One of the selling points of drone farming is how quick it helps farmers gather data and conduct analysis on their soil. For the good number of farmers that understand the many benefits of soil testing and analysis, this is all they need to know for them to sign up.
The problem is, not every farmer understands how important soil analysis is. And we can’t blame them. Many have been trusting their guts for ages. But there are good reasons soil analysis is on the rise now, especially as technologies like drone agriculture has made it a breeze.
In this article, we will be diving into this and looking at how you can get started.
What Do We Analyze For?
When a proper soil analysis is carried out on your farm, there are a number of important data that are generated. These data are what help form educated directions that will significantly boost your farm yield. Here are some of these data:
- Soil Fertility
- Soil Nutrient
- Soil Acidity
- Soil Alkalinity
- Soil Salinity
These data on their own are powerful. But the combination of them delivers the kind of benefits that will shock you in a positive way. Here are some of them:
Prevention of Soil Degradation
When soil is not properly managed, its degradation is inevitable. This is why many farmers keep losing so much land over time. One of the things soil analysis does is it helps you spot early signs of soil erosion. A stitch in time saves nine. This is in no other industry truer than it is in agriculture.
Understanding and Improvement of Soil Condition
Because of the great amount of data you get from the analysis, you can now determine the fertility of your soil. Everything from the pH level of the soil to even the texture will play a major part in the yield you get at the end of the day. This analysis helps you spot hidden problems which you can easily remedy in an effective and efficient manner.
Soil Fertility Management
When you know the level of nutrient in the soil and the adequacy of the chemicals, you can apply the right nutrients where there are deficiencies. This also means you apply what is needed efficiently and get the most result, even from relatively less effort. This approach is the difference between knowing and seeing what you are shooting at and shooting at night, blindfolded.
Prevention of Over-Fertilization
There is a growing issue of over-fertilization in farming, which has had serious adverse effect on many farm soils. Yes, you can use too much fertilizers. What should feed your plants can start burning and killing them.
Over-fertilization also kills your soil organisms. Soil organisms are an important factor to your plants’ growth. If your farm has aquatic life, this overconcentration of nutrients can also affect their natural habitat, killing them in the process. The business of over-fertilization is just bad, and soil analysis helps you prevent this.
Correct and Cost-Effective Use of Fertilizers
When you don’t know what you’re trying to do, you waste money on nutrients and chemicals that your soil does not need. This is one of the reasons farm expenditures keep running up. With the constant inflation in the inorganic fertilizers market, the cost starts adding up quite fast. With soil analysis, you get to prevent that.
The benefits of soil analysis is so great, especially when coupled with the other myriads of benefits drone agriculture brings. It easily pays for itself. This is why this is the best time to take that bold step into the new age of agriculture. We can’t wait to speak with you.