Running a farm often means working with tight margins. Making your farm as efficient as possible is how you ensure that you make a profit. This can be hard to do as there are so many factors that are out of your control.
So, in order to keep you running your business well, you will need all the help you can get. Some of this help can come in the form of new technologies. The agriculture industry has seen amazing advances in recent years, and you may be interested in adopting a few to your operations.
Data driving forces
Farmers have been keeping records for centuries. This is not something new. Recording the yields from a specific year or the rainfall during a season is an important part of preparing for the future of your business.
Using this information is a way that the uncertainties of your profession can become a little less so. The longer you have collected data for and the more you have collected, the better picture you can build for yourself and the better you can prepare.
This process of collecting data has become easier, better and can take place on a much grander scale thanks to recent advancements in technology. Smart devices and sensors can be used on your farm to collect data and then there is software that has been developed that will analyse this data for you. This information can then be used to improve crop performance.
Other ways that data can be collected is through imaging using drones or satellites and the collection of soil samples. All of these examples have one thing in common, increased precision in farming.
Depending on the type of farming that you do, there will be different software and data collection techniques available to you. Make sure that you find the one that is right for you and that fits easily into your farm management.
Keep droning on
Drones are being used for even more than data collection. The uses in agriculture include checking livestock, crop spraying, irrigation mapping and crop monitoring.
The cost of drones has decreased dramatically since they first appeared on the market. This has meant that more and more farmers are able to use them in their day to day activities.
You will be able to use drones for checking for weeds and the health of your plants. Monitoring the wellbeing of your livestock is also made easier through the use of a drone. Equipped with things like infrared cameras and GPS, drones become extremely useful.
There are companies that have begun experimenting with using drones for seed planting. Farmers will soon be able to shoot seeds into prepared soil or deliver seeds, fertilizers and water to help with reforestation and replanting. Drones can also be used for spot spraying of crops if you have weeds.
On-the-ground planting and spraying crops can be quite costly for farmers. If you are able to use a drone to take over some of these tasks, you should be able to cut your costs.
Automation station
Technology in all sectors has been moving towards automation. Self-driving cars are being fine-tuned, manufacturers are speeding up their processes and surgeons are being assisted by robots and increasing precision.
Farming is not left out of the move towards automation. Farmers will be able to use automated tractors to work in several fields at the same time. Irrigation systems can also be automated to distribute the right amount of water depending on soil health and water levels.
While some of these technologies may be out of your price range for the moment, the more commonplace they become, the more affordable they will be. Keeping an eye on developments in the agricultural industry is vital in order to ensure that you aren’t left behind as the efficiency of farming is revolutionised.
