Syngenta, No-Till Farmer Seek No-Till Leaders

Kelly MarshallAward, Conservation, No Till, Syngenta

Syngenta and No-Till Farmer are looking for nominations for the 2017 No-Till Innovator Award. The honor recognizes farmers, researchers, organizations, or others who have found ways to no-till more effectively, economically, and with better impact on the environment.

“We’re proud to partner with No-Till Farmer again to seek out a new class of innovators of sustainable farming methods,” said Melissa Lord, customer event & tradeshow lead at Syngenta. “Year over year, growers, educators and organizations alike continue to highlight how their advancement in the no-tillage industry are making a positive impact on the environment and their local communities.”

Nominations are due Tuesday, August 1. Winners will be announced at the National No-Tillage Conference in Louisville, Kentucky on January 9-12, 2018.

Sentera Expands Products to 350 Store Fronts

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Data

Sentera, a leading supplier of complete data solutions to the agriculture industry, is making its products available at more than 350 retail locations in North America. Agronomists, crop consultants and growers can now take advantage of Sentera’s solutions for collecting and interpreting field data with their normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI).

Sentera’s complete precision agriculture data solutions include AgVault™ web, desktop, and mobile applications that accurately collect, interpret, and analyze crop health data gathered by the company’s ultra-precise TrueNDVI™ sensors integrated on easy-to-fly drone platforms. Sentera and its distribution partner, Dynamic UAV Solutions, deliver these solutions throughout the industry.

“We are excited to offer our solutions through a strong and rapidly-growing dealer network, where end users find Sentera’s precision ag solutions technologically robust and simple to operate,” remarked Kris Poulson, vice president of agriculture for Sentera. “Users find immediate value in our turnkey solution, that deliver maps and streaming NDVI at the field, and high-accuracy data to cloud-based tools.”

Jeff Raikes Honored at Water for Food

Kelly MarshallAudio, Award, Food, water

Jeff Raikes was honored at this week’s 2017 Water for Food Conference.  As a co-founder of the Raikes Foundation and Daughterly Water for Food Foundation & Board Chair, he is credited with being the inspiration for the event with his concerns for finding local solutions to global challenges.  Raikes is stepping down from the board this year, but he is still committed to the mission’s success.

In honor of his years of service Executive Director of Water for Food, Peter McCornick, recognized Raikes as a Water for Food Champion. Listen to the awards presentation here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/water4food-17-raikes-award.mp3″ text=”Special Presentation for Jeff Raikes”]

Raikes presented during the opening Plenary session, saying, “I have a challenge for you. I am grateful you are here, but I want you to be more than an attendee. I want you to be an active partner. I want you to challenge ideas, share your experiences. I want you to meet new people and make new connections. We have an audacious goal of a world of water and food security. Collectively we have the power to scale solutions.”

Listen to Jeff’s complete presentation here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/water4food-17-opening-remarks-raikes.mp3″ text=”Jeff Raikes, Water for Food Board Chair”]

View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Water for Food Global Conference

Water for Food Improving Sub-Saharan Security

Kelly MarshallAudio, Food, International, Irrigation, Video, water

Peter McCornick, Water for Food Institute, and Tim Williams, International Water Management Institute

The 2017 Water for Food Global Conference took place this week at at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.  More than 400 experts attended the event to focus on ways to grow more food with less water.  One of the major topics of concern at the conference was finding new ways to increase sustainable irrigation in sub-Saharan Africa for increased water and food security.

At a media conference earlier this week, Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute executive director Peter McCornick was joined by International Water Management Institute director for Africa Tim Williams to talk about this important topic.

Listen to complete remarks here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/water4food-17-presser.mp3″ text=”Water for Food Press Conference”]

View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Water for Food Global Conference Photos


FMC Topguard Offers Solutions in Mid-South

Kelly MarshallAudio, FMC, Fungicides, Soybeans

In the Mid-South the challenge is frogeye leaf spot, according to FMC Technical Service Manager Matt Wiggins. “My region here in the mid-South, that’s primarily the disease we’re chasing in soybeans,” said Wiggins at the recent Farm and Gin Show in Memphis.

Thankfully, FMC has a relativity new product designed to take care of that. Topguard EQ is a tank mix of two products that can be used on corn, soybeans, wheat and cotton.  It offers long residual control and it offers plant health benefits as well.

Of course, crop protection products should be only one part of a disease management plan, Wiggins reminds growers.  For frogeye leaf spot other alternatives include planting certified clean seeds and crop rotation to manage residual.

