As everybody is getting busy in the fields, our Ag Innovation Team is busy in the field SWAT (Soil, Water, and Topography) Mapping, ground truthing management zones and soil sampling for spring SoilConnect prescriptions before seeding. Once we have analyzed the individual soil samples, we build prescriptions that are ready to load into our growers' monitors.
Coordinating and loading prescriptions as well as monitor support are key during this time to ensure our customers are operating smoothly while, of course, appropriately allocating their fertilizer.
In addition to this, SWAT Maps are not only utilized by our growers, but also by our agPROVE Showcase Trial plots. Our management zones that are created through SWAT Maps allow us to better analyze the canola variety performance relative to our management zones. This improves our ability to better position canola hybrids in agronomic scenarios where they have shown past performance.
Once seeding is completed, we will go out and collect the monitor data to start the clean-up process of the as-applied data. This data will be used for our in-crop field walks as well as our year-end cost analysis. With the data we collect from the year, we are able to give a break down of costs by zone to demonstrate which zone is most profitable. This helps us inform deliberate adjustments in fertility planning for the future.
Another major focus this spring for our team has been weather stations. Weather stations can take uncontrollable weather factors into account to help us quantify variables such as disease risk, leaf wetness, soil moisture, and water driven yield potential to aid in management decisions. G-Mac's AgTeam Field Moisture Service weather stations and soil moisture probes are placed in-field to give a grower a snapshot of what is happening below the surface to better measure and manage the soil moisture data. These stations and moisture probes are installed right after the field is seeded and go 100 cm deep.
New for 2022, we have started a G-Mac's AgTeam pilot project that will allow us to capture weather conditions on a 5 x 5 mile grid within three regions, one at our Leader location, a second one at our Rosetown location, and a third one at our Meota location. During the month of May, we have been installing 60+ weather stations within each of these three regions that will enable us and our subscribed growers to see environmental conditions throughout the region.
These stations will also be able to provide plant staging and disease forecasting for certain diseases in cereal and canola crops. Utilizing the weather received as well as the forecasted weather of our latest modeling program can show us plant staging of a crop to be able to prioritize scouting or spraying decisions.
The Ag Innovation Team at G-Mac's AgTeam is working hard to bring you cutting edge services that will help you to maximize your production in a profitable and sustainable manner. If you have any questions about these services or any other projects that the Ag Innovation Team is working on, reach out to your local G-Mac's AgTeam representative.