Category Archives: MicroFarm

Agronomy, MicroFarm, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Sensing

Satellite Imagery

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A large part of Heretaunga Plains horticulture was photographed for us by satellite at the end of November.

World View 2 satellite coverage of the Heretaunga Plains on 23 November 2105
World View 2 satellite coverage of the Heretaunga Plains on 23 November 2105

Part of our OnionsNZ Variability project, the World View 2 coverage targeted our crop and other onion crops east of Hastings.

By capturing four bands of light, Blue, Green, Red and Near Infrared, we are able to get a “normal” colour image like an aerial photo, and a biomass map using the NDVI index.

The satellite image pixel size in 0.5m x 0.5m, so we get at least two pixels across each onion bed.

World View 2 NDVI image captured 23 november 2015 of MicroFarm onion and vining pea crops
World View 2 NDVI image captured 23 November 2015 of MicroFarm onion and vining pea crops

In the NDVI image, the onion crop is lower left paddock, the vining peas upper right. Red areas indicate low or no biomass, yellow light, green moderate and blue heavy cover. Note however that the value of each colour is slightly different for each crop.

Because the pea canopy is full ground cover while the onions are only roughly half ground cover, we had to use different value bands to see variation within each crop. If we used the same range, either the peas would all be blue, or the onions mostly yellow and red.

The striping effect in the onions is the onion beds. Some adjacent beds have quite different canopy densities.  The red edge around the onions is bare soil and light canopy in the outer beds. The blue area in the centre is influenced by charcoal from an old bonfire site. Even taking these things into account, there is a reasonably large amount of variation in this crop.

Red spots in the pea crop are patches with no plants. The red headlands show light canopy areas and the red strip centre right the irrigator access track. There are three different seed lines of Ashton peas making up the pea crop. These are not discernable in the satellite image. The crop was harvested on 14 December, and there was no significant difference seen in hand harvested plots or in the viner.

Agronomy, AgTech, MicroFarm, Plant Health, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Sensing, Soil

Onion variability Year 1

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OnionsNZ

Enhancing the profitability and value of New Zealand onions

The purpose of this OnionsNZ MPI Sustainable Farming Fund research project is to provide the industry with tools to monitor and manage low yields and variability in onion yield and bulb quality.

In this collaboration with Plant & Food Research, LandWISE is providing precision agriculture paddock scale measurement and interpretation.

We have base maps from topography and surface ponding analysis completed by Page Bloomer Associates, and from AgriOptics Dual EM soil mapping. We also have some previous crop data including true colour, false colour and NDVI images of winter cover crops between successive onion crops in these paddocks. More details here>

We tracked crop development with a range of sensor technologies including AltusUAS MicaSense from UAV, Agricultural Software GroundCover app and some satellite imagery.

The collaboration with Plant & Food Research was to help us develop protocols to monitor crop development and yield variation (spatially and temporally). Linking these with crop modelling and agronomy helps determine why variation is occurring.

Crops were traced from paddock through harvest and storage so that post-harvest quality issues can be related to factors during growth. Linking paddock production to packhouse performance and back again may be key in unlocking value potential.

Grower led focus groups are involved in the project and analysis of results. They have a vital role in the development of practical tools they can use to monitor and quantify variability, to identify the causes of loss of yield and quality and share best practice to improve sustainability and grower returns.

 

Agronomy, MicroFarm, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Sensing, Soil

Onion Research Underway

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OnionsNZ

After months of planning our OnionsNZ, Plant and Food, Sustainable Farming Fund onion variability project, things are underway at the MicroFarm!

Gerry Steenkamer planted the crop on 2nd August. Rhinestone seed was donated by Vigour Seeds and treated for us by Seed and Field Services. We are very grateful for their support.

An initial residual herbicide application of Dacthal and Stomp was applied. We had a lot of wireweed last year and are keen to get on top of that.

