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Seeking the future By
Shane Richey
This
new idea is the GreenSeeker. This top-dress fertilizer spray applicator
optically senses a plant's nutrient requirements and then it applies
nitrogen fertilizer as needed. The
GreenSeeker was developed during 10-plus years of research by a team
of four OSU scientists: Marvin Stone and John Solie of agricultural
engineering, and Gordon Johnson and William Raun of plant and soil sciences.
Their
collective efforts have the potential to maximize production rates through
exact fertilizer application and increased yield rates, which could
help in the fight against food shortages worldwide, said Raun. After
building the GreenSeeker, which has been tested solely on wheat varieties
in Oklahoma, the OSU team wanted to make sure the technology would actually
perform as they were predicting it would. Four years of research on
test plots confirmed everything they had been calculating in the lab.
NTech
Industries Inc., an innovator, developer and marketer of proprietary
technology for sensor-based agricultural nutrient and herbicide delivery
systems, has agreed to manufacture the GreenSeeker. The agreement will
benefit OSU by returning a percentage of sales revenue from the GreenSeeker
product to the university for further research. GreenSeeker
is such a futuristic product because of its ability to sense and calculate
a plant's physical and chemical needs for fertilizer (at a range of
one meter squared) and then apply it while traveling 20 miles per hour
over a field. "That
is what I enjoy the most about working with this project, being part
of something that pushes the edge of science," said Paul Hodgen,
soil fertility master's student from Roachdale, Ind. "At the same
time, GreenSeeker will make us better stewards of the land and will
reduce the risk of polluting the environment by agricultural inefficiencies." The
research behind GreenSeeker may not have been possible without the help
of many different collaborators, including past and present students
who aided in gathering information and building the current product. A total
of 26 participants have been involved in this joint program between
plant and soil sciences and biosystems and agricultural engineering
that has allowed the GreenSeeker project to develop. GreenSeeker is
also part of an international research project with Mexico's International
Maize and Wheat Improvement Center, or CIMMYT. The
CIMMYT research project is aimed at developing specific plant lines
for varying types of climates and soil types so that not only will nitrogen
application be maximized by the plants, but also specific plant breeds
will be adapted for specific areas. Research in Mexico allows scientists
a longer growing season to develop the kinds of specific plants needed. Raun
and Johnson are supervising staff members who have been using collaborative
research opportunities at CIMMYT in Mexico for the GreenSeeker project.
Raun developed the international research opportunity due to his extensive
ties with CIMMYT, where he was employed for six years. Raun said this
opportunity gives students valuable international experience that is
beneficial to today's graduates seeking employment. "This
allows OSU students to travel and work abroad, and to work with some
of the foremost researchers in their field," said Raun. Those
who have taken this opportunity said it has benefited them greatly. "The
experience I had at CIMMYT was absolutely amazing. I lived and learned
a different way of life," said Kyle Freeman, soil fertility master's
student from Tuttle, Okla. "I
had the opportunity to work with some of the best scientists from all
over the world," said Freeman. "The international experience
I gained will be invaluable for the rest of my life, and I will certainly
never forget it." "Working
with the GreenSeeker project gave me the opportunity and interest to
continue my education," said Freeman. "I had the chance to
work with a team of professors devoted to delivering a product beneficial
not only to the wheat producers of Oklahoma, but also a product that
can be developed to use on crops all over the world." Hodgen
is currently at CIMMYT doing research to expand GreenSeeker's capabilities
in other areas of plant and soil sciences. He too is adamant about the
international research opportunity and the GreenSeeker project. "Working
within these two projects has provided me with countless opportunities,
including educational experience, travel and real-world experiences
as well as many professional contacts," said Hodgen. "These
opportunities may or may not have been offered in other traditional
disciplines to the extent that they have been made available through
this project." The
research being done in Mexico will help adapt GreenSeeker technology
worldwide. One of the many goals for the project is to have this technology
used in developing countries where much of the farmland is of marginal
quality. GreenSeeker has the potential to improve the nitrogen use efficiency
for crop production everywhere. The
preparation and skills learned while being able to work on such an innovative
project have allowed students to move on to successful careers, said
Raun. Upon completion of the CIMMYT program, many of these students
have returned to OSU to finish successful academic careers. As
a result of working with both projects, seven students have received
the outstanding master's and doctoral student awards from the plant
and soil sciences department. In
addition, two students who worked on the GreenSeeker received the Sitlington
Scholarship, a prestigious honor awarded to students in the OSU Division
of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. More
than school awards are on the list of accomplishments for past CIMMYT
research exchange students. Many have taken positions with top companies
in related fields. SST, a leading agricultural technology company, The
Noble Foundation and Ford Motor Co. are just a few of the companies
who have hired plant and soil sciences students. Current
students and those to come will have opportunities within the GreenSeeker
project and the international research project with CIMMYT. These projects
are now aimed toward studying the application methods and determining
correct algorithms enabling applicators to apply fertilizer to various
crops. Keeping these goals and the continuing problem of world hunger in mind as motivation, those involved with the GreenSeeker and CIMMYT international research projects will continue to go to new places, meet new faces and work on new ideas. |
New
places, new faces, new ideas. Oklahoma State University plant and soil
sciences graduate students 
The
GreenSeeker was unveiled Oct. 15, 2001, at the OSU Noble Research Center.
During the ceremony, license and master research agreements were signed
with NTech Industries Inc., a private commercial manufacturing company.