Monitoring of winter crops is a profitable investment for agrarian business. Practice shows that the yield of winter crops is higher than that of spring crops, therefore, for approximately the same costs, a greater profit is generated. The cultivation of winter crops has its own specifics (problems of overwintering, the impact of pests and climate changes in recent years), but it is profitable in any case.
Experience
After communicating with farmers and representatives of several farms in Kyiv, Mykolaiv, and Kherson regions, the "Zemlerob" team compiled a guide with recommendations that will help you grow a good harvest. Preparation for the season and preservation of crops in the fall are important factors for a high winter harvest. The following factors also affect yield:
- provision of fertilizer needs;
- protection against weeds and pests;
- growth regulation for successful wintering of plants.
The main task in the process of cultivating winter crops is to save crops from dying due to low temperatures. The combination of agronomic theory with progressive technological practice plays an important role in the development of measures aimed at protecting plants during wintering.
The resistance of winter crops to negative factors increases:
- correctly selected varieties;
- optimal sowing dates;
- seed quality (intact, healthy seeds);
- level of soil preparation and product moisture content;
- optimal plant nutrition.
Under such conditions, winter crops have time to form a well-developed root system before the temperature drops and snow falls, while not growing to the size that complicates wintering.
"When implementing innovative technologies, it should be remembered that only an integrated approach allows to obtain the greatest efficiency, and even if the company bets on unmanned monitoring or services built on drone data, it is necessary to pay attention to the quality of seed material or the timing of sowing", - he notes Valery Yakovenko, head of Drone.UA.
The purpose of agrotechnical measures
To get a good harvest, you need to achieve the optimal density of plants. To do this, even before sowing, it is necessary to conduct a soil survey for the presence of pests, diseases, and weeds, to check the fertility of the land according to physical and chemical indicators. The yield of winter crops can vary depending on the region of cultivation, weather conditions, and the selected variety, but there is a set of measures that can solve the following problems: weak frost and winter resistance of plants, diseases, fungal and viral infections. A clearly constructed process algorithm for effective care of crops will allow you to cope with solving these problems. Application of modern technologies – complex analysis of soils in laboratories, monitoring of crops using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and satellite images, methods of differentiated sowing and application of fertilizers, for example,
Work algorithm for complex analysis of crops and soils for precision agriculture
1. Aerial photography of the field using cameras with RGB and NIR-GB sensors installed on the drone, determination of coordinates, contours and control points.
2. Taking soil samples with GPS reference for laboratory analysis to determine indicators depending on crops:
- soil pH, buffer pH (determining the need for liming);
- content of soluble salts (salinity);
- organic matter, NO3, P, K;
- Ca, Mg, Na;
- S, Zn, Cu, Mn, Fe;
- sum of cations mg-eq / 100 g of soil;
- base saturation %, H, K, Na, Ca, Mg.
3. Creation of an orthophoto plan of the field in the visible (RGB) and infrared (NIR-GB) spectra, calculation of the distribution of the vegetative mass of the crop in the field (NDVI index).
4. Analysis of the received information by specialized software, in particular Pix4D, creation of maps of problem areas with selected homogeneous zones.
5. Development of agrochemical cartograms of interpolation of nutrients across the field (subsowing, fertilization (NPK + trace elements), protection and tillage) to neutralize identified threats.
Result:
- Fertilizer savings - 15-30%;
- Saving of seed material - 3-8%;
- Reduction of costs for depreciation of agricultural machinery - 5-10%;
- Savings of financial resources – $12 per hectare
With the help of experts from the Ukrainian company Drone.UA, on the example of agricultural fields in the Mykolaiv region, they simulated various situations and prepared a list of mandatory works necessary to obtain maximum results.
Protection against weeds
In autumn, weeds reduce the overwintering ratio of crops due to competition for nutrients and light, which also makes it difficult to control them in spring and summer. Therefore, it is necessary to draw up maps of weed cover crops, as well as carry out their quantitative calculation and find out the composition by species.
