The report heralds that agriculture is “On the Doorstep of the Information Age” – using mostly information from 2005-06. According to the report, “recent data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS) show that use of yield monitors, often a first step in using precision technology for grain crop producers, has grown most rapidly, and was used on 40-45 percent of corn and soybean acres in 2005-06.”

The information for the study relies primarily on 2001 and 2005 surveys of corn, 2002 and 2006 surveys of soybeans, and 2004 and 2009 surveys of winter wheat – “the 2010 corn survey results were not yet available when this report was prepared” – which was this year. While there is some interesting data in the report, it is woefully out of date. Just think, if the survey had included questions about the use of smartphones on the farm, it would have been zero, since it was January 2007 before the first iPhone was introduced – and we’re now on the fifth generation. Point being, the adoption of all types of new technology has literally skyrocketed in the last five years.

Be that as it may, the most interesting findings in the report show that precision really does pay for farmers. For example, they found that corn and soybean yields were significantly higher for farmers using yield monitors compared to those who did not. In addition, farmers using yield monitors had lower per-acre fuel expenses. Average fuel expenses were lower, per acre, for farmers using variable-rate technologies for corn and soybean fertilizer application, as were soybean fuel expenses for guidance systems adopters and adopters of GPS mapping and variable-rate fertilizer equipment had higher yields for both corn and soybeans.

With all this new technology, you would think that USDA could find a way to gather, compile and disseminate information a little bit faster.

FIT Studio, an addition to current Pioneer services – FIT Field Planner, FIT As-Planted Maps and FIT Mapping at Harvest – offers powerful new, map-based functionality, including historical and multiyear yield analysis tools, as well as more advanced features, such as variable rate seeding functionality.

Pioneer has worked with Mapshots, a software development company that specializes in crop management applications for agriculture, to develop the features of FIT Studio.

To learn more about Pioneer FIT services, visit www.pioneer.com and click on Programs and Services.

Bruce Crapo, a grower of 6,000 acres of commercial potatoes and 2,000 acres of seed potatoes in Idaho, is a good example of how the average potato farmer looks at precision agriculture – he uses technology to reduce costs, increase output and improve profits.

Crapo isn’t thrilled at the cost of high-tech equipment such as GPS-guided tractors, but he knows it’s saving him money and there’s no way he can turn back now.

“There is a substantial initial cost involved,” Crapo said. “But I also know it is saving me money. What do you do? Go back to what you were doing before? That’s not an option.”

Crapo, who uses Global Positioning System (GPS) technology on all his planters and harvesters, said the latest precision ag technology has taken farming to a different level.

“It’s light years ahead of what it was when we were doing it by hand,” he said. “We’re not going to go back to not using it, but we are wincing a little at the cost.”

Precision agriculture can loosely be defined as using new technologies such as GPS, sensors, variable rate application equipment and aerial or satellite images to make farming easier and more profitable.

Simply put, precision agriculture can help farmers improve their margins by decreasing their operating costs.

Idaho farmer Robert Blair, owner of PineCreek Precision, says the biggest benefit of precision farming is that it gives producers the ability to manage their farm on a production zone basis rather than a whole field basis. This shift, he said, allows farmers to save time and money and helps them offset the rising cost of chemicals, nutrients, fuel and fertilizer.

Blair uses a wide array of precision agriculture techniques on his 1,500-acre farm and said the technology is saving him tens of thousands of dollars every year.

Read on to learn more…

Field trials conducted from 2006 to 2010 tabulated information gathered by global positioning systems and variable rate technology, including the electrical conductivity-based Veris 3100 and EM38 sensors for on-the-go soil mapping, plus harvest yield mapping data.

This technology illustrates that nematicide applications can be applied sparingly in some cases while maintaining good nematode control and trimming chemical costs.

The grower cooperator field trials included six studies with the nematicide Telone II applied at pre-plant in cotton and corn in central and southwestern Arizona conducted by University of Arizona (UA) researchers Randy Norton, Tim Hatch, Mike McClure, and Pedro Andrade.

Norton, UA regional extension cotton specialist based in Safford, shared the findings during the 71^st annual Cotton Disease Council meeting at the 2011 Beltwide Cotton Conferences in Atlanta, Ga., in January.

Norton labeled the RKN as the No. 1 nematode species threat in Arizona. The microscopic roundworm damages crops by attacking the young tap and secondary roots which stimulates the production of galls. Galls interfere with the ability of the roots to absorb water and nutrients, and allow other disease-producing organisms to enter the plant.

Arizona hotspots for RKNs include the Coolidge, Casa Grande, Florence, and Buckeye areas in central Arizona and the Bonita area in the Sulphur Springs Valley in southeastern Arizona.

In cotton, the RKN is responsible for a 5 percent lint yield reduction on average across the Cotton Belt, Norton says. Five gallons is the standard Telone II application rate in Arizona to maintain cotton yields in RKN-infected fields.

Read on to learn more…

To learn more about how OptRx worked, I spent some time with Mike Olson, North American Sales Manager for Ag Leader, during the show. He said releasing this crop sensor was the next logical step for them because there is a huge demand in both North America as well as globally for nitrogen for wheat.

