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| Paul Wilkens (standing) is shown training
users of the DSSAT computer modeling software program. Wilkens
is a scientist with the International Center for Soil Fertility
and Agricultural Development, part of the team that developed
the software. |
A team of scientists has created a omputer program that can model
an entire crop cycle, from planting to harvesting, in just seconds.
The software is called Decision Support System for Agrotechnology
Transfer, or DSSAT. It was created by a team of researchers from
the universities of Georgia, Florida, Hawaii, Guelph and Iowa State
and the International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural
Development.
DSSAT simulates a crop’s growth, yield, water and nutrient
requirements, as well as the impact of the environment on agricultural
production.
The program wasn’t developed overnight. In fact, the software’s
fourth version was released earlier this year. About 50 researchers
and graduate students from across the globe met on the UGA campus
in Griffin this past May to try out the latest DSSAT software.
“This software program is by no means meant to be a substitute
for actual experimentation,” says Gerrit Hoogenboom, a DSSAT
developer and an agricultural engineer with UGA’s College
of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “Experimental
data is still needed to establish credibility for models like DSSAT.”
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| Gerrit Hoogenboom, an agricultural engineer
with UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences,
was part of the team that developed DSSAT. |
Hoogenboom further stresses that crop modeling software like DSSAT
is not a substitute for critical thought.
“The results you obtain from the software are not ultimate
truths, and they’re not meant to replace real experiments,
real data or critical thinking,” he says. “Any time
you use a computer model you should question the results.”
Although not a substitute for the real thing, the computer model
can nonetheless have great value to researchers, educators, extension
agents and consultants.
“Computer models can provide an easy and very fast comparison
of many different crop management scenarios and the interaction
with local weather and soil conditions,” Hoogenboom says.
DSSAT simulates the growth of crops like peanuts, sunflowers, sugar
cane, wheat, soybeans, rice, tomatoes, sorghum, millet, barley,
potatoes, corn, black-eyed peas and dry beans. The next version
of DSSAT will be of particular interest to researchers in the southeastern
United States, as cotton will be added to the simulated crop list.
This version of the software is expected to be released in two years.
The crop-simulation information gained through the DSSAT software
will be shared with farmers.
“Our goal is to educate the people who talk to farmers directly,”
says Ken Boote, a DSSAT developer and University of Florida agronomist.
“Consultants, ag industry representatives and extension agents
have the potential to spread the word to farmers. Those farmers
with interest in this technology would also benefit from actually
using the software themselves.”
Boote says the way the software presents the data is an essential
part of the success of DSSAT.
“You can’t give numbers that no one can understand,”
he says. “Our program calculates crop growth and development
in a mathematical sense and then presents it through -graphics.”
DSSAT has also been used as an effective tool to identify the source
of production management problems after a crop has been harvested.
“It’s a way to see the whole picture and what is limiting
the crop,” Boote says. “The software actually works
better this way.”
In the early stages, the software was tested using several years
of real-crop data from Florida and Georgia farms. DSSAT has been
used on food security projects in Africa and in other developing
countries, too, and to study the impact of climate change on food
production.
“It’s been used in Arkansas to help with early-season
soybean plantings, in Kentucky for determining planting dates, in
Georgia for predicting agricultural water usage and in Africa to
diagnose yield loss of peanut crops from disease,” Boote says.
“The list of applications is never-ending.”
Two UGA agricultural economics students are using the program to
evaluate crop insurance. They hope to show the actual risks of failure
faced by farmers.
“DSSAT users share their work and their data via a computer
listserve and a Web site,” Hoogenboom says. “In this
way, the software contributes to the whole scientific community.”
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