By RACHEL LANE

D.C. Correspondent

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Keeping up with technological needs on the farm while not driving the farm into debt has been an issue across the United States. Recently, four farmers from different areas of the country, with different produce, spoke about it during a Farm Credit discussion on technology in agriculture.

Regardless of how good a crop might be, it’s never stress-free. Farmers always worry about the weather – from late frosts in the spring to early frost in the fall, flooding and drought, fires and hurricane damage.

In addition, labor shortages are a problem. As a result of difficulty in finding reliable labor, agriculture has needed to become more innovative. More technology is needed to make each employee able to do more work because there are fewer of them.

Technology can assist with weather concerns, too. A drone can fly over a field and, within minutes, find its operator areas that may need more water. Walking the same field might take hours. Using precision tools, farmers can learn how much water the field has received, how much it needs and what the soil nutrient levels are.

While the data is there, many farmers have difficulty accessing it. Bill Boonstra operates one of the largest mail-order nurseries in the country, Bluestone Perennials in northeastern Ohio. He said technology slowly made its way to the farm but, over the course of years, it didn’t seem like much had changed.

Then his internet cable was cut during a digging accident; everything on the farm stopped, and Boonstra realized how dependent the company was on a good connection.

The company paid for the installation of two internet connections from different sources. They focus on providing a web presence that is fast and easy to use, while also employing people to package and ship flowers.

His biggest concern is having enough time to get everything done. His second major concern is having the labor to do everything. The technology he’s been able to add to his farm has helped him make each employee’s time more productive.

Bluestone has been able to get the labor needed by having employees work flexible shifts. A mother might work after putting her children on the bus, then leave in time to pick them up. A student has been returning to work at Bluestone through high school, college and now grad school.

Other nurseries in the area haven’t had as much luck getting labor, Boonstra said. “We spend a lot of time worrying how fast our internet is,” he said, “trying to save a little bit more time.”

Irrigation is important, too. He doesn’t want to waste water or fertilizer, which can save him money. “It’s so hard to describe to people what we’re doing. We tell them we’re farmers and then we show them what we’re doing,” he noted.

Mike Houghtaling, P&C AG Solutions in Michigan, said his family farm grows row crops. The data collected on cash crops can be huge and beneficial to farmers if they can access the information.

“We have all this data, but we don’t have any way to move the data around,” he lamented.

The tractor, the sprayer and other equipment are collecting data as they work. Houghtaling said his company couldn’t do anything with the data until about 10 years ago when it built its own internet network to connect to the Web. Before that, he would ship hard drives across the country to have the data analyzed.

He said technology should be used to make farms more profitable and give farmers an easier life. Technology has changed dramatically in the last 100 years, and recent changes will make it possible for his sons to stay on the farm and prosper if they want.

Preston Mobley with International Forest Co. said he returned to his family farm to bring a fresh approach to the family business. “A lot of young people are moving away from rural America. I wanted to move back,” he said.

In the last few years, the technology used to improve the business has allowed the farm to become an influential voice in the community.

Sonny Scott of Scott Farms in Lucama, N.C., said the technology he uses to grow his crops helps him save money.

“In our business, the margins are so thin in some cases, we cannot make a mistake,” he explained. “We’ve got to be as efficient as we possibly can and we have to minimize the amount of labor we have to use.”

He said he wants American consumers to educate themselves about farming. Right now, for instance, there are too many sweet potatoes and farmers are selling them cheap. It would be good for the consumers if retailers passed along the savings, Scott said – but they usually don’t.

"I think the next 50 years, there will be more change in agriculture technology than there has been in the last 50, and the last 50 have had a lot of changes,” he mused.