Applying the right amount of nitrogen at the right time is very important for wheat so you don’t have issues like lodging, and you get better crop stand. “So if we can monitor crop health as you go through the field and apply nitrogen based on it, we can use nitrogen more wisely across the field and give you a better overall stand,” explained Olson.

Last year, Ag Leader released OptRx crop sensor for corn. Olson said that in the past two years, the Midwest has seen very wet springs and crop variability has been very, very high. This has caused a lot of nitrogen leeching. Growers who used OptRx last year, on average, saw a $25 per acre improvement over not having the crop sensor and using a flat rate application.

Since real-time variable rate nitrogen applications in the field, such as OptRx are pretty new technologies, I asked Olson what the three most common questions were from growers, He said, “What’s the technology? What equipment do I need? and What are the benefits?” You can get detailed answers to these questions in the video below.

The 2011 season is fast approaching so now is the time to purchase your technology. Olson said that both the OptRx crop sensor for wheat and corn are now available and the has team members standing by to give growers the 411 on the technologies. In addition, his team members can help them get set up and ready to go so when the window of opportunity is available to apply nitrogen, they’re ready to go.

For more information on OptRx for wheat and corn, visit www.agleader.com.

Miss the show? Check it out in our Iowa Power Farming Show flickr photo album.

Precision Pays coverage of the Iowa Power Farming Show is sponsored by: .

Today, Ag Leader Technology, Inc., a leader in the development of precision farming solutions, announced the release of the North American Wheat algorithm for OptRx, a crop sensor used for mapping, data collection and real-time variable rate nitrogen application. OptRx crop sensors determine a vegetative index reference value based on a plant with sufficient nitrogen and prescribe nitrogen rates based on plants’ crop vigor, taking into account field variability and crop conditions.

“Using OptRx for nitrogen application in wheat can help prevent yield loss commonly due to overapplication, especially in early growth stages,” says Roger Zielke, Product Manager. “Another major factor that OptRx can help account for is the variability in organic matter within fields. Variable rate nitrogen application with OptRx can compensate for these differences in organic matter, and our field trials have shown that it will help maximize profit potential by delivering the right amount of nitrogen to the right plant.”

OptRx can help improve nitrogen efficiency by scanning and measuring the impact of growing conditions on a plant, ultimately helping growers improve environmental stewardship and maximize profit potential. Nitrogen application on wheat can occur anytime between tillering and stem elongation, and any top-dress applicator can be used with OptRx for nitrogen application. Because OptRx uses a light-sensing technology that is not dependent on ambient light, OptRx can be used to apply nitrogen, whenever optimum conditions are available day or night. OptRx crop sensors are also available for nitrogen application in corn.

Ropp, of Van Wert, Ohio, decided to get into GPS work after retiring from the county extension service in the early 1990s. “I started grid soil sampling fields for the local elevator, and using the simple software we had back then,” he says. “As the years went on, seeing huge changes in software, I was unsure I would find the capabilities I needed, until I found Ag Leader’s SMS software about six or seven years ago.”

Not only did Ropp become a fan, he actually built a good consulting business by selling and training growers and retailers on using SMS Advanced, Basic and Mobile software. “I’ve probably sold 50 to 60 copies of the software, and some mobile devices and other equipment, too.”

Ropp takes great pride in helping his clients, often spending a half-day or more with software set up and initial training. “I want to make sure it is set up right, and that the customer is happy,” he says. Now he holds about 4 or 5 training session during winter to keep his customers updated and answer questions.

“More farmers and retailers are getting into variable-rate fertilizer applications and want a software that can handle the necessary equations and building prescription maps. SMS is really easy to use for such operations, and it is really driving software buying” he adds.

Other popular tasks that Ropp is training customers to do are adding layers of soil test data as well as adding soil type maps from NRCS. “I’ve actually created ‘cheat sheets’ on many of these topics, so I don’t have to repeat myself so often,” he laughs.

What’s next? “Well a vacation right now,” he says. But seriously, he sees growing interest in farmers thinking about adding aerial imagery to their field data layers. “I suspect in another year this will greatly increase in popularity.”

His clients greatly value his training expertise on SMS software. “Well, they must, because they keep calling me for advice,” he chuckles. “And I really appreciate the service I get from the software support team at Ag Leader, as even I get stuck every now and then. They are really helpful.”

Visit these links for more information:

SMS Basic http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-basic/

SMS Advanced http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-advanced/

SMS Mobile http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-mobile/

Ag Leader dealer locator http://www.agleader.com/dealer-search/

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.

This agreement creates an alignment of Valley Irrigation dealers with the latest in agronomic technology to provide growers true precision irrigation with center pivots. Valley Irrigation with VRI Zone Control, and CropMetrics with automated agronomic VRI prescription services, are also proud to announce their AE50 awards for 2011 as a top 50 innovative new product produced in 2010.

“Precision Irrigation starts with building a precise water management plan,” said Craig Malsam, Valmont Irrigation Vice President of Engineering. “Applying the optimum level of water and nutrients through a center pivot is more important than ever. We’re excited to be the first in our industry to supply a whole new dimension of precision irrigation through our agreement with CropMetrics and their optimization service available through our Valley dealers.”

