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On-farm sensors detect plant growth, disease
Phil Townsend-University of Wisconsin Dept. of Forest and Wildlife Ecology
A University of Wisconsin scientist says remote sensor technology could be the future of crop management.
Professor Phil Townsend told potato and vegetable growers in Wisconsin that remote sensing of light reflecting from plants shows plant activity so accurately, it could be used to predict yield in the current season. “Solar induced fluorescence did a better job of predicting productivity in plants, especially agricultural plants than just greenness did.”
Townsend tells Brownfield different compounds reflect light differently, so sensors can also detect disease before humans can see it. “We’re finding that we can detect maybe one to four days before you would be able to see it visually, and for something like late blight in potatoes, that makes all the difference for managing for it.”
Townsend says the technology has been around for years, but miniaturization is making it more practical to deploy on the farm. He expects new sensors and software might put this technology on farms within five years.
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