Papers by Jess Lowenberg-deboer
Agricultural Economics, 2005
Risk efficiency of rice grain yield and returns to farm operators' household resources generated ... more Risk efficiency of rice grain yield and returns to farm operators' household resources generated from an improved shortduration cover crop fallow system were compared with (traditional) natural bush fallow, and continuous rice-cropping systems. The improved fallow system involved maintaining Calopogonium mucunoides, seeded into a natural bush fallow for 2 years before planting to rice. With no chemical fertilizer application, which reflects farmers' practice in the area, average grain yield for continuous rice (1,185 kg/ha) and the cropping sequence incorporating a natural bush fallow (1,175 kg/ha) did not differ, but were higher for the improved fallow system (1,304 kg/ha). This suggests that nutrient contribution from the leguminous cover crop made up for critical crop N requirements in the improved fallow. Stochastic dominance of grain yield distributions from the improved fallow system, relative to the other two cropping systems, was more dramatic with no N fertilizer application compared to treatments with 30 kg/ha N. Average returns were highest for the improved fallow system, followed by the natural bush fallow-cropping system, and then continuous rice, under the no N fertilizer treatment regime. With 30 kg/ha N fertilizer, income risk efficiency was less clear (compared to treatments with no N fertilizer), especially between continuous rice and the improved fallow treatment, because of faster N mineralization effects on continuous rice. In contrast, the improved cover crop fallow system completely dominated the natural bush fallow treatment under both fertilizer regimes. Rice production systems that incorporated the leguminous cover crop fallow were superior to the natural bush fallow system, based on both grain yield and average farm income risk-efficiency considerations. JEL classification: D81; Q12
Profitability issues have constrained adoption of precision agriculture. Recently a question has ... more Profitability issues have constrained adoption of precision agriculture. Recently a question has been raised about role of management time in the adoption of precision agriculture. It has been hypothesized that producers prefer convenient technologies which economize on management time, to those which require more analysis and decision making. This paper provides an overview of the current status of precision agriculture
Argentine farm managers see precision agriculture as a means to reduce costs in grain production,... more Argentine farm managers see precision agriculture as a means to reduce costs in grain production, to increase productivity and make input use more efficient. Yield monitors, Global Positioning Systems (GPS) guidance and satellite images are increasingly used in large operations, while Variable Rate Application (VRA) is rare. Factors that encourage its adoption include: large farm operations with relatively high capital
This paper shows that spatial panel data models can be successfully applied to an econometric ana... more This paper shows that spatial panel data models can be successfully applied to an econometric analysis of farm-scale precision agriculture data. The application focuses on the estimation of the effect of controlled drainage water management equipment on corn yields. Using field-level precision agriculture data and spatial panel techniques, the yield response equation is estimated using the spatial autoregressive error random
n the U.S., building soil phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) levels typically becomes an issue on f... more n the U.S., building soil phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) levels typically becomes an issue on farms that have had limited nutrient application and when doing site-specific management. Intensive soil sam- pling often reveals islands of low P and/or K in otherwise well-managed fields. Most soil fertility rec- ommendations suggest a slow buildup of those low fertility areas. Financial analysis
Will Higher Fertilizer Prices Drive Adoption of Precision Fertilizer Management?
One of the most appealing concepts of site-specific agriculture is in the precise application of ... more One of the most appealing concepts of site-specific agriculture is in the precise application of crop inputs—giving each part of a field exactly what is needed vs. uniformly across a field, where the soil, past treatment, drainage, or any other number of factors can vary. Especially for crop nutrients, the potential exists in precision application to not only increase crop
With harvest now winding down in many areas, some of the major questions about management practic... more With harvest now winding down in many areas, some of the major questions about management practices such as the performance of specific hybrids and varieties, the timeliness of certain field practices, and even the local effects of Mother Nature are already well known. But more detailed analyses will follow, some using yield monitor data in a computer-intensive and knowledge-intensive process.
Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems, 2009
vi Acknowledgement vii
Inclusion of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa L.) in Crop Rotations in the Eastern Corn Belt
Journal of Sustainable Agriculture, 1992
Page 1. Inclusion of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa L.) in Crop Rotations in the Eastern Corn Belt: L S... more Page 1. Inclusion of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa L.) in Crop Rotations in the Eastern Corn Belt: L Some Environmental and Economic Implications John C. Foltz Marshall A. Martin Jess Lowenberg-DeBoer ABSTRACT. This article ...
Market building for post-harvest technology through large-scale extension efforts
Journal of Stored Products Research, 2014
Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 2007
This paper presents a computer-based method that uses stochastic dominance techniques to combine ... more This paper presents a computer-based method that uses stochastic dominance techniques to combine yield monitor data and information from traditional hybrid and variety trials in guiding farm level seed choices. This choice is important since it affects farm profits and risks. The proposed method uses a non-parametric approach that takes into account information that is not easily summarized by statistical parameters, and would work with any type of distribution. The proposed method selects cultivars that have smaller probabilities of low yields, thus are more risk efficient than the ones selected by traditional methods. Therefore, the proposed method can potentially improve the choice of hybrids and varieties. An example of how this method can be applied is developed using data from the South-East region of the Buenos Aires province, Argentina. This country has more combine yield monitors than any other Latin American country and yield trials are conducted every year by farmers, farmer associations and research institutions. Therefore, the technology and data required to implement the proposed method are widely available. Advantages of the proposed method are discussed and presented graphically, and limitations are identified. The proposed method can be easily incorporated in computer software that automates the statistical procedures allowing its use by a broad sector of agriculture.
Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, 1987
Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, 1988
Risk assessment for herbaceous biomass crops: The case of perennial grasses
Biomass, 1990
Site Specific …, 2005
At precision agriculture data analysis workshops there are often diverging views on the kind of s... more At precision agriculture data analysis workshops there are often diverging views on the kind of statistics that is appropriate for sensor based or remotely sensed data such as yield monitor data and imagery. One view is that yield monitor data represent a sample. In that case, ...
… , August, Available on …, 2006
The advent of the combine yield monitor reduced the time commitment of harvesting on-farm trials ... more The advent of the combine yield monitor reduced the time commitment of harvesting on-farm trials to levels motivating some farmers to conduct experiments. Although harvest time requirements have been reduced, they were not eliminated. Planting and harvesting on-farm trials ...
Working Papers, 2008
This paper shows that spatial panel data models can be successfully applied to an econometric ana... more This paper shows that spatial panel data models can be successfully applied to an econometric analysis of farm-scale precision agriculture data. The application focuses on the estimation of the effect of controlled drainage water management equipment on corn yields. Using field-level precision agriculture data and spatial panel techniques, the yield response equation is estimated using the spatial autoregressive error random effects model with temporal heterogeneity, incorporating spatial dependence in the error term, while ...
Site Specific Management Center Publication. Available on-line at: http://www. purdue. edu/ssmc, 2007
Executive Summary This document serves to share our techniques for managing the analysis of site-... more Executive Summary This document serves to share our techniques for managing the analysis of site-specific precision agriculture data for the purposes of analyzing field-scale on-farm trial experiments. The content of this document is the culmination of over a decade of on-farm trial and spatial analysis experience which continually expands. Working with precision agriculture data can be very frustrating even for those versed in GIS and programming. This protocol was written to assist other analysts of precision agriculture ...
Department of Agricultural Economics Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN (EUA). Documento disponible en http://www. agriculture. purdue. edu/ssmc/Frames/publications. html. Consultado el, Aug 1, 2005
Executive Summary This document serves to share our techniques for managing the analysis of site-... more Executive Summary This document serves to share our techniques for managing the analysis of site-specific production data for the purposes of analyzing field-scale experiments. The content of this document is the culmination of over a decade of on-farm trial and spatial analysis experience and is still growing. The reader is invited to make suggestions and comments that may be incorporated into future versions of this document.
The Impact of Farmland Price Changes on Farm Size and Financial Structure
American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 1986