Classic Trade Show Offers A Look into the Future
At the Commodity Classic trade show, the technology that farmers will be using in the next few growing seasons is on display. Beginning in 2015, Monsanto will offer growers the Roundup Xtend cropping system. Ben Cambleman explains this is a system that bring together some old and new Monsanto technology into a complete weed control and crop protection system, “It brings together the Roundup Ready technology and the Roundup Ready Plus and the package is designed to bring Dicamba into the mix as well.”
The system is designed to provide growers with excellent weed control but at the same time mixing modes of action, “For example, with the Roundup Ready Xtent soybeans, there will be two modes of action one for Glyphosate tolerance and one for Dicamba tolerance.” He said the Roundup Xtend pre-mix has both Roundup and Dicamba. This week Monsanto also announced that a new member has been added to the Extend program, Vapergrip, that will provide better control and crop safety when using dicamba.
During the 2014 growing season, farmers will have the chance to see the new system in action at special educational plots around the Midwest. Several of these educational centers will be located in Indiana.
According to Monsanto, following the Roundup Ready PLUS® platform not only helps growers fight weeds, it also helps to develop a proactive and economical approach to controlling tough-to-manage and glyphosate-resistant weeds. In additon it provide best management practices for your fields
A booth that was generating quite a buzz was My Ag Central. They had a drone on display and were showing growers how they can use these unmanned aircraft to scout their fields. Steve Cubbage explained that they offer a program that makes the drones easy to fly and software that will collect and interpret the inferred images that the drone collects. Growers can check on plant health, development, and other conditions all from the comfort of their offices. The drones can cover up to 200 acres on one charge.
Climate Corporation is demonstrating a system at Commodity Classic that uses satellite imagery to allow growers to monitor their fields via an on-line access. On Thursday, DuPont Pioneer announced details of the encirca system that will give growers access to a variety of weather, crop weather, market, and even nitrogen data about their crops.