VRT.. Echelon or Farmers Edge

[Klause]

Prescription and Vr farming is a full season job. Why do you think it ends at seeding?

[Hamloc]

I dont use either companies service,my only thought is CPS makes their income from selling inputs farmer's edge from precision ag it would seem farmer's edge is the more logical choice.

[Oilking]

Nice post Errol, I agree that grain and livestock prices will likely be affected down the road. But it's highly unlikely that fertilizer,seed, and chemical prices will come down too. That just wouldn't be right or make sense if it did ( sarcasm fully intended of course) !

[seabass]

We have used Farmers Edge for 3 years and I would give them a passing grade as far as results go but ultimately u will have final say on what inputs are put where and how much which is very important because u already know your fields.
That being said I know a guy out of Weyburn who works for echelon and he claims both companies do the same thing using same principles.
We use our yield maps and satellite ndvi to determine zones and yield potential. Ultimately u know your good and poor zones. Its the average areas that u probably wanna maximize potential.
I very much agree with VR ing seed depending on topography. It has made a difference on the fields with different soil textures.
I honestly don't think u save any money on fert u just end up putting more in the right places. In the end all these decisions can be trumped by that bitch mother nature.
Overall it is definitely something to try and over the years of doing it u will get better at making your zones and applying nutrients. Just takes time and luck. All the best seeding

[Westcentralsk]

Maybe I'm being too optimistic but with $9 something canola and $5 something wheat how much more downside can there possibly be? Maybe a buck lower on both? It's not like grain had the same run up like oil, gold and other commodities. I remember reading something someone posted awhile back that oil at $11/barrel in 1974, adjusted for inflation today should be $50. $4 wheat back then should be $18 today. So when oil hit @$140 or whatever the high was and wheat hit @$10 for a high...well, it wasn't even close to the same playing field.

[freewheat]

Not saying it will be as crazy low as 2000, but do you remember sub 5 canola and flax, and sub 3 wheat, sub 1.50 barley, and sub 4 peas and sub 1.40 oats?

I think there is unfortunately room for more downside.

Selling flax and canola for 4.80 is no fun, even when n is 25 cents.

[phoenix64]

Used farmers edge for 3 yrs, results were inconclusive for the first two due to flooding, however on the last year I gave them a half section to vr with the same amount of fertilizer that I flat rated on a half across the road, crop was flax, seeded the same time, same soil, same drill, same seed rate at 38lb/ac etc, by all accounts 320ac vs 320ac. They had 5 soil zones with nitrogen ranging from 35-120lb of actual nitrogen via mid row banders, granular phosphate steady at 25lb/ac, I flat rated the nitrogen and phosphate on my 320 and it was close but out yielded their vr by 1.8bu/ac and that was it for vr and farmers edge. I had friends using echelon with similar results.

[phoenix64]

Sorry, should add that I had no complaints with farmers edge, they were very helpful though I found that their service was simply not paying for itself.

[fjlip]

Free, if we see those prices, Jordan and thousands of highly leveraged BTO's will be on the auction block for pennies on the dollar. This is "Reality shit show 2015", coming to a free market near you. If all costs and values drop, perhaps it will all be relative and less equity will buy more. Certainly sounds like interest rates will not be the final nail in business/consumer loans.

[bgmb]

There are no good unbiased research trials on variable rate fertility that i have seen.

Now all these companies want to collect your data. I think they are going to use it to figure out your gross margin and possibly willingness to pay for certain new technology.

[fjlip]

NO auto VR, but have been applying reduced N in low spots for years to even out maturity. Cost zero, just use the tank meter switch manually when doing fall blend. Agree that higher seed rates in low spots would further even out maturity. Technology is fascinating, enjoy!

[Hopalong]

Deflation should be good for older people living on fixed income from pensions, annuities and savings.
Will this translate in support at polls for politicians who support it?
Demographics say it could happen and maybe ageing population has something to do with Japan experience.