The Drone Wars

There is a fine line between efficiency and effectiveness that we all tread. Being farmers we are connected to the land and I assume that many of you, like me, are the type to take the long way around when doing something on your property. Sure there are days when I wear my headphones or am blazing around the pasture in in a pick up trying to get some equipment moved, but most days, I am listening, smelling, and touching my way around the farm.



There has been a lot of interest in the usage of drones on farms and ranches. These remote controlled flying machines are more than just a way to monitor your property or animals. The drones can be outfitted with an array of sensors to provide all types of specific information. From infrared read outs that assist in crop monitoring to night vision cameras to find lost stock, the drone is proving to be a valuable tool on the modern farm. The average price is dropping and there are countless public and private organizations pushing the development of these technologies because they recognize the revenue potential. It is looking like the drone will act as one half of the modern farm autonomous system. The flying drone will gather data while ground based robots will receive the data and make the physical alterations .



Farmers would be happy to pay for a device that will allow them to spot treat deficient plants with fertilizer, to quickly assess and destroy invasive weeds, or monitor body temperature of animals that may be ill. Like all of the technologies that have come before, this piece of equipment will be both idolized and vilified. We being the educated and innovative lot that we are know that this tool will ultimately exist somewhere in between and it is our job to utilize, educate, and temper our reliance on any tool that physically moves us away from our land. This is one of those skills that separates any professional from novice. Taking the time to develop the eyes for problems and anomalies is just as important as having the equipment to correct it. Farmers are innovators by definition and we need to harness all the tools that we can to produce the best product possible.

What the drones cannot do is supply intuition. And what is intuition. It is the collection of unconscious knowledge and observations from years of saved interactions. It is yet another tool in your arsenal.