Innovation Takes Root On The Farm

Mar 17, 2016

What comes to mind when you think about innovations in agriculture? Most people’s thoughts tend to focus on the shiny new products agriculture companies roll out each year, like new hybrids inputs and precision-ag applications.

While technology plays a major role in moving the industry forward, innovation also emerges quietly and consistently on the farm, from farmers who embrace newer ideas and drive change.

Here are three farmers breaking the mold to help advance the soybean industry, leading by example through implementing change on their farms.

Water wise

Annie Dee, from Aliceville, Alabama, has been an early adopter of numerous farm innovations, from broadcasting cover crops over live corn to installing a repeater tower for improved internet connectivity. She’s focused recent innovation efforts on using water wisely.

“We put in a 125-acre reservoir to collect water in the winter and redistribute it in the growing season, and that’s made a huge difference. We have 18 pivots, which we can control from our phones or computers.”

All in on high oleic

While many farmers are dipping their toes in the high oleic soybean market, Al Osterlund, from Albion, Indiana, has fully embraced the new product by converting 100 percent of his commodity soybeans to high oleic varieties.

“As growers, we need to look at all the opportunities we can to maximize our profits, and this is one that we don’t have to buy special equipment for anything else. To me, it was really a no-brainer.”

Click here to see more...

Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.