FarmX Launches OrchardPilot: A New Path to Autonomy for Orchards

FarmX Autonomy, developer of groundbreaking vision-based vehicle autonomy, announces significant advancements in the deployment of OrchardPilot, its GPS-independent autonomy retrofit for orchards. Since its launch in October 2024, OrchardPilot has excelled in trials and successfully automated tractors from major manufacturers. This milestone highlights the product’s versatility and broad market appeal due to its universal compatibility and precision in GPS-denied environments.

Today, as we observe World Water Day, it's a time to reflect on the vital resource that sustains life on our planet: water. In the realm of agriculture, where water is both a precious ally and a critical challenge, the quest for sustainable irrigation management practices is more urgent than ever. It's in this spirit of innovation and sustainability that we reiterate one of our core values of turning measurements into actionable practices for farmers. We’ve been working hard at improving our irrigation recommendations through our newly redesigned Osmo soil moisture probe.

FarmX, a pioneer in agricultural technology, is excited to announce its public debut of Perceptive Navigation® vehicle autonomy in live demonstrations at the 2024 World Ag Expo. FarmX will present autonomous vehicle navigation without GPS or connectivity on vehicles equipped with Perceptive Navigation®. Unlike traditional GPS-dependent systems, FarmX’s robotics platform enables intuitive, real-time, high-precision navigation in complex agricultural environments such as dense foliage, mountainous terrain, adverse weather, and low-visibility scenarios. The platform can be licensed for tractors, rovers (UTVs, ATVs) and drones. It can be customized for a manufacturers’ new product lines or retrofitted to existing vehicle lines.

 Nov 14, 2023 

In the fall, irrigation management is far from over in orchards and vineyards after nuts, fruit, or grapes have been harvested. Leaves are still green and active for several weeks or even months, continuing to convert the energy from sunlight into carbohydrates. With the fruit gone, these carbohydrates are now directed to three sinks: To buds and recent woody growth that is maturing and hardening off, to restock the energy reserves throughout the tree or vine, and the small fall root flush. The energy gathered postharvest is basically a down payment on next year’s crop. In the spring, the tree or vine live off these reserves for several weeks after breaking dormancy. The reserves will power budbreak, flowering, and leafout. This means that sufficient irrigation after harvest can set the stage for success the following year. Cutting water off too soon or irrigating too little forces the plants into leaf drop and dormancy prematurely. This can lead to delayed, weak, and prolonged budbreak and flowering in the spring, which reduces yield potential. In areas susceptible to early and/or hard frost, damage to buds and fruitwood can be more severe if these tissues did not get the reserves they needed for fully maturing and hardening. Under the current drought conditions in the West, it is difficult to fully irrigate post-harvest, but any water that can be given will be better than a complete shutoff. Luckily, there are opportunities in some crops to save water. UC Extension found that: In walnuts, controlled and moderate deficit irrigation postharvest can actually help harden off green shoots, reducing the chance of damage from autumn frosts. In pistachios, postharvest irrigation can be run at a deficit of up to 75% of ETc. Almonds have a demand for 12-15” of water postharvest. If that cannot be satisfied, at least 8” of irrigation should be applied postharvest during September and into October to avoid severe damage to next year’s yield potential. In a good water year, additional postharvest irrigation helps manage soil salinity, high boron, high sodium, and high chloride. Unfortunately, this year, few growers have excess water to leach their root zones. For more detailed and crop specific information, please use these resources: Almond: https://thealmonddoctor.com/the-importance-of-post-harvest-irrigation-in-almond-2/ https://www.almonds.com/almond-industry/industry-news/optimizing-irrigation-and-nutrient-management-postharvest Walnut: https://ucmanagedrought.ucdavis.edu/Agriculture/Crop_Irrigation_Strategies/Walnuts/ Pistachio: https://ucmanagedrought.ucdavis.edu/Agriculture/Crop_Irrigation_Strategies/Pistachios/#:~:text=Deficit%20irrigation%20of%20pistachio%20CAN%20be%20practiced%20during,-%20Nov.%2015%20in%20the%20San%20Joaquin%20Valley%29 . Grape: https://www.vineyardteam.org/files/resources/Irrigation%20&%20Fertilization.pdf https://www.evineyardapp.com/blog/2018/09/12/post-harvest-vineyard-management-preparing-vines-for-resting/ Prune: http://www.sacvalleyorchards.com/prunes/irrigation-prunes/pre-and-post-harvest/

The new season is a great reason to make and keep resolutions. Whether it’s eating right or cleaning out the garage, here are some tips for making and keeping resolutions.