An estimated 40,000 people pass through Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show annually, and this year, attendees are getting an up-close look at the products of more than 700 companies, including demonstrations of the latest in farming machinery.
An estimated 40,000 people pass through Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show annually, and this year, attendees are getting an up-close look at the products of more than 700 companies, including demonstrations of the latest in farming machinery.
The show’s director, Rob O’Conner, said it’s not necessarily the biggest machines that attract the most interest from farmers, but innovation largely driven by sensor-based technology.
Advertisement 2
Article content
“You don’t have to utilize so much of the inputs on the crop to still get the most out of that crop,” O’Connor said of sensors that help deliver fertilizer or pesticides directly to the plant. “Now, you don’t have to spray the entire crop for one weed. We have technology now that will identify the weeds.”
Here are several products on display at the expo that concludes Thursday.
Upside Robotics was incorporated in February, but the company is already looking to the future with the Maize Runner. The robot was designed for corn but can be used for anything planted in rows, said chief executive Janna Tian. Farmers generally spread fertilizer once or twice, which can result in runoff, but the Maize Runner robot is designed to fertilize based on crop needs, which can save “a lot of fertilizer.” Tian said the application process by the Maize Runner is better for soil microbes and crop growth and ultimately will save farmers money. The stainless steel robot is 58 centimetres (23 inches) wide and 127 cm long. Upside Robotics is developing a solar docking station that automatically will refill the robot with fertilizer and charge it, allowing it to cover a 40-hectare (100-acre) field in about four and half days.
Advertisement 3
Article content
It’s big, but it’s not just its size that makes the John Deere See and Spray Tech Sprayer innovative. A company representative said using cameras, the machine’s technology can differentiate between crops – such as corn and soybeans – and weeds and be selective in what it sprays. Essentially the cameras recognize what plant is corn or soybeans and what is not, he said. The machine sports a 36.6-metre (120-feet) steel boom that holds three dozen cameras to identify weeds. And the price? The model on display at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show was a top-of-the-line See and Spray Ultimate. A representative from Premier Equipment, a southern Ontario John Deere equipment dealer, said depending on the time of year, buyers could expect to pay nearly $1.2 million for it.
The idea of applying inputs when and where they’re needed with minimal crop damage is key to maximizing yields, said Ag Business and Crop Inc. chief executive Felix Webber. The XAG P100 agricultural drone sold by Webber’s company allows growers to treat crops from the air. “That’s the next level to increasing the yields without doing crop damage.” Webber said a drone allows farmers to identify which crops require extra inputs without damaging crops, such as when fields are inaccessible because they’re too wet. And these drones don’t just carry small loads. Equipped with 50-litre tanks, the XAG P100 can airlift sizeable loads of fertilizer or pesticides. Webber said an XAG P100, designed so owners can service the drones themselves, costs around $40,000.
The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada
Recommended from Editorial
Article content
