Crop planning software for small diversified farms

Final Report for FNE07-600

Project Type: Farmer
Funds awarded in 2007: $9,054.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2007
Region: Northeast
State: Maine
Project Leader:
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Project Information

Summary:
Note to readers, attached is the complete final report for FNE07-600

This project has created software that allows operators of small, diversified farms to create better crop plans that are detailed and easy to work with.

The software was written in Java programming language, which allows it to run on any modern computer, and was structured around a database that would allow entries to be sorted, filtered, updated and duplicated, shared, created and deleted. The simple interface allows users to create entries for crops and varieties of those crops and to enter planting yield and cultural information about those crops and varieties. Users can then create crop plans which are just scheduled plantings of the already entered crops and varieties. Many properties can be shared between crops, varieties and plantings or can be specifically set for each entry and many properties can be automatically calculated based on other properties including planting, harvest dates, potential yield and the number of beds or row feet necessary to achieve that yield. Finally, users can export their crop plans as a periodic planting list which includes all data relevant to where, when and how much to plant and is ready to be printed and taken to the field or greenhouse.

A website has been created which allows users to learn about the software and to download it for use. This website is located at http://cropplanting.googlecode.com/. This project has seen the software through it's earliest development stages and while it is by no means finished, it's in a state where it is usable and publicly available. User feedback has been positive and we feel that the potential for this software is just beginning to be tapped.

Cooperators

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  • Andrew Marshall

Research

Participation Summary
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.