“As our single most valuable natural resource, applying excess water is an unnecessary cost. Apply too little water, and yield potential is now lost as well. Our solution is to optimally apply water specific to soil type,” said Nick Emanuel, CropMetrics President. “We’re excited to work with Valley dealers and offer Valley customers the ability to take Precision Agriculture to the next level with our unique precision agronomic solutions and data services.”

CropMetrics specializes in full-service data collection, processing, and advanced yield analysis. The company supplies all proprietary web-based software and large-scale data processing so agronomists, crop consultants, ag retailers and Precision Ag specialists can focus on providing fast, reliable and profitable Precision Ag programs for variable rate irrigation, nitrogen and seeding.

Valley Irrigation VRI Zone Control provides individual sprinkler or span control and is fully compatible with all new and existing center pivots equipped with the Valley Irrigation Pro2 control panel. The Pro2 panel uses power line communication to remotely manage as many as 30 VRI Zone Control units. This allows each individual control unit to be easily positioned at any point along the pivot span. Because the new VRI Zone Control utilizes the on-board computing power of the Valley Irrigation Pro2 panel in combination with power line communication, the added VRI equipment cost is very reasonable.

“We believe that combining Valley Irrigation control technology with CropMetrics precision services is the future of mechanized irrigation,” said Malsam. “Producers with pivot irrigation have always been able to control how much water is applied to a field. But this technology allows producers to control how much water, fertilizer and other crop management products are variably applied based on precise agronomic data.”

The AE50 awards will be announced during a presentation at the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference (AETC) in Atlanta, Ga. on January 6 as part of the AG CONNECT Expo. Representatives from CropMetrics and Valley Irrigation will be available to demonstrate the new VRI technology in the Valley Irrigation booth at AG CONNECT.

“We’ve said for a few years now that ‘accuracy is addictive.’ Well farmers are proving that as this has been a year driven by higher precision—a move to more RTK accuracy.”

The big deal. Darr cited the widespread nature of expanding RTK networks, both public and privately owned. “These networks are pushing us towards RTK becoming a standard commodity, which will help drive down the costs and give more growers the potential to achieve high-end accuracy. And that is a big deal.”

The CORS network has had a strong run over the past three years. Indiana is now online as the most recent, along with CORS networks in Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Missouri. “I see this growth slowing down, but we’ll continue to see greater stabilization and improvement in the signals,” Darr says.

In the private sector, we’re seeing greater expansion from Trimble’s VRS network and from John Deere’s StarFire 450 MHz radio system, as well as other smaller companies building systems across the Midwest.

Crop sensing. Another big push is on to figure out how to use active crop sensing to provide financial benefit. “With the addition of Ag Leader’s OptRx system, along with the Greenseeker from Trimble and CropSpec from Topcon, growers have the potential to unlock another area of profitability. It’s not as simple as auto guidance, and it may not work for everyone,” Darr says.

This technology offers a natural fit in wheat, since growers are used to topdressing in the spring. “Anytime you can automate N applications, you’re looking at both economic and environmental benefits. A reduction in the over-application of N is a big deal,” Darr says.

“The challenge for Midwest corn growers is that not every producer uses sidedressed N when corn is 12 to 18 inches tall, which is where this technology needs to be used. So you’re asking growers to change production practices as well as adopt new technology, so these challenges will slow adoption. But it offers huge potential,” he adds.

The future. “If you look back 4 or 5 years, and think about the automation technology that has come out—from auto swath to auto steer—all the easy things, relatively speaking, have been automated. Future automation gets tougher. We now need to circle back to data and press that information into greater knowledge. That’s what we’re after. We must gain knowledge from all this data to improve our operations,” he says.

GPS World offers a look at their top five events in GPS/GNSS for 2010, so check it out, too. http://www.gpsworld.com/survey/top-5-events-gpsgnss-2010-a-year-end-review-10854

Visit these links for more information.

CORS Network
http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/CORS/GoogleMap/CORS.shtml

Learn How CORS Network Can Fit Precision Farming
http://precisionpays.com/2010/01/learn-how-cors-network-can-fit-precision-farming/

Lessons in Differential Correction
http://www.agleader.com/2010/07/02/lessons-in-precision-ag-differential-correction-part-2/

RTK Network Options
http://farmindustrynews.com/precision-guidance/rtk-network-options

Ag Leader dealer locator
http://www.agleader.com/dealer-search/

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.

Fertilizer production costs will be substantially higher in 2011 than they’ve been for the past couple of years. When you look at the numbers, remember that commodity prices also have increased significantly.

