The Rural Voice, 2005-06, Page 47AgriTech
Working with the weather
Janice
Becker is a
computer
enthusiast
and
journalist
living near
Walton, ON.
Weather is a constant concern for
farmers, whether it be drought
conditions, repeated spring rainfalls
swamping the fields or hail and
windstorms just as the crop has
reached maturity.
For the old-timers, a look to the
sky or nature's cues are enough to tell
the forecast for the coming season,
but for others, a little help from
technology can help in planning the
work ahead.
I wrote on this topic several years
ago and thought I should go back to
see if there had been improvements
to the information available on-line.
Apparently, I was not very impressed
in that initial search.
The first stop was at the Ontario
Weather Network website,
www.ontarioweathernetwork.ca, now
operated in conjunction with
Ridgetown College, University of
Guelph — a hopeful sign.
Though there is still considerable
work to be done, raw data charts are •
available for some areas, with respect
to growth degree-days and heat units.
I found the free information limited,
but more in-depth data was offered
through a subscription, though there
was no indication of the subscription
cost. The site noted that a
representative would contact you
once you had submitted your
information.
I went on a search for other sites
and discovered Canadagriculture
Online, Farm Business Commun-
ications, at www.agcanada. com.
The Ontario forecast link took me to
the Environment Canada site, which
has good general information, but
little specific to farmers' needs.
Precipitation forecasts connected to
the National Weather Service. Once
again, information on the Grey -
Bruce, Huron -Perth district had to be
pulled out of the data obtained at
stations in Wiarton, London and
Toronto, the closest three sites.
One interesting bit from the Wiarton
site noted that, in spite of the fact
some might feel the spring has been
wet the region is actually in a deficit
with regards to accumulated rainfall.
At www.farmzone.com, I was able
to select a section of the Ontario map
that encompassed my location. The
divisions were small, so improved
accuracy should be possible.
The short-term forecast gave data
for the next couple days, including
wind, rainfall, humidity, drying
index, growing degree-days, crop
heat units and hours of sunshine. It
was also very recent: only 45 minutes
old at the time of my search.
The long-term forecast showed a
week's worth of data.
I also went back and checked out a
couple of the sites I had looked at
before, one being Growth Stage, a
company that develops predictive
models for the agriculture industry,
using the latest technology such as
Doppler Radar and satellite images in
conjunction with historical data,
Growth Stage purports to be
accurate to within a six -square mile
resolution. This, of course, works
with their software program.
Further information on the entire
system can be attained by contacting
this Calgary -based operation.
Other sites to research include
farmcentre.com with seven-day
forecasts and satellite, radar and
weather map options as well as
Accuweather at wwwa.accuweather
.com, though this site is more
difficult to maneuver.
As a side note, to the gentleman
who emailed me recently, the email
was inadvertently deleted before I
had a chance to read it. I appreciated
and look forward to contact with all
readers, if you would like to respond
again.
Contact me at
jlbecker@wightman.ca or through the
Rural Voice office, with feedback or
topic suggestions.0
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JUNE 2005 43