It is important to determine the level and places of spread of weeds in a timely manner, to decide on the use of herbicides, to calculate doses and to draw up maps of differentiated treatment of crops. It is drones that make it possible to create the most accurate maps of problem areas with an error of no more than a few centimeters.
Protection against fungal and viral infections
With insufficient processing of seeds, various diseases (powdery mildew, brown leaf rust, etc.) significantly reduce the future yield. For the timely use of protective equipment, it is important to accurately diagnose the locations of diseases. In complex cases of damage, the type of causative agent should be identified. Many companies, in addition to conducting tests, provide consultations on the optimal selection of drugs. The use of drones makes it possible to speed up the process of gathering information on the field as much as possible and not to miss problem areas, which can happen when ordering the classic method of field surveying.
Management of growth rate
The developed technique prevents plants from growing larger than the optimal size for overwintering. Growth regulators redirect nutrients from the aerial part of the plant to the root and stimulate the development of the root system. For spot application of these substances, maps of the level of development of crops are created, based on the analysis of which decisions are made on the use of growth regulators. Drone.UA specialists use mobile laboratories, which, together with scanning fields from the air, allow obtaining growth indicators directly on the day of work.
Determination of soil fertility
The main application of fertilizers takes place before sowing or at the same time. However, early spring fertilizing is equally important, which can be adjusted with information on soil fertility and the condition of plants at the time of entering and exiting hibernation. Such maps of soil fertility after ground inspection (agrochemical analysis at selected points) can be used to specify fertilizer rates. Soil scanning should be carried out as early as possible so that vegetation does not cover the soil. Determining plant growth indicators is used to calculate fertilizer application rates in early spring. Before entering hibernation or immediately after leaving it, specialists can provide information in the form of maps on the following indicators:
- percentage of similarity;
- coefficient of tillering;
- terrestrial biomass;
- development phase;
- leaf surface index;
- chlorophyll concentration;
- total photosynthetic potential.
This information is important for adjusting fertilizer application rates, as well as, for example, for spring sowing.
Analysis of previous growing seasons
The head of Drone.UA Valery Yakovenko claims:
"Today hundreds of farms invest money and time in the development of new technologies. This is absolutely justified, because with the application of precision farming technologies, taking into account the actual needs of the fields and understanding all influencing factors, the owner has the opportunity not only to save money, but also to get additional crops depending on the chosen strategy. Drones cannot be a panacea for all problems, but they are an extremely important tool at all stages of agricultural production."
If you received an unexpectedly low yield in individual fields or areas, it is worth using archival satellite data, which can restore the picture of vegetation dynamics and determine the reason for the decrease in yield. Even under the conditions of a different predecessor, the reasons for the decrease in yield may persist from previous years. An example is soil flooding zones diagnosed from a drone, which are not visible from the edges of the field. The storage and analysis of such information will help to form a strategy for eliminating problem areas in the current season. The use of the above methods increases the yield by 10-15%, simultaneously reducing the costs of seeds and fertilizers. These indicators were obtained experimentally for the last two seasons in the fields of customers of Drone.UA in the Kyiv, Mykolaiv and Kherson regions.
DroneUA is the leader of the Ukrainian market of unmanned aerial vehicles for agriculture. The company oversees more than 2 million hectares of agricultural land owned by Ukrainian enterprises. The company offers farmers a wide range of services for monitoring, processing, data analysis, drawing up maps and recommendations for crop care
DroneUA company contacts:
e-mail: info@drone.ua
phones +38(093) 457-57-57, (067) 000-22-57, (044) 495-75-77
Väderstad is a Swedish manufacturer of agricultural equipment. From the disc harrow to modern systems of electronic control of equipment, which is fully adapted to the system of precision agriculture, for more than 50 years the company has remained true to its principles: the creation of modern, innovative, highly efficient agricultural machines.
You can find out more about issue No. 13 of the "Zemlerob" magazine here .
