How Artificial Intelligence is Changing Farms

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When people hear the word AI, they first think of a glitchy character from a game or terminator. However, did you know that AIs play a significant role in agriculture?

No one debates that crop quality, yield, and labor practices are more advanced than they were five decades ago. However, despite these advancements in efficiency, there is still a significant demand for more improvements.

The UN projects that there will be approximately 9.8 billion people worldwide by 2050. The assumption is it will come with a corresponding rise in demand for food production. 

One analysis indicates that food demand will increase between 35% and 56%. That does not consider the impact of climate changes that can cause scarcity of resources like viable farmland and water.

Fortunately, artificial intelligence or AI may provide a solution. Advancements in programming and artificial intelligence have created many applications for AI to take agriculture to the next level.

The most common applications are soil and crop monitoring, predictive analytics, and disease detection. The potential for agriculture development through AI technology garnered rapid growth in investments and interest.

According to Forbes, projected global expenditures on machine learning and artificial intelligence for agriculture may triple to $15.3billion by 2025. Studies suggest that the AI market size for agriculture should see a compound annual growth rate or CAGR of 20%. That means it could reach $2.5 billion by 2026.

These investigations barely scratch the surface of the potential of "smart" agri-tech using machine learning and AI. Here are some great practical applications for AI in the agriculture industry.

Monitor Crops and Soil

Macro and micronutrients play a critical role in soil crop health, quality, and yield quantity. Once the crop is in the ground, monitoring growth stages is crucial to maximizing production efficiency.

Understanding the interactions between the environment and crop growth is vital for making adjustments and formulating solutions to improve crop health. Logically, with crop health come better quality plants.

Manual monitoring and discernment is the traditional method for determining crop health and soil quality. However, this method is both time-consuming and rarely presents accurate readings.

Artificial intelligence programmed into drones can capture aerial images and process this data for intelligent monitoring of soil and crop conditions. AI sensors can observe and interpret this information for precise yield predictions, crop health tracking, and faster crop malnutrition detection.

Automate Weeding and Harvesting

Another advantage of AI systems is the ability to automate necessary but time-consuming tasks like weeding and harvesting.

Automated Weeding

Weeds are wild plants that grow spontaneously on the field and cause stagnation in primary food crop growth. These unwanted plants are often fast-growing and resilient. They prevent crop plants from getting necessary sunlight and nutrients, leaving the crop vulnerable to attack from pests.

The traditional method farmers employ to combat this threat is the manual removal of the weeds. However, AI gives farmers to presents a better and less tedious alternative: automatic weeding.

An AI-powered machine surveys the whole area with built-in cameras. These cameras have a direct connection to identification software designed to analyze and discern weeds. They distinguish crop plants from weeds. Once determined as weeds, the AI uses high-powered lasers to remove these weeds using laser lights and thermal energy.

Automated Harvesting

Harvesting refers to gathering the business end of crop plants, so to speak. These are the parts of the plants appropriate for human and business use. Traditional methods of harvesting typically involve manually picking and cutting things by hand.

AI systems get around the need for manual labor by employing software and machines. The program enables the equipped camera to identify harvesting products like fruits or vegetables. After thorough scans and analysis of the target product, the machine issues the AI commands to pick and gather them. Within the last couple of years, these machines have functioned as gatherers for lettuce, peppers, apples, tomatoes, and other fruits.

One fantastic feature these machines possess is the ability to discern and collect ripe vegetables and fruits using predictive analytics. Learning algorithms programmed into the machines utilize historical data to detect objects and make decisions.

Detect Plant Diseases

One significant advantage of using AIs in agriculture is the assistance in recognizing diseases in crops and plants. There are plenty of AI programs available on the web. These programs make it easier to detect health issues in plants.

After a thorough analysis of these issues through the web, these programs are capable of formulating solutions for them. AIs typically use image recognition to identify and execute intelligent agricultural solutions.

Image recognition software takes pictures of plants captured through the camera and runs them through the system. After that, the program generates information on the disease and treatment and control methods.

Prevent Pests

Through careful field analysis, AIs can help determine what pesticides and herbicides you need. Sophisticated AI programs can even track the slightest change in the field and adjust their analysis report.

 AI programs can help recognize plant health issues and pest attacks. It can also boost soil viability maintenance, saving farmers from excessive use of herbicides and pesticides. AI does not only monitor crops; it also assists in spraying herbicides and pesticides based on what the field needs.

Predict the Weather 

AI programs can assist in predicting possible dangerous weather forecasts. They can accomplish this through satellite images that provide a rational deduction of cloud movements.

Accurate weather forecasts help farmers boost their profits and yields while minimizing the risks. It also provides them valuable information to take necessary precautions to protect their crops from disasters, floods, and storms.

Conclusion

With the ever-growing food supply demand due to the exploding population, farmers will need all the help they can get. Advancements in technology have certainly enabled a more stable support system for farmers. That is especially true with developing sophisticated artificial intelligence programs that provide efficiency and risk management solutions. This list of practical applications makes it easy to see why AI may well be the future of agricultural development.

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