PlantandFoodwebPlant and Food Research staff have established plots for detailed monitoring. They are doing many very detailed individual plant measurements at plot scale. LandWISE is coordinating a number of sensing surveys of the whole crop using a range of technologies.

20150805_PlotMarking
Plant and Food staff setting up monitoring plots in onions beds. (Wintery southerly)

More details for the research programme and measurements are available on the MicroFarm website.

Plant and Food researchers have developed growth models for a range of crops. This work will help refine their onion growth model, a key to understanding the development and variability in crops. The detailed plot measurements will also be compared with the whole paddock sensor measurements to corroborate and calibrate them.

The first paddock scale surveys have been completed. These give some base information and understanding of the site and it’s variability. Maps as pdfs are available on the MicroFarm website.

One of the first “layers” we can look at is Google Earth imagery – free info on the web! Have a look at your place: use the time slider to view a series of aerial and satellite images captured over recent and not so recent years.

 

MicroFarm Onion Beds with Winter Cover Crops (as shown on Google Earth image 19 April 2015)
MicroFarm Onion Beds with Winter Cover Crops (as shown on Google Earth image 19 April 2015)

We have posted some of “our place” images and some interpretation here>.

Pagebloomer vsPage Bloomer Associates completed an RTK-GPS survey using Trimble equipment from GPS Control Systems. The data were used to create surface ponding and runoff risk maps.

agriopticsAgriOptics completed a Dual-EM survey in early July. This gave shallow and deep soil information maps. The dry winter means soil had not reached field capacity when the survey was made, so we are a little cautious when interpreting the results. But we risked not getting a survey at all, and by planting in August it had still not rained.  With beds formed and crop planted and emerging, we have no opportunity now to repeat the survey.

AltusUAVAltusUAS has prepared NDVI maps of cover crops from UAV mounted sensors. They will be making repeated measurements as the crop develops. AltusUAS is now using MicaSense technology for efficient multispectral image collection.

 

ASL_Square_150ASL Software has provided their Cover Map canopy cover measurement tool fitted with high accuracy GPS. We can now use that technology to measure relative plant development and ensure our readings (our mapped data) are located in the correct beds!

LandWISE People, MicroFarm, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Sensing

BioRich Tractor for MicroFarm

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The arrival of a BioRich sponsored tractor at the LandWISE MicroFarm will support precision farming research efforts.

BioRich_JD900HCWeb
The John Deere high clearance cropping tractor is set to match the onion beds at the MicroFarm.

The John Deere cropping tractor has been set to a 183cm wheel track to fit the onion beds planted in early August. It’s first role is to act as a carrier of sensors that are used to map crop development.

We are delighted with the tractor. After much investigation into options for a sensor carrier, we finally landed on a high clearance cropping tractor as the ideal machine. Then, after searching wide and long, we discovered there was one sitting on our back door.

BioRich Principal, Mike Glazebrook is a LandWISE founding member and past Chairman. He said he was keen to support  the work being done at the MicroFarm as he sees it as of benefit to the community. There is obvious alignment with LandWISE objectives for sustainable production.

BioRich Limited is an organic waste recycling company. It’s main activity is capturing organic material that would otherwise be wasted, or cause pollution, and turning it into rich compost. Where it is practical to do so it also seeks to extract stock food and energy from organic material that would otherwise be wasted.

Every year, throughout New Zealand, many thousands of tonnes of organic “waste” is dumped into landfills or is inappropriately discharged to land. Once dumped much of this material breaks down in an uncontrolled manner and releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and pollutants into our waterways.

Meanwhile most of New Zealand’s cultivated soils have been steadily deteriorating. This is due to both to a decline in soil organic matter and a depletion of minerals and nutrients.

Hence BioRich’s mission is to divert organic matter (carbon) from ending up in places where it can do a lot of harm – in our atmosphere and water – and putting it somewhere it can do a lot of good – in our soils.

