The Development of Management Units for Site-Specific Farming

Department of Soil Science, University of Saskatchewan. Image analysis is a valuable tool that can be used to delineate management units for SiteSpecific farming applications. Soil landscapes are often highly variable in terms of their productive potential. Because of the complex nature of these landscapes, only large-scale maps can provide the level of detail necessary for Site-Specific farming. Image analysis of black and white aerial photographs can be used as a cost effective method to delineate soil management units. In this study, extensive field sampling and laboratory analysis were used to characterize a soil landscape belonging to the Oxbow Association. The site was stratified into four management units by grouping the digital numbers on the scanned black and white aerial photograph into categories that reflect the changes in different soil properties across the landscape. The close relationship between the management units and the soil properties suggests that this technique is an effective method for stratifying landscapes into management units. Introduction Producers are looking to site-specific farming to increase the efficiency of their operations. It has been long recognized that the productivity on hilly terrain varies greatly from the knolls to the depressions. This variation in productivity reflects the different moisture and soil conditions that exist at the two locations. For example, the knolls tend to be dry and have soils with relatively low fertility levels. In contrast, the low areas generally have more favorable moisture conditions and higher fertility levels. The goal of site-specific farming is to delineate management units -areas with similar productive potential and apply the right amount of inputs to obtain the best returns. The stratification of soil landscapes into management units is one the major challenges facing both researchers and producers who are interested in site-specific farming. Over the years, a number of methods have been developed to stratify research sites into units with similar productive potential: (1) detailed soil survey, (2) extensive sampling program, and (3) collection of topographic data. These techniques have been effectively used for research applications but it is not economically feasible to use them for site-specific farming at the farm scale. One of the objectives of this study, is to determine if image analysis of black and white aerial photographs can be used to stratify soil landscapes into management units. If successful, this technique would provide farm managers and agricultural consultants with an inexpensive method for mapping fields into management units for site-specific farming applications.