If you are a shrewd marketer, you have taken advantage of crop pricing opportunities that will help offset the higher production costs. You may still be able to find a few holiday bargains for pre-paid fertilizer, however, most of the good deals ended in November. Following these tips can help you achieve a profitable fertilizer program for 2011

10 Tips for Getting the Most from Your Fertilizer Investment

• Follow a good soil testing program to know macro and micronutrient levels.
• Use the most efficient methods to apply phosphorus (starter or strip-till application) and timing options/methods/sources for nitrogen.
• Take deep soil samples for residual nitrate to fine-tune N rates.
• Set realistic yield goals. Expected yield is the major factor in determining the nitrogen rate for corn. Use a proven five-year average corn yield plus 5% (to account for hybrid and management improvements).
• Credit N from previous crop residue or legume crops. Soil tests will not show legume or crop residue credits as the residue or nodules must break down during the growing season. Credit N for corn after soybean, sugar beet, alfalfa, and dry beans.
• Value and use manure sources properly. Manure is an excellent nutrient source for nitrogen, phosphorus, and micronutrients.
• Not all fertilizer recommendations are the same. UNL fertilizer recommendations may seem conservative compared to some commercial labs. UNL suggestions are based on research and on-farm verification. They are generally the most economical rates, even for high yield situations.
• Consider replicated strip trials to determine the effect of lower or higher rates on yield. Fine-tuning fertilizer use needs to be an on-going process.
• Comparison shop. Look at different products and do your “fertilizer arithmetic” to compare the actual cost per pound of nutrients.
• Work with a reputable dealer who can provide quality product, price assurances, timely delivery, and well-maintained equipment. Remember, service after the sale is also important.

Gary Hergert, Extension Soils Specialist
Panhandle REC, Scottsbluff

See more recommendations for surviving high input costs.

The umbrella of real-time kinematic (RTK) correction signals that covers much of the Corn Belt will be larger and more robust by the time the 2011 planting season rolls around. As a result, growers in many geographies will have multiple correction signal options for driving RTK navigation systems.

Going into 2010, most of the heart of the Corn Belt was covered by either radio or cellular systems, or both. But there were coverage gaps. By 2011, a coverage gap in Illinois will have been plugged, and coverage in Ohio, Indiana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri and other states will have been beefed up.

The improved coverage is a result of build-outs of both traditional radio-based systems and newer cellular delivery systems, which distribute RTK corrections via the Internet through cellular communications networks. Unlike in recent years, when additions to the cellular delivery system were dominated by new and expanding state department of transportation (DOT) systems, this season’s new cellular entries are systems dedicated to agricultural users.

Read on…

Such was the case with central Nebraska farmer Kurt Kroeger. Now Kroeger is a fairly advanced precision ag aficionado, playing with many things on his 1,250 acres. He’s a big fan of Ag Leader because the tools work well with all colors of equipment that he owns. And he’s become a whiz at SMS Advanced software to write his own variable-rate (VR) seeding and fertility prescription maps.

Another technology that has intrigued him since the late 1990s is the nitrogen crop sensor. “I followed the GreenSeeker sensor since it came out. Then I watched the Holland sensor become Ag Leader’s OptRx technology—and became one of the first to buy them.”

So, this past spring he mapped out a good test in a couple fields under pivots. “In one section of the corn field I applied a high rate (44 lbs./acre) of 32 percent nitrogen plus thiazole as a high yield check. In the second section I applied 32 percent based on the OptRx sensor, and in the third section I applied the nitrogen according to my fertilizer supplier’s best VR map based on soil type and fertility,” Kroeger says.

Then, that unplanned ‘fluke test’ happened, as he calls it. “The coolest thing in the world happened. When the corn was a foot tall, my mini-corner pivot got stuck all night and watered one spot heavily. As you can imagine, in another couple weeks when I applied the fertilizer, I had a nice and visible section shaped like a Nike swoosh mark in the field where all the nitrogen had leached away,” he says.

The OptRx sensors recognized the deficient plants in his ‘swoosh’ area and applied 50 to 56 gal., which was quite a bit higher than the whole field average of 34 gal. And compared to the 36 gal. on the retailer VR section, the OptRx not only saved 2 gal. it produced more yield too. These results not only sold Kroeger on the OptRx technology, but it changed his whole point of view on fertility in his sandier soils.

“The OptRx produced more uniform and higher yields, based on a philosophy of feeding all plants that need more fertility, which is different then the soil map VR philosophy that feeds the good areas and starves the poor areas of a field. It makes the whole field more uniform. I want every acre to pay for itself.”

Needless to say, Kroeger is sold on using the OptRx on all his corn next year. “If I had achieved the same results across my whole farm as I did in the plots, the system would have paid for itself this year alone,” he adds.

His next learning challenge…figuring out a way to use it on his sprayer to apply N using drop nozzles.

Visit these links for more information.

The OptRx Crop Sensor
http://www.agleader.com/products/directcommand/optrx/

Blog posts on OptRx technology
http://www.agleader.com/category/optrx/

SMS Advanced software
http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-advanced/

Ag Leader dealer locator
http://www.agleader.com/dealer-search/

Check it out. And pass the link along to your town and urban friends.

They listed:
- Raven Sling Shot system
- Connected Farm concept
- GSI Binspector
- Grain entrapment rescue tubes
- Votivo nematicide seed treatment
- SmartStax corn
- Agrisure Viptera trait
- Surveillance sunglasses
- Vertical till revolution
- Kixor herbicide technology

Read on to learn why.

In the piece he writes… “But, for the foreseeable future, technology will be the key to boosting yields and avoiding billions of acres of forests and grasslands morphing into farmland.

