Perceived Lint Yield Increases from Variable-Rate Input Application

Precision agriculture has been presented as a means to increase profit through increased yield and/or reduced input use. The objective of this research was to examine the yield side of the economic question. Specifically, we examined the lint yield increases farmers perceived from variable-rate input application. Data were obtained from a 2005 survey of cotton farmers in 11 southern states. Among other questions, farmers were asked about their perceptions of yield increases from variable-rate input application. Questionnaires were mailed in January and February 2005. A total of 12,043 cotton farmers remained in the population after excluding non-cotton farmers and returned questionnaires. The response rate was 10%, with 1,216 cotton farmers responding. After discarding observations with missing data, the sample included 827 responses. Of those, 93 respondents provided perceived yield increases from variable-rate input application. Tobit regression was used to analyze these perceptions as a limited dependent variable. The significant marginal effects of the independent variables suggest that farmers who variable-rate applied growth regulators, insecticides, or fertilizers perceived yield increases of 45 kg ha^-1, 74 kg ha^-1, and 52 kg ha^-1 more than those who did not. Farmers who variable-rate applied fungicides perceived yield increases of 36 kg ha^-1 less than others. Variable-rate application of herbicides had no effect on yield perceptions. Thus, farmers perceived greater lint yield increases from variable-rate application of some inputs than from other inputs. In addition, lint yield monitoring did not affect yield perceptions, nor did livestock production, farm size, land tenure, age, education, income, computer use, or the number of years the farmer had variable-rate applied inputs. The only farm or farmer characteristic to affect yield perceptions was optimism about the profitability of precision agriculture. Those who believed precision agriculture was profitable perceived lint yield increases of 24 kg ha^-1 more than others.