Farming Tips Sent to Your Cell Phone

Telephones have come a long way from Alexander Graham Bell’s design to the sophisticated smart phones we have today. Speaking from a generation that can barely remember life without cellphones, it is stories like this that really make me wonder how we actually functioned before SMART phones.

Farmers in the “texting capital” of the world — the Philippines — will soon have nutrient management advice tailored specifically to their rice crops delivered to their mobile phones.

Dr. Roland Buresh, part of the International Rice Research (IRRI) team that has joined the Philippine Department of Agriculture to establish the system, says that after responding to a series of simple questions about their rice paddy, farmers would receive an automated text reply recommending what amounts, sources, and timings of fertilizer are needed for profitable rice production in their paddy. Source: Farmers to get rice-growing advice via text messages from Science Daily.

What cool technologies you would like to see developed for your farm operation?

*Photo via PIM Admissions Blog