the products can be set up to text-message an irrigator when a crop needs water.
Henggeler said he is pleased with the companies that will be represented at the workshops and with the personnel they will be sending. “Companies are not just sending regular sales staff but their vice presidents, product managers and other higher-echelon staff. They are eager to meet Midwestern irrigators because they feel they have products that will help them and they want to start partnerships here.”

Workshops are free of charge, but attendees are asked to preregister at http://agebb.missouri.edu/irrigate/bhconf/2011/prereg.htm.
Workshops begin 7 a.m. with a hot breakfast and conclude at 10 a.m. Dealers will be available later in the day to make site visits. Special workshop discounts will be awarded to attendees.

Dates and locations of the workshops:
-Tuesday, Jan. 18: American Legion Building, Kennett, Mo.
-Wednesday, Jan. 19: Clinton Building, Sikeston, Mo.
-Thursday, Jan. 20: MU Bradford Farm, Columbia, Mo.

For more information, see http://agebb.missouri.edu/irrigate/bhconf/2011/agenda.htm, or contact Joe Henggeler at 573- 225-7986 or henggelerj@missouri.edu.

Automatic section control (ASC) has been one of the most adopted precision ag technologies in recent years. This technology has the ability to save producers on input costs by minimizing application overlap at headlands, point rows, or other odd-shaped areas of fields. Our research suggests a 2% to nearly 30% savings in fields when using ASC and guidance technology. Further, ASC can improve on-farm environmental stewardship by eliminating application in environmentally sensitive areas (e.g. grassed waterways, buffer strips, etc) or outside field boundaries. Frequent comments by those who have adopted ASC is that they want to implement on all their application technology (sprayer, planter, side-dress unit, etc.) and it reduces fatigue over long work days by automating the on and off of sections.

To help producers and others interested in ASC, the Alabama Precision Ag Team has put together 3 publications providing a general overview of ASC, needed components, and company information for planters, sprayers and spinner spreaders. Many times the expense to purchase ASC for a machine is relatively small compared to the savings it provides on crop inputs. We hope this information can help those looking to purchase ASC during this off season. Please let us know if you have any questions or we can assist in anyway.

The following provides direct links to each of these publications.

ASC for Sprayers
ASC for Planters
ASC for Spreaders

For more information, please visit www.alabamaprecisionagonline.com.

The Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference is the largest, most comprehensive program of conservation tillage techniques in the Midwest. About 60 presenters (farmers, industry professionals, and university specialists) from around the country focus on cost-saving, production management topics. The conference is broken down into tracks covering soil and water; nutrient and manure management; advanced scouting techniques; cover crops; crop management; and planters and precision agriculture.

This will be the third year for Corn University and the second year for the Soybean School, both of which cover the latest in corn and soybean management from the top researchers and industry specialists across the Midwest.

“Both programs are a main draw,” said Randall Reeder, an Ohio State University Extension agricultural engineer and an organizer of the conference. “Last year, we had about 300 to 400 in attendance at each program interested in learning the latest in crop production techniques to get the most economic yields with conservation tillage.”

Corn University will take place on Feb. 24 from 11 a.m. until 5:50 p.m. and will feature Peter Thomison, an OSU Extension corn agronomist; Bob Nielsen, a Purdue Extension corn specialist; Fred Below and Laura Overstreet, University of Illinois; and Chad Lee, University of Kentucky.

The theme will focus on achieving 300 bushels per acre using a variety of production management techniques from strip-till to nutrient management to fungicide use. Corn University is supported by Dekalb/Asgrow.

Soybean School will be held on Feb. 25 from 8:30 a.m. until 4:50 p.m. and will feature OSU Extension Specialists; Missouri farmer Kip Cullers, who set the world soybean production record this year of 160.6 bushels per acre; Shaun Casteel of Purdue University; Vince Davis of University of Illinois; and Shawn Conley, University of Wisconsin. Pioneer and Seed Consultants support Soybean School.

Other sessions taking place at the Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference include a daylong session on cover crops on Feb. 24, a daylong session on nutrient management on Feb. 25, and a half-day session on Feb. 25 on soil and water, which will include discussions of phosphorus and nitrogen management related water quality, including algal blooms.