Agronomy, Automation, Drainage, Irrigation, MicroFarm, Nutrients, Planting, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Sensing, Soil, Tillage, Water

Onions Research – three year project

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LandWISE has partnered with Onions New Zealand and Plant & Food Research in a three year project focused on understanding variability in onion crops. The project is funding by Onions NZ and the MPI Sustainable Farming Fund.

Dr Jane Adams, OnionsNZ Research and Innovation Manager, says the project, “Enhancing the profitability and value of New Zealand onions” is designed to provide the industry with tools to monitor and manage low yields and variability in onion yield and bulb quality.

It will incorporate precision agriculture with initial work to be done at the LandWISE MicroFarm. At the MicroFarm, we have been building increasing knowledge of the site, but will ramp that up with more layers of soil and crop information as we try to unpick factors contributing to lower yields and reduced quality.

Information about the 2014-2015 MicroFarm Onion crop can be found on the MicroFarm website.

The project proper starts on 1 July, but there has a lot of preparatory activity to ensure everything kicks of smoothly.

Anyone interested in joining a regional Focus Group supporting the project should
contact us>

OnionsNZ

 

Agronomy, LandWISE 2015, MicroFarm, Precision Agriculture

A message from BASF Crop Protection

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LandWISE 2015 Platinum Sponsor  – BASF Crop Protection

Fenton Hazelwood - BASF Crop Protection
Fenton Hazelwood – BASF Crop Protection

I would like to firstly thank Dan and Debbie and the entire LandWISE team for the opportunity to be here. It seems we are all getting increasingly busy, even with these Smart Phones. However, for me this annual LandWISE conference is a must do on the calendar, and I don’t say this lightly.

LandWISE and its members are focused on a topic that is dear to me; “sustainability”. Not just sustainability, a word to be thrown around because it sounds good, but sustainability in the true sense of the word. They are active in the pursuit of sustainable farming and have built a solid track record of success.

So BASF Crop Protection is very proud to again be a key sponsor of the Annual LandWISE conference. The philosophy of LandWISE fits very well with BASF Crop Protection: providing real solutions in our primary industry that will enable us to sustainably produce more saleable yield per hectare.  Without the ability to sustainably produce more, we will struggle to feed a growing population.

Many in NZ feel we are insulated, but we are all part of the global stage. A few statistics resonate daily for me. I like this one, which helps engage non primary industry people:

We need to produce more food in the next 50 years, than has been produced in the last 10,000 years.

Give or take 10% either-way and this is a hell of task with available land for production reducing constantly.

It is well worth asking people you know, “What is the biggest job on earth?” There’s a video about it here>

BASF celebrates its 150th birthday this year; a HUGE milestone, and one that as a company we are incredibly proud of. May the next 150 years plus be as ground breaking. But I have some worries.

 

I am concerned in particular, that in the next 5 years or so our industry is going to see some very experienced individuals retire. Primary production in general is going to lose these individuals,  people with extensive knowledge and wisdom.

Yes, there are more being trained, however we will be losing a block of knowledge spanning four or more decades.  That “old knowledge” is extremely important as to go forward we really need to be a ware of the past. Imagine having no one with experience pre Glyphosate? And that is but one of many examples.

With a slow-down in new molecule introductions, chemical resistance management is becoming even more vital.  There are challenges a plenty, of which makes the journey all the more interesting.

A constant challenge of looking after the molecules we have in preventing resistance management is at a mode of action level, not an active ingredient level. We need that thinking to permeate the entire industry, developers, suppliers, users and all.  If we pay attention to detail, take care to understand how resistance develops and make sure our strategies do their best to prevent it,   the chemistry we have can continue to help our production systems for longer.

 

And to all delegates and contributors of this conference, thank you for your support and your support to LandWISE, it is HUGELY appreciated.

