It can be tough being an Aussie farmer. For all the assumed serenity country life offers, it’s often a hard slog with lots to manage. The industry as a whole is also challenging; a recent article in The Financial Review states Australia's agricultural productivity has fallen from an average 2.9 per cent to just 1.4 per cent in the decade to 2011, sitting well below the global average of 1.7 per cent.[1]
Thankfully, the agricultural technology sector is booming. In this article, four easily accessible apps helping farmers achieve significant productivity gains are explored.
Drought Feed Calculator
It's the digital age, but many farmers still plan with an old-fashioned notebook and pencil. This not only takes up valuable time, it also lends itself to arithmetic mistakes and assumption-based planning.
Australia's increasingly erratic climate patterns mean farmers need to become more savvy in their preparations for any weather scenario. The Drought Feed Calculator could save farmers time and money by helping them to understand energy requirements and assist in developing an informed stocking and feeding plan.
Developed by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, the app allows farmers in any location to quickly and easily determine the minimum feed requirements for a range of animals with a variety of nutritional requirements.
There are 71 different feeds to choose from, each with their own average energy, protein and dry matter values, which can be overwritten based on test results. You could compare the results of up to three feeds, or even mixed rations.
This app is free to download and is available for both Android and iOS.
Tractor Tracker
Central to the smooth running of any farm is that versatile piece of machinery, the tractor. The Tractor Tracker app for iOS and Android digitises equipment records to help ensure your tractor is properly maintained
The app lets users separate their tractors into one of 10 categories (such as harvest, spraying, planting and so on). This enables users to filter their equipment list to quickly find the machine they want to review.
Each machine you add to the system will have an info tab that contains the year, make and model, serial number, filter part numbers and fluid capacities for engine oil, hydraulics, fuel and air. The work you perform on each tractor can then be logged on one of three tabs: maintain, repair or upgrade. Log entries are date and time stamped, and have a notes field.
Tractor Tracker has a reminder function that allows you to set reminders for each piece of equipment. The app will then prompt you when work needs to be completed.
Cloud storage means users can access their data across devices, regardless of the operating system.
Insect ID: The Ute Guide
Insect ID: The Ute Guide app is a comprehensive reference guide for common pests and insects for broadacre growers across Australia. The app, developed by the Grain Research & Development Corporation, includes educational resources for farmers about how best to control and prevent pest infestations.
Each insect is described in detail, including which crops they attack. The app, which is designed to improve chemical usage, arming profits and better pest management, provides advice for how to monitor insect infestations, including detailed images that allow farmers to compare the insect life-cycle stages.
The app boasts features including:
- Region selection.
- Predictive search by common and scientific names.
- Side-by-side photo comparisons.
- Identification of beneficial predators and parasites of insect pests.
- Region-specific content downloads.
- Educational resources on international biosecurity.
Insect ID: The Ute Guide is available for iOS and Android.
Farm Manager
Farm Manager is an all-in-one app 'designed by a farmer for farmers', which records cropping, livestock and machinery procedures in the cloud and syncs the information across devices. The app allows farmers to take photos of their crops, livestock, paddocks and machinery and link them to their recorded data.
Features include:
- Cloud backup service.
- Crop history, from sowing through to harvest.
- Chemical and fertiliser records including the type, rate and date applied.
- Livestock tracking including ear-tag numbers, bloodlines, breed and date of birth.
- Shearing and crutching records.
- Drenching, dipping and jetting records.
- Machinery maintenance records, including engine oil and filter changes, transmission oil and filter changes, and hydro oil changes.
The app is free to download from the iTunes store, but it also includes in-app purchases.
Farmers are increasingly able to combine modern agri-tech with traditional land management practices. To ensure your business runs like a well-oiled machine, agricultural apps should be considered essential tools of the trade.
[1]Emily Parkinson, The Financial Review, 17 February 2016, , 'Agricultural output soars as technology takes over' .
Any claims within this article was based on information provided by the apps developer and have not been endorsed by Viva Energy Australia Pty Ltd (“Viva Energy”) . The article was written based on the apps still being available for download as at September 2016. This website may contain links or references to links to websites controlled or offered by third parties. These links and references are provided for your information only; by providing a link, Viva Energy is not endorsing or recommending the products, services or the information contained on those sites and Viva Energy will not be liable for any products and services offered (or their failure) or any information published on these third party websites. Please note that Viva Energy has not received any endorsement, and has no agency, affiliation or association with or to any linked or otherwise referenced website or third party in this article.
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