Crop Certified Advisor credits be will offered during the Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference, including coveted nutrient management and soil and water credits.

“CCAs can get all the credits they need in both of these areas in just two days,” said Reeder.

Elwynn Taylor, Iowa State University agricultural climatologist, will be the speaker for the opening general session at 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 24.

The Conservation Tillage and Technology Conference broke an attendance record in 2010 with 966 farmers, crop consultants and industry representatives attending the event. Farmers valued the education they received at $13 per acre, roughly a $7 million value. Crop consultants placed a value on their educational experiences at $16 per acre for the land they influence.

The event will be held Feb. 24-25 at the McIntosh Center of Ohio Northern University in Ada. Sponsors include Ohio State University Extension, the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, Northwest Ohio Soil and Water Conservation Districts, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA Farm Service Agency, and the Ohio No-Till Council.

Early registration is $50 for one day or $75 for both days. At the door, registration is $60 for one day and $85 for both days. Complete registration and program information will be available after Jan. 1, 2011 at http://ctc.osu.edu.

There are great opportunities for this technology in cotton production for varying the application of plant growth regulators, harvest aids, and nitrogen. However, the users must understand the limitations of their equipment and the sensors being used in order to maximize the benefits.

Users should understand the agronomy behind prescriptions and be comfortable with the recommendations. Familiarity with these prescriptions can allow users to fine tune them for their environment or to develop their own prescription algorithms. They should also understand their equipment and know how to tune their controller for optimum response. As with all new technologies, users should seek advice from experts and those who are already implementing sensor–based variable rate application.

Learn more here.

And check out the Oklahoma State University Precision Ag Technology webpages.

After exploring all of the equipment that can be purchased, you will find that there are three basic options for GPS accuracy:

1. A free signal, known as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), provides pass-to-pass accuracy of about ±6 to 13 inches and has a potential GPS drift of ±4 to ±7 ft. WAAS is managed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

2. A “corrected” signal that requires a paid subscription can provide a pass-to-pass accuracy between ±2 and ±13 inches and has a potential GPS drift of ±1.7 to ±3 ft depending on the correction service.

3. A real-time kinematic (RTK) system that provides pass-to-pass accuracy of ±1 inch and a potential GPS drift of ±1 inch. This system requires the purchase of an RTK base station if an RTK network, such as CORS, does not already exist in your area. The Continually Operation Reference Station (CORS) network is a free RTK signal operated and monitored by the National Geodetic Survey (NGS). If CORS is not available in your area an annual subscription for a proprietary RTK network can be purchased.

It is important to keep in mind two terms relating to GPS/GNSS accuracy when evaluating signal options. Pass-to-pass accuracy is the accuracy of the GPS/GNSS receiver over a 15 minute time-frame and pertains to short-term operations such as spraying or fertilizing fields. GPS drift is the accuracy of the GPS/GNSS receiver over an extended period of time. GPS drift is more long-term and becomes important when planting or harvesting.

Check out his piece to learn more.

This new program offered by University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension is designed for:

• Farm operators wishing to get more return on their precision ag dollar investment
• Crop consultants and industry agronomists who desire to provide more accurate information and better service to their customers
• Corporate industry and government agency personnel needing to know and understand the technology being used in today’s production agriculture.
• Precision ag instructors

Learn more at http://ardc.unl.edu/precisionagpracticum/.

Who should attend?
- Farmer operators wishing to get more return on their precision ag dollar investment.
- Crop consultants and industry agronomists who desire to provide more accurate information and better service to their customers.
- Corporate industry and government agency personnel needing to know and understand the technology being used in today’s production agriculture.
- Precision ag instructors.

The inaugural Late Season Session is scheduled for August 31 through September 2 at the UNL Ag Research & Development Center near Mead, Neb. Curriculum includes:
• Introduction to equipment used at UNL’s Agricultural
Research and Development Center and site-specific
management capacity; introduction to case study
fields
• Entry points to GPS auto-guidance, yield monitoring
progressing to yield mapping, Google Earth, aerial
imagery, county soil survey, Web Soil Survey, recordkeeping
• GPS principles
• Yield monitoring/mapping principles; data filtering
• Variable rate technology and control systems
optimizing autosteer and swath control.
• On-the-go soil sensing
• Collection of active crop canopy sensor data
• Develop N recommendations
• Aerial and satellite imagery
• Group exercises

Winter Session is scheduled for December 2010, with date and location yet to be determined.

