Valley® Irrigation Offers New Drop Hose Docking Stations

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Irrigation

New_valley_hor_CMYK_tagValley® Irrigation, the leader in precision irrigation, is offering a new sprinkler application option for growers who rotate crops of varying heights. AquaDock™ drop hose docking stations support two ground clearances in one drop hose assembly. Growers can easily change the drop hose height from the ground using a lift pole to place the sprinkler head into the docking station.

It was designed to provide a convenient way to change drop hose length and to improve crop production, said Dale Shelton, a Pasco, Wash., grower who holds the patent on AquaDock.

“With traditional drop hoses, we noticed dry rings in the corn crops; causing uneven crop growth and yield,” Shelton said. “Using the AquaDock has allowed us to eliminate those dry rings and apply fertilizer evenly to produce uniform crop growth and yields in our fields. Wrapping hoses used to take a lot of time. Now we can hang the hoses in a fraction of the time while keeping our irrigators on the ground.”

AquaDock allows growers to tailor water application to varying crop clearances without compromising uniformity or efficiency – two essential elements in yield and profit, said Jerry Gerdes, product manager for water application at Valley Irrigation.

“AquaDock maintains a high level of uniformity when growing high crops,” Gerdes said. “If the drops are left low, they can drag through the plants causing dry rings, which can affect yield. It’s not just uniformity, but also water application efficiency. With lower crops you get more efficiency with lower sprinklers. The greater the distance between the crop and the sprinkler, the less efficient due to evaporation and wind drift.”

AquaDock is available for new machines and for retrofitting existing pivots. Docking stations can be mounted directly to the U-pipe or they can clamp around the span. The span clamp version can prevent span cable theft, Shelton said.

ABM Joins Forces With INCOTEC

Cindy ZimmermanAgribusiness, seed

A new partnership marries yield enhancing inoculants with innovative seed coating and enhancement technologies to help farmers be more efficient and productive.

178The agreement brings together Ohio-based Advanced Biological Marketing (ABM) and INCOTEC Group B.V. (INCOTEC) based in Enkhuizen, The Netherlands, according to a release from the two companies.

“We are excited to partner with INCOTEC to help increase yields and profitability for farmers worldwide. INCOTEC products enhance and improve seed and that’s a great match with our product line,” says ABM CEO Dan Custis. “It is an excellent opportunity to expand our market share not only in the US, but around the globe.”

INOTEC senior board member JanWillem Breukink says they are pleased that ABM chose them as the preferred partner for the application of their innovative products to seeds. “INCOTEC is offering a completely independent application platform where companies like ABM can work with INCOTEC to make sure that it is a quality process that is used to apply their products to seeds,” said Breukink. “We believe that ABM’s products will add value to seeds in many parts of the world to support growers in getting the best out of their crop.”

INCOTEC will have marketing rights to the seed industry of ABM products in the USA, Europe, India and South America.

USDA Helps Ag Producers Improve Water Quality

Jamie JohansenAg Group, NRCS, USDA, water

USDA_logo_svgAgriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that $33 million in assistance will be provided to farmers and ranchers to make conservation improvements that will improve water quality in 174 watersheds.

“This targeted approach provides a way to accelerate voluntary, private lands conservation investments to improve water quality and to focus water quality monitoring and assessment funds where they are most needed,” said Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Ann Mills. “When hundreds of farms take action in one area, one watershed, it can make a real difference to improving water quality.”

Funding is provided through the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI), administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Now in its third year, NWQI expanded to include more small watersheds across the nation, and it builds on efforts to target high-impact conservation in areas such as the Mississippi River basin, Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay and Great Lakes.

With the help of partners at the local, state and national level, NRCS identified priority watersheds in each state where on-farm conservation investments will deliver the greatest water quality benefits. State water quality agencies and local partners also provide assistance with watershed planning, additional dollars and assistance for conservation, along with outreach to farmers and ranchers.

Eligible landowners will receive assistance under the Environmental Quality Incentives Program for installing conservation systems that help avoid, trap and control run-off in these high-priority watersheds. These practices may include nutrient management, cover crops, conservation cropping systems, filter strips, and in some cases, edge-of-field water quality monitoring.

AgGateway Focuses on Data Privacy, Security & eBusiness

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Data

aggatewayAgGateway has created two new committees to formalize the ongoing work of its member companies: the Data Privacy and Security Committee; and the Architecture Committee. Both committees tackle essential issues that support AgGateway’s mission to promote, expand and enable eBusiness in agriculture. They will meet in open sessions at the upcoming Mid-Year Meeting in Iowa.

