Program Description
"Modern farm operations increasingly rely on technology to reduce workload and maximize farm profit. Farmers depend on GPS-guided tractors to manage their fields, soil-moisture sensors to manage irrigation and computer-controlled sprayer systems for pesticide applications. Unoccupied aerial systems are another example of technology deployed for agricultural production. Unoccupied aerial systems are often called drones or unoccupied aerial vehicles.
Kristie Buckland is a plant scientist focused on vegetable and seed crop production research and extension. Her program strives to identify management strategies to increase farm sustainability. Using a systems approach, her research examines the interaction of crop growth, yield, and pest pressure along with soil health indicators. Kristie has worked for 9 years in both conventional and organic vegetable and small grain systems. Kristie earned a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the U.S. Air Force Academy. She completed her M.S. and Ph.D. at Utah State University."