Learn more at http://ardc.unl.edu/precisionagpracticum/

Enrollment is limited so act soon!

A recent report by Purdue University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture predicts more than 54,000 agriculture-related job openings annually between 2010 and 2015.

“There isn’t a better business to be in right now,” says Randy Smith, a member of the Weed Science Society of America and a field research and development leader for Dow AgroSciences. “Agricultural scientists have an opportunity to feed a hungry world and to write the next chapter in the ‘Green Revolution.’ It’s a cutting-edge profession and a noble calling.”

But despite the promising employment outlook, there is a talent shortage in the applied agricultural sciences. Data from the National Academies shows 4,010 baccalaureate degrees awarded in agriculture business and management in 2007 – but only 177 in crop production. A 2008 USDA review shows Bachelor’s degrees awarded in agronomy and the crop sciences decreased by almost a third between 1984 and 2003. Several universities have dropped or consolidated programs in the agricultural sciences because of low enrollment and dwindling funds.

“The issue of talent development in the agricultural sciences is a topic of paramount concern within higher education and industry circles,” says Emilio Oyarzabal, technology development manager, Monsanto. “There are many students pursuing degrees in the marketing, sales and business side of agriculture, but the number in the applied agricultural sciences is declining steadily.”

Oyarzabal and other experts say a number of intersecting trends are contributing to the dwindling talent pool. Publicly funded graduate assistantships have evaporated. Budget cuts, retirements and competition from higher-paying industry jobs have resulted in the steady drain of agricultural sciences faculty – the very individuals responsible for recruiting and training. Grant monies are pouring into molecular biology and other basic sciences – not into applied sciences like agriculture. One possible reason:

“There is a misperception that the agricultural sciences have matured and aren’t as exciting as some of the newer, emerging sciences, such as biotechnology and molecular biology,” says Roger Gast, product development leader, Dow AgroSciences. “But nothing could be further from the truth.”

Don Wyse, Ph.D., a professor of agronomy and plant genetics and director of the Center for Natural Resources and Agricultural Management at the University of Minnesota, says changing demographics also play a role.

“The number of students raised on a farm has plummeted, and we haven’t yet figured out how to engage and recruit students from urban communities,” he says. “The link between their lives and how their food is produced is really remote at best.”

Initiatives to build a sustainable agricultural workforce

What’s the solution? The Weed Science Society of America and nearly 30 other scientific societies and agricultural industry partners have begun to collaborate on ideas for building a sustainable agricultural workforce. Some of the proposed initiatives include:

• Promoting an awareness of career opportunities in the crop sciences.
• Building a pipeline of students in middle and high schools who are interested in pursuing degrees in applied and basic agricultural sciences.
• Generating awareness of the importance of sustainable agro-ecosystems and the crucial role of the agricultural sciences in feeding a growing world population.
• Funding scholarships to attract the best students into agricultural science studies and to support applied learning programs.
• Developing innovative recruitment and training programs to attract high-quality graduate students with leadership potential.

Most agree it will take a sustained investment of resources to reverse the talent shortage. And the need has never been more critical.

“To feed a growing population, experts predict we will need to produce more food over the next 40 years than we’ve produced over the past 10,000 years combined – and with diminishing land and water resources,” says Lee Van Wychen, Ph.D., science policy director of the Weed Science Society of America. “The stakes couldn’t be higher.”

Workshop Goal: Present and discuss SSM concepts and applied research in order to provide the audience with a comprehensive understanding of how to identify and manage within-field variability to improve crop management.

Target Audience: Soils and crop management professionals, including UCCE Farm Advisors and Specialists, Pest Control Advisors, Certified Crop Advisers, Growers and others having an interest in improving their knowledge of SSM techniques.

Session I (8:30 AM to Noon) - Theory of SSM: Overview of concepts and techniques used to identify and manage within-field variability, Jose P. Molin, Biosystems Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Integrating geospatial technology with agronomic practices, GPS/GIS overview, methods for detecting soil and crop variability, use of sensors and yield monitors, creation of maps and variable rate input recommendations.

