Best cropping software package

Chae1

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
Looking to change the software package i use to record arable side of business.

Currently using greenlight grower management. But @ £400/yr subscription it seems expensive for less than 600 acres combinable crops.

I use it for fertiliser/seed plans for drillman, Me. Record FYM, lime applications. Use it for fert applications to grass too.

Don't really record much harvest data on it.

Import spray plans from agronomist and record applications.
 

eagleye

Member
Location
co down
just started Gatekeeper express plus, seem ok so far. would likely do all you need. drilling spreading spraying plans. cloud based so can ipad or phone to access
 

eagleye

Member
Location
co down
cost £275 +vat for first year (about 200ha)
have been using excel and paper records but hope this will pay in time saved and being able to project margins, costs etc ahead of time with less effort than currently.
the plus version has stock control etc.
 

Chae1

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
Basic version £255 plus vat. Put me on higher priced package because of number of farms. The farms aren't very big though.

I find it great for farm assurance audits. If it wasn't for them i wouldn't bother with it.
 

cousinjack

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
I'm fed up with gatekeeper too..

Way too over complicated and based on an ancient windows style system..
Last year, when the red tractor inspector came around, I booted up gatekeeper only to find I hadn't bothered to input half the spray records !! Whoops.. thankfully I had good paper records of everything so passed no problem !

Got a free greenlight trial on at the moment and am getting on with it well.. much more modern and up to date..
And the agronomists can zap the plans straight into it... sweet!
Just wish they'd update their costing systems a bit to include multiple tractor/machinery combinations..

I like it a lot though... can even run the whole lot from my phone ..
 

cousinjack

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
Looking to change the software package i use to record arable side of business.

Currently using greenlight grower management. But @ £400/yr subscription it seems expensive for less than 600 acres combinable crops.

I use it for fertiliser/seed plans for drillman, Me. Record FYM, lime applications. Use it for fert applications to grass too.

Don't really record much harvest data on it.

Import spray plans from agronomist and record applications.
Just set yourself up as a 'spray contractor '
£300 a year. No limit on hectares

You just need the relevant qualifications and a website apparently...

Don't quote me, but I did ask greenlight about it ...
 

Chae1

Member
Location
Aberdeenshire
Just set yourself up as a 'spray contractor '
£300 a year. No limit on hectares

You just need the relevant qualifications and a website apparently...

Don't quote me, but I did ask greenlight about it ...
I tried that! Can send you a copy of email if you want. Wasn't simple.

Needed at least 20 customers was 1 requirement!

Can't record ploughing, drilling, harvesting.
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
15 years of gatekeeper here ... still hate it and support bills are a rip off when it is clearly a data collection / sale company and not a software business

have been looking for a. alternative but they are all just as bad in various ways

I have even looked at building some free TFF software but it doesn’t stack up / you would all just criticise and complain about it as happens when we try and develop anything here ! frankly can’t be bothered any longer

i might actually go back to a spreadsheet - i think a decent sheet could do 99% of what gatekeeper does

they are all after you data so should be no reason to be buying anything theses days
 
Last edited:

ajd132

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Suffolk
What I want is...
Crop recording with a sentinel type thing
Fert planning
Simple budgeting and costing for inputs and machinery
Somewhere to do mapping stuff.
An actually decent app.
Gatekeeper is ridiculous, expensive, over complicated. Green light only seems half finished.
I don’t really want to go to a spreadsheet, I want something I can make multiple works plans simply in 5 minutes and send them out to a sprayer, combine and drill tractor who then tick fields off as they go.
Spreadsheets are time consuming but so is gatekeeper. The other apps all seem half cooked.
 

Boysground

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Wiltshire
I have been using green light for a few years now it suits my needs well. I can understand see why some see that it doesn’t cover everything, but it has come on a long way since I first started with it. NVZ data is very important to me and it wasn’t any good for the first couple of years.

Muddy boots do have a forum where you can ask for improvements, I have put stuff on it and supported other people’s suggestions, these changes have been made.

If you want precision farming mapping and data they are not there yet, although I know it’s being developed.

Finally a Muddy Boots staff member has been on TFF at least once and stated that they DO NOT harvest customer data and sell it.

BG
 

Pigless

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Cornwall
Does anybody use Sum-it? We have the Total Field Package, which is desk top based system for accounts and recording info.
Thinking of getting the mobile app for recording in the field. The main package was £600 ish one off purchase but the app is a £90 annual fee (which I dont like).
Any feedback would be appreciated.
 

Clive

Staff Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lichfield
I’m looking forward trying Fendt One soon - it’s going to be free as well i think if i understood correctly at Agritechnica

i think such systems like this and my john deere etc are the future as they develop and increasing add all the functionality (and more) of any crop recording system

They are all beginning to evolve data’s version of ISO which will make them all far more brand agnostic

i no longer use gatekeeper mapping - cloud precision farming services have made that obsolete already so I expect the record keeping will go the same way
 
Just out of curiosity is there any free software out there that's any good?? or free mobile apps?
And if there was something that was just a mobile app would it be practical use or would you guys prefer desktop access as well? We don't really do software for farming back home so I am just curious really.
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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