Blueberry Farms of the

Future

Gerard Krewer

Professor Emeritus

University of Georgia

Woodbine, Ga.

229-392-1388

Note

This presentation is offered for educational

information. The author assumes no

responsibility for the use of this information.

You are welcome to use these photos, but please

acknowledge their source.

How will the next generation of

farmers be operating?

Where do we go from here?

What is available now to improve our

farms?

Change

There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right

direction.

Winston Churchill

You must welcome change as the rule, but not as your

ruler.

Denis Waitley

If you’re in a bad situation, don’t worry it’ll change. If

you’re in a good situation, don’t worry it’ll change.

John A. Simone, Sr

A view of the future

1.Site Selection

2.Big Brother Watching You (Changing perspectives on land use)

3.Generating Your Own Farm Inputs

4. You as Big Brother (Monitoring and Control)

5. GPS and Remote Sensing Technology for Berries

6. Pest Control

7. Fertilization

8. Other Cultural Changes

1. Site Selection

Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

Overlapping of soil maps, land cost maps,

temperature, precipitation maps, disease maps,

labor availability maps, etc. to produce

comprehensive information on the best places

to raise certain crops

Blueberry Soil Selection

or Ability to Modify the Soil is Very Important

Thermal Satellite Imagery to

Determine Frost Pockets

2. Big Brother

Watching You

Changing perspectives on land and

water

Selling Development Rights for Green Space

( a new “crop”)

In 2004 development

rights on 1500 acre N. J.

blueberry farm were sold

for $2.5 million.

This will be come much

more common.

Water

Water availability will become a major factor in site selection.

Water will be rationed in many areas

More efficient irrigation will be required

High tunnels will be more widely used in area where water is limited

Water will be a “crop” for farmers in some areas

Pollution Controls

Farms will be viewed by

some people and

agencies as major

environmental problems.

More regulations on

wildlife control,

wetlands, water usage,

sediments, noise, and

nitrogen / phosphorus

run-off.

Excessive P and N runoff = algae =

low oxygen in lakes

Already an issue in some lakes and rivers in Florida

This is becoming a consideration in site selection, fertilization and nutrient capture in some stream basins.

Closer plant and soil monitoring will be required.

Greater use of fertigation and slow release fertilizers.

“Closed” systems will be used for the

recycling of water and nutrients

Scientifically Monitored Irrigation

This will become much

more common and

reliable

Bird Control-Noise Pollution

Considered a significant

problem in some areas

already

“Quiet” solutions will

become more common

in some areas

3. Farm Generated Inputs

Mulch Production

*Some blueberry farms will

begin producing much of

their own organic matter or

buying it from their

neighbors. Pine and

eucalyptus in the lower

south. Marginal land and wet

lands will be used to grow

the trees and grinding on site

will greatly reduce costs.

*Trees can be cut in as little

as 2.5 year in central Florida

Farm Generation Solar Power and

Wind Power

Farms will become

significant generators of

solar and wind power

where the conditions are

appropriate.

4. You as Big Brother

(Monitoring and Control Using the

Wireless Web)

Current systems are expense and

proprietary

New systems will be lower cost using

non-propriety web based applications

How will you manage to spend more

time in the office?

How to make your farm a wireless

“hotspot”

Two methods

1.DSL line to you home or office to access the web

Use directional antenna or booster to send to the fields

2. Use cell phone towers and a “MiFi” to access the

web

Control

1. Computer

2. Smart phones

About $100 plus service plan

Extending the hot spot to your

distant fields

Directional antenna for

long distances

Turning close fields into hotspots

Monitoring

“Camera” contains

microphone, speaker and

camera.

Microphone can be useful for

listening to motors run on

freeze protection nights.

Checking fields to see if

workers are on task and

children not present.

“Cameras” are about $100

PACKING

HOUSE

GAS PUMPS

Opening Gates Remotely

Will allow access to the

farm from any place in

the world for workers

and delivery people to

enter the farm.

Use your smart phone

for this.

Opening Doors to Equipment and

Chemical Storage

Allows workers to access

Equipment, tools and

chemicals

Close them remotely

when finished

Moisture and Electrical Conductivity Sensors can be

used for Irrigation and Fertilizer Control

Soil moisture levels tells

the irrigation system

when to run

capacitance soil water probe (ECH20,

Decagon Devices, Inc., Pullman, WA

FDR sensors

Web Based Irrigation Scheduling

Already developed for citrus

Irrigation Monitoring

Blueberry farm in Chile

Web based control switches

Can be used to remotely turn

on lights, fans, pumps,

heaters, etc.

Possible uses are to start

cooling of packing facilities

and turn on heaters in pump

houses during freezes, etc.

Activate deer fences

Current cost is about $120

Bird Control

Monitor with cameras

Use motion detectors to

alert you and your staff

birds are attacking.

Set off cannons, lasers or

charges in field

Drones with falcon

shape or scare devices

Krewer Farm 1

5. Global Positioning Satellite (GPS)

Technology

Three Types

Old Basic GPS- operates off of min. of 4

satellites, less than three foot accuracy

DGPS

Differentally Corrected GPS

WAAS / EGOS is satellite source of additional accuracy

You can locate individual plants

Sub meter accuracy (typically 8-16 inches) on $500 units

RTK GPS Systems

Portable RTK (Real Time

Kinematic) uses a correction

source which provides sub

inch accuracy

Expensive, about $25,000

Presently there are many

correction sources including

base stations, cellular

corrections, and CORS

networks.