“Data privacy, use and security are key issues for farmers today, especially as they create and use an increasing amount of data to better manage their operations,” said Deb Casurella, president of Independent Data Management LLC and chair of the Data Privacy and Security Committee. “AgGateway is looking to adopt data security and producer privacy standards to enable eBusiness while protecting the value of a farmer’s information.”

The committee will soon publish a white paper that examines the historical, legal and regulatory perspectives on data privacy and security, provides key terminology and principles, and in general gives a roadmap of how to proceed in establishing security, protection and privacy standards and procedures.

The Architecture Committee, chaired by Brent Kemp, manager of process development-eBusiness at Southern States Cooperative Inc., will examine the big picture of how AgGateway and its members are executing the mission to enable and expand the use of eBusiness.

“In the past, decisions about technologies and best practices for implementing AgGateway Open Standards have been made by individual AgGateway project teams,” said Kemp. “With rapidly changing technology options, more types of standards and guidelines, and cross-industry and standards group collaboration requirements, it’s important for AgGateway to proceed in a more formal and consistent manner on these issues.”

AgGateway Mid-Year Meeting Tackles Precision Tech

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Crop Protection, Data

aggatewayAgGateway’s Mid-Year Meeting is right around the corner and will feature information on eBusiness activities in agriculture. The event will be held June 9-12 at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa.

“Join us at the Mid-Year Meeting to network and to learn from others that are already seeing the immense benefits of electronic connectivity between trading partners,” said AgGateway CEO Rod Conner. “This is a great opportunity to meet with colleagues and trading partners, and to see what AgGateway is all about.”

Highlights include:
– An orientation luncheon for first-time attendees on the first day of the meeting;
– The first meeting of the new Data Privacy and Security Committee to review a draft white paper and begin defining data classifications that will drive committee work over the next six months;
– An overview and demonstration of the Conversion Toolbox from the Standardized Precision Ag Data Exchange (SPADE) Project;
– A demonstration of the Precision Ag Irrigation Leadership (PAIL) Project standards, based on the completed data schemas;
– An educational session on bar coding solutions in inventory control to improve data accuracy and reduce cycle time;
– Review of a new field sample standards project (Modus), which aims to create and maintain a field sample data exchange;
– Educational sessions on unique identifiers covering common uses, benefits and AgGateway resources; and on Global Location Numbers (GLNs) and opportunities to expand their use in the ag Industry; and
– Meetings of the AgGateway Councils, including Feed, Grain, Seed, Crop Protection, Crop Nutrition, Ag Retail, Allied Providers, and more.

The registration fee for the meeting is only $75, discounted to $50 for first-time attendees. To register, go to the Mid-Year Meeting page under “Events” at AgGateway.org.

Leica Geosystems Introduces Leica mojoMINI 2

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, agronomy, Guidance

4570_020.1Leica Geosystems has introduced the Leica mojoMINI 2, a cost-effective, steer-to-the-line solution that provides farmers with an entry point into precision guidance. The Leica mojoMINI 2 is a great solution for anyone looking for an affordable way to start saving money in the field by enhancing driver accuracy and reducing overlap.

The practical and easy to use display is installed in no time and customers can start experiencing its clear menu structure and intuitive navigation right away. It offers two lightbar modes (cross track only lightbar and the Leica Geosystems’ smart lightbar) and support for KML files, which allows users the ability to export their latest work data for viewing in Google EarthTM.

The Leica mojoMINI 2 has an easy-to-use 4.3-inch touch-screen display and comes with a Leica GeoSpective 2 smart antenna and with GL1DE® technology for improved in-field accuracy. The rugged design withstands even the toughest field conditions and provides multiple guidance options, including AB Parallel, A+ Heading, Fixed Contour and Pivot Guidance for use in different field types. Features such as Boundary Recording, Coverage Mapping and Continue Field make the entry-level display a must-have for small farming operations and first-time users of precision guidance systems.
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National Summit on Herbicide Resistance Scheduled

Jamie JohansenAg Group, Events, Herbicides, Weed control

wssaThe Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) have announced plans for a second national scientific summit on the topic of herbicide resistance on September 10th in Washington, D.C.

The event will be hosted by National Research Council at the Auditorium in the National Academy of Sciences Building on Constitution Avenue and will draw public policy makers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, growers and educators who are interested in reducing the devastating threat herbicide resistance represents to agricultural productivity.

