Precision farming techniques can enhance millet cultivation by optimizing inputs like water and fertilizers, using sensor data and drones to monitor crop health, and improving yield forecasting, which increases productivity and sustainability while conserving resources in climate-sensitive regions.

The integration of precision farming techniques can revolutionise millet cultivation. Traditionally, millet is a robust, low-demand crop, often grown in arid and marginal areas. Precision agriculture amplifies its inherent advantages and overcomes its limitations.

Here's how:

-Improved productivity

Optimised resource management: Precision techniques allow water, fertilisers and pesticides to be applied exactly where and when they are needed, reducing waste and ensuring that plants receive the right amount.

-Variable rate fertilisation (VRT): Detailed soil analysis (via sensors or geo-referenced sampling) and prescription maps allow fertilisers (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) to be applied in different amounts according to the actual nutrient deficiencies or needs of each area of the field.

- Crop health monitoring: Drones equipped with multi-spectral cameras and satellites can continuously monitor the health of plants. Early stress detection: Areas of water stress, nutrient deficiencies or pest and disease attacks can be quickly identified, allowing early and targeted intervention before problems spread and compromise the harvest.

- Precise seeding and weed management:Precision seed drills: They optimise seeding density according to soil characteristics and millet variety, ensuring better plant development.

- Targeted weed management: Drones or sensors on the ground can identify areas with the greatest presence of weeds, allowing localised application of herbicides or targeted mechanical intervention, reducing the overall use of chemicals.

This results in higher yields, lower production costs and a significantly reduced environmental impact, making millet cultivation not only more productive but also inherently more sustainable.

In summary, precision farming transforms the cultivation of millet (or any crop) from a “generalist” approach to one that is specific and optimised for each square metre of land.