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Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr.

Benedict T Palen Jr - With the current state of things in the agricultural economy, every change in operating methods that looks good on paper has to meet the reality test of affordability and return on investment.<br>

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Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr.

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  1. Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr. With the current state of things in the agricultural economy, every change in operating methods that looks good on paper has to meet the reality test of affordability and return on investment.  It is a major step for many farmers to have zone mapping done in their fields, and, armed with that data, decisions are in order.

  2. Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr. If a farmer does not have variable rate seeding and fertilizing equipment, or, in the case of center pivot irrigation, a variable rate system for applying water, then one must ask the question of whether existing equipment can be managed in such a way to achieve some of the precision farming results that would be expected from state of the art equipment, but without the costs of such equipment.

  3. Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr. Because field zone maps do not follow straight lines, the question for the farmer becomes whether it is practical to divide a field into, say, four sectors, and, say, plant each sector with a different seeding rate and/or hybrid.   The same thought process would apply for fertilizer application rates based on sectors created from soil testing results.   Clearly, this approach will not achieve the level of precision that a true variable rate system offers, and it is something that will not work for everyone, but it is worth considering, field by field.

  4. Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr.

  5. Steps To Precision Agriculture Part Four By Benedict T. Palen, Jr. For fields with center pivot irrigation systems, one could divide it into wedges based on soils types within each wedge.  Again, practicality must be kept in mind here because, if the pivot does not have a variable rate control, then adjustments for each wedge would have to be done manually. That may involve a significant labor/management component each day during the heart of the watering season. In essence, there is no black and white answer here.   Some might differ with that opinion, but in truth a farmer who has the desire to practice precision farming, but not the budget to do so, might find a workable middle ground.  This has to be analyzed farm by farm, and, indeed, field by field.   And it cannot be done halfway.

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