Agronomy, LandWISE 2015, MicroFarm, Nutrients, Precision Agriculture, Soil

Monitoring peas from the greenhouse to paddock

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LandWISE 2015 Presenter, Christina Finlayson

Christina Finlayson, Research Associate, Plant and Food Research
Christina Finlayson, Research Associate, Plant and Food Research

Peas grown for processing can be a notoriously variable crop both in terms of overall productivity and maturity at harvest. In turn, this can have a significant impact on paid yields and grower profitability.

Many factors are thought to contribute to variability in peas – some of which are beyond grower control and some of which can potentially be influenced through management.

In recent years we’ve worked to consider a few of these ‘manageable’ factors, and specifically, the effect of seed characteristics on early crop vigour and the response of crops to plant growth regulators (PGRs).

The aim of this work has been to identify practices that reduce plant-to-plant variability in the field and maximise paid yield returns for growers and processors.

In our talk we present results from a greenhouse trial looking at the effect of seed characteristics on early crop growth, and how that relates back to the previous pea seed crop. Preliminary results suggested that different-sized pea seed can result in big differences in early plant size and growth.

Finlayson_PeaSeedlingWeightVsSeedWeight
Different-sized pea seed can result in big differences in early plant size and growth

 

These early differences in productivity are seldom overcome, so getting a consistent ‘start’ is important in minimising future variability issues. However additional variability develops following establishment .

In the field, we have conducted several trials assessing the potential efficacy of a range of PGRs on flowering dynamics and pea yields. Across these trials we’ve seen few clear effects of the PGR types, rates and timings that have been tested.

Finlayson_PGRs

 

Agronomy, LandWISE 2015, MicroFarm, Nutrients, Precision Agriculture, Sensing, Soil

Monitoring and Mapping Crop Development

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LandWISE 2015 Presenter, Dan Bloomer

DanBloomer200
Dan is the Manager of LandWISE Inc, an independent consultant, and a member of the Precision Agriculture Association of New Zealand Executive.

In an attempt to understand variability in crops, smartphone photos were processed to assess canopy size. By geo-referencing such images, they can be used for spatial analysis. Preliminary results showed considerable promise and a tool has been developed.

One use is for detailed nutrient planning and variable rate application, which requires spatial knowledge of final yield. A case study of an onion crop at the LandWISE MicroFarm is used as an example. Onions have a potential yield of around 100t/ha but the mean national yield in an average year is only 35t/ha.

The onion crop was planted on 7 June 2014. Fertiliser was applied at three intervals, 2 August, 27 September and 24 October 2014. Yields before curing within this 1ha paddock ranged from 0 – 85 t/ha.

Overhead photos of the crop were taken across 18 crop beds on 1 October, 28 October and 14 November 2014. The images were processed by ASL Software Ltd to determine an estimate of ground cover. The crop was lifted on 8 January 2015 and fresh weights taken from each bed.  These final yield results were compared to the images taken during crop development.

Data collected on 14 November show strong correlation with final yield; R2 = 0.86.

OnionCover November

However, these data were collected three weeks after our final fertiliser application.OnionCover November Correlation

Photographs taken on 1 October had an average ground cover of 4.6% (range of 1.1 – 8.4%).

OnionCover November

The measurements at this stage  showed good correlation with final yield; R2 = 0.71 once one image with areas of surface algae was discounted.

OnionCover October Correlation

The October images were taken four days after the second fertiliser application, which could easily have been delayed. They were collected three weeks before the third fertiliser application.

This research suggests simple image analysis can provide early indications of final yield. It also suggests such images can provide timely information for adjusting rates and variable rate fertiliser application in onion crops.

To investigate the potential to create canopy maps, we automatically captured GPS referenced images. The images were processed to determine ground cover and displayed on Google Earth.

CoverMap Onion Map

All image capture and processing was built into a smartphone application by ASL Software. There was a strong spatial pattern that could allow variable rate application.

