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On the bookshelf
By Steve Leer
A century of change in agriculture
A tiller of the soil in ancient times could have visited a farm in 1900 and felt right at home with the tools in the barn. But fast forward 100 years, and the early farmer might think he was on another planet, according to two Purdue authors.
Don Paarlberg, professor emeritus in agricultural economics, and his nephew Philip Paarlberg, also a Purdue agricultural economist, chronicle this change in The Agricultural Revolution of the 20th Century. The book is a literary and pictorial time capsule of what the Paarlbergs describe as the most significant century in agricultural history--a century that gave us gasoline-powered tractors and combines, rural electrification, safer and more effective farm chemicals, and research breakthroughs in biotechnology.
Not all the history is rosy though. The book recounts the land and price depressions of the early 1920s and the post-World War II American farm export slump. It also includes a chapter on the century ahead.
"This book is largely for nostalgia lovers," says Don Paarlberg, who got the idea for the book from a daily coffee klatch that he attends with other older farmers.
The Agricultural Revolution of the 20th Century is published by Iowa State University Press. It retails for $54.95 and is available at selected bookstores or through the publisher by calling 1-800-862-6657.
At first it sounded like a chapter out of a Tom Swift book: Satellites thousands of miles above Earth surveying crop fields and transmitting information about the land to farmers, helping them get higher yields from their acres.
Now that Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and other site-specific agricultural technologies are no longer science fiction but science fact, the next frontier for farmers is turning the raw data into money-making management decisions. That's where a new book written by Purdue specialists may come in handy.
Precision Farming Profitability shows farmers how to use site-specific tools and strategies to improve crop management. The book is a joint effort between Purdue's Site-Specific Management Center and CNH Global N.V., which manufactures Case IH and New Holland farm equipment.
"The book is not intended to make people experts in this technology," says Jess Lowenberg-DeBoer, the book's coordinating editor and director of the Site-Specific Management Center. "Rather, we want to give them enough information so that they can ask the right questions for their own operations--questions like, 'How do I know I've increased my yields?'"
Although farmers have always used site-specific practices to strengthen their land's yield potential, the techniques have changed dramatically over time, Lowenberg-DeBoer says. Gone are the days when farmers need to apply "one-size-fits-all crop recipes" on large fields, he says. With today's technology, producers can target only those acres that require attention.
Sam Parsons, a Purdue Extension agricultural engineer and a co-author of six chapters, says the book may be the first to focus on bottom-line site-specific issues. "As a reference guide, it's extremely useful," he says. "But this book also points out that precision farming is more than just the pretty maps GPS makes possible. You've got to have an on-site manager who can help interpret the maps and make wise management decisions."
The book contains 14 chapters on profitability issues, reference material and a glossary of precision farming terms. Color photos, graphs and worksheets are scattered throughout the book, along with short stories from farmers who've used site-specific methods. Fifteen Purdue Agriculture specialists wrote chapters or assisted with the book's content.
Precision Farming Profitability (product #SSM-3) may be ordered by calling the Purdue Media Distribution Center toll free at 1-888-398-4636 or by e-mail at media.order@purdue.edu. The price of the book is $25.
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