Farming, it is a tough and sometimes thankless job involving a continuous battle against Mother Nature, but the advent of the exploding world of drone technology is helping farmers outplay their adversaries.
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Thursday saw those farmers drive distances of more than three hours to take part in a drone and technology day hosted by the Irrigation Research and Extension Committee (IREC) at a packed out Yoogali Club.
With the use of drones on farms almost unfathomable just a few years in the past the technology has quickly become something the industry is now scrambling to keep up with.
As Chairman of the IREC Rob Houghton has watched the explosion of drones into farmers lives with interest.
“The grounds drone technology has made in the last 12 months are just incredible,” he said on Thursday.
“One of the speakers said to me he could not believe where we have come – and when you think about it where will we be in another 12 months.”
Now, as drones quickly become essential tools to farmers – rather than just a means to take pretty photos Mr Houghton says the next step is maximising their practical benefits.
“They are delivering real time data now to help farmers address critical needs,” he said.
“We need to make sure we continue to use drones as tools for our decision making.”
That potential was identified early on by agricultural company Rural Co who invested in Precision Hawk, a drone company, just last year.
They’re now spruiking drones with sensors to local farmers, giving them the opportunity to identify spots in their crops needing attention.
“You can run a drone with sensors over a field and it can determine variables,” Leonie Furze explained.
“So if a field is unhealthy or if there is a flood you can pick that up – then you can alter your variable rate technology to only spray what is needed.
“The market is expanding week-to-week and new apps are being released all the time. When it comes to farming you have to reduce your inputs and increase your outputs – saving money to make more money and that’s what drones are doing.”
The use of drones on Bruce Armstrong’s sprawling Carrathool property is already making life easier for the local farmer and things look as though they will only improve.
“This latest stuff is just changing at such a rate, its allowing us to check irrigation, stock, anything,” he said.
“It makes the job easier and it gives you so much data and more comprehensive data.”