Agricultural and Farming Insight from Altitude : 10 Industries in 10 Days – What You See, What We See!

The world of agriculture has long talked about the idea of ‘precision agriculture’ – the ability to examine plant health, irrigation issues such as water runoff and seed and fertilizer management on a vary granular, discrete basis.

The idea was to link very detailed geographic analysis with detailed computer analysis to determine how best to plant, fertilize and manage very small sections of farmland.

Yet for almost 3 decades, progress was slow – only the largest farms were able to pursue anything close to real precision analysis, due to excessive cost, not to mention an overall inability to obtain detailed insight information (most from satellite or aerial flyovers with aircraft.)

That has come to change in a dramatic fashion with drone technology. Let’s start out with a video to whet your appetite!

What You See

Farmers have long had the capability to assess the health of their crop through a variety of scientific and non-scientific methods, such as a ‘walk around’ of their fields. They know, often at a micro-level, what is working, and what is not going well.

What We See

Yet they’ve been limited because a walk around only provides small, unrelated bits of information. A drone flyover changes that because suddenly, a big-picture view becomes possible. This includes:

• NDVI Analysis, a different form of analysis, which provides insight on plant health
• Crop insurance assessment information, which can be undertaken after a hail storm or other major natural disaster
• Drainage mapping useful for future irrigation planning
• Harvest planning, i.e. adjustments for micro-climate, irrigation, small geographic hills and more
• Plant emergence and probation observations

What to Consider

• A regular series of flights for an up-to-date archival record of vegetation growth
• Have LI&D prepare website “sliders” of before/after
• Harvest Planning
• Planning and conservation efforts
• Inventory tracking and monitoring
• Theft monitoring

Need more inspiration? Take a look at our agricultural page, and then give us a call for an overview of how we might be able to help!