Spatial scale requirements for precision farming: a case study in the southeastern USA

Predsion farming has created a critical need for spatial data on crop yield and related soil characteristics. However, because data are not without cost, users need practical guidelines for spatial resolution on which to collect soil and plant data. Our objectives were (i) to describe variation observed in crop response in the southeastern Coastal Plain of the USA, (ii) to compare it with variation in other regions, and (iii) to offer suggestions for precision farming practices in the southeastern Coastal Plain. From 1985 to 1995, corn (Zea mays L.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], and grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] yields were mapped at from 10- to 20-m resolution in an 8-ha field at Florence, SC. Also available were topography (30-m resolution), depth to clay (15 m), and in 1993, plant height on one date (9 m), canopy temperature on four dates (1.5 m), and detailed crop and soil information at selected sites. Yield of all crops in all years was significantly (P 100-m grid that is commonly used in precision farming.

[1]  R. Webster,et al.  Statistical Methods in Soil and Land Resource Survey. , 1990 .

[2]  David A. Tyler.  Positioning Technology (GPS) , 1993 .

[3]  D. Karlen,et al.  An evaluation of soil survey crop yield interpretations for two central Iowa farms , 1997 .

[4]  M. Clayton,et al.  Mapping Soil Test Phosphorus and Potassium for Variable‐Rate Fertilizer Application , 1994 .

[5]  W. E. Larson,et al.  Perils of Monitoring Grain Yield On-The-Go , 1995 .

[6]  David G. Hopkins,et al.  Variable Fertilizer Application Based on Yield Goal, Soil Fertility, and Soil Map Unit , 1993 .

[7]  David W. Franzen,et al.  Field Soil Sampling Density for Variable Rate Fertilization , 1995 .

[8]  A. Klute,et al.  Physical and mineralogical methods , 1986 .

[9]  I. Ohlsson.  Book reviewSite-specific management for agricultural systems: P.C. Robert, R.H. Rust and W.E. Larson (Editors). American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI, 1995. ISBN 0-89118-127-X, Paperback, 993 pp., US$ 39 , 1996 .

[10]  P. C. Robert,et al.  Evaluation of Mapping Strategies for Variable Rate Applications , 2015 .

[11]  W. E. Larson,et al.  Classical Statistical and Geostatistical Analysis of Soil Nitrate-N Spatial Variability , 1995 .

[12]  A. Warrick,et al.  Estimating Soil Water Content Using Cokriging1 , 1987 .

[13]  C. R. Camp,et al.  A comparison of pressure chamber, leaf-press, and canopy temperature for four species under humid conditions , 1990 .

[14]  Lawson D. Spivey,et al.  Application of Soil Survey Information to Soil Specific Farming , 1993 .

[15]  P. C. Robert,et al.  Macy Farms — Site Specific Experiences , 1993 .

[16]  E. Sadler,et al.  Center pivot irrigation system for site-specific water and nutrient management , 1994 .

[17]  Philip J. Bauer,et al.  Spatial Corn Yield During Drought in the SE Coastal Plain , 1995 .

[18]  P. Paranthoën,et al.  Energy balance measurements on a nanosecond CO2 laser created plasma , 1975 .

[19]  D. Karlen,et al.  Crop yield variation associated with Coastal Plain soil map units. , 1990 .