Free Standard AU & NZ Shipping For All Book Orders Over $80!
Register      Login
Crop and Pasture Science Crop and Pasture Science Society
Plant sciences, sustainable farming systems and food quality
Shopping Cart: ( empty )
You are here: Home > Journals > CP > CP08304
REVIEW
Contents Vol 60(3)

Lessons from nearly 20 years of Precision Agriculture research, development, and adoption as a guide to its appropriate application

R. G. V. Bramley
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, PMB No. 2, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia. Email: Rob.Bramley@csiro.au

Crop and Pasture Science 60(3) 197-217 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP08304
Submitted: 10 September 2008  Accepted: 4 December 2008   Published: 16 March 2009

Abstract

Precision Agriculture (PA) is an all-encompassing term given to the use of a suite of technologies that promote improved management of agricultural production through recognition that the potential productivity of agricultural land can vary considerably, even over very short distances (a few m). It can be regarded as a means of increasing the chance that the right crop management strategies are implemented in the right place at the right time.

Numerous examples exist of the successful application of PA to various cropping systems around the world, in many cases supported by a burgeoning PA literature. However, the rate of adoption by growers of many crops remains low and, in some industries, is negligible. One such example is the Australian sugar industry, in spite of its relatively high rate of adoption of controlled traffic and the ready access that growers have to supporting infrastructure such as local GPS base stations. However, the Australian sugar industry is now seeking an informed basis from which to make decisions as to appropriate investment in PA, whether these be in terms of pragmatic application by growers, the level of involvement (if any) by millers, or with respect to research to facilitate such adoption. A part of acquiring this informed view of PA is to look at its application in other cropping systems. This review therefore examines PA research and application in a range of cropping systems from around the world and considers the key drivers of variability in these production systems. Constraints to the adoption of PA and its likely economic benefits are also considered in light of experiences from around the world.

It is concluded that sugarcane production is ideally suited to the adoption of PA. Like other broadacre systems, such as cereal production, the opportunity exists to target the management of inputs to production. However, the vertically integrated nature of the sugar industry and existence of a potentially significant crop quality imperative also present opportunities for targeted strategies such as selective harvesting, as used in the wine industry. Thus, to get the best result from adoption of PA, the sugar industry will need to consider it as a tool for optimising management of the production of sugar, as opposed to solely an avenue for improving the agronomic management of sugarcane. Several recommendations are made as to how this adoption might be supported.


Acknowledgments

This paper is an edited and updated version of Bramley (2007). That work was funded by CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems (CSE) and the Sugar Research and Development Corporation (SRDC). The advice and input of David Cox, Tony Crowley, Jay Hubert, John Markley, Dr Lisa McDonald, Paul Mizzi, Don Pollock, John Powell, Di Prestwidge, Dr Bernard Schroeder, Rajinda Singh, Dr Andrew Wood, and Dr Tim Wrigley, who collectively comprised the industry advisory committee for SRDC project CSE018, are gratefully acknowledged, as are the input and assistance of Tony Webster and Dr Peter Thorburn (CSE). Brendan Williams (GPS-Ag) kindly provided the data for Fig. 1b. Drs Peter Stone, Michael Robertson, and Rick Llewellyn (CSE) made helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper.


References


Adamchuk VI, Morgan MT, Brouder SM (2006) Development of an on-the-go soil pH mapping method: Analysis of measurement variability. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 22, 335–344. (last accessed August, 2008).

Bramley RGV, Roth CH (2002) Land use impact on water quality in an intensively managed catchment in the Australian humid tropics. Marine and Freshwater Research 53, 931–940.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | (last accessed August, 2008). (Cooperative Research Centre for Viticulture: Adelaide)

Bramley RGV , Williams SK (2007) Topographic variation – A key driver of variable vineyard productivity and wine quality. In ‘Proceedings of the 13th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference’ (Eds RJ Blair, PJ Williams, IS Pretorius) pp. 365–366. (Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference, Inc.: Adelaide)

Bullock DS, Bullock DG (2000) From agronomic research to farm management guidelines: A primer on the economics of information and precision technology. Precision Agriculture 2, 71–101.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (last accessed August 2008).

