They explain in SatAgro that a third of Spanish farmers take advantage of the months before spring to sow. Corn or potato are the preferred crops for the month of February, but also grasses such as wheat, oats, barley or rye. This Polish-based agrotechnology company provides precision agriculture solutions based on satellite observations for producers around the world to maximize the potential of their crops and save fertilizers. Now, he offers a series of tips for the farmer to achieve success in his fields.
Review and selection of seeds
One of the premises before starting to plant is to certify that we have a sufficient supply of seed and that it adapts to the characteristics and condition of the soil. For this, germination tests can be carried out earlier, which will provide very valuable information and will help to discard seeds that are at the end of their germination power. SAtAgro reminds that there are also solutions based on precision agriculture that can help to optimize the variability of the seeds, adapting the depth of planting to each seed. “This can be controlled thanks to the electromagnetic scanning of the soil, which also provides information on its hydrological properties,” explains Krysztof Stopa, CEO of the company. Regarding the amount of grain,
Weed cutting
From the agricultural company they emphasize that the weed usually shares a common space with the cultivated species and can generate, by its percentage and volume, up to 70% losses in agricultural yield. In fact, the presence of weeds is a permanent problem in crops such as potatoes, as they harbor insects and other pathogens and steal nutrients, living space, water and light from incipient crops during the critical period of competition, which in the case of the potato goes from 20 to 30 days after they sprout.
Site preparation and soil analysis
As important as good seed planning and weeding is checking the condition of the agricultural soil. This will help verify that you have the necessary nutrients to ensure sowing and subsequent harvest. In SatAgro they explain that it is essential to take a good sample, since it is not the same to analyze the surface of the earth than to do it at a depth of 50 or 90 centimeters. Above all, the texture, the pH, the abundance of micro and macroelements or the amount of organic matter must be analyzed.
Fertilizer application
In addition to superphosphates, SatAgro advises to include organic fertilizers such as horse manure, which provides the soil with potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus and will keep the soil full of nutrients until spring. Precision agriculture can be used to save these inputs. This will help the farmer “to monitor the field before sowing, to create optimal sowing maps for the crops at this critical time and to minimize the risk of productive losses in the next harvests”, they explain in the company, where they also consider that these solutions have come to stay.
What Are The Main Advantages Of Organic Farming?
Organic farming is an agricultural production management system based on the achievement of improvements in the health of agroecosystems, which includes biological cycles, biodiversity and soil biological activity. One of its main singularities is that it focuses on the good use of agricultural management practices, locally adapting the practices to the conditions of each region.
Organic farming has numerous advantages derived from the fact that it does not use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, as well as rejecting the use of genetically modified seeds and breeds, additives, preservatives or irradiation techniques. These practices are replaced by others that conserve and increase the fertility of the soil not in the short, but in the long term, at the same time that they do not renounce the prevention of diseases and pests.
Below we show the advantages that organic farming offers, both in terms of sustainability and profitability and benefits. In addition, we will discover the bases of this type of cultivation that takes advantage of the natural resources present on earth.
