USES OF COMPUTER IN AGRICULTURE

Computer's arrival in the world of farming helps with a number of ways surprise us.Following are different ways how computers are useful in agriculture :-

FACTS

Computers are used for keeping records such as budget information ,farm equipment inventories and animal health forms .Like many small business owners farmers also use basic computer programs for this.

EFFECTS 

Farm implements such as tractors,fertilizers sprayers have computers that farmers can program to automatically adjust the amount of fertilizers according to the requirements of soil and crops which helps in improving soil and higher crop yield.

BENEFITS

According to the September 2008 issue of “Farm Industry News,” farmers can use computer systems to guide the steering on their farm equipment during planting or harvesting; if the system experiences problems, technicians can diagnose and fix the issues remotely from another computer.

GEOGRAPHY

Farmers often use global positioning system (GPS) receivers to electronically map factors and areas that might affect crop yield, such as wet spots and weed patches, according to Virginia Cooperative Extension. 

FARM SOFTWARE 

With regard to livestock farming, ready-made computer applications are available to track individual animals, storing and evaluating information such as age, health records, milk production, offspring productivity, and reproductive cycle status. This is often called herd recording.

INTERNET FORUMS,SOCIAL NETWORKING AND ONLINE KNOWLEDGE BASES

Through internet forums,social networking sites and online knowledge bases farmers get lot of information.With these they contact with other farmers and experts and exchange know-how.There are many online databases,articles,newspapers in which there is lot of information available for farmers which help them in increasing productivity.

FARMLAND ASSESSMENT

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are being used for developing ranking systems that evaluate land and provide a site assessment to aid what is now known as precision agriculture. These hi-tech, interactive systems provide information based on a variety of factors such as soil conditions, drainage and slope conditions, soil pH and nutrient status, etc.Precision agriculture provides farmers with control by predicting vital information including fertilizer application and problems with drainage, insects, and weeds. Most government websites provide this kind of information free of cost, covering agricultural land masses across the United States. Global Positioning System (GPS) based technologies also help to monitor irrigation, field mapping, soil sampling, tractor guidance and crop scouting. This kind of technology equips farmers with enough information to increase crop yield in a manner that is consistent with the best environmental practices for sustainable agriculture.

VIDEO SHOWING USES OF COMPUTERS IN AGRICULTURE

Above video shows the different ways how computers are useful in agriculture .This video is littlebit long but it shows the various ways how computers are used in agriculture.

REFERENCES AND SOURCES

• preeti, s.. (2011, Aug. 22 ). In uses of computers in agriculture. Retrieved Jun. 24, 2013, from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/uses-of-computers-i
•  regan, h. In how are computers used in farming. Retrieved Jun. 24, 2013, from http://www.ehow.com/facts_5850042_computers-used-f
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