K
Kathleen Martin
Guest
A farm in Queensland, Australia, could be home to the first flower in the world planted by a drone.
It's part of an experiment in which drone pilot and farmer Roger Woods deposits tens of thousands of sunflowers using a single, aerial drone.
The unmanned aircraft distributes 45,000 seeds per hectare with the aim of sprouting 30,000 plants.
"This sunflower crop, to the best of our knowledge, is the first sunflower crop planted entirely by drone. So a big agricultural drone that we use commercially, spreads the seeds," says Woods.
The technique is already used for crops like barley, lucerne (alfalfa) and wheat.
But many were sceptical it would work for sunflowers.
"Sunflowers need to have fairly consistent spacing to grow correctly, and they also get incorporated quite accurately so these are some of the challenges that we had to overcome while planting them by drone," explains Woods.
Continue reading: https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/02/22/drones-are-planting-sunflowers-on-this-modern-farm-in-australia
It's part of an experiment in which drone pilot and farmer Roger Woods deposits tens of thousands of sunflowers using a single, aerial drone.
The unmanned aircraft distributes 45,000 seeds per hectare with the aim of sprouting 30,000 plants.
"This sunflower crop, to the best of our knowledge, is the first sunflower crop planted entirely by drone. So a big agricultural drone that we use commercially, spreads the seeds," says Woods.
The technique is already used for crops like barley, lucerne (alfalfa) and wheat.
But many were sceptical it would work for sunflowers.
"Sunflowers need to have fairly consistent spacing to grow correctly, and they also get incorporated quite accurately so these are some of the challenges that we had to overcome while planting them by drone," explains Woods.
The experiment is now in full bloom, drawing in tourists from all over to enjoy the photo opportunity and learn more about modern, non-invasive farming practices.
Continue reading: https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/02/22/drones-are-planting-sunflowers-on-this-modern-farm-in-australia