Having said that, I’d add that improving yields isn’t the only contribution agriculture should make to the environment. The dictator also wants to maximize soil health and minimize runoff and input use.

Can technology-driven non-organic agriculture do that? There are reasons for hope. GPS, GIS and other tools of precision agriculture enable farmers to use only what’s absolutely needed in the way of seeds, fertilizers, chemicals and fuels. And the high price of inputs motivates farmers to realize precision agriculture’s potential.”

Read the rest of the piece here.

“We talk to each producer that we work with, and they are the ones telling us that they sure use less chemicals on a field than they used to because of the (precision farming) technology they have,” he said. “I think from those discussions, most are figuring they are saving between 5 to 10 percent on a field with GPS technology.”

Metzger likes to mention the story of a farmer who has been enrolled in the Farm Business Management Program for several years. When ordering herbicide for his total crop acreage he always added five percent to what he had figured and ended up using the entire amount each year. However, the year he added a sprayer with GPS and boom control to his operation he took the entire extra five percent that he always ordered back to the chemical dealer because he didn’t need it.

With the average chemical cost for wheat today at $31.23 per acre, Metzger said there is the potential for great savings.

“If you start looking at saving $2 to $3 an acre on chemical on a couple thousand acres of wheat, it doesn’t take very long before the savings can add up to $5-, $10- or $20,000 on an average farm,” he said.

“And as the costs increase, there is even more of a desire to save all the time,” he continued. “If we didn’t have the GPS units we might still be over-applying by going around sloughs twice, doing the headlands twice – those types of things. But with the GPS and the automatic shutoff, those areas of over-application are taken care of.”

And the savings doesn’t end with chemicals. The five major costs associated with crop production–chemicals, fuel, repairs, seed and fertilizer–can all be trimmed back. Read on for more details.

This new functionality enables control of up to three channels of granular product or a combination of one channel of seed and two channels of granular product. The new Air Cart support provides the benefits of SeedCommand and DirectCommand to broad-acre seeding.

“Support for air carts for seeding and fertilizer application is something our growers have requested, and Ag Leader now provides a valuable precision farming tool for broad-acre operations,” says John Howard, Product Manager. “The calibration enhancements, meter prime feature and support for meter circuit clutches provide benefits such as AutoSwath, data logging and mapping and variable-rate seeding or fertilizer application for these operations.”

Additional features of the air cart support include tables for referencing stored meter calibration values to reduce the chance of error; variable rate control by product for more efficient use of inputs; support for bin level and fan speed sensors; and an automatic meter shut off option if fan speed falls below a minimum setting. The air cart support is available with Ag Leader’s INTEGRA display.

To that end, I spoke today with John McGuire, owner and tech guru of Simplified Technology Services in Montpelier, Oh., who is helping growers in northwest Ohio figure out their fields with the help of powerful Ag Leader SMS Advanced software. McGuire works with growers on ways to optimize yield data collection, build management zones, conduct field research and help turn all that data into profitable management decisions.

“The first issue we help growers with is obtaining quality yield data with tools I developed to make yield monitor calibration easier. Once we have the data, then we sit down with growers and review each field with a LCD projector on a white board so the farmer can circle suspect areas of fields,” McGuire says.

He then takes all that information to set up management zones based on patterns they see in the fields then develop soil sampling plans from that. And as farmers obtain more data—such as Veris soil electrical conductivity, elevation data, planting data, product application data—he relies on the computing and analysis power of SMS Advanced software to layer all this data with yield and management zones.

“SMS allows us to look at many different comparisons, even point-by-point in a field, in order to look at many ‘what if’ scenarios to help figure out different approaches to try to solve problems areas of fields,” McGuire says. “And no matter what type of precision farming equipment a farmer uses, we can handle many data formats with SMS.”

Once farmers get comfortable with understanding what the software and data comparisons can do, then some will take it a step further and want to build strip trials into fields in order to make better management decisions. “We have a handful of growers who are conducting strip trials to compare hybrids and varieties, fungicides, seed treatments, nitrogen, P & K, seed populations and more. And as we add these data layers of results, the analysis tools in SMS Advanced really help growers make management decisions that save money and add profits,” he says.

“I’ve been working with SMS for almost ten years. I’m impressed with how much time Ag Leader spends polishing and continuing to tweak this already powerful software, constantly listening to users and providing superior analysis tools. It doesn’t get any better than SMS, as far as I can tell,” McGuire adds.

When not immersed in dealing with data, McGuire also works as a sales and service guy for Nester Ag Management, a precision agriculture equipment sales company.

Visit these links for more information.

SMS Advanced http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-advanced/

SMS Basic http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-basic/

Nester Ag http://www.nesterag.com/

Previous story on SMS and in-field scouting
http://precisionpays.com/2010/06/how-software-helps-in-season-scouting-and-management-zones/

Producers were impressed with the concept, but found current manure application technology fell short of the challenge. The potential agronomic/economic benefit would be increased yields in more productive areas of the field by applying more nutrients to these areas and, therefore, decreasing the environmental risk of nutrient leaching to bodies of water.