Wiggins offers other helpful advise in his interview with Chuck Zimmerman here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/farm-gin-17-fmc-wiggins.mp3″ text=”Interview with Matt Wiggins, FMC”]

Mid-South Farm & Gin Show

Coverage of the Mid-South Farm & Gin Show is sponsored by
Coverage of the Mid-South Farm & Gin Show is sponsored by FMC

PrecisionHawk Partners with Corning for Research Data

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Data Collection, drone

PrecisionHawk has announced that they will be collaborating with Corning Inc. to include the Corning microHSI 410-SHARK hyper spectral camera with PrecisionHawk’s drone platform. This sensor will offer calibrated, geo-reference hyper-cubes, which provide massive research potential. The companies look to create new spectral libraries of information that apply to agriculture, mining, construction, energy, and the insurance industries.

“Historically, low-altitude data collection using hyperspectral sensors has been very difficult to achieve due to operational complexities,” said Richard Zacaroli, commercial business development manager, Hyperspectral Imaging Products, Corning Incorporated. “Due to the integration between Corning’s revolutionary sensors and PrecisionHawk’s drone and data suite, it’s now possible for novice users to properly and effectively collect high-resolution hyperspectral data.”

Grassland Oregon Introduces Cold-Tolerant Clover

Kelly MarshallCover Crops

Grassland Oregon, Inc. will now be supplying three distributors with the world’s most cold-tolerant commercial clovers. FIXatioN Balansa and FROSTY Berseem clover will be available in Canada from TerraSeCo in Vancouver, BC; Performance Seed in Lethbridge, Alberta; and Speare Seeds in Harrison, Ontario. Both of the products have been through rigorous commercial testing and have survived winter conditions as cold as -15 degrees (-26 C) and 5 degrees (-15 C) respectively, with no snow cover.

“We’re very excited to bring the benefits of FIXatioN and FROSTY to farmers here,” says Scott Bowman, General Manager of Speare Seeds. “Interest in cover crops and pasture revitalization have increased at a rapid pace throughout eastern Canada. Products like FIXatioN and FROSTY are a perfect fit for those markets.”

Both have taproots extending to more than 30 inches, making them great for decompaction and regularly exceed 20 percent crude protein and massive amounts of forage.  FIXatioN has been known to provide as much as 250 pounds of nitrogen per acre.

Rice U. Team Cultivates Indoor Garden

Kelly MarshallEducation, Food, Research

From left: Jared Broadman, George Dawson, Dominique Schaefer Pipps and Sanjiv Gopalkrishnan. (Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University)

A team at Rice University, cleverly named Lettuce Turnip the Beet, has designed a produce cultivation machine— a hydroponic garden that grows plants without soil. Instead a pump recirculates 55 gallons of water through tiers of PVC pipe, using little energy and no waste to grow lettuce, garlic and other vegetables. Sanjiv Gopalkrishnan, Schaefer Pipps, Jared Broadman, and George Dawson are all seniors in mechanical engineering at Rice and it is their goal to produce enough food to make one salad a week for a year in an apartment setting.

“We wanted to minimize power consumption and environmental impact, but maximize nutritional content and yield,” Dawson said. “The machine should coexist with humans in a rather small living environment. Noises, lights and smells shouldn’t interfere with the sleep cycle or life in general, and basic maintenance should be kept simple.”

Before it’s done the team will install sensors monitor pH levels, nutrients, temperature and other factors. The final project will be taken to Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden.

#Plant17 is Well Underway

Kelly MarshallPlanting, USDA

And so it begins. The USDA report says #Plant17 is officially underway with three percent of corn planted nationwide as of April 9.  That’s one point down from last year, but right on trend with the five year average.

Texas, where National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) president Wesley Spurlock farms, is well ahead of both last year and the five year average with 59 percent planted. Four percent of the corn has been planted in Kansas and Kentucky, where this photo was taken, with ten percent in North Carolina, seven percent in Tennessee, and five percent in Missouri.

A few state are running behind their averages. “Wet weather kept farmers from the field for most of the week, but the dryer weather and warmer temps late in the week allowed some field work and fertilizer applications to take place. We will need some more warm and dry weather before we start see widespread fieldwork,” said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey.

Starter Fertilizer is Key

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Nutrient Management

Nice weather in many parts of the country has growers already in the fields.  That comes with many advantages, but early planting also comes with challenges too.  Planting into cool, sometimes wet soils can prevent phosphorus (P) from being readily available to the crop, says Todd Carpenter of Verdesian Life Sciences.  Phosphorus leads to early root growth and development, creating a more robust plant, stronger root structure, more leaf area, and larger stalks because the plant is better able to make use of water and nutrients.  But it’s not enough to just apply phosphorus.  Growers also need to be aware of how they manage the nutrient so it doesn’t become locked in the soil.  Between 75 to 95 percent of P can end up unavailable for the plant, Carpenter explains, but farmers can take steps to prevent this.

One way is to follow the 4Rs of stewardship; use the right product at the right rate and the right time and in the right place.   Research has also shown using AVAIL Phosphorus Fertilizer Enhancer from Verdesian can make an average of 30 percent more P available to crops when compared to controls; in some soil conditions availability increases much more.

To learn more about starter fertilizer check out GroundWork.ag and for more information on AVAIL visit vlsci.com.