"The hardest challenge for us producers is dealing with the extreme events caused by climate change, as they translate into harmful stress for crops. Focusing on innovative and sustainable solutions helped us manage strategic aspects of agronomic activities, preventing stress and the attacks of insects and phytopathogenic fungi. Reaching a zero residue production, for which we currently hold the full certification, also helped," explains Nicola Ambruosi, CEO of Ambruosi & Viscardi, among the leading producers of head crops in Italy that has successfully adopted a solution based on precision agriculture and biocontrol by Evja, a young and dynamic business that helps producers monitor and protect their crops.
Field activities are managed with the support of precision agriculture
"We have installed Evja's micro-climatic units in all crops, which supply data on the weather and soil in real time that can be monitored remotely. This way, we can always be aware of parameters such as temperature, solar radiation, and water content in the soil. We have a fundamental tool to plan irrigation, thanks to parameters that help us get to know precisely the condition of our products such as, e.g., the degree of evapotranspiration," adds Angelica Acquaroli, agronomist at Ambruosi & Viscardi.
Evja's units create a network of sensors for crop monitoring and are part of a patented decision-making support system that also entails predictive agronomic models and algorithms for the management of diseases and irrigation, plus a log for the analysis of data. Evja's system is also used to improve the use of biological control products so that they can be used when micro-climatic conditions are more favorable.
The collaboration has led to great results in the fields, as Ambruosi explains: "We have been using these tools successfully along entire crop cycles for years. Choosing varieties suitable for the specific micro-climate of our fields is essential. We cannot use seeds that are grown in different areas because plants would not have the right characteristics to develop as best as possible in the fields. This is why we have started to reproduce the seeds for our Swiss chard and chicory autonomously, as we have noticed that local varieties deal better with both the cold and the hot weather."
"The micro-climate is therefore an increasingly essential factor for crop management, so a winning strategy must include the monitoring, analysis, and forecasting with practical and scientific tools," concludes Ambruosi.
Photos supplied by Evja
For further information:
EVJA S.R.L.
Via Benedetto Brin, 63
80142 Napoli - Italy
+39 0810063832
[email protected]
www.evja.eu
Ambruosi & Viscardi
Contrada S.Giuliana 16
63061 Massignano (AP)
+39 0735 72483
[email protected]
www.ambruosiviscardi.it
