Nuffield scholar Michael Tayler had seen the Veris MSP3 – a machine that measures and maps three soil components in one pass – while on his scholarship travels and had been impressed.
Back home, a conversation with three other arable farmers – Nick Ward, Hugh Wigley and Colin Hurst – ultimately led to the decision to invest in this piece of precision equipment.
The four of them imported the machine and set up a company, SMART AG Solutions.
Certainly the stars aligned when they employed Seaun Lovell to operate both the machine and the business.
He had recently moved to New Zealand after a 22-year career in the British Army as a tactical ground-to-air communications specialist with the Joint Helicopter Force.
Nick Ward, who along with his wife Michelle, was a former Ballance Farm Environment Award supreme winner for the Canterbury region, says he and Michelle had been doing per hectare soil sampling on parts of their farm for some years.
They were very aware of the variation across paddocks and different parts of the farm.
Using the Veris they found pH levels ranged from 5.5-7.2 which is hardly surprising given the variability in soil types and the way lime was applied in the past, Nick says.
Nick and Michelle knew the financial, environment, and yield advantages that would come from applying inputs at a variable rate to match the variation in the soils. Already in the first year of using the Veris they have seen a 60% saving in their lime bill.
Leader joins the pack
Data is run through Ag Leader software and a variable rate lime application map is produced for a variable rate lime spreading truck.
Nick points out that they steer clear of giving advice to farmers.
“Our job is to generate the data.
“If we do the testing then an independent consultant or agronomist will give the advice.”
The collected data can also be used for other variable rate inputs such as water, effluent and agrichemicals, where quantities can be varied according to the soil type on different parts of the farm.
For example, effluent may be selectively applied to the heavier soils on the farm which have a greater water- and nutrient-holding capacity.
Variable rate applications of lime give the most immediate return on investment but accurate soil mapping has the potential to provide long-term benefits when it comes to nutrient management and regulatory compliance.
Overseer uses S-maps – a data base of soil types – in its calculations, which as Nick points out is a broad brush and doesn’t take into account the farming history on soils and the effect that has had on soil organic matter.
This is particularly relevant in areas such as Canterbury where irrigated dairy farming has significantly built up the soil organic matter on stony Lismore soils. This affects factors such as the soil water-holding capacity and the ways nutrients are held within the soil profile.
Soil maps essentially ground-truth S-maps so Overseer can better reflect what is actually happening on farm.
Several large-scale irrigation companies and corporate farms have shown interest in using the Veris to get an accurate picture of their soils and ensure they are using water and nutrients in the most efficient and environmentally responsible way.
Cost savings
Hugh Wigley farms near Waimate in South Canterbury growing a variety of arable crops.
He gives an example of the cost savings made possible by the variable rate application of lime saying over 40ha he would typically be applying 200 tonnes.
Applying at variable rate according to the pH variation within this area meant he only applied 120t.
Applying 80t less lime, at a cost of $50/t, amounted to a saving of $4000 over 40ha.
Hugh says this is a direct saving and an environmental saving by not over-liming.
