Everyone Wants One Device

At a recent dinner meeting a CEO of a prominent company was saying how everyone wants a single software package that consolidates all their activities.  He said this is true in agriculture the same as it is other places.  He told a story of carrying a PDA and phone and how he wished they were one in the same.  I remember those days and thoughts myself quite clearly.  Everyone told me I was crazy... first for carrying the Palm Pilot and secondly for thinking people would like such a combined device.

Ironically, it was pointed out that he was carrying two smartphones now... or should I say, had two smartphones sitting on the dining table of the restaurant.  He laughed and went on to talk about tablets and laptops and how at one point he had so many devices he couldn't fit them in a single briefcase.

I didn't want to write a blog post about devices however.  What I wanted to reflect on was the desire of people to use technology to consolidate, streamline and simplify their lives.  This is a noble ideal, however, almost every disruptive technological wave is wrought with desire to do something that was either a) not capable before or b) totally new way of doing what was done before.  Example... now that you've got a wireless connection on your PDA, what type of programs can you build now?  It's revolutionary stuff.

Combining devices or software is a bode to creative intellect and ambitious visionaries.  The trouble with this however is the new device or software is much like the main character in a Shakespearean tragedy.  He suffers from an undeniable ending...  whereby that which defines you, destroys you.  In some modern movies the same rings true.  We love these stories because we see it coming but can't stop it.  It relates to our lives in a very personal and frightening way.

In precision ag and modern farming I often hear requests for a single display in the tractor cab.  Or, perhaps a single software that would manage both their financials, their grain marketing and their variable rate precision ag files.  There have been a few programs that strived relentlessly to obtain this nirvana.  However, they just never quite have "enough" features... and ultimately the feature creep in trying to obtain this vision ultimately kills them.

Instead of bemoaning the  hopelessness of our state, I believe we can learn from other industries.  How is it that Google, Apple and Microsoft can all share calendar apps and yet compete with each other?  They use API's issued by their competitors.  The original goliath builds an API so that smaller innovators can build on their foundational technology.  But in so doing, they open up gates to giant competitors in other industry segments.  Why would they do this?  Because it is ultimately in their best interest to do what they do best and provide opportunity for customers to start swimming in their pool, regardless of what device or software platform is currently the customer's favorite. 

For precision ag to "go mainstream" at the farm level, we need both goliaths and startups cross-referencing each other's API's.  In so doing farmers themeselves can stitch together systems that work well for themselves and access the best features of each... and do so fairly easily. Sure there will always be problems to solve but this simply creates opportunities for new innovators to step in and fill those new gaps.

Who is in the best position to promote this culture?  Software purist companies.  They have no incentive to move product through their software, but instead must move their software for the sake of the software's value in and of itself.  With that said, it probably is NOT going to be a software company that aimed at being all inclusive themselves.  I'm personally on the look out for software companies that want to do one thing really, exceptionally well and are open to playing well with others.  Those fine companies will reach more users faster, and deliver greater value propositions versus their price.

Here is another way to think about this "one device" desire... we already have just one device!  Our own brain and body.  We stitch together various technology and hardware to accomplish our goals at the appropriate value.  I urge you to look for components that talk to others as a core requirement.

What programs do you wish talked to each other?   How would YOU stitch them together?

Ultra High Yield Soybeans

I've written a lot about precision management of corn lately, so I figured I'd give soybeans a nod of the hand.  Here are the building blocks to insanely high soybean yields.

1.  Start with good soil.  If you haven't got any then improve it.
2.  Rotate with other crops.  Multiple years of corn, then cereal rye cover crop.
3.  Plant early.  Yield potential is established AFTER you plant and you need flowering sites.
4.  Time fertility for ~20# soil nitrates prior to V3.  This can be from variety of sources... no more, no less.
4.  Plant very long season variety.  Again, more flowering sites increase max potential.
5.  Adjust population to expected lodging and shade.  Tall beans never yield.
     A) Lower populations where soil nitrogen is expected to be higher than desired early.
     B) Lower populations in wider rows for less plant to plant competition.
     C) Lower populations with longer maturity (they'll make it up)
6.  No weeds allowed.  Spray early and often.
6.  Track soil moisture and only augment late if possible.  No irrigation? Pray for rain.
7.  If you have soil moisture late, top dress with N at beginning of seed fill to meet yield goals.
8.  Treat pests and disease according to scouting.
9.  Consider desiccant for harvest aid.
10.  Harvest timely and with proper settings.
11.  Sow cover crop to soak extra high N load from vibrant plants.

This is over simplified and highly opinionated.  It's also proven with experience on about a zillion field observations and various trials.  I left out some things that should be obvious, and also some details about things that will make this all automatic.  We're working on software that will help.  In the mean time, this should guide you.

The key to high yielding soybeans is having an environment that is rich for the plant's needs at each time of its life cycle.  There are two primary stages.  Vegetative and Reproductive.  They overlap from flowering until the end of new leaf development.  You want to maximize the nodes and thus flowering sites per acre based on your environment.  This changes across the field and throughout your planting window.  You need to adjust according to these things!  Furthermore, you should augment your available nitrates to stimulate bacteria to get to work early (a little N boosts leaf surface and juices the roots for faster and greater nodulation.) But, you don't want too much N early as the bacteria get lazy.  This might mean reducing your tillage and growing a high C:N cover to soak and tie up N early.  Sounds funny to suggest augmenting N levels to DECREASE nitrogen levels but it's truly important.  In fact, studies show too much N early can delay N fixing and ultimately crush yields.  Be careful.

