All over the world farmers are looking to drones to help increase yields while reducing costs and environmental impact.  We look at 7 ways drones are impacting farming.

What is a Drone?

The word drone usually refers to an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), you may also have heard them referred to as RPAS (remotely piloted aerial system). Essentially they are a flying robot and have been used in the military for a long time. Nowadays drones are being used for all sorts of tasks from delivering pizzas, taking real estate photos, to search and rescue missions.

A Word on Drone Regulations

Regulations for flying drones are changing to allow for these new applications. Here in NZ drones must be flown within the Civil Aviation Authority’s ‘line of sight’ rules, but recent changes means certification can be gained to fly outside of these. Generally an uncertified drone can be flown almost anywhere as long as it’s flown during the day, under a certain height, the landowner gives permission, and it’s not within 4km of an airport. To check out the complete list of regulations visit www.caa.govt.nz.

One of the industries where drones have the ability to make a huge impact is farming. All over the world farmers are looking to drones to help increase yields while reducing costs and environmental impact.

7 Ways Drones are Revolutionising the Agriculture Industry

Crop spraying

Crop spraying has always been a tricky business for farmers – it’s generally expensive, time consuming and hazardous. Using lasers and ultrasonic echoing technology, crop spraying drones have many advantages over traditional methods. They are more precise (reducing the amount of chemicals used and the risk of over-spraying), are about 5 times faster and, because they are unmanned, safer. If you imagine Japan’s hilly and mountainous areas with terraced paddy fields, it’s probably no surprise to learn that UAVs spray 40% of Japan’s rice crops.

Analysing Soil and Fields

With the right software drones can provide very accurate 3-D maps to analyse the soil and field geography before planting. This can help farmers plan seed planting patterns and fix any deficiencies. After planting, soil analysis can provide information for irrigation and the management of nitrogen levels.

Planting

Just recently in the States drones have been equipped with a ‘seed pod shooter’. It fires nutrient pods which contain a seed into the soil, at just the right depth. Initial results suggest it could decrease planting costs by as much as 85%.

Monitoring Crops

Flying over crops drones can check damage to plants after a storm, assess crop progress and identify areas that are being over/under fertilising and over/under irrigated. They can also provide 2D and 3D maps allowing farmers to calculate plant height, crop numbers and density. Comparing these images over time can provide valuable information on the development of crops and reveal production inefficiencies. Comparing images from year to year can also provide insights into better crop management.

Drones can be fitted with sensors that monitor reflected Near Infra-Red (NIR) light. NIR is useful because healthy plants absorb visible light and reflect NIR, while less healthy plants absorb more NIR and reflect more visible light. NIR values can give farmers a detailed map of plant health – a speedy response to signs of poor health can save an entire crop. Likewise, farmers can apply and monitor remedies more precisely. Or if the worst happens and a crop is lost, the farmer is better able to verify loses for insurance claims.

Monitoring Livestock

For those with stock, drones have made it easier to monitor them in hard-to-get-to areas or difficult terrain. They can record where stock is located, count stock, check for cast sheep during lambing, monitor the progress of ill animals and some farmers have even used them to herd cows.

Mapping

Drones can be used to create orthomosaics – these are similar to Google maps and are useful if Google maps doesn’t provide enough detail or is out of date. Orthomosaics are a collection of aerial photographs that are stitched together in such a way they are geometrically correct – that means they are to scale. Maps can also be created in 3D providing information on surfaces and elevation.

Farm Checks

Drones with camera capabilities can be used to inspect roofs, power lines, trees, fence lines, paddocks and water troughs.

What’s happening in NZ?

Although still in its infancy the use of drones in agriculture in NZ is growing fast. In 2015 the Yamaha RMAX drone was the first crop-spraying drone to be certified for commercial use.

Airshare (who describe themselves as a drone hub for NZ) have a catalogue of almost 100 drone operators available for hire - of those businesses 18 are listed under the agriculture category.

Hill country farmers are using drones to monitor lambing. NIR images are being used in vineyards in to improve grape quality and management and to increase block uniformity. A Tauranga based company is using drones to map farms and orchards and record crop densities.  And in Waikato, a farm manager is using his $2,000 drone to photograph his 160 hectares throughout the year to monitor changes, identify water leaks, and review plant strike rates.

Down in Southland, a farmer has set up his drone on a predetermined flight path to feedback images so he can monitor stock. In Canterbury two farmers are using predetermined flight paths to map pastures – it takes 40mins for their drone to map a 238ha farm. This info is used to track stock grazing and plan their spring rotations.

So in NZ, instances of drone use are becoming more prevalent.  However, it ’s important that if you are considering drone technology you are clear on what information you want to collect, how you will use it and what sort of return you will get for your investment.

At Digital Journey we believe the number of businesses providing drone based services and processing /interpreting the data that drones collect will continue to increase. Drones will be able to be used for new applications as software is developed.  Whether drones and the associated software becomes cheap enough and simple enough for the everyday farmer to use remains to be seen. One thing is certain, UAVs indicate a new era in farming.