IMAG
believes the next step in prescription farming will be the effective
implementation of precision agriculture (PA). PA is the ability
to establish the type, amount and exact location of variability within
paddocks. Despite popular belief, PA can be implemented quite cheaply without the need for the latest equipment. PA DOES NOT
equal guidance systems, despite the best efforts from sales people in
the industry. It is one facet of a multi-layered technology.
Recent
developments, particularly in the areas of GPS technology and yield
mapping, has created the ability to collect information on a whole
paddock basis, over a number of years, very cheaply. This
information can be combined with data from sources such as EM surveys,
satellite imagery and Greenseeker™ data collectors to build up a
knowledge base for each paddock.
IMAG
uses the data gathered from these sources and combined it with their
knowledge of your paddock, so determine an effective method of
ground-truthing the results. This may include a number of soil
tests, an EM survey or possibly even a soil pit to examine sub-surface
constraints.
Once
all the information is collated, a comprehensive statistical analysis
is performed to create a zone map. This information is used to
determine where to apply soil ameliorants (such as lime and gypsum),
which areas should receive more or less fertiliser, where paddock
boundaries should be altered to better match capability and which crop
types are suited to different areas.
Fertiliser
rates can be altered across the paddock using conventional equipment by
treating each zone separately. Alternatively, variable rate
technology can be used to alter application rates "on-the-fly".
IMAG can assist growers in sorting through the myriad of new equipment
on the market. Because we do not have a vested interest in the
sale of any equipment, you can be assured that the advice you receive
will be completely independent. James Hassall, our PA specialist,
has a close association with the Australian Centre for Precision
Agriculture and in fact they conduct a considerable amount of research
on James' own property (near Gilgandra, NSW). He specialises in
statistical analysis and creating management zones from analysed data.
IMAG's agronomists then use this information to ground truth the
data, fine tune the management zones if necessary, and make
recommendations for each zone.
IMAG's key message is to
START COLLECTING YIELD MAPS NOW!!
Most modern headers are equipped with yield monitoring equipment
and its costs nothing to collect the yield maps. If you have
yield mapping capability but no GPS system, IMAG can get you up and
running for as little as a few hundred dollars, NOT thousands. Do
NOT rely on generic yield maps produced from yield monitoring software
for making PA decisions. While they give you an accurate view of
different yield zones over a paddock, the boundaries to these zones are
arbitrarily assigned. You need to statistically analyse the data
over a period of several years, then ground truth, to develop accurate
management zones.
The future of PA is exciting and constantly changing. IMAG keeps
abreast of all developments and can pass relevant information onto you
INDEPENDENT of sales advice. One example is the evolution of
protein monitoring equipment to complement the yield mapping
technology. James is so confident of its value that he has
already purchased one for his header. As well as adding another
layer to mapping nitrogen removal (it is a function of protein as well
as yield), considerable value can be gained from segregating grains of
different protein levels (due to Golden Rewards premiums and
discounts). This is just one of many of the exciting new PA areas
that IMAG is involved with.
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