When it's not enough just to use two hybrid varieties in a given field to adjust for conditions, design a fieldsized billboard for a favorite university.
That is what Chad Drobny of Kalamazoo did using new-to-the-market technology that can alternate between two varieties of either corn or soybeans in any field.
In its first year on the market, Precision Planting has offered Vset Select, a tool that can adjust seed variety on-the-go based on the prescription written into the GPS and controller. According to product support specialist Roger Musselman, the company has sold a number of the devices to growers this year.
"The technology works, but it is up to the farmer to choose the right varieties to fit each need within a field," Musselman said.
Ultimately, the real purpose of the technology is to be able to change seed variety within different management zones within a field. The capability can allow a grower to plant the best yielding—and usually the most costly—variety on the best soils and switch to a more economical variety in soils where yield potential can't be achieved with the high-end alternative.
"Say you've got a field with sandy nobs and hollows," Drobny said. "You can change the variety to fit the soil using any GPS mapping system."
Drobny used Mapshots Ag Studio to write the prescription that created the Michigan State University Spartan mascot image. Any GPS field mapping system will work to implement the Precision Planting tool.
The technology is also useful in irrigated fields where a more drought tolerant variety can be utilized in the non-irrigated corners.
"The technology definitely works," Drobny said. "The question is, is it the right practice?" He has a wait-and-see attitude on the long term financial impact the technology can contribute to the farm.
Drobny already had a variable rate planter and needed only to retrofit the equipment to make the technology a part of this year's crop plan. On Top Precision Ag and Owen Goodeman have helped smooth out any bumpy roads that Drobny encountered while adapting the tools and his existing equipment.
Drobny raises corn and soybeans on irrigated and dry land in northwestern Kalamazoo County.