Making the Most of Spatial Technologies: from an Ag Retailer and Service Provider’s Perspective Clint Jayroe Director of Operations – OptiGro Jimmy Sanders, Inc. March 23, 2011 NCERA 180 Site Specific Mngt Annual Meeting

Background: JSI and OptiGro Founded in 1953 Headquarters – Cleveland, MS ~60 locations located in 6 states OptiGro 2008 – Precision Ag Experience dates back 12+ years Committed to placing the right product, at the right rate, at the right time Dedicated to Helping Our Customers be Successful & Profitable for Years to Come

Why Soil Sample? – Budget Conscientious

Why Soil Sample? – Fertilizer Market Fluctuation

Population and Income Growth Drive Crop Consumption Global consumption of grains, oilseeds, fruits and vegetables has increased by nearly 2.5 times since World population over this time nearly doubled and per capita consumption increased by more than 30 percent as income growth in developing countries supported a shift to higher quality diets. With continued growth in population and income levels in developing countries, crop consumption is expected to approach 5 billion tonnes per year by Source: UN, USDA, FAO Source:

Application Deficit Is Not Sustainable Long-Term As corn and soybean production increased, so did the level of nutrient withdrawals. This resulted in a growing application deficit, as farmers have been drawing down reserves that had been built up in their soils. This practice is not sustainable in the long-term. Crop production is expected to increase in the years ahead and we believe more potash will be required to match the level of nutrients removed from the soil. Source: USDA, IPNI Source:

Increased Removal and Economics

Crop Removal Rates Field Crops UnitP2O5P2O5 K2OK2O Corn lb/bu Cotton lb/bale Rice lb/bu Sorghum lb/cwt Soybeans lb/bu Source: International Plant Nutrition Institute, Wheat lb/bu

Crop Removal Illustrations CropYieldP2O5P2O5 K2OK2O Corn180 bu7952 Cotton2 bale2838 Rice180 bu5429 Sorghum40 cwt3015 Soybeans50 bu4070 Wheat60 bu3021

Crop Removal Fertilizer Applications bu/a

Soil Test P Soil Test P (lbs./a) Low: 40 High: 172 Mean: 93.6

Soil Test K (lbs./a) Low: 188 High: 766 Mean: Soil Test K

Soil Test pH Low: 4.9 High: 6.2 Mean: 5.6 Soil Test pH

Trends?

Treating Each Nutrient Need or Deficiency Potash TSP Zinc Lime

In Season Variability In season use of imagery to correct problems or to make changes in yield goals

Simple Design, Confident Answers TrialProduct XYZ Created6/26/2007 ProgramFoliar - 1st Bloom Cotton Trial Year2007 Trial Area13.0 ac Percent of Field17% ManufactureABC ProductXYZ Average Yield Treated lb/ac Average Yield Un-Treated lb/ac Difference143.7 We place trials in large enough strips so that we don’t put any burden on the operator during harvest. Through thousands of GPS data points and multiple field sites over a large territory, we are able to confidently evaluate products quickly, accurately, and consistently. Making sure that we are observing the “3r’s”

Variety Info

Hypoxia EQUIP Opportunities? We don’t want the public’s opinion of our grower’s to be equated to BP Let’s be proactive Environment and Public Perception Gulf Oil Situation

AutoProbe Vs. Manually Sampled 4”8”

Educated Agronomy, One Field at a Time Yield Data Aerial ImagerySoil Samples Field Records Field Observations Soil Mapping Variety Selection On Farm Trials Preplanner Trait Tracking Goal = Profitable Decisions

Thank You Questions or Comments? Contact Info: Clint Jayroe