Once healthy, evenly spaced plants have taken off in a nitrogen balanced environment, your job is to protect them so they can develop an insanely high number of flowering sites.  This means protecting their water source (soil), root development (compaction), and leaf surface (insect and disease.)  With crop rotation most of that is taken care of free of charge.  The planter becomes increasingly valuable as your populations become lower.  You cannot skimp here.  Try treating them with same affection as corn... seriously, try it.  Some people are known to time their row units so they drop equally spaced soybean seeds... and raise 160+ bpa records.

Ultra long season varieties have longer vegetative periods.  In fact, we have proven that the day length sensitive talk is bogus.  That's right... it's garbage.  Instead, focus on GDD heat units prior to flowering.  After flowering the soybean marches to maturity based on the fact that there is a night and not necessarily the length of the night (can anyone say, street lamp green beans?)  So, the plant sees the light switch, takes a nap and then wakes up to grab sunlight again.  You should focus on selecting a variety that will march to maturity close to or even after anticipated frost given your planting date and temperature outlook.  (obviously, you don't want to harvest every field after frost, but this post is talking about ultra high yield, okay!)

Soybeans grow like a cube.  Their geometry is much different than corn (a cylinder).  They will canopy at about the same height as their row width.  This isn't exact but it's a decent rule of thumb.  Given their ability to add flowering sites at an exponential rate, your exact population is highly influenced by your row width, planting date and maturity.  What is the best row width?  Tell me your planting date, seed variety and soil properties and I'll have an opinion.

As your tree-like soybeans sprawl out with tons of flowers and massive nodules on their roots, you'll want to know what your soil moisture profile looks like late in the season.  You should have well over 100 bushel potential based on node count per plant.  As such, you'll need to feed the seeds developing in all these pods!  History shows that good bean years favor dry early and wet late with good soil N mineralization happening late.  Soybeans require around 5# per bushel of N and can produce 60-70% from atmosphere.  This means that if your soil contributes 80# (3.5% OM soil) your cover crop releases some late and you want more than 100 bpa, you're going to need an additional 50-80# N top dressed.  How do you apply it and what source?  That's up to you but do as little crop damage as possible and get it into the root profile.  Foliars are not going to be enough.

For most of my midwest farmer buddies, the idea of spraying soybeans in October with a descecant sounds crazy.  I might get made fun of... but this won't be the last.  The truth is, a crazy lush, full season soybean plant is going to want to hang on and keep pumping late into the fall.  It really doesn't care that you have empty grain bins.  It wants more and more seed and will push the plant right up until you or mother nature say stop.  That's totally okay given your yield goals and investment here.  I can't advise trying this on every acre but with some experience you could probably uncover a means to justify harvesting 90+ bpa soybeans in October after a sprayer trip.

Oh, and I should run a budget on this... I'm pretty sure that seed rate adjustments could cover late N application costs (besides deferring rate decision until knowing exactly what soil moisture looked like.)

So that's it.  My nod to our poor secondary crop.  I love chatting about plant growth so drop a comment below.  There's so much I left out that others have tried with good success.  This is just my preferred crop plan for high yields.  What is yours?

Why Notill Farmers Dig Precision Ag

I've been running a precision ag crop consulting and software company since 2006. Prior to that I farmed full time. Fortunate for me, my father and I practiced notill farming and utilized yield monitors and variable rate technology. For me, it was normal... but since then, I've learned that the two practices go hand in hand. Now, I'm fortunate to work with several of the best in class for both of these practices. Here are my top reasons as to why these practices tend to converge.

 1. Early adoption... Both practices are relatively new in the whole scheme of farming. Leaders make decisions that result in change and these leaders are moving early.

 2. Management... let's face it, full width tillage is easier... and so is doing what you did last year. Both notill and precision ag require more management. Some say they adopt one or the other just for the challenge, while others say profit motivates them. I would agree with Farm Futures survey (need to get link) that shows highest profit farmers practice and enjoy both ...and reap the profit reward for their management.

 3. Speed... High profit farms tend to get more bushels in less time... both labor and machinery. This is accelerated by both techniques and multiplied when used together.

 4. Timing... Time is money, and timing is priceless. Notill and cover crops emphasize timing field operations with natural environment. Alongside this is data quest to understand what is working, both NOW (in field sensor), and what happen prior (yield monitor and rate trials.)

I firmly believe the most important element to farm profitability is timing. Making hay when the sun shines is about leveraging your brain and brawn to lower risks and increase rewards. It costs almost nothing to do it at the right time versus the wrong time... and with advances in notill machinery and precision technology the cropping system as a whole is more "forgiving" on timing. What do I mean by that? A well managed notill field can support machinery traffic before tillage can be performed and then the system loses less moisture to the atmosphere and soil to erosion all while increasing equipment speed per acre... and decreasing time spent per acre. This all adds up to better timing by the farmer.

 This is by no means comprehensive but were just a few things on my mind this evening. (plus, I was due for a blog post... my timing was getting behind!)

 Cheers and thanks to my readers for following!