Precision Ag Lesson 1
Overview
Introduction to Precision Agriculture - Lesson for Day 1 - Definition Activity
Lesson 1
Teacher Resources:
- Typical Keywords: Site specific or subfield, GPS (geospatial), efficiency, management, data, technology, variable rate, environment, economic, variability
- This Precision Agriculture (PA) definition has recently been recognized by the Board of directors as the official definition of the International Society for Precision Agriculture (ISPA)
- “Precision Agriculture is a management strategy that gathers, processes and analyzes temporal, spatial and individual data and combines it with other information to support management decisions according to estimated variability for improved resource use efficiency, productivity, quality, profitability and sustainability of agricultural production.”
- Breakdown of different parts of definition:
- “management strategy the gathers, processes and analyzes data”
- Data is gathered in the field. Examples: Yield data is gathered during harvest via a yield monitor in a combine. Planting data is gathered from a planter during seeding. Remote sensing data is gathered from satellites into a software platform.
- Data is processed from the field into a cloud-based software package or brought from the combine/tractor via an usb device or data card and read into a software package.
- Data is analyzed by the farmer or a precision agriculture consultant and used in making management decisions.
- “temporal, spatial and individual data”
- Temporal data: Data that specifically refers to times or dates.
- Spatial data: Any data that can be mapped with a location (latitude/longitude)
- Individual data: Data gathered or recorded by farmer.
- “Variability”
- Precision Agriculture assumes that fields are not uniform, but rather variable. Variability can occur in soils physical properties and topography of the land. Variability can also occur because of previous farming practices (no till versus conventional tillage), vegetation (alfalfa, pasture, cropland), management (renovated tree rows, old farmyards/fence lines) and etc.
- “improved resource use efficiency, productivity, quality, profitability and sustainability of agricultural production”
- Resources use efficiency includes land, labor, fuel, fertilizer, herbicide, fungicide, insecticide, seed, and ect.
- Productivity refers to increasing yield
- Quality would include fruit/vegetable size and firmness; protein content, oil content, test weight, plumpness and more.
- Profitability is ability to generate more revenue than expenses.
- According to the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Sustainable agricultural practices are intended to protect the environment, expand the Earth’s natural resource base, and maintain and improve soil fertility. Based on a multi-pronged goal, sustainable agriculture seeks to:
- Increase profitable farm income
- Promote environmental stewardship
- Enhance quality of life for farm families and communities
- Increase production for human food and fiber needs
- “management strategy the gathers, processes and analyzes data”
Precision Agriculture
Lesson One: Definition of Precision Agriculture
Overview:
Students will use the internet to develop a concise definition of Precision Agriculture.
Objectives:
The student will be able to explain basic concepts in precision agriculture.
Materials Needed:
Access to the internet
Activity:
- Individual activity: Each student will have search the internet and learn as much as they can about precision agriculture in 5 minutes. Students will each write 3 concepts that they learned. (5-10 minutes)
- Place the students into groups of 2 or 3. Students will report the 3 concepts that they learned to their group. (2-5 minutes)
- Using the concepts learned, have each group formulate a concise (less than 25 word) definition of Precision Agriculture (5-10 minutes)
- Each group will read their definition of Precision Agriculture, while the teacher writes key words on the whiteboard. (5-10 minutes)
- Teacher shares the official definition of Precision Agriculture (below). (5 minutes)
- Teacher discusses the definition, including any terms students are familiar with. (below) (10-20 minutes)