
Put custom Growing Degree Day reports in the palm of your hand with Mobilize
The Growing Degree Day (GDD) index expresses how much heat a plant has absorbed above its minimum threshold for growth. Once a specific accumulation of heat has occurred, the plant will reach its next developmental stage, barring drought or disease.
As a farmer, you must be aware of the GDD targets for your specific crops and able to track your progress toward those levels. Without GDD calculations, you’re just guessing when the harvest is ready. Additionally, tracking your crops’ development can help you predict when certain insects or diseases could appear. When you know exactly where your plants are at developmentally, you can treat your crops with water, fertilizer, insecticide, and beyond more proactively to guarantee the greatest possible return.
Using Growing Degree Day Reports in Mobilize
At Davis Instruments, we created Mobilize to enable farmers around the world with decision making data. The app makes creating and using growing degree day reports an incredibly straightforward process:
- When you plant, set each crop’s type, planting date, base threshold, and target GDD in the app. (You should be able to find those last two values on your seed bag.)
- Select whether you want to calculate GDD using the single sine method or the integration method. (Single sine works off daily highs and lows, while integration calculates based on actual temperature readings from throughout the day. Single sine works well for estimation, but integration is best for accuracy and precision.)
- Access at-a-glance reports through the app 24/7 to check in on how much heat your plants have absorbed and their percentage of accumulation towards the harvest. (It will also provide a summary of GDD for the last 7 days and a forecast of predicted GDD for the next 7.)
Using Mobilize, growers can see exactly when their crop is approaching the GDDs needed for germination or maturity without even setting foot in the field. Greenhouse growers can use this information to precisely control their crop development.
This information gives you the ability to predict not just growth progress but when herbicides or insecticides should be applied for optimum activity, efficiency, and control. You will have a precise forecast of when root rot or other diseases can develop so you can take effective corrective measures. You will know when to fertilize and irrigate depending on growth stages. And you can accurately compare crop development over different years and locations.
EnviroMonitor: The Davis Advantage
Mobilize offers much more than GDD reports. The app helps you get the most possible value out of your Davis EnviroMonitor system while eliminating the need for you to do any manual calculations. You can focus on farming while the app crunches the numbers.
EnviroMonitor makes in-field monitoring accessible and scalable for farms of any type or size. You can get started with a single Vantage Pro2 GroWeather station, EnviroMonitor gateway, and annual service plan to track weather in real time and scale up your approach from there based on your specific needs and goals.
Need to understand microclimates within your farm? Add more GroWeather stations to create more specific weather profiles within your operation. Want to cut back on water waste? Add a sensor node with soil moisture probes that will help you understand when your plants need water and when to shut off the flow. Hoping to protect plants from the cold? Set a frost alarm within Mobilize so your weather stations can tell you exactly when it’s time to head to the field and intervene.
Get the Weather Data You Need to Grow
To learn more about how you can leverage monitoring technology to protect harvests and maximize yields, be sure to download our Davis Agricultural Weather Solution Buying Guide. This resource will teach you how to build a perfect agricultural monitoring system using the Mobilize app and EnviroMonitor system to calculate your Growing Degree Days, monitor soil moisture, and beyond.
In the face of escalating environmental risks, AEM is the essential source for insights on weather, climate, lightning, floods, wildfires, water management, and more.
Learn more about AEM and all of our solutions here.