ASL_CoverMapThe accuracy of the smartphone GPS may be adequate for large scale assessment of crops in big paddocks. However, it was not able to correctly locate the images and subsequent ground cover factors within the correct onion bed. Connection to an accurate GPS signal is being included to better locate each image point.

We thank ASL Software for app development, the LandWISE MicroFarm sponsors Ballance AgriNutrients, BASF Crop Protection, Centre for Land and Water and MicroFarm supporters for access to the onion crop.

 

 

Agronomy, Automation, Drainage, Irrigation, LandWISE 2015, LandWISE People, MicroFarm, Nutrients, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Sensing, Soil

More adequate or less better sensor arrays and wireless networks

LandWISE 2015 Presenter – Gert HattinghInstalling the WINTEC wireless soil moisture sensor array
Installing the WINTEC wireless soil moisture sensor array

Gert Hattingh is Industry Research Champion at the Waikato Institute of Technology in Hamilton.

Gert’s current work involves finding ways to build more sustainable and energy efficient homes, finding better ways for the normal household to live sustainably, and evaluating new technologies.

Gert says the most burning question in any business venture is whether your actions will cost you money, or make you money.  Any decision you make in the production, marketing or operational sphere has an influence on this statement.  This paradigm has been a design key since Wintec have ventured into producing cost effective sensor arrays and wireless networks.

In the modern measurement world, there are three cost drivers – quality of the sensor(s), the cost of the network carrying the data, and the cost of making sense of and using the data.

Gert and colleagues started off by looking at the network and the data carrier first, and designed a generic sensor module to host and manage almost any sensor type.  They also developed a database model that would host any data from sensors, as well as the encryption and data quality protocols.

To date, their system can host the following type of sensors:  GPS, Air Humidity, Air Temperature (2 sensors), Air pressure, solar irradiation, wind speed, wind direction, soil moisture (various sensors), pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, oxidation-reduction potential, ammonia, CO2, methane, propane, NOX and some alcohols.

A single sensor module can carry at most thirteen sensors, with a practical thirty sensor modules per network.  This totals to 390 sensors per network.

This technology is being trialed at the LandWISE MicroFarm, gathering, transmitting and processing soil moisture information from an array of sensors.

Agronomy, Automation, MicroFarm, Precision Agriculture, Sensing, Soil

Aerial Mapping at the MicroFarm

Centre for Land and Water residents, AltusUAS are creating detailed farm and crop maps of the LandWISE MicroFarm.

Altus Unmanned Aerial Solutions specialises in the manufacture of professional UAS systems for wide-ranging applications. They build and operate systems of high specification with features including built in redundancy, custom control interfaces and integrated emergency parachute. They offer platforms with class leading flight performance as well as all-weather capabilities.

AltusMissionNDVI
An AltusUAS Quadcopter sets off on a mission to map the MicroFarm

Even a simple aerial image is highly informative – the view from above changes perception immensely!

MicroFarm fields and Green Shed meeting venue - image captured by AltusUAS
MicroFarm fields and Green Shed meeting venue – image captured by AltusUAS

At the MicroFarm, they are using their technologies to survey the site, photogrammetry to process imagery and further analysis to create a 3D model of the MicroFarm and crops.

A composite image created from many overlapped photographs taken from a GPS guided UAV - the basis for a 3D MicroFarm model
A composite image created from many overlapped photographs taken from a GPS guided UAV – the basis for a 3D MicroFarm model
A zoom-in on part of the image showing the Green Shed and corner of a crop of mustard
A zoom-in on part of the image showing the Green Shed and corner of a crop of mustard

 

View a flythough of the model (it looks like a video of the site) on YouTube here>

AltusMicroFarmVideoImage

As well as terrain models/topographic maps, they can produce detailed NDVI information.

We are using this information to understand our site in much more detail. With individual pixels as small as about 4cm, we can zoom in practically to individual leaf scale. Do we need that? Not for many applications, but it does raise new possibilities around pest and disease identification and definitely enable us to view individual plants.

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