Adoption Survey Sneak Peek

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Retailers, Trimble

croplifePrecision Ag Special Reports’ sister magazine CropLife, in cooperation with the Center for Food and Agricultural Business and Department of Agronomy at Purdue University with financial support from Trimble, have partnered to complete the 16th Precision Agricultural Survey. Sent to 2,500 agricultural retailers across the U.S., the survey looked at the use of precision technology and services at the retail level.

While the majority of the survey’s results will be presented in the June 2013 issue of CropLife magazine, recently completed analysis provides insights into how the technologies are being perceived. Survey respondents (ag retailers) were asked to categorize different precision technologies by how they perceive the anticipated future of these products.

According to survey results, as new technologies emerge, such as the variable-rate seeding and chlorophyll sensors, the impact will be different than for more mature technologies. These technologies are new and used by few, so growers are more likely to have questions and potential concerns with applicators and retailers using them. For example, promoting nitrogen application with a chlorophyll sensor might create confusion about what the sensor is and how the technology works. Retailers will have to think critically about which technologies they decide to adopt and how they decide to promote them.

More R&D from BASF Acquiring Becker Underwood

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, BASF, Planting, Research, seed

becker-seeversThe recent acquisition of Becker Underwood by BASF is more than just putting the two companies together. It means more research and development as each is able to look at the other’s advancements and see how they might be able to combine products for maximum efficiency

“Both companies are bringing together a lot of existing technology that we’re starting to examine to see if we can find some synergies with what we already have,” explained Kurt Seevers, field development leader for seed enhancements and biologicals, during the recent tour of the plant facility in St.Joseph, Mo. He added that going forward, they’ll also look at combining new material they are each developing.

Kurt said they might work on 750 treatments in a year, and of course, not all of them make it to market. But he said since they’ve done a lot of their prep work in the labs, more often than not, a treatment will go forward once it has hit the field testing.

He said they have some real challenges, including improving on already hot products, such as VAULT HP. “It does give us a challenge in research so we have the opportunity to take materials we’re looking at and put them in products that look really good already and see if we can make improvements that way. That’s typically how we take that next step.”

Kurt concluded that they are working on agriculture’s overall goal of feeding a growing world in a sustainable, ecologically respectful way.

[wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/basf/becker-seevers.mp3″ text=”Interview with Kurt Seevers, Becker Underwood field development lead”]

Becker Underwood media tour photo album

Opening up Global Ag Data Sharing

Cindy ZimmermanData Collection, General, Government, technology, USDA

data-2At the kickoff of the G8 Open Data for Agriculture conference this week, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a new virtual community to give increased public access to food, agriculture, and rural data.

“This new online community is a big step toward opening information for agriculture, making it public in useable formats,” said Vilsack. “This will increase the value of the investments U.S. taxpayers make in agricultural research, it will create a data ecosystem that will fuel economic growth, it will help drive that innovation to meet our global food challenge we all face.”

Vilsack explained that the virtual community for Food, Agriculture and Rural issue is located on the pre-existing data-sharing web site – www.data.gov – and it will now include data sets on topics such as agricultural research, or food and nutrition. Other G8 countries represented at the conference are also expected to make their ag data similarly available.

data-1
“Our hope is that the example that we set will encourage the nations that have been not as forthcoming to recognize it is in their best interest … to be part of this process,” Vilsack said.

While some countries like China are reluctant to share their data, World Bank Vice President Dr. Rachel Kyte noted that others suffer from data deficiencies. “Serious weaknesses in agricultural statistics persist,” said Kyte. “Only one in four African countries report basic crop production data.”

Vilsack pointed out that data “is among the most important commodities in agriculture” and sharing it openly increases its value. The Open Data Conference will continue through Tuesday, April 30.

Weather Continues to Put Damper on Planting

Cindy ZimmermanCorn, Planting, USDA

fieldwaterPlanting progress continues to be slowed by wet and cold weather in most of the major corn producing states.

According to USDA, just 5% of the U.S. corn crop was planted as of Sunday, only a percentage point of difference compared to the previous week. Last year at this time, nearly half the crop was in the ground and normally at least 30% should be planted by now. All 18 major corn producing states are behind the five year average. The only states even close are North Carolina and Texas. Every state should be showing progress in the double digits, but only six are and five have nothing in the ground yet. Another half dozen have less than 3-4% planted.

Meanwhile, the conditions and slow planting pace are impacting emergence. Just 2% of total U.S. corn has emerged, compared to 14% last year at this time and 6% on average.

Controlled-Release Nitrogen Fertilizers

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Dupont Pioneer, General

EMH_News_Release_Header3ad95522Nitrogen (N) fertilizer applied as anhydrous ammonia, UAN solutions or urea can be lost if adverse (primarily wet) weather conditions precede the uptake by crops. According to DuPont Pioneer, controlled-release nitrogen fertilizers can reduce these losses by delaying the initial release of N and providing it gradually to better match its availability with crop uptake needs.

