PA Methods to Diagnose Crop Performance ? Tim Neale 1 and John Heap 2 1 PrecisionAgriculture.com.au 2 SARDI
PA Methods to DiagnoseCrop Performance
?Tim Neale 1 and John Heap 2
1 PrecisionAgriculture.com.au2 SARDI
Seedling
“Diagnostic Agronomy”
Yes
To the beach!
No
What Went Wrong??
Black box &Can of worms Vegetative biomass
Water limited yield in all zones?
AnotherBlack box &
Can of wormsGrain yieldThe ultimate integrator
What Went Wrong? (www.WWW.org.au?)
• Crop grain yield is the ultimate integrator of constraints
• Spatial-temporal patterns (PA) give excellent diagnostic clues
- eg gap between vegetative biomass and grain yield
• Real-time sensing vs. historical diagnosis
• Yield constraints
- Natural or man-made (management)
- Natural: Biological, Soil, Other
- Treatable or untreatable (practicality, economics)
- Simple or complex (eg ARG x subsoil constraints?)
PA Methods to Diagnose and Manage Crop Performance
Identify problem zones
Management decision:Amelioration vs ↓ inputs
Yield (+ biomass) maps
Management action
Diagnose (ID) problemObservation, knowledge, experience, tests, PA data
VRT options, economics, experience, risk
PA VRT equipment
Constraints to achieving water limited yield(incomplete list for example only)
Biological
Weeds
Soilborne diseases
Foliar diseases
Soil biota
Insects
Soil
N
P
pH
Other nutrients
Soil depth
Soil texture
Boron
Salinity
Water repellance
Other
Frost
Wind
Herbicide toxicity
Water-logging
Compaction
Lodging
PA technologies and data to diagnose crop performance(incomplete list for example only)
Real-time (sensors)N application
(CropCircle, CropSpec, Greenseeker)
Herbicide application (WeedSeeker)
TechnologiesYield/Protein monitors
EM38
Satellite imagery
Aerial imagery
Weed mapping
(CropCircle, CropSpec etc)
Gamma
DataYield/Protein maps
ECa maps
Biomass maps
Soil maps
Weed maps
Disease inoculum maps
Elevation (DEMs)
Thermal maps
Slope/aspect
Drainage models
Diagnostic Agronomy: Where are we?
• Sound agronomic knowledge at paddock level
• Good range of diagnostic tests and tools
• PA research - good progress on specific problems
• Need an integrated approach to diagnose zone constraints
• Best diagnostic models are in good agronomists heads
Diagnostic Agronomy: Next steps?
• Need to capture and codify agronomist’s knowledge
and diagnostic process – aided by PA data.
• Synergistic combination of technologies important
(e.g. gamma + EM38)
• Need sound economic mapping and VRT strategies
• Human observation and experience critical to success
Potential GRDC investment:Integrated Diagnostic Model
• Identify major constraints
• Define/research characteristics of constraints
• Construct a diagnostic tool for constraints
(similar to plant taxonomy?)
• Field test diagnostic tool
• Sampling/testing promotion?
Develop mapping and VRT technologies
• Practical techniques and economics