Precision techniques for fertilizer application
are increasingly important these days amid rising
nitrogen prices.
Our next guest is an UNL PhD student who's been
focused on using image data to apply nitrogen
fertilizer more efficiently.
Jackson Stansell joins us now for an update on
this research.
Jackson, good to have you with us.
You have developed a business to scale up this
technology and can you bring us up to speed on
these efforts.
Yeah, good morning, Tammi Sentinel Fertigation as
a startup company based here in Lincoln, Nebraska,
that offers a software solution called N-Time FMS.
That brings in image data of the crop canopy to
basically measure the nitrogen status of crops and
inform fertigation timing recommendations for
those crops.
And for those out there who are unfamiliar with
fertigation: fertigation is simply the
application of fertilizer through an irrigation
system.
So what we're trying to do is just time those
application events up better to improve nitrogen
use efficiency.
What a timely concept, well, let's talk about how
this concept was developed and how you got started
with it.
Sure, so when I began my master's program here at
UNL, I actually stepped into a grant project that
was funded by the Nebraska Corn Board, the
Daugherty Water for Food Institute here at the
University of Nebraska that was seeking to develop
technology to help farmers fertigate more
efficiently.
And working with a team of researchers here at
UNL, I worked to develop a framework for making
those fertigation application decisions and
concurrently developed a software for automating
that process using images.
And we tested that using the Nebraska on Farm
Research Network, which is a network of farmers
throughout the state that works with the
university and its extension service to test new
technologies and methodologies for making their
farm more efficient.
And so through that process, we really were able
to iterate on the concept and get that software
completely developed.
So let's talk some specifics here.
How does the N-Time fertigation management system
software actually specifically help farmers,
especially in this year, where it's, it's costing
so much to get that in the ground?
Sure. So the main thing for us is we're always
aiming to improve nitrogen use efficiency.
And you mentioned the really high fertilizer
prices right now.
And the more efficient that you can be the better
chance you give yourself for profitability.
And so within our on farm research trials here at
the University of Nebraska, when N-Time FMS was
used to make every, the recommendation from N-Time
FMS was used to make every single fertigation
application decision over the course of the
growing season, 100% of farmers saw increased
nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency.
The average increase in efficiency was 25%.
And we save farmers about 43 pounds of nitrogen
per acre on on their total fertilizer
applications.
So in a year like this, where you're seeing
fertilizer prices at over $1 per pound for 32% UAN
fertilizer, that's a pretty substantial cost
savings that comes with with saving that
fertilizer and without reducing your yield at all.
Certainly, so we do appreciate your initiative in
this area.
That's University of Nebraska-Lincoln PhD student,
Jackson Stansell.
Appreciate you being with us today.