J. Technologies to be used on Amerigui Plantation

Western-style production agriculture practices use technology to overcome many common challenges. A frequent result is marked upward shifts in field yields, lower per unit production costs, and much greater labor productivity.

Amerigui Plantation will be employing the latest technologies available in the design, development, and operations of the enterprise. The following sections highlight key elements of this reliance on technology to assure Amerigui Plantation's long term commercial viability.

A. Use of Global Positioning System (GPS) Technology

While the GPS satellite-based technology has been in use for several decades, its applications for civilian purposes began growing only since the early 1990's. Agriculture was quick to recognize the benefits of its two-dimensional positioning abilities and mostly include field pass guidance for equipment applying fertilizers and chemicals, including cropdusting aircraft.

The sprayer pictured above is a GPS-controlled Ro-Gator equipped with a 90' spray boom. The GPS signal is used to align the sprayer on each pass and steer the machine in a straight line from one side of the field to the other. The sprayer operates at around 12 miles per hour, depending on field conditions.

Another GPS feature this Ro-Gator is equipped with is "AutoBoom." The 90' spray boom is plumbed into several sections, each servicing several nozzles. The AutoBoom feature allows the GPS interface to automatically switch different sections of the boom off in order to avoid an overlapping of the spray pattern. This feature is of most benefit along field turn-rows, alongside perimeters of irregularly shaped fields, and around obstacles that may be inside a field (trees, utility poles, irrigation equipment, etc).

The fertilizer spreader pictured above is also controlled by a GPS signal that steers it in equi-distant, straight lines across the field. The spreader probably operates at around 15 miles per hour across smoother field surfaces.

Each of these chemical and fertilizer application machines is owned and operated by a local supply cooperative named Farmers Supply Coop. Each of these machines covers about 60,000 to 80,000 acres each season.

A fertilizer tender truck is filling the fertilizer spreader with its first load. Due to safety and machine control reasons, the spreader machine transports itself empty to the field to be applied with fertilizer, and is then topped off with fertilizer product as needed for the job.

Amerigui Plantation will initially source its fertilizer and chemical needs from Farmers Supply Coop in Poinsett County, Arkansas. Amerigui Plantation management is considering the use of a GPS-controlled sprayer once sufficient acres are brought into production to warrant this investment.

Mapping of fields for soil fertility and special weed infestations has also become a common practice. Sophisticated fertilizer and chemical application equipment is able to use this data and apply varying doses of inputs to each area of the field as warranted by the input data.

The same technologies described above that guide the liquid and dry-mix applications to the soil are also used to precision-guide farm machinery in straight, parallel passes across the field. The GPS receiver shown above is mounted to the roof of a tractor being used to plant seed with a n0-till without the use of additional markings. The alignment of each parallel pass is calibrated to match the implement being towed behind the tractor, and can even compensate of implements that have a consistent drift in favor of one side.