Working on the go in the agricultural sector – Agriculture apps for farm management
The digital transformation in the agricultural sector is changing the way that farmers work in at many different levels. Milking robots, automatic feeding systems and comprehensive herd management systems are all now part of farmers’ everyday lives, particularly for those that run medium-sized and large farms. Out in the field, automatic steering systems and application maps are used for crop cultivation. Whereas earlier fertiliser spreading charts, the rotational speed and the ground speed of machines were used to calculate spreading quantities, today geo-data is used to farm agricultural land specifically to each section. Special sensors and modern satellite technology provides the data needed to do this. As for the accounting, digital application maps can be used to document and verify all measures. Digital technologies help farmers to manage their farm operations in all areas. Lots of farm management tools are now also available in a mobile version which means that farmers no longer have to spends hours and hours in the office. There are lots of fantastic agriculture apps for farmers with green thumbs. Demand for this has grown in recent years, particularly for crop cultivation. Field-specific decision-making tools, that can be called up at any time and from anywhere, are needed. Applications like this that are tailored to farmers’ needs also increase the digital equipment of farms.
Areas of application for agriculture apps
Due to the complex structures in the agricultural sector, precise planning with suitable tools is incredibly important. Crop plans must be created, inventory and animal stocks checked, crop cultivation processes planned and evidence transmitted. In order to complete all this work, farmers often end up having to spend at lot of time working on the computer at home. Thanks to more recent agricultural apps, lots of their work can now also be done on mobile devices. The demand for this is mainly in the areas of field data, weather data and forecasts, expert and market information, public geo-data and correction signals for Precision Farming. The performance of smartphones is growing continuously and being adapted to the needs of users. Therefore, there is now also a range of useful tools available for farmers. One example of this are agriculture apps for weather forecasts or historical weather data that can be used to evaluate successful crop cultivation activities and plan farm operations. The constant availability of smartphones and a wide range of apps available means that it is now really easy for farmers to digitalise their agricultural businesses. This is one of the reasons why agriculture apps are mostly used for weather forecasting in agriculture. Apps are also particularly useful when it comes to plant protection. They can be used to identify pests, weeds and diseases. There is also an extensive range of apps in the Apple App Store and on Google Play for plant protection products. The manufacturers of agricultural equipment, animal feed and mineral fertiliser have also recognised the potential of these apps and now many offer corresponding services.

Agriculture apps from 365FarmNet
Now even the most complex processes can be managed with mobile applications. Many agricultural businesses already use web-based Farm Management Information Systems (FMIS). With these FMIS, farm operations can be mapped out, organised and documented. Providers like 365FarmNet make it possible for farmers to use selected FMIS services in the form of an app on mobile devices. For example, you can use the 365Crop app from 365FarmNet to map out all crop cultivation processes. The app offers the mobile documentation of crop cultivation measures and it transmits information directly to the 365FarmNet platform. With the stored field boundaries and automatic field identification via GPS, suggested operations are provided and saved in the field catalogue in just a few seconds. In addition, data from multiple people can be integrated into the system. The field catalogue provides an overview of all completed measures and it can also be used offline without any data being lost. All crop cultivation activities are documented in accordance with cross-compliance requirements and can be easily evidenced. As 365FarmNet also has a rain radar integrated into the crop overview of the 365Crop app, several useful functions are combined in one single mobile system: field boundaries, crop overview and weather forecasts.
A further advantage of agriculture apps is the simplified communication among the apps. It is therefore much better for a farm if they can arrange and document completed work with a standardised system. With the 365Crop app, farmers can send work orders directly to employees’ phones from the 365FarmNet platform. Most medium-sized and large farms also have to deal with the challenges of coordinating machines. For fleet management, 365FarmNet has the 365Active app. With this app, farmers can keep an eye on their fleet. The app records the working, travel and idle hours of the machines, their current positions and past routes. By connecting additional hardware components, farmers can also document crop cultivation measures in the 365FarmNet platform automatically and seamlessly, from anywhere and at any time. This means that with the help of the 365Active app and additional hardware components, machines, implements and even systems can be effectively digitalised.
In summary: Electronic tools are becoming more and more important in the everyday lives of farmers. Now that people are getting more used to using smartphones and agriculture apps, they experience fewer obstacles and have fewer reservations. It is important to mention that here there is a high potential to forge ahead with digitalisation in the agricultural sector thanks to these modern and useful applications.
press contact
Yasmin Moehring
Tel. +49 30 25 93 29–901
Mobil +49 151 17 28 18 69
moehring@365farmnet.com