DA develops fertilizer app for farmers

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture has developed a mobile application that will help local farmers determine the needed fertilizer for rice crops.

The DA-Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) said finding the right amount of nitrogen fertilizer for rice can now be generated through a free android application called the PhilRice Leaf Color Computing Application (LCC app).

This was derived from a four-stripes handy ruler called Leaf Color Chart and can assess the nitrogen status of the rice plant.

Designed for farmers, extension workers, researchers and students, the mobile app generates nitrogen recommendations in just under a minute based on the digital images of intact rice leaves photographed directly from the field.

PhilRice senior researcher Ailon Capistrano said app users only need to lay down the topmost, fully expanded rice leaf on a smartphone’s front camera to capture its image with the surrounding light as source of luminance.

The nitrogen level of rice plants can be measured from a digital photo of the leaves, which is strongly correlated with actual leaf nitrogen concentrations.

“The app measures the intensity of green color based on the captured leaf images and converts this into values correlated with the amount of nitrogen in the leaf,” Capistrano said.

While there are different smartphones with variations in terms of resolution, the PhilRice team found that regardless of brand, smartphone cameras will deliver an almost similar reading at five megapixels.

This means that app users can install the app even in an inexpensive smartphone brand and benefit from its function.

“The app is more accurate than the LCC as it eliminates subjective perception of users, which is prone to variation or errors. The app is also handy for new users or adopters who have no training or experience in the use of the manual LCC,” Capistrano said.

PhilRice deputy executive director Karen Barroga said the app is useful for farmers who often apply too much nitrogen, especially during wet season, which results in pest infestation.

“Many farmers are now online. They also have their children to assist them. I’m sure that the LCC app will quickly find its way to them to guide them in the accurate application of nitrogen,” Barroga said.

PhilRice data showed that 75 percent of its clients are farmers who frequently use the Messenger app. The rest are students, extension workers and researchers.

Recommendations derived from the LCC app will be showcased in field demonstration, while farmers engaged through Facebook will be encouraged to download the app.

The DA has been harnessing state-of-the-art tools, systems and technologies to modernize and industrialize the agriculture sector to ensure food supply.