Combining GPS with Direct and

“Remote Sensing”

Remote Sensing-Ability to measure the properties of an object or area without making physical contact with the object

In most applications of remote sensing, electromagnetic radiation is used to sense a property of an object or area.

Semi-automated soil sampling using

GPS to create management zones

Variable Rate Irrigation of

Management Zones

Areas with different soil

water holding capacities

or plant requirements are

GPSed.

Sprinklers or drip lines

zones with lower water

requirements are

programmed to receive

less water during a cycle.

GPS Guided Variable Rate

Fertilization of Management Zones Soil samples and leaf tissue

results will be used to determine just what the plants need in each area.

Electrical Conductivity meters will also be used on some fields. Real time pH meters should be available in the future.

GPS guided fertilizer applicators will be used to apply the correct amount via dry fertilizer.

Real Time Remote Sensing for Nutrient

Management

HYDRO sensor

manufactured in Norway by Hydro Agri

can be mounted on the cab of a tractor or sprayer, etc.

real-time sensing and application of N-

Senses chlorophyll-green pigment in plants

Row Crop Yield Mapping

GPS applications-Yield monitoring

of management zones

Currently can be done in

blueberries by weighting fruit

from various blocks using

load cells (i.e. on top loading

harvester or palletized hand

picked fruit-blueberries and

blackberries)

Data can use to discover

problem spots in the field

Human GPS Based Scouting

Data on where to spray for

specific problems will be

collected with the GPS

Plants that need to be

removed will be located early

and slated for removal (i.e.

Xylella, viruses, etc.)

Back back units are about

$1000. Units for ATV with

screen are now $1500 and up

Scouting by Remote Sensing with

GPS to determine special

management zones

Uses sensors on towers,

tractors or on airplanes

to view field

These can detect

infestations of disease,

insects and other

problems. Also can

detect plants with

drought stress.

Spectral Reflectance of Plant Leaves

NIR

wavelengths

Visible light

wavelengths

Water stress can also be detected by

plant temperature Blues and greens represent

lower temperatures than

yellow and orange.

Blue rectangles (plots) in the

image correspond to high

water treatments.

Airplane-Mounted

Multispectral

Camera

GPS guided ground sprayers apply

the pesticide to special management

zones

GPS controlled robot sprayers are

being developed

GPS guided pesticide application to

special management zones

Satloc guidance system for aircraft

Sprayer with “Air Repair” hydraulic

control variable rate application

system and Satloc GPS guidance

6. Pest Control

In environmentally

sensitive areas…..

Recycling Sprayers

Capture spray drift and

reuse it on the plants

However, the short term

trend is toward bigger

sprayers and more aerial

applications.

Intelligent spraying systems-have been around for

years-

using laser and sonar to only spray the plant

Agritech systems uses

lasers

Durand-Wayland and

Roper system uses sonar

Entomology

Global economy…..means…..global pest

importation

Broader acceptance of irradiation to control

maggots and fly larvae in blueberries and

improve shelf life

Future Methods of Insect Control

Heat unit accumulation

based spraying for

control of gall midge and

blueberry maggot

Plant Pathology

Heat units accumulation for timing mummy

berry sprays

Increased use of breeding for Xylella and Stem

Blight resistance

Viruses are becoming a big issue nation wide

Greatly increased use of virus screening systems,

tissue culture and cutting propagation from first

generation tissue culture plants

7. Fertilization Technology

Multiple tanks will be

used to apply N or P or

K or iron or copper or

boron other elements as

needed

Regulation of Fertilizer by Fruiting

Stage and Zone

8. Other Culture Changes

High tunnels

Tunnels will become much more common in areas where water is limited or rainfall is abundant during harvest. Organic production is also more reliable under tunnels.

Tunnels will be used to advance the harvest and bring fruit through windy freezes, hail and rainy periods.

A Mix of Systems Will be Used on

Many Farms

Blueberries

Microjets can be used to provide

several degrees F of heat during

freezes

Blueberries

Strawberries

Wood burning heating systems

Waste pallets and low

cost wood will be used to

heat the high tunnels

Old Cultivars

Croatan and old problematic cultivars of

rabbiteyes will be removed and replanted to

better quality cultivars

New Cultivars of Southern

Highbush Blueberries

Crispy flesh types have

outstanding quality and

shelf life

Some appear to be

machine harvestable for

the fresh market

Time (days in cold storage + days at room temperature)

0+4 7+4 14+4 21+4

Frui

t rot

inci

denc

e (%

)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Sweetcrisp - Hand

Sweetcrisp - Machine

Scintilla - Hand

Scintilla - Machine

Time (days in cold storage)

0 7 14 21

Frui

t firm

ness

(g/m

m)

80

120

160

200

240

280

Sweetcrisp - Hand

Sweetcrisp - Machine

Scintilla - Hand

Scintilla - Machine

A

B

Farthing

Sweetcrisp

Large Fruited Rabbiteyes

Very improved seed to

pulp ratio

Greatly improved quality

The Future Looks Bright

Thank you and have a great berry

season!