Corá JE , Marques J (2000) The potential for precision agriculture for soil and sugarcane yield variability in Brazil. In ‘Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Precision Agriculture’. CD-ROM. (Eds PC Robert, RH Rust, WE Larsen) (ASA-CSA-SSSA: Madison, WI)

Corá JE , Marques J , Pereira GT (2001) The potential for precision agriculture in a sugarcane long term agricultural system in Brazil. In ‘ECPA 2001 – 3rd European Conference on Precision Agriculture’. Vol 2 (Eds S Blackmore, G Grenier) pp. 785–790. (Agro Montpellier, Ecole Nationale Superieure Agronomique de Montpellier: Montpellier, France)

Corwin DL, Lesch SM, Oster JD, Kaffka SR (2006) Monitoring management-induced spatio-temporal changes in soil quality through soil sampling directed by apparent electrical conductivity. Geoderma 131, 369–387.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (last accessed August 2008)

Lee WS, Slaughter DC, Giles DK (1999) Robotic weed control system for tomatoes. Precision Agriculture 1, 95–113.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (last accessed August 2008)

Lück E , Rhulmann J , Spangenberg U (2005) Physical background of soil EC mapping: laboratory, theoretical and field studies. In ‘Proceedings of the 5th European Conference on Precision Agriculture’. (Ed. JV Stafford) pp. 417–424. (Wageningen Academic Publishers: The Netherlands)

Machado S, Bynum ED, Archer TL, Bordovsky J, Rosenow DT , et al. (2002) Spatial and temporal variability of sorghum grain yield: Influence of soil, water, pests and diseases relationships. Precision Agriculture 3, 389–406.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (last accessed August 2008).

McNeill JD (1980) ‘Electromagnetic terrain conductivity measurement at low induction numbers.’ Technical Note TN-6. (Geonics Ltd: Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)

Meyer JH, Wood RA, Nixon DJ, Rampersad AL, Schroeder BL, Schumann AW (2004) The SASEX fertiliser advisory service: A review of 50 years of service to the South African sugar industry. Proceedings of the South African Sugar Technologists Association 78, 359–371. (last accessed August 2008).

Roel A , Pettygrove GS , Plant RE (2006) Site-specific rice management. In ‘Handbook of Precision Agriculture: Principles and Applications’. (Ed. A Srinivasan) pp. 319–339. (The Haworth Press Inc: Binghamton, New York)

Rouse JW , Haas RH , Schell JA , Deering DW (1973) Monitoring vegetation systems in the Great Plains with ERTS. In ‘Proceedings of the 3rd ERTS Symposium’. NASA SP-351 1. pp. 309–317. (US Government Printing Office: Washington, DC)

Runge ECA , Hons FM (1999) Precision Agriculture – Development of a heirachy of variables influencing crop yields. In ‘Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Precision Agriculture’. St Paul, Minnesota, 19–22 July 1998. Part A. (Eds PC Robert, RH Rust, WE Larson) pp 143–158. (ASA-CSA-SSSA: Madison, WI)

Saraiva AM, Hirakawa AR, Cugnasca CE, Pierossi MA, Hassuani SJ (2000) A weighing system for grab loaders for sugar cane yield mapping. Precision Agriculture 2, 293–309.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | (last accessed August 2008).