Noon to 1:00 PM – Lunch break

Session II (1:00 to 5:00 PM) - Applied research findings and examples illustrating the practical benefits of this technology

• Use of Precision Agriculture in the West - Rob Mikkelsen, Director, Western North America IPNI

• Site-specific methods for reclaiming salt-affected soil using electrical conductivity; and Use of Remote sensing on cotton fields for irrigation management, planning defoliation and its relationship with cotton growth and yield. Richard E. Plant, Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis

• Site-specific nutrient management in California orchards – identifying almond yield and fertility variability and its implication on fertility management. Patrick Brown, Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis

3:00 to 3:15 PM – Break

• Site-specific herbicide applications based on weed maps provide effective control. Tom Lanini, Department of Plant Sciences, UC Davis

• Site-specific management at Bowles Farming Company – Cannon Michael, Vice President Bowles Farming Company

• Knowledge Acquired, Intelligence Applied: Tomorrow’s Technology for Today’s Crops – Jason Ellsworth, Regional Technology Specialist, Wilbur-Ellis Company

5:00 PM – Adjourn

Please contact Andre Biscaro for details: asbiscaro@ucdavis.edu  (661) 974-8825

Click here to register: http://ucanr.org/sites/paica/Registration/

Click here for flier: http://ucanr.org/sites/paica/files/13632.pdf

The Cotton Precision Agriculture Investment Decision Aid (CPAIDA) is a stand alone, computerized decision tool for analyzing investments in precision agriculture technologies. It was developed to meet the need for better educational information about the returns required to pay for investments in precision agriculture technologies used by cotton farmers.

Currently available “payback” modules include map- and sensor-based variable rate application of sprayer-applied chemicals, sensor-based liquid nitrogen application, and sensor-based weed control. Additional modules for calculating the cost of gathering spatial information via electrical conductivity, yield monitor, and remote sensing are also provided. A distinctive sensitivity analysis feature allows users to evaluate a variety of “what if” scenarios for these technologies based on their particular farm characteristics.

The decision aid guides users through a systematic analysis of the precision farming investment decision via a set of clickable tabs and expandable menu options. The equipment information tab allows the user to select equipment components and enter purchase price.

Default equipment complements are set for each module, and users can click on cells to change equipment manufacturers or modify prices. The farm data tab lets users personalize the decision aid based on their unique farm situation, information gathering costs, and payback parameters which can include input cost savings, lint yield gain, and reduced equipment operating and ownership costs. The profitability summary tab displays results in the form of enterprise budgets that compare cost and return estimates with and without precision farming.

A final column indicates how individual cost items vary based on the precision farming investment decision and summarizes the expected profitability from adoption of the selected equipment complement.

Finally, a sensitivity analysis tab displays the results graphically. The main figure summarizes the profitability of the proposed equipment complement and provides an estimate of the payback period in years. Here, users can change key cost and return parameters, such as farm size or input savings, and evaluate how changes in these values influence the profitability of the investment decision.

The CPAIDA decision aid is also available at http://economics.ag.utk.edu/cpaida.html. Copies of CPAIDA on a CD ROM may also be obtained by writing James Larson, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 2621 Morgan Circle, 302 Morgan Hall, Knoxville, TN 37996. This decision aid was funded by Cotton Incorporated.

“ISSAC is a space-related research project that will result in the delivery of direct benefits from space to the general public,” said Doug Olsen, ISSAC project manager. “The ISSAC project is in the midst of developing an upgrade to its camera sensor, which is expected to be launched in April 2011. It will resume operations during the 2011 growing season.”

ISSAC is designed to take frequent images, in visible and infrared light, of vegetated areas on the Earth, principally of growing crops, rangeland, grasslands, forests, and wetlands in the northern Great Plains and Rocky Mountain regions of the United States. Images will be delivered within two days directly to requesting farmers, ranchers, foresters, natural resource managers and tribal officials to help improve their environmental stewardship of the land. Images will also be shared with educators for classroom use.

