GrainsWest Tech 2020

Tech 2020 Grains West 8 THE FARMGATE TECHNEWSSHORTS Improvedoptics Sample certainty Sprayer systemadds boom, refines sensor technology Representative testing system GRAINSWEST SPOKE WITH SCHULER grain farmer and Cropland Canada terri- tory manager Travis Albrecht this spring as he was installing a WEEDit system on a farm near Taber. Having just sold six units, pre-sales were already booked until midway through the summer. This optical spot spraying system brought to market by The Netherlands’ Rometron is riding the crest of an incom- ing wave of sensor usage in farming. The system now features a 120-foot sensor-in- tegrated boom by Millennium Booms, which also manufactures Case booms. Outfitted with a polished stainless steel wet line, it can be installed on a wide range of tractors and each unit can be powder coated to match the colour of the existing sprayer. While a factory-slick paint job has its own optical appeal, the central draw of the equipment is its ability to spot spray weeds in fallow conditions, substantially cutting chemistry use. It is also capable of dual rate and full coverage. “In fall spraying, we’re seeing reductions in glyphosate usage from 80 to 90 per cent,” said Albrecht. Turn- ing down the sensitivity of the system’s light sensors, it is also possible to reduce desiccant use on pulse crops and potential- ly on cereals as well, he added. Potentially boosting its efficiency further, a software update is now in the works that will give the system pinpoint nozzle control. The economic savings emphasize WEED- it’s sustainability and soil health benefits. “We can help make our soils healthier with less glyphosate residuals, which in turn has less glyphosate going into the seed because there’s less for it to uptake in your soil.” When spot spraying, this sensor-driven system also uses less water than traditional systems. KEN JACKSON, VERIGRAIN CEO, ENVISIONED THE on-farm need for accurate, representative grain sampling and digital information management technology almost a decade ago. Since that time, digital advancements in smartphone capa- bility, cloud computing and the ubiquity of data transfer have enabled him to advance and simplify the VeriGrain 300 grain sampling and data system. The company’s system features an extractor unit that attaches to the end of the auger or conveyor. It takes a sample every eight to 20 seconds and places it in a sealed two-, three- or five-gallon pail on the sample manager unit. This scientifically collected, answers data demands Photo:Courtesyof WEEDit As farmers continue to adopt sensor technology, makers of the WEEDit system respond to demand while introducing upgrades.