In the study, manure was applied using the drag hose application method. Application rates were varied based on global position satellite field maps indicating different nutrient requirements for different parts of the fields. Satellite imagery identified zones using different light bands to create a vegetative index of better growing parts of the field. The zones were then individually soil tested to determine the reasons for the variability across zones and establish the optimal nutrient application rate.

Project leader Scott Dick with Agra-Gold Consulting, Ltd. says an increasing number of producers are adopting VR application with commercial fertilizer to tailor application rates to the varying nutrient requirements on different sections of a field. That technique can produce better nutrient utilization by the crop, higher yields, lower costs and reduced environmental risk of excess nutrients contaminating water supplies.

While adapting variable-rate techniques to manure application would seem to have good potential, there still needs to be some refinement in the application of the technology, he says.

“Producers accepted the methodology used in creating the different management zones, but they weren’t ready to embrace this precision approach yet,” Dick reports.

Read why they came to that conclusion…

That is exactly the challenge that John Gullidge and their 20 soil sample gathering crews faced—staring at those tiny screens as each four-wheeler maneuvers over 800 to 1,200 acres a day in the fall. “The rugged military-grade laptops like the Toughbook are much easier to see, we were just looking for a new mobile-type software to try that worked beyond the handheld,” he says.

Gullidge is computer systems manager for KSI Labs in Shelbyville, Ill., one of the largest volume soil sample labs in the U.S. “Since our technology need has outgrown our current hardware/software use, I asked Ag Leader in August 2009 at the Farm Progress Show if they could make their SMS Mobile work on a laptop. And sure enough, this fall we’ve got a crew using the SMS Mobile PC software.”

So far, he likes what he sees with the program. “We can see everything on a large screen; we no longer have to start sampling in the corner of a field; the GPS will automatically access a grower’s farm and field selection that is already loaded; we can easily import shape files from other software applications we get from dealers; we can add changes to fields at any time; it will count how many acres we have covered; we can stagger grid patterns, and much more,” Gullidge says.

Gullidge says so far he uses only the soil sampling capabilities of the SMS Mobile PC software. “I use other software too, but have been very impressed with Ag Leader as a company. Not only is their technical support very good, but they are very open and responsive to ideas and they move quickly with improvements, unlike some companies,” he adds.

Visit these links for more information.

SMS Mobile PC http://www.agleader.com/products/sms-mobile/

Video on SMS Mobile PC http://www.agleader.com/2010/07/19/sms-mobile-pc/

KSI Laboratories http://ksilab.com/

Toughbook Computers http://www.panasonic.com/business/toughbook/why-toughbook-reviews.asp?cm_mmc=PCSC_Toughbook-_-HomepagePromos-_-PageBottom-_-ToughbookReviews

PepsiCo announced plans to roll-out its new i-crop farming technology on a global basis. The web-based tool, which was developed by PepsiCo in conjunction with Cambridge University, United Kingdom, is a crop management system that will enable PepsiCo’s farmers around the world to monitor, manage and reduce their water use and carbon emissions, while also maximizing potential yield and quality.

Trials of i-crop are currently underway at 22 farms in the U.K., where PepsiCo yesterday announced ambitious plans to reduce carbon emissions and water usage by 50 percent across the farming of its core crops in the next five years.

The technology will be rolled-out in Europe in 2011. The company hopes to take it to India, China, Mexico and Australia by 2012.

As one of the world’s largest food and beverage businesses, with brands including Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo is a major investor in global farming. In 2010, the company announced 15 global goals and commitments to guide its work to protect the Earth’s natural resources through innovation and more efficient use of land, energy, water and packaging.

In the U.K., the company is the largest purchaser of British potatoes and one of the largest purchasers of British oats and apples, using 100 percent British produce in Walkers crisps, Copella English Apple juice, Quaker Oats, Oatso Simple and Scott’s porage.

Richard Evans, President of PepsiCo U.K. and Ireland said, “Farming is in the DNA of our business – we rely on fresh produce every day. Finding ways to produce more food with less environmental impact is essential to our future.” He added, “i-crop has the potential to revolutionize the way we farm, enabling our farmers to save costs and water and carbon consumption, while at the same time improving their yields. I am immensely proud of this innovation which I hope will also benefit PepsiCo farmers around the world.”

In its first Sustainable Farming Report published yesterday, PepsiCo U.K. outlined how it is working in partnership with its 350 British farmers to reach its aim of ’50 in 5′. Other initiatives announced include trials of new low-carbon fertilizers and plans to replace more than 75 percent of PepsiCo U.K.’s current potato stock with varieties that will significantly improve farmers’ yields and decrease wastage by 2015. A full copy of the report is available for download at www.pepsico.co.uk/farming.

Commenting on the PepsiCo U.K. sustainable farming report, Richard Perkins, Senior Commodities Adviser at WWF said, “The food industry is starting to recognize that in order to fully embed sustainability and biodiversity in its business practices, a large part of the focus must be on the agricultural supply chain. In this respect PepsiCo U.K. has taken a leadership role in recognizing that it is, at its heart, an agricultural business. The focus of the business on improving its key environmental impacts, such as greenhouse gas emissions – in the field and on the farm – is most welcome.”

