Development of a soil zoning algorithm to improve productivity of arable farmers

This project will test the concept of a novel method for defining and predicting key soil characteristics within arable fields through the combination of satellite data, existing national soil maps and height data. In recent years the importance of managing soil according to its local characteristics has been increasingly recognised. The need to plan farming activities around the soil resources available will increase yields in an economically and environmentally sustainable way. Existing soil maps provide a general guide as to the characteristics of the soil in a locality, but are not spatially precise enough to enable variations in soil characteristics to be picked up within fields, or even within farms. Satellite imagery can provide detail on spatial variation of soil properties, but is limited in its ability to tell us what that variation is. Combining these two data sources, along with high resolution terrain data, will better predict local soil characteristics at a field level. This will support sustainable intensification of arable farming in the UK and generate business opportunities for the project partners within both the agriculture sector and beyond.