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Samuel Gander

Mr. Dunham

English 102

April 25,2012

Farming on a Whole New Level

Although people have worked in agriculture for more than 10,000 years, advances in

technology assist with maintaining and protecting land, crops, and animals. The demand to

keep food prices affordable encourages those working in the agriculture industry to operate as

efficiently as possible (Newman and Ruiz 33-47)

Almost all people and companies in this industry have many acres of land they must

maintain, and it is not always feasible for farmers to take frequent trips around the property to

perform basic tasks such as watering soil in the absence of rain. The number of people-hours

required to water soil manually on several thousand acres of land might result in businesses

spending thousands of dollars in labour and utility costs. If the irrigation process is

automated, sensors detect how much rain has fallen recently, as well as whether the soil is in

need of watering. The sensors then send this data to a computer that processes it and decides

when and how much to water 1

In addition to keeping the soil moist and reducing maintenance costs, computers also can

utilize sensors to analyse the condition of crops in the field and determine whether pests or

diseases are affecting the crops. If sensors detect pests and/or diseases, computers send a

notification to the appropriate individual to take corrective action. In some cases, according

1
Barton states that many automated home irrigation systems also are programmable and

use rain sensors (67-73)

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to Brewster, the discovery of pests might trigger a pesticide to discharge in the affected area

automatically (Agriculture: Expanding and Growing)

Many farmers use technology on a daily basis to regulate soil moisture and to keep their

crops pest free. With technology, farming can be much more convenient and efficient.
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Works Cited

Agriculturer :Brewster, Letty. Expanding and Growing. 3 Jan 2012. 9 Feb 2012.

Barton, Blake. “Computers in Agriculture.” Agriculture Today and Tomorrow Feb 2012: 53-

86. Print.

Brewster, Letty. Agriculture: Expanding and Growing. 3 Jan 2012. Web. 9 Feb 2012.

Newman, Albert D., and Carmen W. Ruiz. The Agricultural Industry Today. New York,

2012. Print.