Precision Ag PanelCrops Day 2015

Jan 13th 2015

Mark Ribey, Biermans Farms Ltd.

Craig Trelford, Trelford Farms

Paul Raymer, Practical Precision Inc.

Participants of the Panel:

Mark Ribey

Biermans Farms Ltd.

My Background

Grew up in Bruce Twp on dairy/cash crop farm west of

Paisley

Started working for Biermans through a high school co-

op placement when I was 16

Obtained an Agriculture Diploma from the University of

Guelph, Ridgetown campus in 2009

2011 became a partner in the farm with the owner

Harry Biermans

Biermans Background

Located near Dobbinton, ON

5000 ac cash crop

Corn, Wheat, Soybeans (Occasional Oats, Canola)

Custom Spraying

Where We Started

1996 yield monitor was purchased with 9500 combine

2003 GPS guidance was installed in sprayer and planting tractor

Today All tractors and combine equipped with GPS capable of

auto steer and mapping

Sprayer equipped with auto steer, auto boom height and auto boom shutoff

Corn planter equipped with row shut off and variable rate planting

Implement Guidance

Data management software (Apex)

Example

Scenario (100ac field)

50’ cultivator- 1’ overlap

=1.6% overlap

30’ cultivator - 1’ overlap

=2.7% overlap

20’ cultivator – 1’ overlap

=4.2% overlap

50’Fertilizer Spread – 3’ overlap = 5%

Fertilizer blend is $70/ac = $350 overlap

Example

Other than tillage, think about the more expensive tasks..

Spreading Fertilizer

Combining

Planting

Spraying

Manure Application

Benefits of GPS

Increased Productivity

Minimizes redundant applications and skipped areas

resulting in maximum ground coverage in the shortest time

Operator Benefits

Less fatigue on long days

Better care and awareness of task at hand

Reduced Input Costs

Seed, fertilizer, chemical, fuel

Benefits of GPS

Minimize Environmental Impact

Accurate Yield and Fertility Data

Creates site specific data for more advanced decision

making

Latest Technology

Implement Guidance (Strip-Till)

Data Management Software (Apex)

Variable Rate Planting & Fertilizer

Our Adventure in Strip-Till Started strip tilling fall 2012, strips were

accurate on flat fields but issues arose on

side hill operations where the implement

would drag down hill slightly causing

inaccurate row spacing. This became a big

issue for planting on the row the next

spring.

Implement Guidance Protrakker Hydraulic Hitch

Links implement to tractor

Increases accuracy on side hills

Moves 12’’ each way

Strip-Tilling and Planting are both done with Protrakker

Mapping Capabilities Software programs are now capable of

combining yield data, elevation, fertility

and tile maps together for more advanced

and site specific management.

Apex (Yield Map)

Apex (Phos Map)

Apex (Potassium Map)

Apex (PH Map)

Apex (OM Map)

Apex (Tile Map)

Apex (Layering)

Benefits

This information gives us a much more detailed and site

specific understanding of the field

Test plots and different practices can be recognized

easier through field maps

Ability to layer maps to construct variable rate

prescriptions

Historical records of each field

Variable Rate Planting Creating prescriptions that allow us to plant more seeds in the

higher potential soil and less seed in the lower potential soil

We are still aiming for the same average seed population overall

Support

Small Steps at a Time

Start with auto steer and work your way up - big

advancements too quickly will cause confusions and

headaches

Help and Service

Most dealers have a couple technicians specializing in the

GPS equipment

Stick to One Company

Attend Workshops

Network with Fellow Farmers

Conclusion

Precision agriculture is allowing farmers to make better

decisions and reduce inputs costs while increasing

efficiencies, productivity and accuracy.

Allows us to be more sensitive to environmental

concerns

Questions?

Precision Agriculture:

My Experience

2008 - started using a GPS system to provide guidance for spreading

fertilizer and spraying.

2009 installed GPS with autosteer in tractor used to pull air seeder.

2010 purchased self propelled sprayer equipped with autosteer and swath

control.

2012 upgraded to a 16 row corn planter with individual row control.

Next Steps Yield mapping fields while combining

Grid soil sampling fields for fertility requirements

Planting Savings with Section ControlExample : 1000 acres of corn with Swath Pro

Reduces acres planted by 4%

Savings: Seed corn costs $100/acre

therefore 4% X 100 = $4/acre saved

$4 X 1000 acres = $4000 total saved

Additional Savings: Yield Reduction From

Double Planting

- 12% yield loss on the 4% area over planted

(Average field yield of 165bu)

- 1000acres X 4% = 40acres

- 12% X 165bu=19.8bu

- 19.8bu X 40acres= 792bu

($5/bu) 5X 792bu $3960 in prevented yield loss

Total Saving on Corn

Planting = $8000/year

Spraying Savings with Section

Control

Example: 10 000 acres sprayed/year

Average product cost of $25/acre

Reduce overlap by 4% =400 acres

400acres X $25/acre = $10 000

Total Savings = $10 000/year

Questions?

Late

Seaso

n V

RA

N

Paul Raymer – Grey County Crop Day

Structural Test Engineer for John Deere

Definition of Insanity:

Doing The Same Thing

Over & Over Again And

Expecting Different Results- Albert Einstein

How Much Do We Need???

GreenSeeker

Optical Vegetative Sensing

NDVINormalized Difference Vegetative Index

• Chlorophyll

• Biomass

• Cell Structure

Other words => Photosynthetic Rate (Vigor)

NDVI - Corn

No Pre-Plant N!

End Results:

- Same bu/ac

- N savings -> $40/ac!

“Wet Zone”

UAN Placement

Local Celebrity

Why Soil Sample?

Traditional Grid

Sampling

SoilOptixHigh Resolution Top Soil Mapping System

Collection Vehicle

Plant Available Water

“Make Data Pay:

Use Data to

Manage Zones”

“Differences in soil

moisture-holding

capacity explain

much of the yield

variability”Corn + Soybean Digest

December 26, 2013

Future?

“Sensor Fusion”• Different Sensor Measurement Strengths

Being Combined for a Desired Outcome

SoilOptix -> Greenseeker

Questions?

“Treat the earth well. It wasn’t given to you by your

parents; it was loaned to you by your children.”

- Proverb