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A device was developed for on‐field cutting energy measurement of cereal crops. Physical, engineering, and anatomical properties of prominent rice (Oryza sativa L.) cultivars of India were studied at different stem positions using a factorial CRD design. The effects of changes in different operational parameters, including blade bevel angle (15°, 20°, and 25°), cutting angle (25°, 30°, and 35°) and cutting velocity (2.9, 3.44, and 4.1 m s−1) on cutting force and cutting energy of rice stalk were also studied. Cutting angle indicated the angle of inclination of cutting edge to the horizontal at blade‐crop interface. The assessment of these properties and parameters in relation to crop cutting energy, led to the development of a smart device for energy measurement up to a size of three skills. This device consisted of a compression system, crop holding unit, cutting unit, and sensors to measure the force, speed, and cutting height. The device's measurement abilities were evaluated with wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) stalks at different cutting speeds (0.83, 1.16, and 1.5 m s−1 and stem heights (10, 20, and 30 cm from ground). Values for cutting force and energy ranged from 1.85 to 1.45 N and 10.81 to 8.48 N mm–1, respectively. At all stem heights, the cutting force and cutting energy ranged from 1.79 to 1.44 N and 11.92 to 6.74 N mm–1, respectively. The ultrasonic sensor provided real time cutting height data with an accuracy of 97.5%, while the gyroscope sensor had an accuracy of 94.29% for on‐field cutting angle measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cauliflower is an important winter crop grown in India, its curds are rich in nutritional profile, containing valuable minerals and vitamins. However, cauliflower harvesting is mainly accomplished by hands, which is time-consuming and requires a high labour force. On the other hand, most developed cauliflower harvesters are once over or single pass type, which harvests all plants irrespective of their maturity. So, the selective harvester could improve the cauliflower curds yield, and then decrease the labour requirement. To improve the cutting performance of the selective cauliflower harvester, the working parameters of the chainsaw cutting mechanism need to be considered and optimized. This research investigates the impact of cutting height, feed (push) force, and cutting speed on the efficiency of the cutter during harvest. The Taguchi approach, together with grey relational analysis (GRA), was employed to identify the most favorable combination of operational parameters. In addition, the variance analysis was conducted to statistically examine the impact of multiple parameters. The findings indicated that the feed force was the major parameter that influenced the cutting force, splitting failure levels, and cutting time. The most effective parameter combination consisted of a cutting height of 15 mm, a feed force of 10 N, and a cutting speed of 5 m/s. The grey relational grade of the ideal parameter combination has shown a 0.322 increase in comparison to the grade achieved with the initially selected parameter combination. This setting was further incorporated in the developed selective cauliflower harvester to improve the performance of its cutting mechanism., Competing Interests: Declarations. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Greenhouses are space-efficient structures used in the production of produce. However, occupational health issues like exposure to chemicals, and physiological and postural stresses are experienced by operators while performing farm activities due to the enclosed environment of the greenhouse. This study assesses chemical exposure and physiological and postural parameters of operators during spraying with two different types of sprayers (Battery-powered knapsack sprayer [Battery sprayer] and AC-powered stationary sprayer [Stationary sprayer]) with two different application techniques (continuous and alternate row). The mean Potential Dermal Exposure (PDE) for a continuous row of spraying was 54 and 70 mL h -1 with battery and stationary sprayers, respectively. However, PDE in alternate row spraying was approximately 16 and 25% less in battery and stationary sprayers than in a continuous row. The upper and left portions of the body had higher exposure compared to the lower and right half portions in all treatments. The ergonomic parameters (physiological and postural assessment) in continuous and alternate row spraying techniques did not differ but varied with the type of sprayer used. Mean values of energy expenditure rate, body part discomfort score, overall discomfort score, and risk index were 210 ± 35 W, 27 ± 2.0, 6.1 ± 0.4, and 1.0, respectively, in the battery sprayer compared to 290 ± 80 W, 35 ± 4.1, 8.3 ± 1.0, and 2.0 in the stationary sprayer. This study concluded that the use of a battery sprayer with an alternate row spraying technique resulted in lower dermal exposure (45 mL h -1 ) and was ergonomically less demanding.

