Frenchman Valley Expands Use of Drone Results From Agribotix to Help Growers Prepare for the Growing Season
Spring drone surveys assess winter wheat pre-harvest and verify herbicide effectiveness before new planting.
BOULDER, Colo., May 16, 2018 (Newswire.com) - Frenchman Valley Coop, one of the largest agricultural coop’s in Nebraska, is delivering its Spring Drone Survey program to its growers using the Agribotixtm FarmLenstm data platform. In April and May, Frenchman Valley agronomists are using drones to survey winter wheat fields to identify areas requiring specific focus before harvest; additionally, the result will identify weeds in fields prior to planting corn and soybeans.
Frenchman Valley Coop began its done program in 2016 using FarmLens from Agribotix, a leader in drone-enabled agricultural intelligence. It has successfully used drones to help its growers increase winter wheat yields as well as increase the performance of its summer season crops.
It's helpful to go back out to survey winter wheat again before a final nitrogen application, and to take another look at corn and bean fields pre-planting to measure the effectiveness of herbicide applications.
Jeff Wessels, Head of Frenchman Valley's Precision Ag Program
Colorado-based Agribotix is working with coops like Frenchman Valley and its growers to enable them to see what is happening in their fields in near real-time throughout the year, during and even before the growing season.
“For the sake of our growers and our own operations, we like the flexibility and effectiveness drones offer,” says Jeff Wessels, head of Acre+, Frenchman Valley’s precision ag program. “With this Spring’s cold, slow start here in Nebraska, it’s helpful to go back out to survey winter wheat again before a final nitrogen application, and to take another look at corn and bean fields pre-planting to measure the effectiveness of herbicide applications. Thanks to Agribotix drones and FarmLens data processing, we can do all of this on-demand, the same-day, easily, effectively, and inexpensively.”
In February and March, Frenchman Valley surveyed fields that would soon be planted with corn and beans to locate weeds for eradication. Now they can survey those fields again to learn if they need to spot treat any remaining weeds. The FarmLens results also provide valuable insights on which treatments performed the best, helping Frenchman Valley and their growers learn the most cost-effective practices for all their fields.
“Working closely with Frenchman Valley, we learn how coops and growers get value from drone technology in the field and use that to make it easier to use our software to provide the information to make the key in-field decisions at any time of year,” says Jason Barton, VP of Sales for Agribotix. “We look forward to continuing our relationship with Frenchman Valley.”
About Frenchman Valley Coop
Frenchman Valley Coop is a leading provider of agricultural expertise, products, and services in one of the world's most productive agricultural-producing regions. It is the sixth-largest cooperative in Nebraska with over 20 locations to serve its members. Its nearly 300 employees proudly serve its outstanding farmer-rancher members who have contributed to the cooperative's long-lasting success. For more information, visit fvcoop.com.
About Agribotix
Agribotix’ FarmLens™ provides growers with “the Gateway to Precision Agriculture,” showing farmers and their agronomists the how, the why, and the ROI for data-driven agricultural technology. Founded in Colorado in 2013, Agribotix LLC delivers agricultural intelligence to increase yields and profits using drone-enabled technologies. All Agribotix solutions include FarmLens, a leading cloud-based data analysis and reporting solution for people using drones in agriculture. Outputs include agricultural intelligence maps for in-season fertilization, georeferenced reports that can be used to identify underperforming areas, and specialized reporting that supports precision agriculture programs. The FarmLens solution is available separately and in complete bundles including a drone system. For more information, visit www.agribotix.com or call (720) 295-3625.
Agribotix and FarmLens are trademarks of Agribotix, LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Source: Agribotix