The system allows users to select specific geographical areas of interest over which to request collection of imagery in both red and near-infrared bandpasses, and at medium-high spatial resolution. Farmers using variable-rate application and other precision agriculture techniques will be able to dynamically delineate management zones as the crop vegetation canopy changes during the growing season; this can result in more effective use of fertilizer and other chemical inputs and reduce negative environmental effects.

“The UND interdisciplinary effort that has produced this camera is a remarkable story,” said UND President Robert O. Kelley. “Faculty and students from several colleges and centers on campus have produced an instrument that will analyze the composition of agricultural and other natural resources on the surface of the earth from the International Space Station.”

“The consolidation of multiple technologies into a single instrument will add tremendous economic value to the agricultural industry in North Dakota and around the world,” Kelley said. “UND and NASA have forged a very productive partnership in this initiative.”

ISSAC is operated from the Science Operations Center (SOC) on the UND campus, staffed by students from across the campus, including from the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences and the School of Engineering and Mines. From the SOC, students will send commands to ISSAC to take images and transmit them to SOC, where they’ll be processed and delivered to end users. Images captured by the camera will be made available to the public through UMAC’s Web page (see http://www.umac.org/).

Many agronomists and producers conduct experiments that test the impact of rates of fertilizer, population, or pesticide on yield. To analyze this data we need to conduct a yield response analysis. Agronomists and or producers that understand yield response and how to use yield response to determine the point of optimum economic return will be able to make better management decisions. The point of optimum economic return is determined by:
1. Conducting a yield response experiment
2. Converting the yield response data to a functional relationship,
outputcorn yield = f(input the plant population)
3. Using calculus to determine where the change in the value of the input equals the change in the value of the output.
In site-specific farming, scientists have found that yield response relationships may change spatially and temporally.

To learn more, read the paper “Using Yield Response Analysis to Calculate an Optimum Plant Population“.

Pre-conference programs will focus on Optimizing Pivot Irrigation Management (9:00 to 4:00) and Social Media Applications in Agriculture (1:00 – 4:00) will be offered the afternoon of January 27.

The conference opens Wednesday evening with Dr. Raj Khoslo, Precision Agriculture Specialists, Colorado State University, discussing Precision Nutrient Management on Site-specific Management Zones, followed by Bill Kranz, Irrigation Specialist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln addressing Monitoring Irrigation Water Application with Computerized Controllers.

Thursday morning opens with international guest and precision agriculture expert, Sam Tengrove, Australian farmer, sharing Adoption of Precision Agriculture by Australian Grain Growers. Additional general sessions offered include Broadband: Who Needs It?, Mapping Evapotranspiration with High Resolution and Internalized Calibration (METRIC), and Global Perspectives of Site-specific Weed Management.

Twelve concurrent sessions addressing a variety of emerging agricultural technology topics will also be offered on Thursday. The concurrent sessions in the Ambassador room will be hands-on workshops. See the conference brochure.

Up to 8 CCA credits are available for conference participants with an additional 6 CCA credits available to those who attend the Optimizing Pivot Irrigation Management pre-conference workshop.

More information is available at http://neata.org.

Matt Darr, Iowa State University

Amidst the talks by management, touting the excitement of this alliance and their complete precision farming product offering, was a presentation by Iowa State University agricultural engineer Matt Darr.

He paralleled the adoption curve of hybrid corn (which took 18 years) to grower adoption of precision farming tools. In 2010, some 18 years since its birth, surveys predict that 50% of U.S. farmers will have adopted some form of precision farming.

“Since 1992, the industry began in the data collection phase, and has evolved into the steering control and variable rate application. And now we’re entering the third phase, which is implement control,” Darr says.

“Precision farming has enhanced productivity, has put the operator back in control, has enabled precision placement, provided cost savings and environmental benefits, has reduced production variability and much more,” he adds.

Favorite quotes. Darr talked of a few favorite quotes heard during University precision ag field days. 1. “Just being able to watch my planter is payback enough to own auto steer.” 2. “Precision guidance along with statewide RTK (CORS network) will finally make strip-till easier to adopt.”

