Uses for yield maps

[Fasserman]

We have a combine capable of yield mapping for the first time this year, I was wondering what everyone used the maps for at the minute all I can think of useful to do is variabley apply potash to offtake.

Also it is a newholland system but the maps are mainly green as I can't alter the scale on the screen as in everything over 9t/ha is dark green with no more colours. I am using the free plm viewer is there other software that would be able to pull more detail out of the maps.

 

[B'o'B]

We have a combine capable of yield mapping for the first time this year, I was wondering what everyone used the maps for at the minute all I can think of useful to do is variabley apply potash to offtake.

Also it is a newholland system but the maps are mainly green as I can't alter the scale on the screen as in everything over 9t/ha is dark green with no more colours. I am using the free plm viewer is there other software that would be able to pull more detail out of the maps.

You can re scale the map on the screen by pressing on the number in the key and putting in the number you want. Start at one end of the scale and work your way to the other.
I use farmworks to look at them in the office.

 

[Brisel]

Yield maps create more questions than answers! They certainly tell you where you need to go and dig with your spade and investigate further, in the good places as well as the bad ones.

My John Deere screen in the combine only has 4 colour bands, so I spend the time after harvest reviewing them on Gatekeeper. Make sure you've got backups of the data so you can try different software. Give the PLM software a go as it's free. If that doesn't show you what you want, look around. Gatekeeper isn't cheap by the time you've bought all the extra modules you need to review the information.

 

[GPS_Support_2014]

It sounds like you are looking at the coverage map and not the Yield map. On the top right of the map press the "Layer" button and select yield.
Usually the default settings for the map Legend (colour scale) should be suitable.

 

[Brisel]

Coverage is blue. Yield only has 4 bands unless there's a way of creating more? I can see more detail when I import them into Gatekeeper

 

[SoilMadYorkie]

It depends what other data layers you have. 1 years yield data is fairly useless.

I know a few people send yield data to this lot.

http://www.precisiondecisions.co.uk/agriculture/mapping-yield-mapping/yield-mapping

 

[Steevo]

Coverage is blue. Yield only has 4 bands unless there's a way of creating more? I can see more detail when I import them into Gatekeeper

Do you need more than 4 bands? Surely high and low are the two most important.

Anything high is good and should be a) maintained as initial priority b) replicated on the middle and low when possible.
Anything low is bad and is the place to focus attention (and in theory money) to improve those areas to the level of the middle/high....provided its cost effective.

 

[Brisel]

The combine isn't really the best place for data analysis - that's best done in the office afterwards then back out in the field with the spade & a bag.

 

[Steevo]

Ah sorry, I assumed you couldn't do more than 4 colours on your maps at all. Not that the screen in the combine only showed 4 colours.

 

[Brisel]

I've got Gatekeeper set to 20. That's more than enough for multi coloured maps.

 

[clbarclay]

Four colours can be enough to get an idea what your looking at, but I have some yeild maps from a contractor a few years ago and each feild had the colour scale default set by the highest and lowest spots. This meant that one feild with a rediculious max rate of over 22 t/ha in one spot (combine probably had to stop and back up at that point) looked mostly red and yellow despite having a higher average yeild than other fields which showed a lot more green. I think the full data files numerically recorded the rate for each spot so could be properly inspected with the right software, but the summary pdf files I have are little more than pretty pictures.

 

[Robert Ramsay]

Over the years we have seen many yield maps simply not used. Often the farmer has made them with his own particular technique on his office software and the Agronomist does not really understand them. The result is that they may not work together to use them effectively. We now have a service where we make the maps according to a standard procedure and publish them to a web site with shared access by interested parties (password protected). We make standard maps including multi year normalised, which becomes a virtual yield predictor and we have some tools if you would like to make profit maps or run what if scenarios. Anyway, if you might be interested give us a call.
For more details: telephone 01356 650459 . email: [email protected] (talk to Thomas or Alison)

 

[Combine Chris]

Gatekeeper can also do a normalised yield over mulitple years as one years mapping viewed in isolation often hides trends that a multi year view picks up.

 

[Brisel]

Gatekeeper can also do a normalised yield over mulitple years as one years mapping viewed in isolation often hides trends that a multi year view picks up.

Interesting - that would be very useful for longer term decision making post Brexit if I find myself with extra land offered at low margin - I would be able to take consistently lower performing land out of production if I have an alternative. At the moment the fixed costs are more expensive if concentrated on a smaller area than they are by farming more marginal land at break even.

How do you do this multi year view please? How do you remove anomalies like rabbit or pigeon damage or lodging?

 

[Combine Chris]

The multi year view is a geo analysis layer that the gatekeeper guys helped me create. You can look back over the last 5 years i believe. Before that you will need to remove the spikes and anomalies in the imported yield data by using a plot filter. If you open the yield job and click on the fields tab there is a filter plots button which allows you to set a minimum and maximum value.

 

[GPS_Support_2014]

Coverage is blue. Yield only has 4 bands unless there's a way of creating more? I can see more detail when I import them into Gatekeeper

It should show more than 4....if you select Legend at the top of the Map screen you should be able to configure the ton/ha to show all colours...it might be that your actual yield is above the upper limit on the legend

 

[Brisel]

It should show more than 4....if you select Legend at the top of the Map screen you should be able to configure the ton/ha to show all colours...it might be that your actual yield is above the upper limit on the legend

I'll have a look at that on the Greenstar screen. Thanks.

 

[GPS_Support_2014]

I'll have a look at that on the Greenstar screen. Thanks.

Sorry...I got my wires crossed....my comment above was with reference to the New Holland display.