New Technology in Agriculture: Early Plant Stress Detection and Treatment
New Technology from InnerPlant Could Revolutionize Agriculture
A groundbreaking new technology from the ag tech company InnerPlant has the potential to revolutionize agriculture by alerting growers to plant stresses weeks before they become visible to the human eye. The technology involves creating crops that emit specific optical signals when they are under stress from pathogen attacks, such as fungal infections.
Sean Yokomizo, Vice President of Communications for InnerPlant, explained that these signals are visible from satellites weeks before the stress is detectable at the field level. By tracking molecular responses in plants and inserting DNA that creates fluorescent proteins in response to specific stresses, InnerPlant’s technology can detect plant stress within 24 hours of infection or stress, providing early warning signals four to six weeks before they would be visible in the field.
Agronomists can use this data to treat individual plants that are under stress, allowing for precise treatments and reducing the need for chemicals. The technology provides farmers with actionable information in a simple and user-friendly format, allowing them to take early action to preserve their yields before they are impacted.
Yokomizo emphasized the importance of early action in agriculture, comparing it to knowing there is smoke in your kitchen before a fire breaks out. By providing farmers with early, actionable information, InnerPlant’s technology aims to help farmers preserve their yields and reduce the need for chemical treatments.
To learn more about this innovative technology and see samples of what the satellites see, visit the InnerPlant website.
