Crop planting season is starting to heat up, thanks to warmer temperatures and drier weather. While the USDA reports that nearly 50 percent of corn is planted in the top 18 growing states, this is still lagging behind the four-year average of 67 percent. Soybeans are faring much better; only nine percent behind the four-year average.
Even with the slow start to #plant22, it is that time of year when the Sentera team hits the road in the U.S. to spend time out in the fields with our customers. First up? Capturing Stand Counts.
Our Stand Count product uses our Spot Scout technology to capture imagery of emergence for a true understanding of initial performance – helping to uncover where planting issues may live while making it easier to identify areas of the field that needs attention while providing insight into replanting decisions.
Later in the summer, we’ll be joining our customers to capture aerial imagery for crop health to view NDVI maps, which provides insight into how stressors like disease or weather damage may be impacting yield.
Lastly, we’ll wrap up the season with Tassel Counts – which also uses our Spot Scout technology – to automate the counting of tassels, which provides the best estimate for yield before the end of the season. This can help drive seed sales for the next season, optimizing pricing and helping to sell every acre for every grower.
While our customers have the option to purchase their own drones, cameras, and sensors to capture imagery themselves, our Flight Services team offers a full service to fly drones, capture the imagery, and upload it into FieldAgent for easy access.
It is also the time of year when our research teams leave the development labs and test out new products, looking at how their hypotheses perform in the field. Here at Sentera, we always have new technology in the works – and before we release it, we validate it through our testing protocols.
So, stay tuned as there are plenty of growing degree days ahead of us, so we’re excited to continue our adventures throughout the season!