Last month, Josh Pearse of Vantage WA’s Perth office attended the Society of Precision Agriculture Australia (SPAA) National Variable Rate Technology Workshops in Broomehill and Green Range.
The workshops, sponsored by Grain Research Development Corporation (GRDC), were a networking event that focused on how growers can optimise input costs using precision agriculture solutions and systems, specifically variable rate technology (VRT).
Delivered by Alice Butler from Farmco and supported by Stirlings to Coast Farmers, the workshops explored how the application of precision ag tools and techniques can help to optimise crop yields, sustainability, and the farmer’s bottom line.
Both workshops focussed on educating farmers on how to best use variable rate technologies from a variety of precision ag suppliers, including Trimble, John Deere, and CNH.
Alice demonstrated how farmers can use VRT to tackle the operational constraints on grain, canola and pulse farms in WA.
During the sessions, she discussed the precision ag and variable rate technology cycles, the data layers that are available now and their uses, how to use data to make informed decisions, generating maps on displays, nitrogen and how to manage the content of it in the field with targeted management examples.
Plus, we also heard from Phil and Tom Longmire in the Farmer’s Presentation where they took a look at their own VRT journey and the issues they faced along the way. Phil and Tom currently use a SwarmFarm Robotics’ autonomous machine for their spraying applications.
The workshops provided us with great insights into the need for support and training for farmers looking to incorporate VRT into their operations and what the future holds for VRT.
If you’re interested in learning more about VRT, contact your local Vantage rep today.
