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Removing the guesswork from selective spraying
HARDI Australia has long been at the forefront of technological development for Australian farmers, giving way to a game-changing solution to the perennial agricultural problem of weed control.
Unlike traditional weed sprayers, which identify weeds using a boom with cameras attached, the Geoselect is a decoupled system that uses remotely-sensed data collected from a drone or fixed-wing aircraft to scan the area to be sprayed, allowing weeds to be identified down to the centimetre. The HARDI patented “per-pixel” processing algorithm can then tell farmers precisely how much chemical they will need before they start spraying.
“The system is able to calculate the percentage of weed infestation in each paddock to allow selective spraying,” says HARDI Business Development Manager Mark Armstrong.
“The difference between current prescription map versions and Geoselect is that GeoSelect uses much higher resolution cameras,” says Innovation Manager Heath Thompson.
“We’re also using four GPS receivers on the boom that enables spraying at the same accuracy as the data captured by the drone. We’re spraying at a plant-based level rather than an area-based level, which is a big leap in capability.” Combining Geoselect with HARDI’s H-select system allows the system to know the positioning of the sprayer and each individual nozzle.
“Geoselect allows the farmer to save up to 90 percent of chemical per spray,” says Heath.
This, in turn, means fewer if any returns to the filling station. And because they don’t have to wait for reservoirs to refill, it allows farmers to increase their productivity. Saving time and product during the application process saves money, enabling farmers to invest in more expensive, higher quality chemicals that achieve better results.
The Geoselect system has already been successfully deployed on broadacre operations for summer fallow spraying, and HARDI plans to scale it down for future use in horticulture as well.
Heath says the system has been specifically designed for ease of use. “The map is firstly downloaded from the Cloud, then the drone operator tells the farmer how much chemical is needed for the job before they go out into the paddock and spray,” he adds.
And in terms of technical assistance, each machine is gateway-enabled, meaning HARDI technicians can dial in and see exactly what the farmer is doing in real-time.
The environmental benefits of reducing chemical use are immense – so much so that Heath describes it as a disruption to the agriculture industry. “It’s better for soil health because you’re not putting unnecessary product into the ground, and you’re also saving water. It’s also a great way for farmers to meet their corporate social responsibility requirements.”
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Trace minerals are required for optimal growth, reproduction, and immunity. Optimising trace mineral status relying solely on oral supplements across a herd may fail because of variation in individual intake and reduced absorption due to antagonism of other ration components and minerals. The use of injectable trace mineral supplements has been associated with positive reproductive outcomes including improved conception rate, increased odds of pregnancy and greater final in calf rate. A study conducted on 2,168 dairy cows, administered injectable trace minerals, four weeks prior to calving and again four weeks prior to the start of mating showed treated animals had a 3.3 per cent greater final in-calf rate, and a reduced time from start of mating to conception, compared to control animals 1 . The Importance of B12 Dr Carl Eden, Technical Services Veterinarian with Boehringer Ingelheim says “Vitamin B12 is sometimes referred to as a ‘super vitamin’ because it is only required in very small amounts but vital to many essential metabolic pathways. However, demand for B12 can vary considerably during the year and we see serum levels of B12 fall at critical times, such as the first few months after calving.” Vitamin B12 contains cobalt, so deficiency in cobalt can lead to deficiency in vitamin B12 because ruminants get most of their B12 as a byproduct of ruminal fermentation where the bacteria in their rumen assemble B12 from cobalt for use by the cow. Sub-optimal trace mineral and vitamin B12 status at calving, mating, and drying off has been shown to negatively impact growth, reproduction, and immunity. Using a trace mineral injectable containing vitamin B12 can improve trace mineral and vitamin B12 status at these critical times. Marks-Min with Vitamin B12 – The Evidence In the largest trace element study to date, Marks-Min Injectable Trace Mineral with Vitamin B12 demonstrated remarkable results when compared to a reference trace mineral injection. “Given the differences between Marks-Min and other products on the market, we wanted to generate a compelling data set to demonstrate how effective it was compared to the pioneer product. We entrusted this work to a third-party research company” says Dr Eden. “We chose farms that were at the top of their game from a reproductive perspective. We made sure that the farms had no evidence of trace element or vitamin B12 deficiencies or excess.” Across all outcomes of interest, Marks-Min demonstrated clear non-inferiority when compared to the reference product. Outcomes measured included submission, pregnancy and conception rates, and six week in-calf rate. Marks-Min demonstrated it is highly suited as an alternative treatment to the reference product. Reference: 1. Hawkins, D., and B. V. S. Franklin. New Zealand Dairy Veterinarians Newsletter 24 (2007): 12-16 Company website: livestockfirst.com.au Company email address: CustomerCare.Australia@boehringer-ingelheim.com Company video: https://vimeo.com/1138807630?fl=pl&fe=cm
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