While paybacks vary on given farms and operation styles, Darr outlines his views based on current research…

- Lightbar guidance: 300 acres/year for payback

- Universal auto steer on tractor: 400-500 acres/year

- Integrated auto steering: 900 acres/year

- Auto swath sprayer: 1,800 sprayed acres/year

- Site specific (variable rate) solutions: harder to put numbers on right now

In the future, Darr added that he sees success in real time nutrient control, and a greater push to biorenewables for energy–which will be delivered by precision tools.

“Access to new Case IH agriculture equipment will be a tremendous asset to Pioneer Farm – the precision farming solutions will greatly increase the productivity of our operations,” says Phil Wyse, director of Pioneer Farm. “But more so than that, this partnership advances the mission of Pioneer Farm – to enhance the agricultural education experience for students on campus and for agriculturists throughout the surrounding communities. That’s what we’re really excited about.”

Pioneer Farm, the university’s 430-acre working farm, boasts some of the best soil in southwest Wisconsin. The gently rolling fields, managed with conservation in mind, rotate between corn, oats and alfalfa, and those crops help support the farm’s dairy, beef and swine enterprises. A combination of new Case IH tractors, hay tools, skid steers, tillage implements, a planter and a combine, delivered in early 2010 and each year thereafter, will be used in the farm’s day-to-day operations. The equipment allows students and farm visitors to see the productivity-enhancing benefits of Case IH equipment in real-world applications.

“With the support of Ritchie’s and Case IH, the UWP Pioneer Farm is able to make use of cutting-edge farming technology,” Wyse adds. “We applaud Ritchie Implement and Case IH for this valuable partnership.”

“Students and university researchers will get to see, run, test and learn all about the newest innovations in production agriculture first-hand,” explains Ron Ritchie, president of Ritchie Implement Inc., a Case IH dealer with locations in Barneveld, Cobb and Darlington, Wis. “Our goal is not only to broaden ag students’ educational experience and better prepare them for their farming careers, but also to enhance educational opportunities for active producers locally, regionally and across the state. We’re excited to be part of that important effort.”

As part of the agreement, Case IH product specialists will be available to support classroom instruction and participate in student clinics and shared community activities such as University Field Days with hands-on field demonstrations.

Here are the research projects that the magazine chose:
1. Sahara Forest Project — Greenhouses using seawater and solar power to grow cash crops in the desert.
2. Soil sensors — Research at Iowa State University into wireless soil sensors that may help farmers use water, fertilizer and other inputs more efficiently.
3. Improved rice — Researchers hope to turn this staple crop into a super rice that grows faster in warmer and drier climates by transforming its photosynthesis process.
4. Replace fertilizer — Michigan State researchers attempt to replace/reduce commercial fertilizer use with microbes. They are currently field testing microbial cocktails (Bio-Soil Enhancers) that can simultaneously reduce the need for phosphorous and nitrogen, protect plants against pathogens and boost yields in virtually any type of crop.
5. HarvestChoice — The Gates Foundation is funding data compilation of Africa’s agricultural systems and land use to increase yields to feed the growing continent.
6. Satellite soil moisture — NASA and USDA are working to monitor soil moisture levels around the globe to hopefully improve crop forecasting.
7. Robot labor — The challenge of American specialty crop growers finding human labor is increasing difficult. Current research using robots with a variety of sensors will help machines scan for fungus, growth rate, soil moisture, humidity, light levels and more. But cost of such technology is the current challenge.
8. Rebuilding soil — Scientists hope to turn waste into a charcoal that, when applied to degraded unproductive soil, will attract microorganisms to help plants access nutrients, hold more water and lock in carbon. Companies are working on portable machines to produce biochar on-site.
9. Make supercrops — Research is bioenginering the African staple crop cassava root to turn it into the PowerBar of the vegetable world. They’re attempting to increase protein, add vitamins, increase shelf life, add virus resistance and eliminate cyanide-producing toxins in the root.

Rasmussen has worked with NASA on remote sensing projects, and 10 years ago began a geospatial training program for County Extension agents called “On Target.” In his talk he highlighted the best GPS handheld units, software he uses, some new tools coming and how these technologies are continually evolving and converging. Some of the products he mentioned include:
Archer system by Juniper Systems
StarPal software system
Spot Tracker unit
Favorite website – gpscity.com

Listen to Rasmussen discuss this technology…PhilRasmussen1.mp3

Precision Pays coverage of the InfoAg 2009 Conference is sponsored by: .