The program will focus on the current state of the herbicide resistance problem, recent accomplishments and learnings, the economics of weed management, education and outreach initiatives, new technologies, regulatory issues and a call to action.

“Our objective is for everyone who attends to walk away knowing the role they can play in helping to address this critical challenge – whether it involves the choices they make in weed management or their support for education initiatives and incentives that promote informed stewardship,” says David Shaw, Ph.D., WSSA past president and chair of their Herbicide Resistance Education Committee.

Genscape Adds Field Validation to Analysis Service

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, agronomy, Apps, Corn

Genscape LandViewer group is significantly expanding its on-the-ground crop assessment capabilities for the 2014 growing season to offer first-hand accounts of crop progress in the U.S.

The company has assembled a team of 12 crop consultants strategically located throughout the corn belt to provide weekly crop progress reports throughout the growing season in addition to June and July detailed field-level yield assessments of client draw areas.

“The experts selected as Genscape crop consultants have the experience and capability to deliver highly accurate assessments of real-time crop progress at the county level,” said Dr. Steffen Mueller, Sr. Director of Crop Analytics at Genscape. “On average, the members have spent 22 years in the area of crop and soil analysis.”

The weekly consultant commentary reports will be released each Friday and are made available to clients on the Genscape LandViewer website. The reports include detailed regional assessments as well as prospective agricultural weather metrics and a crop outlook. The results from the analysis will also be used in LandViewer’s predictive yield and acreage model tailored to ethanol plants, elevator operators, and crop risk managers.

A webinar introducing the 2014 growing season and the Genscape LandViewer crop assessment platform will be held on Tuesday, May 20 at 3pm EDT. Complimentary registration can be found here. All webinar registrants will receive the weekly Crop Consultant Report at no cost.

Homegrown by Heroes

Cindy ZimmermanAFBF, Ag Group, Farmers

Farmer Veteran CoalitionFew vocations are as American as veterans and farmers and now there is a new initiative that helps those who are both.

The Farmer Veteran Coalition has announced the national launch of the Homegrown By Heroes initiative. This product labeling program allows farmers, ranchers and fishermen from all 50 states and U.S. territories who have served or are still serving in any branch of the U.S. military the ability to use the logo on their agricultural products. Consumers and businesses purchasing agricultural products will begin to see this logo at the point-of-purchase and on business signage, enabling them to select products that support our country’s farmer veterans.

Homegrown by HeroesThe Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) created the Homegrown By Heroes labeling as part of its Kentucky Proud marketing program in 2013. More than 60 Kentucky farmer veterans have already registered their farms with KDA to use the Homegrown By Heroes label. At a bi-partisan event in Louisville on Veterans Day 2013, Kentucky’s political and National Guard leaders joined Agricultural Commissioner James Comer as he announced a national partnership for FVC to launch the Homegrown By Heroes program outside of the Commonwealth.

“Thousands of our service men and women leave the rural communities and farms they call home in order to serve our country in the military. Upon completion of their service, they often return home to resume work on the family farm,” said Michael O’Gorman, executive director of the Farmer Veteran Coalition, who adds that they also help others with no agricultural background take it on as a new career. “By supporting this label, we can help the veterans who are serving our country in a new way – by producing the food and fiber that feeds and clothes us all. At the same time, we’re helping thousands of young veterans find a new calling in a farming community whose average age is 58 years.”

To qualify for the Homegrown By Heroes label, one must have served honorably or still be serving in any branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, and be at least 50 percent owner and/or operator of the farm business. Veterans of all eras are encouraged to apply. FVC is now accepting and processing Homegrown By Heroes applications.

Homegrown by Heroes is being supported by Farm Credit, the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), the National Farmers Union (NFU), and various other farm organizations.

Missouri Cattlemen New Holland Equipment Raffle

Cindy ZimmermanEquipment, Hay, New Holland

Missouri Cattlemens AssocationThe Missouri Cattlemen’s Association is holding a raffle to win the use of some New Holland equipment, specifically a T6 tractor and Roll-Belt 560 round baler. Tickets are $20/each or 3 for $50 available from the MCA office in Columbia, Missouri, with a drawing to be held at the MCA Convention on January 3, 2015.

Speaking of New Holland, there is a New Holland Roll-Belt Facebook campaign underway right now to share baling tips that you should check out. While you’re at it, go get registered at MyNewHolland.com to become part of the community of proud New Holland users.