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PA crop walks at Birchip and Nyah West
BCG in collaboration with SPAA is running two precision agriculture crops walks on Thursday 19 August. To be held at Birchip (9.00am – 11.00am) and Nyah West (2.00pm – 4.00pm) the crop walks will give growers the opportunity to see first hand the effects of PA technologies on farm, including how in season tools can be used to assist grain production.
Sam Trengove, SPAA group facilitator commented: “The crop walks aim to develop and build on farmers’ skills and knowledge in variable rate systems and zone management with the use of crop scanning tools. We’ll discuss with farmers what visual observations may be suggesting and what we can learn from these.”
There will be a focus on nitrogen management, with plenty of discussion regarding the use of crop sensing and imagery and how it could be applied to post-emergent nitrogen applications. “We’ll have some crop sensors on hand to demonstrate how they work and how they can be applied. We will also talk about the concept of N-rich strips and look at where these strips have been applied on a couple different soil types,” said Sam.
Another important feature of the day is sharing experiences. This is a chance for farmers to hear from farmers who are already using PA technologies. These farmers will be able to answer questions on what the benefits, successes and challenges have been, what equipment and software they use, what trials they have done, how they decide on rates for zones, what layers of information they use and what their future plans are.
BCG’s Simon Craig commented on the importance of the workshops: “It’s extremely valuable to see for yourself how PA can be used on farm. The crop walks will give a true insight into and the practicality of PA technologies in farming. We encourage all farmers in the region to take up this opportunity.”
Locations: Birchip: Ferrier’s farm (111 Ferrier road – on the left), Nyah West: McQueen’s farm (4km west of Nyah West on the Chinkapook road – north side of the road).
For more information and to RSVP (by Monday 16 August) contact Janine McIntyre at the BCG office on (03) 5492 2787. These free workshops are supported by GRDC.
Directions to Ferrier's Farm
