What’s involved in setting up and maintaining an effective precision ag program for your operation? The first step is taking 2.2-acre soil samples and evaluating test results to find out what the field requires to correct PH and optimize production potential.

The next step is to variable-rate apply lime and fertilizer, if needed, at the correct locations and in the correct amounts. After pH is balanced and soil fertility is addressed, combine yield monitors are calibrated, yield data is gathered, and planting populations are prescribed.

Many farmers ask us, “What happens to the data from my fields?” The answer to this question is centered on the word “my.” New Vision Co-op understands that all data gathered from your fields is your data—and that you control it. This sounds simple enough, but some businesses or individuals may not recognize your ownership of your data.

The New Vision agronomy department will assist you with gathering, cleaning, interpreting and storing your data. With your permission and guidance, our agronomy team will custom build your variable-rate lime, fertility, yield and planting program based on your objectives. Your data will not be shared or sold to anyone outside of the New Vision agronomy department without your knowledge and written permission. You will have access to your data at any time during business hours.

We utilize the Climate FieldView^™ platform and the WinField^® United R7^® Tool to collect and analyze data and make fertility and seeding recommendations. Climate FieldView is available to producers on a subscription basis. Use the links to learn more about these programs.

Grid samples can vary in size from 2.2-acre units to 4.5-acre units.  We recommend 2.2-acre grids because they provide the best results. New Vision Co-op will obtain soil samples from your field with GPS technology that will identify and store each sample location. This is important for two reasons:

1. The individual grid samples show how pH and fertility fluctuate throughout the field. This information provides the starting point to correct pH imbalances and improve soil fertility.
2. The sample locations are stored by the GPS unit so future samples can be pulled from the same location. This allows us to compare changes in pH, crop nutrient use and crop production from one sampling year to the next and make the appropriate adjustments to your plan.

Key Points:

• The goal is to get the most cost-effective profile of your field’s production capacity.
• The most popular grid sample size is 2.2-acre grids.
• Grid samples can be taken spring or fall.
• Grid samples are usually taken every four years.
• Grid sampling cost is $8-10 per sample depending on the size of the grids.

Interpreting soil sample information and applying crop nutrients in a way that supports your crop production goals is critical whether you use a precision or conventional approach. We have the experience to do both, and the equipment and skilled applicators to apply nutrients to your fields.

The goal is to correct pH and apply the most fertilizer on the areas of your field that have the best soils and drainage.

Key Points:

• Crops respond to variable-rate fertilizer applications in the first year.
• Under the right conditions, old tile lines can be identified.
• Crops usually don’t respond to variable-rate lime application until the second year.
• Customers are often surprised at how much lime is required and how much it helps crop production.
• It takes an experienced team that is capable of supplying and applying fertilizer during high-demand periods to have a successful precision ag program. That’s the New Vision agronomy team.

The New Vision agronomy team will also utilize the data from your combine’s yield monitor to track yields throughout your fields. This information is vital in confirming soil sample results and verifying the accuracy of your fertility program—especially when utilizing precision ag.

Key Points:

• Collect data from each field separately.
• Make it routine to save data after each field is complete or at the end of the day.
• When harvest is over, bring your data chip in to your New Vision precision ag technician for cleaning and storage.
• It is most important to optimize crop production economics during times of low crop prices and tight.

Most new planters are capable of variable-rate seeding. Creating a variable-rate planting prescription for each field enables you to plant higher populations in your field’s most fertile, well-drained areas, and lower populations in less fertile, poorer drained areas.

This is where data from your soil samples, yield monitor and the R7 tool come together to place the right seed on the right acre at the correct population.

Key Points:

• When variable-rate planters are set up properly, row shutoffs will save you seed, which will save you money and increase yields.
• Customers are surprised at how much more the best soil will produce when managed with precision technology.

Your precision ag data is important and should be managed appropriately. At New Vision Co-op, we do just that! New Vision Co-op understands that all data gathered from your fields is your data—and that you control it. This sounds simple enough, but some businesses or individuals may not recognize your ownership of your data.

The New Vision agronomy department will assist you with in gathering, cleaning, interpreting and storing your data. With your permission and guidance, the agronomy team will custom build your variable-rate lime, fertility, yield and planting program based on your objectives. Your data will not be shared or sold to anyone outside of the New Vision agronomy department without your knowledge and written permission. You will have access to your data at any time during business hours.

Key Point:

• Consider your data as a valuable asset of your farm operation and manage it accordingly.