In-season nitrogen management of irrigated maize using a crop canopy sensor

R. Ferguson, J. Shanahan, D. Roberts, J. Schepers, F. Solari, V. Adamchuk, L. Shiratsuchi, B. Krienke, M. Schlemmer, D. Francis

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Research on the use of crop spectral reflectance information for in-season nitrogen (N) management for irrigated maize has been conducted in Nebraska, USA since 1992. The ability to use canopy-level spectral reflectance information for real-time in-season N management became an option with the development of active crop canopy sensors. Research in Nebraska with active crop canopy sensors has focused on irrigated maize due to the amount of N required by the crop and the ability to reduce water availability as a yield limiting factor. A nitrogen recommendation algorithm was developed for irrigated maize for use with the Holland Scientific ACS-210∗ sensor: N Rec (kg ha-1) = 317(0.97-SIsensor)0.5, for use during the V10 to V15 maize growth stages. This algorithm has been evaluated in a range of soils and production environments for irrigated maize, and been found to improve N use efficiency (NUE) in some situations compared to current University-based recommendations, or best management practices (BMPs). However, in other situations sensor-based in-season N treatment using this algorithm has resulted in little or no improvement in NUE compared to current BMPs. Current research efforts are focused on evaluating approaches to improve the accuracy of sensor-based algorithms for a wider range of production environments.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationPrecision Agriculture 2011 - Papers Presented at the 8th European Conference on Precision Agriculture 2011, ECPA 2011
EditorsJohn V. Stafford
PublisherCzech Centre for Science and Society
Pages503-513
Number of pages11
ISBN (Electronic)9788090483057
StatePublished - 2011
Event8th European Conference on Precision Agriculture 2011, ECPA 2011 - Prague, Czech Republic
Duration: Jul 11 2011Jul 14 2011

Publication series

NamePrecision Agriculture 2011 - Papers Presented at the 8th European Conference on Precision Agriculture 2011, ECPA 2011

Conference

Conference8th European Conference on Precision Agriculture 2011, ECPA 2011
Country/TerritoryCzech Republic
CityPrague
Period7/11/117/14/11

Keywords

  • Active canopy sensor
  • Groundwater quality
  • Irrigation
  • Maize
  • Nitrogen

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Agronomy and Crop Science
  • Computer Science Applications

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