The days of watching the weather report on the local news are gone. Today, farmers have upgraded to 21st century technology and trust on-site, hyper-local weather stations.

Farmers Increase Yield with Weather Stations
Farmers Increase Yield with Weather Stations

Contributed by | WxObservation

Weather and water resources can have the largest impact on a season’s crop outcome.  In fact, farmers rely so heavily on these items that it can almost become an obsession.  The days of watching the weather report on the local news are gone. Today, farmers have upgraded to 21st century technology and trust on-site, hyper-local weather stations.  

With a weather station device, a farmer can monitor in real-time temperatures and wind speeds, along with numerous other data points locally on his property.  Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, the historical weather data can be saved and in many cases studied and graphed on a local PC or a smartphone application.  

This data can assist the farmer in knowing exactly when to plant, fertilize, irrigate, and harvest based on current field conditions.  Obviously, it will also aide in crop transportation and other agricultural operations needed throughout the season.

At the present time, there are a number of weather station options available to farmers starting around $100.  Although, some farmers find themselves spending several hundred dollars to over $1000 by the time they add on all the features available to them.  

WxObservation, a website dedicated to providing product reviews on the top weather stations, makes recommendations for different needs and levels for farmers and hobbyists alike.  Most models today are wireless, but some can transmit data farther than others. Another differentiator is local data storage versus cloud-based storage.

A common theme in selecting a weather station for your farm seem to be to avoid the cheapest option.  Make sure to select something that is built to last and will cover your future needs as well as your current needs.   

Weather stations have been on farms for several years now.  In fact, Farm Industry News talked about it back in 2011.  Boy, how things have changed since then.    

Can you be an effective farmer without a weather station?  Sure, but why not use every tool at your disposal to increase the odds of success?  Technology will continue to play a larger role in our everyday lives and we should embrace it!

 

The content & opinions in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of AgriTechTomorrow

Comments (1)

This use of weather stations on a farm is a must. For a couple hundred dollars, you're better prepared to make decisions that have far greater value in consequences every year.

Post A Comment

You must be logged in before you can post a comment. Login now.

Featured Product

Get enhanced vision-powered systems for Auto Farming!

Get enhanced vision-powered systems for Auto Farming!

e-con Systems leads the way in Agriculture Automation, leveraging over 20 years of expertise in OEM camera design, development, and manufacturing. e-con's diverse camera range, featuring advanced capabilities and partnerships with leading sensor technology providers like Sony, onsemi, and OmniVision, is tailored for various smart farming applications such as weed detection, bug identification, crop health monitoring, and harvesting automation. The recent addition of e-con's 20MP camera captures tiny details, enhancing efficiency in crop monitoring and automated machinery guidance. e-con cameras offer versatile interfaces, exceptional low-light performance, expert ISP tuning, multi-camera support, HDR, long-distance capabilities, and customizable features, empowering agriculture automation. e-con specializes in providing AI-ready multi-camera solutions for real-time decision-making. e-con Systems has empowered numerous clients in the smart farming industry to develop and deploy futuristic agricultural systems, including agricultural robots, autonomous tractors, and drones. As NVIDIA's Elite partner, e-con Systems revolutionizes agricultural applications with deep learning algorithms for NVIDIA Jetson kits, expediting time-to-market for customers.