Boots on the Ground 2: AI-Driven Tools for Maximizing Soybean Yield and Profitability

This project aims to test, validate and improve three new farm technologies that help farmers grow more soybeans and make better decisions in their fields:

• Agroptimizer: A new AI-based tool to help farmers choose the best combination of practices such as planting dates, seeding rates, fertilizer, and more, for each individual field to get the most yield potential and profit. The app takes into account soil type, seed costs, weather and more.
• Satellite Scouting Alerts: This tool uses satellite images to highlight areas in a farmer’s field that may have problems, such as pests and poor growth, so they know exactly where to begin scouting. This will save time, effort and unnecessary spraying.
• Open Crop Manager (OCM): A free tool for farmers to collect and view field data. It scouts fields and keeps track of pests, weeds, and diseases. The team will add a digital crop defoliation tool that uses existing open-source leaf defoliation estimators to assess the level of herbivory and estimate whether the sampled leaves are at an action threshold, which are growth-stage specific.

The team will test and validate these tools in farmer fields across the North Central region to increase system profitability and sustainability. The Agroptimizer recommendations will be tested against actual farmer practices, along with the satellite field scouting alert system. Data will be analyzed to see the effectiveness of these tools. The team will share the results through meetings, field days, web sites, social media and Extension publications.

The project will put these cutting-edge tools directly in farmers’ hands, helping them to grow more soybeans, reduce spending on inputs, and improve decision-making in their fields. The tools have already produced good results and farmers can see immediate benefits when implementing them. Farmers are working directly with the team in testing and feedback.