Regardless weather, there are many risks in agriculture: prices of fuel, fertilizers, plant protection measures, grain, as well as incorrect managerial decisions. These are innovative technologies, including precision agriculture, that are supposed to decrease risks and increase profits. For instance, American farmers can get or save from 20 to 110 USD/ha, which depends on the fields’ configuration and sizes, technology, crop, etc., using mapping of the crops, differentiated fertilization, and switched-off zones.

There is no doubt that it is not possible to just copy some elements of precision farming practiced in other countries and to have them implemented in Ukraine. Precision agriculture, like any other technology, must be adjusted to the conditions that exist in the agriculture of Ukraine – up to the specific conditions of a particular farm. We should combine the experience we have had with a new one, which allows us to achieve synergy. Nevertheless, we are going to appeal to the experience obtained in Ukraine. Yet we should emphasize that the more complicated the field is (a relief one, of irregular shape, with heterogeneous soil zones and layers), the more efficient precision farming is.

Precision farming starts with farm precision and examination of soil zones to get reliable and valid information about soil quality. Our task is to estimate potential productivity of each padlock and planned yield considering the field’s potential. Then we decide on particular technologies to be used (for example, if there is a need to use differentiated fertilization). Hence, from the very beginning we target at economical and agronomical allocation of resources for them to be used the most efficient way. Moreover, it is not possible to calculate a system of plant fertilization, to start fertilize proper fertilizers matching the field’s zones, to plan technology in general if we do not have information about original state of the field’s soils. I know some agribusinesses and even holdings that have not started practicing soil examination and analysis. However, they have plans for fertilizers and technological maps for enormous massif of fields, regarding a particular crop for entire holding. Soil conditions is not considered at all (even of separate arrays and zones).

See Tables with calculations and examples in AgroElite pp.10-11

See full text: An article from AgroElite, a magazine