Precision farming

Precision farming is a form of farming management strategy that is centered on observing, measuring and responding to temporal variability in order to improve agricultural production and sustainability through the use of advanced technology, which is used to respond to intra-field and inter-field variability in crops. Precision agriculture aims to optimise crop yields while reducing waste, environmental impact, and costs. It is an agro technology method adopted with varying levels of implementation and research-focus and hinged on its potential for sustainable agriculture and non-mechanised production.

This method can be traced back to the 1950s and 1960s when the first Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites were launched and ever since, the method of agriculture has continued to evolve and expand, with the introduction of new technologies such as sensors, drones, and autonomous vehicles, as well as advances in data management and analysis tools. Not only that, report has also shown that precision agriculture is now being used by farmers around the world to improve the efficiency, productivity, and sustainability of their operations. According to the ‘Worlds First Intelligent Agriculture Cloud’, this technology includes the adoption of the same set of practices that use smart farming technologies to cater for the needs of individual plots and crops.

However, the information obtained is used to tailor a very unerring selection of crops, fertilizer quantity, and watering needs. Precision agriculture targets the intrinsic differences in farmland and optimises input by Variable Rate Application (VRA). That is to say, to implement Variable Rate Application (VRA), detailed spatial data must be collected across fields and locations through Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and crop lifecycles using GPS and remote sensing. According to the report, using emerging technologies like the Internet of Things-enabled devices such as smart agricultural sensors and robotic drones, and satellite imagery.

However, its quite important to know that by using agricultural technologies and practices, farmers can target their inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides to specific areas of the field that needs them the most, rather than applying them uniformly across the entire field. Based on the report, this approach can help farmers save on inputs, as well as increase crop yield and quality. Additionally, precision agricultural technologies can also help farmers monitor and manage their crops more effectively by allowing them to respond to potential problems like pests or diseases more quickly and effectively in addition to helping farmers to optimise their irrigation practices so as to save water and energy.