Encouraging all farmers, not just the technology adopters, to use precision fertilizer Best Management Practices (BMPs) was the theme of an opening session talk by Clyde Graham, VP of Strategy and Alliances with the Canadian Fertilizer Institute.

Speaking at the bi-annual precision agriculture InfoAg conference in Springfield, Ill., today, Graham cited the importance of a global 4Rs BMP effort with their US counterpart, The Fertilizer Institute, and global science-based organization the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI).

As environmental issues mount and become more personal, the 4Rs—Right source, Right rate, Right time and Right place—can help farmers and the public understand how fertilizer can contribute to sustainability goals for agriculture.

Listen to Graham as he outlines the need to achieve social, economic and environmental goals, and make sure farmers measure their performance to demonstrate an ability to operate without undue regulation.

Listen to part of Clyde’s presentation: clydegrahambmp.mp3

Precision Pays coverage of the InfoAg 2009 Conference is sponsored by: .

With precision agriculture, we try to refine things in order to achieve the goal of maximizing returns,” says Richard Davis, USDA-ARS plant pathologist in Tifton, Ga. “And when we talk about precision agriculture in nematode management, what we really end up talking about is more effective targeting of nematode applications.”

Many of the things growers do for managing nematodes involve making applications over entire fields rather than specific parts of a field, says Davis.

As part of a large project funded in part by Cotton Inc. and the Georgia Cotton Commission, the Precision Farming Team at the University of Georgia has been evaluating a number of techniques for delineating areas within fields at high risk for nematodes.

The fact that root-knot nematodes prefer sandy areas has encouraged researchers to find ways to rapidly measure soil texture — either directly or indirectly — and one of the most promising techniques is to directly measure soil EC. Soil EC is a function of soil texture and soil moisture. Sandy soils produce low soil EC while heavier soils result in higher values of soil EC.

While different instruments have been developed to measure soil EC, one of the most popular is the Veris 3100. This instrument has six coulter-electrodes (disks) mounted on a toolbar. As the Veris is pulled through the field, one pair of disks transmits an electrical current into the soil while another pair of disks measures the drop in voltage. The separation between the disks determines the depth to which soil EC can be measured. In the most commonly used configuration, soil EC is measured simultaneously from 0 to 1 foot (shallow) and 0 to 3 feet (deep).

In addition to directly measuring soil EC, there are other promising methods for indirectly measuring soil texture. These include using real time kinematic (RTK) GPS to rapidly create detailed topographic maps of fields. Elevation and slope of the terrain frequently dictate where coarse textured soil particles are deposited by erosion.

For anyone interested in this growing job field, check out Oklahoma State University’s Institute of Technology, which offers a two-year Associate in Applied Science degree in Precision Agriculture Technology.

Graduates from the new program will be prepared for a higher level of agriculture, in which most new jobs require skills in GIS, GPS, and remote sensing in addition to the familiar disciplines of agronomy, plant science, and agri-business.

OSU Institute of Technology students will be learning to use GPS and GIS technologies to provide detailed information to farmers on their crop’s health status, irrigation and fertilizer need, plus warn of attacks by insects or weeds.

OSU Institute of Technology’s program is designed to meet the needs of two types of students: those who want to earn an associate’s degree in agriculture with high employment potential; or those who want to complete their first two years of an agriculture degree, then transfer to OSU’s Stillwater campus to earn their bachelor’s degree.

To learn more about this program, check out the information guide.

Last year, more than 770 growers, crop consultants and industry representatives from Ohio and surrounding states found big benefits from attending a wide variety of presentations at this conference. This year’s annual meeting is scheduled for February 25, 26 and 27 in Ada, OH at the McIntosh Center of Ohio Northern University.

Precision topics include yield maps to save fertilizer and maximize yields, auto-steering and GPS, variable-rate application for sprayers and planters, site-specific sampling benefits, RTK networks and the costs/benefits of adopting precision technology.

Other topics on the program range from cover crops, grain marketing and weather to scouting, nutrient management, soil and water issues, and much more–including a trader show. And you can check out last year’s presentations online, too.

