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Agriculture

Why Drones are changing the way Farmers and Growers work

It used to be that agriculture involved quite a bit of guesswork: What would the weather patterns be? What kind of crop yield could be expected?

Over the years, farmers have found innovative ways to answer these questions as much as possible with new technologies. Agriculture drones are the next step in this process. Agriculture drones can be used to do anything from precision agriculture, to efficiently dispersing weed control or fertilizers, to optimizing field management. The results include reduced operation costs, improved crop quality, and increased yield rate.

The farming operations of today look quite different than even a few decades ago. New technology has allowed the growers of today to optimize each part of their operations — from field spraying to grow cycles and crop health.

SkyTech’s line of spraying drones from BROUAV can help precisely deliver the following: Fertiliser , Herbicide , Fungicide, Pesticide and Seeds.

The efficient application of the above is a persistent challenge for any grower. If you spray too much concentrated in one place, you run up extra costs and potentially decrease the quality of your produce. Too low a concentration, however, and you leave your crops vulnerable to being overgrown with weeds, malnourished, or eaten by insects and other predators — potentially decreasing the yield rate.

However, the right farming drones and spraying payloads can distribute chemicals evenly and efficiently.

The results? Improved crop quality and a higher yield rate without intense manual labor. BROUAV drones can be used on nearly any kind of crop, including wheat, corn, citrus trees potatoes and much much more.

What does it Cost?

Each job can vary quite considerably, but in general, drone spraying will cost between $300-$600 per hour. As each farmer or grower will have specific requirements (flow rates, droplet size, litres per acre or hectare, saturation, drone spray height) where the drone coverage, time and costs will vary from job to job.

Jobs are estimated based on the information provided and then invoiced on actual time taken. We only charge for drone hours, not man hours. There maybe, in some cases a minimum charge out cost, and there maybe a travelling fee for those very remote jobs. SkyTech guarantee a maximum variation of +/-20% of the estimated cost. This does not include additional services requested by client on the day of delivery.

Example

Drone coverage

Cost per Hectare

Cost per Acre

D72L-8 Drone

24 hectares/p/hr

$15.80

$6.20

D52L-8 Drone

20 hectares/p/hr

$17.50

$6.80

U30L-6 Drone

16 hectares/p/hr

$21.80

$8.48

U25L-4 Drone

12 hectares/p/hr

$29.15

$11.35

NOTE:  These figures are to be used as a guideline only, drone coverage will vary depending on customers requirements.

Using drones to gather data for Precision Agriculture

Smart spraying and seeding aren’t the only ways to increase overall agricultural efficiency, cut costs, or increase yields. Drones can also be used to map out an area and create new insights — taking the guesswork out of much of the growing process.

One of the keys to all of this is remote sensing technology, which picks up radiation on the ground and can track everything from physical characteristics to the amount of heat an area is generating. The best agriculture mapping drones take this concept further with what’s called multispectral imaging. This means that they can capture light sensors both visible and invisible within a set range. Two key types of maps that can be created with this kind of agricultural drone include:

RGB maps: A birds-eye view but even better, even a basic Red Green Blue (RGB) map can offer fresh information. These maps allow you to see exactly how much land you have to grow on to the centimeter and assist with crop monitoring over an extended period of time, helping you adjust from season to season.

NDVI maps: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) takes the insights of an RGB map one step further. The map shows the amount of infrared light reflected in an area, which is an indicator of malnourishment and drought. According to Go Intelligence, this kind of data collection can be used to spot problem crops as much as two weeks before physical signs emerge, making it an invaluable tool for farmers trying to accurately predict their yield rate.

Don't Work another Day without SkyTech!

Drones are a logical addition to a farmer’s toolkit and will soon become an integral part of modern farming. The value of informed planning and data-driven decisions and precision application provide increased yields, cannot be overstated, however;

The Problem – The biggest challenge currently facing private drone spraying is regulation. Many countries, including NZ, have heavily regulated systems, on the other hand, many countries don’t have any laws specifically regulating drone spraying, which means that the operator in these regions need to be very careful about their operations.

The Solution – SkyTech is a CAA certified drone company that offers a full-service of drone applications. Contact your closest authorised specialist or the Auckland or Christchurch for more information.

The Results? – Improved crop quality and a higher yield rate, reduced costs and more time to manage the farm. SkyTech drones can be used on nearly any kind of crop, including rice, wheat, corn, citrus trees, potatoes, grapes and much more.