Mapping it out

By Jennifer Carrico

All farmers want to maximize productivity, and with modern technology available many are able to have the best production on their farms.

Humboldt County, Iowa, farmer Mike Coleman continues to use new technology and information to help make his farm produce more each year. A key to the management of his farm has been the addition of using field maps to determine where improvements can be made.

Coleman has been using technology for many years on his operation, but within the past three years he has been using field maps in all aspects of planning his crop each year.

"We have been using yield monitors for about eight years. That information alone gives us some very important information and helps with decision making," he said.

Joe Olson, Coleman's certified crop advisor at Humboldt Ag Service, helps him make management decisions throughout the year.

"We start with a field planner that shows different soil types and then map out where to plant which hybrids. We usually try to limit each field to two hybrids, sometimes planting several acres of one, then the other and sometimes alternating every other row," said Olson.

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