This fruit tree sprayer, fitted with sensors to determine location and height of trees, is part of a $3.9 million USDA-funded project at Cornell–in collaboration with the National Robotics Engineering Center at Carnegie Mellon University. The objective is to develop, test and evaluate a fleet of autonomous tractors designed for precision agriculture applications–and John Deere is delivering four tractors for testing at Southern Gardens Citrus in Florida.

Goals for the project include developing tree-level precision agriculture applications that leverage, at very low cost, autonomous mobile platforms and supporting infrastructure; reducing the cost for wide-scale adoption; and soliciting feedback from growers, regulators and technology suppliers. The researchers will also study such questions as how disease detection, yield estimation and precision spraying can be most effectively deployed from the mobile platform; how many platforms one operator can safely monitor and what the installation, setup and support issues are associated with the system.

Stay turned to Precision Pays as we explore more robotics work, being undertaken at John Deere, with an eye toward the future of automation.

For example, here is one recent Q&A…

QUESTION: If the GPS gives a position only at the antenna, how does a spray nozzle thirty feet away on the end of a boom know to turn on or off?

ANSWER: It is correct that the GPS receiver can only provide the location of the antenna to the control system for the sprayer. However, the software responsible for turning the spray nozzle on and off can be calibrated based on the location of the nozzle relative to the location of the GPS antenna. Once the relative location of the spray nozzle is known, the software automatically converts the GPS signal into the position of the nozzle, allowing for on/off decisions to be made accurately.

Cool. So take a moment to fire off some good precision technology questions and see if you can stump the experts! Or at least learn valuable information that can help make precision pay on your farm.

The information below is derived from teaching material created by Dr. George Vellidis for APTC 3030 – Principles of Precision Agriculture, a course he teaches at the University of Georgia, and from teaching material developed by Dr. Hermann Auernhammer for precision agriculture courses he teaches at the Technische Universität München.

The projects were funded this fall through the USDA’s new Specialty Crop Research Initiative. The Comprehensive Automation for Specialty Crops (CASC) Program, led by Sanjiv Singh, research professor of robotics, received a four-year, $6 million grant to develop systems for the apple industry. The Integrated Automation for Sustainable Specialty Crop Farming Project, led by Tony Stentz and Herman Herman of the Robotics Institute’s National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC), received a three-year, $4 million grant to develop systems for the citrus industry. Both project grants will be matched dollar for dollar by industry, state governments and other funding sources.

“We are taking automation to a level never before demonstrated in an agricultural setting,” said Herman of the NREC project. “This will provide an early look at how the automated farm may someday operate and promises to deliver insights and lessons far beyond what should be expected from small demonstrations of autonomous scouts.”

“Mobile sensors and computer tracking will enable growers to monitor their orchards in unprecedented detail,” said Singh. “Growers will receive early warning of diseases and insect infestations, as well as continuous updates on crop status. With this information, growers can make timely decisions that will save them money and improve the quality of their crop.”

MYTH 3: Precision farming will not pay for itself

First of all, Khosla points out that “precision farming is not just the addition of new technologies, but is rather an information revolution, made possible by new technologies that result in a higher, more precise farm management system. To this end, precision farming can be applied at with any level of technology and at any field scale.”

Producers that have used precision farming for several years have paid for the initial equipment investment through increased farm profitability and productivity. How long it takes to pay for itself will depend entirely upon how much capital was initially invested and the type and scale of the farming operation.

A recent study from Colorado State University indicated that precision farming practices can result in as much as $71 more return per acre when compared to traditional farming practices. In their study, the researchers used a method of varying N fertilizer that is based on black-and-white aerial photographs combined with the farmer’s past management experience. Other than the time required to obtain a black-and-white aerial photograph (aerial photos are free-of-charge from the Farm Service Agency or the NRCS District Conservationist) and for the farmer to identify the areas on the photograph that were high and low yielding, very little time and money was required to create a prescription nutrient map. Hence, precision farming can and does pay for itself. Like any technological tool, one needs to assess which particular tool or technique would bring about the most benefit. Again, this depends on the type and scale of the operation. A “one-size-fits-all” approach does not fit in with precision farming.

Read all of Khosla’s article “Myths of Precision Farming” here.