For further information about i-crop visit: www.i-crop.com

i-crop will be rolled-out to the following markets in 2011:

Holland
France
Germany
Belgium
Spain
Portugal
Turkey

The TalkingFields initiative is now showing how to combine satellite observation with satellite navigation to benefit European farmers.
Sustainable food production and food security are critical challenges. TalkingFields will help by using precision farming methods to produce crops more efficiently. For instance, by optimising farmers’ use of fertiliser and giving early warning of plant disease risks, both costs and environmental impacts can be reduced.

“There are existing services variously employing Earth observation data, satellite navigation, farm management software and crop growth models, but TalkingFields is the first to combine them all,” said ESA’s Tony Sephton.

“We’re setting up an end-to-end service that is simple to use and sufficiently cost-effective to be self-sustaining.”

How does it work? The farmer requests the service for an area defined using satnav. Satellites gather information on the land’s potential – observations over several years can reveal variations in crop growth through soil changes – as well as current crop status.

These results are combined with information from field sensors such as weather conditions and soil moisture. The farmer adds in his own knowledge, and in return receives detailed satnav instructions on where and how much fertiliser to spray, for example.

A variety of satellites can be employed, although priority will be given to free data sources such as Landsat and ESA’s forthcoming Sentinel-2 satellites, due for launch in 2012.

“Ideally, we might have weekly satellite acquisitions, but cloud cover makes that unfeasible,” explained Dr Sephton.

“Instead, we need only two to four satellite images per growing season, which are fed into a sophisticated crop growth model.

“With TalkingFields the emphasis is on service: we’re not giving raw satellite data straight to farmers. Instead, we advise them directly on actions to be taken throughout the growing season.”

Read more

Just in time to begin soil sampling in preparation for the 2011 growing season, FieldRx is bringing crop consultants and agricultural dealers a more user-friendly program for writing custom fertilizer prescriptions. Designed by ag professionals for ag professionals, FieldRx was created to eliminate the frustrations with existing precision ag software programs while providing concise grower reports and smaller controller files.

“We’re really excited about bringing FieldRx to market because of the solutions and time-savings it’s going to bring to crop consultants and dealers,” said David Krueger of Ag Software Designs. “FieldRx will streamline the process for using VRT data and making custom recommendations to growers.

A highlight of the FieldRx engine is the ease of uploading field borders and sample points. In addition, lab results can be imported directly into FieldRx from some labs without the user having to manually obtain and upload the data.

“Our goal in developing FieldRx was to put users first by saving them time and eliminating the potential for human error that can arise from manual data input,” said Lance Ramthun of Ag Software Designs. “A lot of VRT programs currently on the market are extremely time-consuming to set up, and one wrong click while inputting data can be very costly for dealers.”

FieldRx boasts a minimal learning curve for users, who only need access to the web to get started. Furthermore, users don’t need a high-level of computer proficiency to operate the program.

“We know software and new technologies can be very intimidating to users, especially if there is a lot of potential for error,” said David Hydrick of Ag Software Designs. “People are going to be extremely satisfied with how easy FieldRx is to use.”

In addition to soil test recommendations, the FieldRx engine has the power to support many other variables for prescription writing in future releases. Other capabilities include web services that are available for other vendor’s software tools to upload data directly to FieldRx.

For more information about FieldRx, please visit www.fieldrx.com or call (888) 336-0029.

I checked in with Ag Leader’s Chad Huedepohl yesterday, and he reminded me of the many benefits of controlling these product applications with their DirectCommand system linked with either the INTEGRA or EDGE displays.

“Whether growers are applying granular fertilizer with a spinner spreader, liquid fertilizer, anhydrous ammonia, or a combination on a strip-till toolbar, DirectCommand can control variable-rate application for each product,” he says.

Huedepohl, sales manager for DirectCommand, says growers are cutting application costs by 5 to 15 percent due to reduced overlap with AutoSwath control. “It can control up to ten sections on a boom, or even control spinner spreaders. Growers can also inject N-Serve into anhydrous or Instinct nitrogen stabilizer into a manure application,” he adds.

Use the INTEGRA display to control, adjust and record up to 5 different products in one application, or the EDGE display to handle two products. Both displays offer easy-to-use controls with on-screen guidance showing actual map coverage, and it’ll monitor up to three outside-the-cab pressure gauges.

With the INTEGRA display, all application details are captured on a Smart Report to easily generate PDF files that can be used as government certified application maps. And all data is easily transferred into SMS software for analysis and future year input needs and budgets.

Visit these links for more information.

DirectCommand http://www.agleader.com/products/directcommand/

INTEGRA http://www.agleader.com/products/integra/

EDGE http://www.agleader.com/products/edge/

When the built-in, dual-frequency receiver is upgraded to GLONASS, it provides the option to nearly double the number of available satellites from which to receive satellite signals.

For precision planting operations, the CFX-750 display is compatible with Trimble’s Field-IQ crop input control system and Tru Count clutches and can perform section control on up to 48 sections. Add rate control with the Field-IQ system to save costs and increase yields while also keeping records of what was applied. Additionally, operators can increase visibility from the cab by using the two live video feeds on the CFX-750 display to view the implement being pulled behind the vehicle.