Conservation Agriculture (CA) is an innovative approach that promotes sustainable farming while enhancing soil health. However, residue management challenges often hinder its adoption, causing farmers to burn crop leftovers in fields. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of various furrow openers under simulated soil bin conditions. Three types of furrow openers were examined: single disk (SD), Inverted T-type furrow opener with a plain rolling coulter (ITRC), and double disc (DD) furrow opener. Tests were conducted at different forward speeds (1.5, 2, and 2.5 km h -1 ) and with three straw densities (1, 2, and 3 t ha -1 ) at a consistent working depth of 5 cm. Draft measurements were obtained using load cells connected to an Arduino-based data-logging system. Results indicated that draft requirements increased with forward speed and straw density, while straw-cutting efficiency decreased with these factors. Average draft values for SD, ITRC, and DD were 290.3 N, 420 N, and 368.5 N, respectively, and straw-cutting efficiencies were 53.62%, 59.47%, and 74.89%, respectively. The DD furrow opener showed the highest straw-cutting efficiency (81.36%) at a working speed of 1.5 km h -1 and a straw density of 1 t ha -1 , demonstrating optimal performance compared to other furrow openers., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

An accurate assessment of nitrate leaching is important for efficient fertiliser utilisation and groundwater pollution reduction. However, past studies could not efficiently model nitrate leaching due to utilisation of conventional algorithms. To address the issue, the current research employed advanced machine learning algorithms, viz., Support Vector Machine, Artificial Neural Network, Random Forest, M5 Tree (M5P), Reduced Error Pruning Tree (REPTree) and Response Surface Methodology (RSM) to predict and optimize nitrate leaching. In this study, Urea Super Granules (USG) with three different coatings were used for the experiment in the soil columns, containing 1 kg soil with fertiliser placed in between. Statistical parameters, namely correlation coefficient, Mean Absolute Error, Willmott index, Root Mean Square Error and Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency were used to evaluate the performance of the ML techniques. In addition, a comparison was made in the test set among the machine learning models in which, RSM outperformed the rest of the models irrespective of coating type. Neem oil/ Acacia oil(ml): clay/sulfer (g): age (days) for minimum nitrate leaching was found to be 2.61: 1.67: 2.4 for coating of USG with bentonite clay and neem oil without heating, 2.18: 2: 1 for bentonite clay and neem oil with heating and 1.69: 1.64: 2.18 for coating USG with sulfer and acacia oil. The research would provide guidelines to researchers and policymakers to select the appropriate tool for precise prediction of nitrate leaching, which would optimise the yield and the benefit-cost ratio., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Sensor-based decision tools provide a quick assessment of nutritional and physiological health status of crop, thereby enhancing the crop productivity. Therefore, a 2-year field study was undertaken with precision nutrient and irrigation management under system of crop intensification (SCI) to understand the applicability of sensor-based decision tools in improving the physiological performance, water productivity, and seed yield of soybean crop. The experiment consisted of three irrigation regimes [I 1 : standard flood irrigation at 50% depletion of available soil moisture (DASM) (FI), I 2 : sprinkler irrigation at 80% ET C (crop evapo-transpiration) (Spr 80% ET C ), and I 3 : sprinkler irrigation at 60% ET C (Spr 60% ET C )] assigned in main plots, with five precision nutrient management (PNM) practices{PNM 1 -[SCI protocol], PNM 2 -[RDF, recommended dose of fertilizer: basal dose incorporated (50% N, full dose of P and K)], PNM 3 -[RDF: basal dose point placement (BDP) (50% N, full dose of P and K)], PNM 4 -[75% RDF: BDP (50% N, full dose of P and K)] and PNM 5 -[50% RDF: BDP (50% N, full P and K)]} assigned in sub-plots using a split-plot design with three replications. The remaining 50% N was top-dressed through SPAD assistance for all the PNM practices. Results showed that the adoption of Spr 80% ET C resulted in an increment of 25.6%, 17.6%, 35.4%, and 17.5% in net-photosynthetic rate (P n ), transpiration rate (T r ), stomatal conductance (G s ), and intercellular CO 2 concentration (C i ), respectively, over FI. Among PNM plots, adoption of PNM 3 resulted in a significant ( p =0.05) improvement in photosynthetic characters like P n (15.69 µ mol CO 2 m -2 s -1 ), T r (7.03 m mol H 2 O m -2 s- 1 ), G s (0.175 µmol CO 2 mol -1 year -1 ), and C i (271.7 mol H 2 O m 2 s -1 ). Enhancement in SPAD (27% and 30%) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (42% and 52%) values were observed with nitrogen (N) top dressing through SPAD-guided nutrient management, helped enhance crop growth indices, coupled with better dry matter partitioning and interception of sunlight. Canopy temperature depression (CTD) in soybean reduced by 3.09-4.66°C due to adoption of sprinkler irrigation. Likewise, Spr 60% ETc recorded highest irrigation water productivity (1.08 kg ha -1 m -3 ). However, economic water productivity (27.5 INR ha -1 m -3 ) and water-use efficiency (7.6 kg ha -1 mm -1 day -1 ) of soybean got enhanced under Spr 80% ETc over conventional cultivation. Multiple correlation and PCA showed a positive correlation between physiological, growth, and yield parameters of soybean. Concurrently, the adoption of Spr 80% ET C with PNM 3 recorded significantly higher grain yield (2.63 t ha -1 ) and biological yield (8.37 t ha -1 ) over other combinations. Thus, the performance of SCI protocols under sprinkler irrigation was found to be superior over conventional practices. Hence, integrating SCI with sensor-based precision nutrient and irrigation management could be a viable option for enhancing the crop productivity and enhance the resource-use efficiency in soybean under similar agro-ecological regions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Sachin, Dass, Dhar, Rajanna, Singh, Sudhishri, Sannagoudar, Choudhary, Kushwaha, Praveen, Prasad, Sharma, Pooniya, Krishnan, Khanna, Singh, Varatharajan, Kumari, Nithinkumar, San and Devi.)