Controlled-release, also called slow-release or delayed-release, N fertilizers include coated ureas, non-coated “chemical-release” forms and other products. The higher cost of controlled-release products generally excludes their use in cases where conventional N fertilizers can perform the same function adequately. These products may be most useful for:
• High-value crops (i.e. seed crop)
• Environmentally sensitive areas
• Fields highly susceptible to N losses
• Fields with limited opportunities for repeat applications
• Contest plots
• Foliar applications

G8 Conference Kick Off

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Audio, USDA, Video

open-dataAgriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, along with Bill Gates, and U.S. Chief Technology Officer Todd Park, today kicked off a two-day international open data conference, saying that data “is among the most important commodities in agriculture” and sharing it openly increases its value.

Among some of the speakers will be USDA Chief Scientist Dr. Catherine Woteki and Dr. Simon Liu, Director of the National Agricultural Library. They will explain that data is among the most important commodities in the world.

At the conference, the U.S. Government is also releasing an action plan to highlight a number of new and ongoing U.S. Government efforts.

To get the full schedule of the conference click here.

There is a live streaming of the conference and you can tweet about the conference with the hashtag, #OpenAgData.

Nutrient Management with Late Planting

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Corn, Fertilizer, FS Green Plan Solution, Growmark, Nutrient Management, Planting

grandinPlanting is definitely running behind normal in the Corn Belt, but it’s nothing to worry about just yet.

“Just stick to the original plan” when it comes to nutrient management,” says John Grandin, Senior Field Sales Agronomist at GROWMARK, Inc. “If the original plan calls for spring-applied anhydrous ammonia, then stick with spring-applied anhydrous ammonia.”

However, Grandin points out the possibility of burning corn roots or even killing the seedling if application is followed too quickly by planting. “We can manage that by putting the anhydrous ammonia on at an angle to the direction of row planting,” he said. That will help decrease the possibility of free ammonia being trapped in the knife track as a result of wetter soils. “We don’t want to be planting directly on top of the anhydrous knife track for any length of row.”

Listen to this interview with Grandin to find out more: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/growmark/growmark-grandin-4-29-13.mp3″ text=”GROWMARK agronomist John Grandin”]

Precision Ag Has Implications On Food Security

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Nutrient Management, Research

387407_544553438910382_274706981_nPrecision agriculture promises to make farming more efficient and should have an important impact on the serious issue of food security, according to a new study published in Significance, the magazine of the Royal Statistical Society and the American Statistical Association.

Spatial variation is at the core of precision agriculture and geostatistics. All aspects of the environment — soil, rocks, weather, vegetation, water, etc. – vary from place to place over the Earth. The soil, landform, drainage, and so on all affect crop growth, and these factors generally vary within agricultural fields. Farmers have always been aware of this situation, but have not been able to measure and map it in a quantitative way.

Read More

‘Flag the Technology’ Aids Herbicide Application

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Weed control

flagTheTechnologyThere is a simple, inexpensive way to reduce errors in herbicide applications and limit off-target chemical drift. One such way is the “Flag the Technology” program by the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.

The idea is simple: Color-coded bicycle flags or similar markers placed at field entrances or other conspicuous locations indicate the use of different herbicide technologies.The idea is simple: Color-coded bicycle flags or similar markers placed at field entrances or other conspicuous locations indicate the use of different herbicide technologies.

The system is gaining popularity in the Midwest and can make the difference between a healthy crop and a damaged or dead one.

Red flags signify conventional crop varieties with no herbicide technology traits while white may represent Roundup Ready technology that is tolerant to glyphosate. Bright green indicates LibertyLink technology, which is tolerant to glufosinate. Bright yellow is the color for Clearfield technology, which is tolerant to imazethapyr (Newpath) and imazamox (Beyond). Multiple flags represent stacked technologies.

2013 Conservation In Action Tour Registration Open

Talia GoesAgribusiness, CTIC

CticFull_with_transparent_bkgndRegistration has opened for the Conservation Technology Information Center’s 2013 Conservation In Action Tour, which will explore innovative conservation practices in and around the Indian Creek watershed in Livingston County, Ill., on July 9 and 10. Celebrating the theme of Community 4 Conservation, this year’s tour will bring together agriculture leaders from all over the country – including farmers, crop advisors, regulators and lawmakers – to learn and share conservation practices.

On the Tour, participants will meet farmers building productive operations while protecting water quality. They will visit with civic and business leaders from the town of Fairbury, Ill., who have been deeply involved in the Indian Creek Watershed Project that has made the county a national leader in conservation farming demonstrations – and a model Community 4 Conservation. They will also see proven, sustainable, profitable conservation technologies that fit local management strategies, and get a chance to network with a nationwide group of conservation leaders.