Kansas State University agronomists have used digital technology to make over 40 years of crop information easily accessible to farmers through their phones or home computers. According to cropping systems agronomist Ignacio Ciampitti, this means that yield data and other information can now be available within hours of researchers harvesting crops in Kansas.

The university has launched a website called Analysis and Visualization of Crop Yield Trials (AVYield), which organizes 40 years of K-State crop performance tests into simple formats for farmers. Jane Lingenfelser, an assistant agronomist who oversees the university’s annual crop performance tests, encourages producers to explore various data sources when deciding which crop varieties to plant.

K-State’s database offers data on many crops, including canola, corn, sorghum, soybean, sunflower, and wheat. With just a few clicks, farmers can find information based on crop variety, production type (rainfed or irrigated), and location within the state. In addition, K-State canola breeder Mike Stamm has made results from National Winter Canola Variety trials available, which date back to the mid-1990s and cover 30 locations across the United States.

The funding for AVYield was provided by Kansas Corn, and the platform was introduced during Celebrate Ag Day at K-State’s football game against Oklahoma State in late September.

“We are one of the first groups in the country to introduce these types of tools,” Ciampitti said. “The beauty of it is that much of the research information we are producing related to crop production doesn’t take too long to get to farmers. Now, they can make their final decisions on planting crops based on information and visualization coming from this tool.”