Tisseyre B, Ojeda H, Taylor J (2007) New technologies and methodologies for site-specific viticulture. Journal International des Sciences de la Vigne et du Vin 41, 63–76. open url image1

Trauffler G , Tschirky HP (2007) ‘Sustained innovation management: Assimilating radical and incremental innovation management.’ (Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke, UK)

van Meirvenne M (2003) Is the soil variability within the small fields of Flanders structured enough to allow precision agriculture? Precision Agriculture 4, 193–201.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

van Vuuren JAJ, Meyer JH, Claassens AS (2006) Potential use of near infrared reflectance monitoring in precision agriculture. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis 37, 2171–2184.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Viscarra Rossel RA , Thylén L , McBratney AB , Gilbertsson M (2005) Development of an on-the-go soil sensing system for determinations of soil pH and lime requirement. In ‘Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Precision Agriculture and Other Precision Resources Management’. Minneapolis, Minnesota, 25–28 July 2004. (Ed. DJ Mulla) pp. 81–92. (University of Minnesota: Minneapolis, MN)

Viscarra Rossel RA, Walvoort DJJ, McBratney AB, Janik LJ, Skjemstad JO (2006) Visible, near infrared, mid infrared or combined diffuse reflectance spectroscopy for simultaneous assessment of various soil properties. Geoderma 131, 59–75.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Wathes CM , Kristensen HH , Aerts J-M , Berckmans D (2005) Is precision livestock farming an engineer’s daydream or nightmare, an animal’s friend or foe, and a farmer’s panacea or pitfall? In ‘Precision Livestock Farming’05. Proceedings of the 2nd European Conference on Precision Livestock Farming’. (Ed. S Cox) pp. 33–46. (Wageningen Academic Publishers: The Netherlands)

Whelan BM, McBratney AB (2000) The “Null Hypothesis” of Precision Agriculture management. Precision Agriculture 2, 265–279.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Wijkmark L , Lindholm R , Nissen K (2005) Uniform potato quality with site-specific potassium application. In ‘Proceedings of the 5th European Conference on Precision Agriculture’. (Ed. JV Stafford) pp. 393–400. (Wageningen Academic Publishers: The Netherlands)

Williams BG, Baker GC (1982) An electromagnetic induction technique for reconnaissance surveys of soil salinity hazards. Australian Journal of Soil Research 20, 107–118.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Williams BG, Hoey D (1987) The use of electromagnetic induction to detect the spatial variability of the salt and clay contents of soils. Australian Journal of Soil Research 25, 21–27.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Wong MTF, Asseng S (2006) Determining the causes of spatial and temporal variability of wheat yields at sub-field scale using a new method of upscaling a crop model. Plant and Soil 283, 203–215.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | open url image1

Wong MTF, Asseng S, Zhang H (2006) A flexible approach to managing variability in grain yield and nitrate leaching at within-field to farm scales. Precision Agriculture 7, 405–417.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Wong MTF , Stone PJ , Lyle G , Wittwer K (2005) PA for all – is it the journey, destination or mode of transport that’s most important? In ‘Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Precision Agriculture and Other Precision Resources Management’. Minneapolis, Minnesota, 25–28 July 2004. (Ed. DJ Mulla) pp. 576–585. (University of Minnesota: Minneapolis, MN)

Wood AW , Bramley RGV , Meyer JH , Johnson AKL (1997) Opportunities for improving nutrient management in the Australian sugar industry. In ‘Intensive Sugarcane Production: Meeting the Challenges Beyond 2000’. (Eds BA Keating, JR Wilson) pp. 243–266. (CAB International: Wallingford, UK)

Wood AW, DiBella LP, Pace RM, Schroeder BL (2005) Optimising season length to increase industry profitability in the Herbert River District, Quuensland, Australia. Proceedings of the South African Sugar Technologists Association 79, 443–446. open url image1

Wrigley T , Moore S (2006) ‘Public Environment Report 2006’. (Canegrowers: Brisbane)

Zaman QU, Schumann AW (2005) Performance of an ultrasonic tree volume measurement system in commercial citrus groves. Precision Agriculture 6, 467–480.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Zaman QU, Schumann AW (2006) Nutrient management zones for citrus based on variation in soil properties and tree performance. Precision Agriculture 7, 45–63.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Zhang M, Zhihao Q, Xue L (2005) Remote sensed spectral imagery to detect late blight in field tomatoes. Precision Agriculture 6, 489–508.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1