On fieldmargin we treat fields as a special case, learn how in the specific tutorial here. For all other permanent things on your farm you can use features to give your digital map detail, these are colour coded so that you can differentiate between different things on your farm.
Some of the things you might like to add include:
- Paths + access points
- Drains
- Irrigation pipes
- Buildings
- Health and safety hazards
You can decide how you use these however you wish. We built fieldmargin to be flexible so that it works for you and the way you farm.
In this article we are going to share 5 ways our users are mapping features.
1. Mapping irrigation: Tierhoek Organic Farm
The first technical project the farm used fieldmargin for was mapping the land’s fields and permanent features. The team mapped out the electricity lines, drinking systems, and irrigation systems using features on web. Being able to view this on mobile made them release the monitoring value of the tech.
“Features has allowed us to monitor workload and progress during larger projects such as clearing land or building new irrigation systems,” says Bruce.
2. Mapping farm details for contractors
Rob Boole has used fieldmargin over 169 farms and has drawn boundaries for over 1800 fields. His permanent team members and new starts have all learned to use the app very quickly and use it every day for sharing and accessing information about jobs.
Read more here.
3. Mapping locations of stones and weeds on a mixed arable farm in New South Wales, Australia.
fieldmargin has allowed Drew and Michael by allowing the team to share locations of the weeds when they are out chipping on foot. It has meant the team could share and monitor progress much more efficiently so that they can understand the scale of the weed problem. Read more here.
4. Digitising agri-enviromental schemes
From this
To this:
Convert paper maps into digital maps that can be accessed anywhere. Read how here
5. Mapping and sharing health and safety
Incidents with overhead power lines made up 10% of farm fatalities in the past year. Make sure that everyone on your farm is aware of hazards such as power lines and ditches/dykes so that these can be avoided.
You can also add important resources that might be needed in case of an emergency such as fire extinguishers and first aid kits. Read more here.
“We are acutely aware of the risks and hazards associated with agriculture. As a contractor, we need to carry out risk assessments several times a day. We have already seen the benefits of documenting & sharing risks on farms whilst also being able to see where everyone is working.”
Rob Boole
Thank you for reading! Find our step-by step instructions for setting up features here.
Coming soon: An update that allows you to add notes and tasks to features. This will include the ability to build up a history for features. Want to start now?