16.2.2021
The ISARIA system enables needs-based and resource-saving rapeseed fertilization in spring. To do this, the rapeseed stock should be scanned in autumn, before the onset of winter dormancy and before the first frost. For rapeseed cultivation in Germany — at least 1.2 million hectares in 2022 — this opens up effective opportunities to align the supply of nutrients efficiently, economically and in an environmentally friendly manner with existing plant development.
Bright yellow rapeseed fields characterize the landscape from May to July. The plant belongs to the cruciferous family and comes from a cross between wild cabbage and turnips. As an important agricultural crop, rapeseed likes to settle on heavy, deep-rooted soils with a good supply of nutrients. Clay soils are good for cultivation. The high oil content of the seeds makes this plant so valuable. The intense smell of the plants is reminiscent of cabbage.
Rapeseed, for example, is used to obtain healthy rapeseed oil, which is used in many kitchens. In the form of rapeseed cake, the plant is used as a fat and protein-rich feed for farm animals such as cattle, pigs and fattened poultry.
In Germany, winter rapeseed is primarily grown. Sowing starts in August. Depending on climatic conditions, rapeseed plants are one or two years old. They persist in the field for almost 12 months, which prevents soil degrading fallow land and erosion. After flowering, the plant changes its appearance significantly. The inflorescences give way to small green pods, in which the rapeseed grains grow. The plant sheds its leaves. The maximum percentage of rapeseed is loud LfL Bayern A guideline of 25% in crop rotation, as rapeseed is not self-compatible. Otherwise, the pressure with crop rotations increases sharply, and the risk of cabbage hernia is also promoted in tight crop rotations with cruciferous vegetables.
With an expected yield of 40 dt/ha, the N requirement is around 200 kg/ha, according to LfL Bayern. However, all areas of a field are different — there are high and low yield zones. Uniform fertilization leads to undersupply and thus to loss of yield; oversupply pollutes the environment and wastes resources.
This is where the ISARIA system comes in. Application agents are applied precisely at the point in the stroke where they are needed. Balanced nitrogen balances and optimal use of yield potential are the result.
Depending on autumn weather and sowing time, a rapeseed stock may have absorbed significant amounts of nitrogen even before the vegetation is dormant. In autumn, after the appropriate growing season, winter rapeseed has planted sufficiently well in the best case. The nutrient status of canola can then be measured using the scan mode of the ISARIA plant sensors ISARIA PRO Compact and ISARIA PRO Active be recorded. This trip does not have to be carried out exclusively for data collection. Herbicide application in autumn to suppress weeds or avoid casserole grains is possible in parallel.
The analysis of the scan of the rapeseed area can be done in an intuitive data management tool ISARIA CONNECT be uploaded (e.g. via online data exchange). As a user-friendly tool for central management of georeferenced data, it makes it possible to efficiently manage site-specific work. In ISARIA CONNECT, the scan is automatically assigned to the previously created shot if the user has previously created the basic information for his operation. After entering a few parameters, the data from the measurement run in autumn are then converted into application cards for fertilization in spring, which can be further processed at any time in a user-friendly way. ISARIA CONNECT also has many other functions, such as visualization, documentation and analysis of ISARIA measurement data.
Based on the data generated in late autumn when the rapeseed areas are scanned with the ISARIA plant sensor, application maps can easily be created in ISARIA CONNECT for site-specific and needs-based spring fertilization.
You can choose whether the total quantity should be divided between two gifts and with what proportion the gifts are distributed. A 2-step strategy may be necessary, for example, in order to be able to react to various types of frost damage during wintering. If the damage is relatively high, rapeseed requires a lot of nitrogen at the beginning, i.e. with the first dose, in order to recover quickly. If frost damage is lower, the total amount of fertilizer can be distributed between the first and second application. If you decide to divide up the amount of fertilizer, two application cards are exported. These can either be integrated and processed directly into a request for the ISARIA terminal, or exported as ISOXML for further processing with other terminals.
Due to severe leaf loss due to frost, it is often not possible to derive the amount of fertilizer from plant development in spring, especially during early fertilization dates, because the plant leaves do not give a representative statement about the supply status after wintering. As a result of wintering, aboveground areas are damaged or regressed by frost. This is a plant's natural protective mechanism.
The area scan in autumn and the preparation of application maps enable precise, site-specific and therefore needs-based nutrient application in spring during rapeseed fertilization. The simple data management with ISARIA CONNECT rounds off the system. By taking up autumn development, it is possible to respond optimally to yield potential. In addition, resources are conserved because exactly the amount of fertilizer that can be absorbed or used by the plants is applied.