“The Trimble CFX-750 display features the industry-leading Trimble Maxwell 6 chip that tracks up to 44 satellites simultaneously including GLONASS,” said Erik Arvesen, vice president and general manager for Trimble’s Agriculture Division. “This is a great high-performance, entry-level platform that can be upgraded to the Field-IQ section and rate control system as the farmer’s needs grow.”

The CFX-750 display is affordably priced starting at US$2,995 MSRP and is expected to be available in September 2010. Contact a local Trimble dealer at www.trimble.com/locator for more information.

I spoke the other day with Iowa farmer Tim Palmer, who also is president of the Conservation Districts of Iowa—a group of 500 county commissioners who are responsible for carrying out state laws and programs within district boundaries. Palmer had just returned from their annual conference where the theme was ‘Mastering Conservation 101.’

“Our whole conference was all about topics focused on improving water quality. If we can keep soil in place, water quality automatically improves,” he says. “We discussed many ways to help educate growers on conservation methods; about how there’s more to soil quality than organic matter and yield. And we offered breakout sessions on planter adjustments, managing no-till residue, precision farming, value of no-till, livestock grazing management and other topics.”

Chad Huedepohl, DirectCommand sales manager for Ag Leader Technology, spoke to the group about how precision farming tools can help promote conservation practices. He addressed three areas during his talk:

1. Auto guidance: “I talked about the myth that auto steer only works in fields with straight rows. Our SmartPath technology tracks the contours in a field as you drive the first path, then it takes over the steering during subsequent paths—which helps growers farm fields differently to keep erosion in check. And auto guidance eliminates row marker trenches that can turn into highly erodible gullies during heavy rain events,” Huedepohl says.

2. Efficient nitrogen application: “Our OptRx crop sensor system can help growers reduce excessive nitrogen application by reading the crop and applying only the amount needed, instead of applying a flat rate of nitrogen across whole fields.”

3. Reduced chemical and seed over-application: “As growers adopt more contour planting to reduce soil and water movement and erosion in square fields, they create more point rows which can lead to over-application of seed and chemicals,” he says. “With auto guidance and row/boom shutoff, that problem is eliminated. Our AutoSwath technology combined with planter row shutoff devices not only provide less corn lodging and herbicide over-application, it saves on seed and chemical input costs, too.”

Visit these links for more information.

Conservation Districts of Iowa http://www.cdiowa.org/index.html

Iowa Soil and Water Conservation District Annual Conference
http://www.cdiowa.org/AnnConf10/Ann%20Conf%202010%20Program%20draft.pdf

Ag Leader SmartPath http://www.agleader.com/2010/07/08/smartpathtm-“drive-and-guide”-guidance-pattern-introduced-by-ag-leader/
http://www.agleader.com/products/guidance/guidance-patterns/

Ag Leader OptRx http://www.agleader.com/2010/02/15/optrx/
http://www.agleader.com/products/directcommand/optrx/

Ag Leader AutoSwath http://www.agleader.com/products/directcommand/

Farm Works Mobile streamlines data management in the field by bundling record keeping, scouting, soil sampling, and variable rate application into one low cost solution. Field records include application dates, hybrid locations, field and weather conditions, scale tickets, and notes. In addition, users can take advantage of GPS to record soil sampling positions (by grid or zone) and easily navigate to any spot using a 3D display. Farm Works Mobile connects to existing controllers to perform variable rate application using single or multiple products. The software will also connect to most sensors for recording “as-applied” data which can be downloaded in the Farm Works office suite or other third party desktop software.

The Farm Works Mobile software will operate on any field computer with Windows Mobile, XP, Vista, or 7. When using field computers with built in digital cameras for scouting, such as the Trimble® Juno™ or Nomad™ handhelds, images of weeds or pests can be captured while geo referencing their location in one step.

Farm Works Mobile retails for $500.

Farm Works View, an addition to the Farm Works office suite, is a free software program designed to read and write data from popular farming devices. Display and print yield maps, coverage maps, guidance paths, and more. View can easily be upgraded to other Farm Works software solutions for additional functionality in mapping, field records, accounting, herd management, analysis, and water management.

Farm Works 2011 is the latest version of Farm Works office suite. Some of the highlights include:

• Automatic display of roads and streets for any location in the world
• Automated seed variety layer that includes the ability to track split planting information
• Full support of formula-based variable rate prescription maps

Contact Farm Works at 1-800-225-2848 for more information.

In addition, they use swath control, or the ability to turn individual rows on and off using GPS so that a farmer who is planting corn doesn’t overlap. This helps to eliminate yield loss that comes from over planting as well as saves farmers on their seed costs.

In a corn husk, pardon my pun, Precision Planting uses variable rate technology to help farmers understand how to pick the right population for the area they’re in. And this is important. “For every percentage improvement we can give someone for accuracy, from 95 percent of the seeds placed correctly to 97 percent of the seeds placed correctly, that equals a $10 per bushel yield advantage.”

You can listen to my interview with John Larkin here. John Larking Talks Precision Planting

Farm Progress Photo Album