In South Africa, irrigation decisions can make or break your harvest. David Müller, a farmer at Uitdraai Farm in Prieska on the Northern Cape, knows this all too well. David’s family has been farming here for the last 130 years.
He believes in the role of technology in farming, so when he learned about Irrigation Insights from his local Valley GWK dealership, he decided to give it a try.
Irrigation Insights is part of the Valley InsightsⓇ suite of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that help growers monitor the health of their crops. Irrigation Insights is developed by Prospera Technologies — a sister company to Valley Irrigation.
It identifies irrigation anomalies, finding overwatered or underwatered areas, due to center pivot issues such as leaky gaskets or clogged sprinkler nozzles. Prospera’s proprietary AI engine constantly analyzes field imagery taken by satellite to detect problems way before the human eye can see them — finding and alerting growers to these irrigation issues before it causes major damage to crops.
The corn yield map from David’s field that showed the underwatering insight from Irrigation Insights was correct.
In March, David received an alert on his phone from Irrigation Insights, notifying him about an irrigation anomaly. It was between the center pivot and the second tower.
“When I received the Insight notification, I had a quick look at it, but, at that stage, I didn’t pay too much attention. We were in the middle of a very rough season, and we were running starboard to port, just getting around to all the pressing matters. And to my regret, I forgot about it.”
“With Irrigation Insights, I’m able to quickly and proactively identify irrigation issues and fix them before they have an impact on my yield,” says David Müller
After completing the corn harvest, David noticed that the insight he received back in March lined up exactly with the damage he could see on his yield map. He did a quick calculation to understand what impact the irrigation problem had on his field. On the three hectares that were affected, he lost almost 12 Tons from his harvest due to the under-irrigated area.
Although he regrets not paying attention to the insight he got at the time, David sees the value in Irrigation Insights and will be adding the service to more fields in the future. His advice for other local farmers: Use it and pay attention.
“With Irrigation Insights, I’m able to quickly and proactively identify irrigation issues and fix them before they have an impact on my yield. It’s cost-effective and it can save you a lot of money.”
The underwatering issue alert that David Müller received from Irrigation Insights.
Irrigation Insights
Monitor your fields for irrigation issues and pivot malfunctions with artificial intelligence and satellite imagery.
- Quickly detect pivot-related issues like clogged nozzles or leaky gaskets
- Prevent underwatering and overwatering
- Save time and resources
- Ensure crop uniformity and protect your yields
Get started with Irrigation Insights
Talk to an Irrigation Insights expert:
Adam Olivier at 071-157-6862, Prospera Technology’s Technical Product Sales Specialist
Valley Irrigation of Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd, Visagie Road, P.O. Box 1234, Nigel, 1490, Gauteng, South Africa, P: + 27 10 350 0050, emea.valleyirrigation.com
Find our Dealers at:
http://emea.valleyirrigation.com/about-us/valley-dealers
[…] Irrigation insight identified irrigation anomalies on your system. This includes overwatered or underwater fields, as well as blocked sprinklers. It uses data to analyse the condition of your system and picks up any issues long before the human eye can detect. […]