He was one of some 300 farmers from Pacific Northwest states that met this past week at a conference in Boise, Idaho to share experiences and learn more about this emerging technology. I'm in the business of farming for a profit. You can't do this for the fun of it in today's economic environment. So I'm trying to devise ways to make it more profitable. Yield monitors give me a more accurate picture of what is going on during harvest.
Yields can vary dramatically in any field.
Precision agriculture helps farmers address those fluctuations by identifying exactly where they occur and what options to consider to fix problems. Farmers mount satellite receivers on their tractors, combines, or trucks. This can then be matched with the yield of the crop during harvest, or the application of fertilizer prior to planting. It enables a producer to record, then see visually through maps and data analysis, what is happening at different locations on the farm in response to various management decisions. The farmer can then take corrective actions, such as balancing soil pH or spot treating weeds or insects at a precise point in the field rather than broadly applying a fertilizer or pesticide that may not be needed in other parts of the field.