Crops department

Jul 1, 2002 12:00 PM

Growing season review

Growing Degree Units (GDUs) are one tool to help track the progress of corn growth. This spring, NK Seed distributed GDU measuring devices to several of our Team FIN farmers across the Corn Belt. We've posted the farmers' weekly GDU reports at www.farmindustrynews.com. Log on and see how a spring that started out too cool turned quickly to record heat and “pineappled” corn in July.

The whole field in your hand

Create field records, download aerial maps, overlay GPS data, calculate acreages and take notes. That's just the start of what you can do in the field with SST Stratus software. The system lets you use a stylus to touch and open menu items on a pocket PC screen and select from farm-specific drop-down menus. Listings of hybrids, varieties, chemicals, pests, equipment and many field operations are readily accessible with just a couple of taps on the touch screen. Tap a location on your field map to see what data you've already entered for that particular spot. Beats the heck out of that old dog-eared paper notepad. Price of the software is $600. Contact SST Inc., 824 N. Country Club Rd., Stillwater, OK 74075, 888/377-5334, www.sstdevgroup.com.