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Technologically Fine Tuning Agricultural Production
| Name | Andy Rollins | | Situation | The average farmer carries a cell phone with him everywhere he goes and owns a home computer, but most are not using computer technology to help them manage their land. Precision Agriculture can teach farmers how to use technology to produce efficiency in land management, particularly in the area of determining acreage.
| | Response | The agent attended an in-service training at Clemson University conducted by Extension Specialist Geoff Zehnder on Precision Ag. He received an IPAQ hand held computer, a navman (GPS unit), and software. Since that time I have helped many farmers, horse owners, and pond owners with acreage designations. One farmer in particular is a small diversified farmer with livestock (cattle and turkeys), a few acres of vegetables, and some row crop land. He also plants some wildlife plots for people and will custom apply lime and fertilizer for small horse paddocks. The farmer is always looking for ways to maximize his returns. The agent measured all of his fields and gave the farmer accurate figures of their size. The farmer had previously based his fertilizer quantities on acreage estimates given by the Farm Service Agency which were consistently 1-5 acres higher than their actual size. He adjusted his lime, fertilizer, and pesticide rates based on these new figures.
| | Impact | The farmer is now getting a higher return on his investment and less pesticide is being put into the environment. For his custom application business he is pleased because according to him many times his clients tend to underestimate the size of the fields they want him to work for them. Since he is paid by the acre, an accurate measurement is very important.
The technology has been used to resolve algae problems in ponds through gps depth readings and to help many small pasture/hay producers get accurate measurement for paddocks/hay fields. Farmers have reported saving thousands of dollars through more efficient management of their land.
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Last update8/27/2008
This website is maintained by Betsy Farmer.
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