Phillip Ray Owens

A decision-support system for analyzing tractor guidance technology

Abstract A decision-support system was developed to assist small-scale producers, consultants, and extension agents with analyzing expected yield improvements, input cost savings, and equipment efficiency gains associated with global positioning system guidance on tractors using farm-specific details. Default parameters may be modified to perform partial budgeting and break-even analyses on a whole-farm basis. Findings suggest that this technology is profitable on as few as 49u202fha, considered small-scale in the region, and under farm conditions assessed within. Further, tractor guidance is more feasible the more input-intensive the crops (e.g. cotton production vs. pasture maintenance) and the more expensive the equipment (e.g. using newer equipment). Changing input use affects greenhouse gas emissions that are reported as carbon equivalent footprint changes due to tractor guidance. For example, changing to tractors with lower horsepower to save on capital investment needs without changing the size of implement drawn, lowers fuel footprint as long as technically feasible and possible from a perspective of completing field work in a timely manner. Also, using manure instead of synthetic fertilizer, while economically advantageous, will increase the footprint of fertilizer applications given, among other factors, lesser nutrient density and thereby greater handling costs with manures. Quantifying these impacts across a whole farm is cumbersome since tractor guidance affects annual equipment use hours that are difficult to track and yet economically important. Hence, the decision support system was designed to capture farm-specific detail. The ability to perform whole-farm planning and sensitivity analyses in an automated, user-friendly, and flexible fashion is expected to increase technology adoption by small-scale producers.

Soils of the Central Feed Grains and Livestock Region and Lake State Fruit, Truck Crop, and Dairy Region USA: LRRs M and L

Land Resource Regions (LRR) M and L occupy predominantly the northcentral part of USA with the exception of MLRA 101 (LRR L) located on the northeastern part bordering Lake Eire. Both regions have been influenced by several glaciations that occurred between 10,500 and 2,500,000 years ago. The geology is dominated by Devonian/Ordovician rocks, sedimentary and granitic, and to a lesser extent by Cambrian (9 %) and volcanic (8 %) rocks. Soils in the regions have developed mostly on loess, till, and outwash materials deposited after glacier melt. The predominant soils are Mollisols and Alfisols formed on loess followed by Spodosols, Entisols, and Inceptisols formed on outwash rmaterials on stream terraces and valleys. Histosols are limited in extend occurring throughout the region on localized depressions. The region that is also known as the “Bread Basket” of the USA is comprised of soils that are relatively young and among the most fertile in the world. The rolling hills, loess plains, and outwash valleys support a wide variety of crops. Soils are neutral to slightly alkaline for the most part and relatively high in organic matter due to favorite climate conditions and historical predominantly prairie vegetation. Intensive agricultural practices have caused extensive erosion and systematic depletions of fertility and organic matter and continue to remain major concerns for soil resource management and environment issues such as water quality.