Drones in Agriculture Workshop
Making farming faster, easier and more sustainable with the use of drone technology
Capacity to Deliver - LP011-032
The issue
Landholders are constantly facing a variety of factors that determine the success of their farms. These include water access, changing climate, wind, soil quality, pests and weeds, variable growing seasons, and more.
The solution
Drones can be used to access a wealth of data on a property/farm. This information can be used to make better management decisions and make farming more sustainable, efficient and organised.
Hay Plains Landcare hosted two informative Drone workshops with Ben Watts from Bralca. Ben Watts is a professional trainer from Bralca with 8 years commercial drone operations experience working across Australia, Canada and the Himalayan region of India.
The course held on Tuesday 15th December was run at Wooloondool Farm and made available by a successful partnership with NSW Farmers and the AgSkilled 2.0 program.
The Course held on Wednesday 16th December was run at the Booligal Hotel and cricket oval with the support of Murrumbidgee Landcare Inc.
The workshops included a theoretical component, ensuring all participants were educated on the rules and regulations involved with using a drone, as per CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority) guidelines, as well as ensuring proficiency in basic drone operations.
Supervised by Ben, all participants then had the opportunity to fly Phantom drones in a controlled environment. This allowed participants to practise the basic functions of flying drones, and familiarise themselves with their capabilities by performing short stints at a time. Following lunch, participants tested their capabilities a little further by flying the drones higher. The day finished with mapping, creating a highly accurate and detailed geothermal image in minutes using the ‘Drone deploy’ software.
The impact
The participants gained knowledge and confidence in the safe handling of drones and a deeper understanding of how drones can be used in agriculture.
Drones can be used to collect data, map and monitor vegetation sites/projects, map soil quality, assess plant health, detect weeds and pest animals, analyse impacts of rainfall and other weather results, and even potentially move livestock in tricky locations. All of this can be done without damaging native vegetation, supplementing current agricultural practices to minimise costs and maximise yields on the farm.
Drones can be used to get a more accurate map of any existing issues, as well as create solutions based upon reliable data.
Key facts
- 25 participants gained knowledge and confidence to operate drones and take advantage of their forward technology for efficient farming.
- Hay Plains Landcare made social connections.