GIS is key to precision agriculture and crop health monitoring. GIS and satellite imagery enable early detection of problem areas such as water or nutrient imbalances, or pest or disease outbreaks. Farmers then apply water, fertilizers, and pesticides to address issues as they arise, preventing potential yield losses and avoiding more extreme interventions later in the season. Students can now experience crop health monitoring in the new activity Experience GIS for agriculture. This activity includes:
- Watching a video about the career of a GIS agricultural analyst
- Answering some questions about how GIS is used in agriculture
- Using imagery of a crop before and after a hailstorm to analyze its health
- (Optional) Following a tutorial to evaluate crop health, doing all the analysis work to create the data they just explored on the map
No accounts? No problem - They aren't needed
Students can get hands-on using GIS for agriculture without having an account. The first parts of the activity can be completed without one, including some hands-on GIS exploration. If the students have accounts, there is more in the activity that they can continue to do with a tutorial.
Where does the activity fit in the classroom?
Consider incorporating this activity into the following career clusters and pathways in CTE programs:
- Agriculture
- Plant and soil science
- Agribusiness systems
- Agricultural mechanics and technology
Teaching a higher ed unit on agricultural management, agribusiness, plant & soil science, sustainable food, or agricultural science? Your students will also benefit.
None of those apply to you? You can still use the activity - we are happy to see more students exposed to GIS.
Leave us a comment about how the activity worked for your students.
