30 topic guides

Farming and Crop Guides

Our articles on crops, soil, water, pests, farm technology and the business of farming, grouped by topic.

30topic guides
41 articlesAgriculture Industry and Farm BusinessArticles on the problems farmers face in the Philippines, India and the US, profitable farm business ideas, farming basics, new trends and farm labour.Open guide →21 articlesFarmland Value, Land Prices and InvestmentArticles on what farmland earns, land prices per acre in India, Italy and Canada, loans to buy farm land, land use classes and farmland around the world.Open guide →19 articlesVegetable and Horticulture CropsGuides to growing potatoes, onions, spinach, tomatoes and cucumbers, handling their pests and diseases, and the business of horticulture and flowers.Open guide →39 articlesSustainable and Regenerative Farming GuidesPrinciples, methods and country-by-country accounts of sustainable and regenerative farming, from India and the Philippines to Brazil and the Netherlands.Open guide →24 articlesSatellite Crop Monitoring and Remote SensingArticles on NDVI, EVI, NDRE, NDWI and other remote sensing indices, land classification, crop health monitoring and EUDR deforestation compliance.Open guide →35 articlesPrecision and Smart FarmingSmart farming tools, IoT, robots, biotechnology and digital practices, with country guides from India and Japan to Kenya and the Netherlands, in one place.Open guide →18 articlesFarm Finance, Loans, Schemes and TariffsArticles on farm loans and interest rates, USDA grants and subsidies, Indian agriculture schemes and how tariffs affect farmers and farm products.Open guide →19 articlesForestry and DeforestationArticles on deforestation laws, causes and effects, rainforest conservation, forestry mulching costs and jobs, and agroforestry on working farms.Open guide →23 articlesCrop Planning, Rotation and YieldArticles on crop rotation, farming stages, land capability classes, profitable crops and farm technology that helps growers plan fields and lift yields.Open guide →17 articlesCrop Prices and Agri MarketsArticles on crop prices and market data, fertiliser costs, farm tool and machinery prices, cash rents, agriculture ETFs and marketing for farm businesses.Open guide →18 articlesRice, Wheat and Corn: Prices, Yields and GrowingCorn costs and profit per acre, wheat growth stages and price outlook, rice prices in Japan and India, and yield figures by state and country.Open guide →17 articlesOil Palm, Cocoa and SugarcaneYield, spacing and profit guides for oil palm and sugarcane, plus sustainable cocoa farming in Ghana and tobacco growing in Zimbabwe, gathered in one place.Open guide →37 articlesCrop Pests and Insect ControlIdentifying and controlling aphids, mealybugs, mites, thrips and bollworms on citrus, vegetables, cotton and other crops, by natural and chemical methods.Open guide →24 articlesAI in Agriculture: Tools, Data and TrendsArticles on AI in farming: apps for growers, plant disease and weed detection, precision agriculture, adoption statistics, startups, markets and new careers.Open guide →31 articlesFertiliser and Plant Nutrition: Prices and PracticeArticles on fertilizer prices for urea, DAP and potash, the 17 plant nutrients, NPK blends, organic options and deficiency signs, gathered in one place.Open guide →28 articlesFarm Machinery and Equipment: Tools, Tractors and BuyingFarm tools by name, tractors, GPS guidance, sprayers and balers, buying new, used or repossessed machines, maintenance, safety and industry trends.Open guide →18 articlesCrop Diseases and Plant HealthTreatments and fungicides for leaf spots, mildew, anthracnose and lemon tree diseases, plus banana and papaya problems and apps that identify plant diseases.Open guide →16 articlesCotton, Soybean and Oilseed Growing GuidesArticles on growing cotton, soybean, canola, peanuts and beans: climate and water needs, growth stages, seed choice, pest control, yields and price outlooks.Open guide →19 articlesAgriculture Careers, Jobs and Education GuidesAgriculture careers and salaries, jobs in India, Portugal, Australia and Africa, UK seasonal worker visas, agricultural colleges, courses and scholarships.Open guide →19 articlesClimate Change and Farm ResilienceHow climate change hits farms in the Philippines, India and beyond, plus reading on floods, frost, wildfires, weather forecasting and cold-climate farming.Open guide →33 articlesSoil Health and Soil ManagementPractical reading on soil erosion, pH, salinity, fertility, organic carbon, soil testing and sensors, and the right soil for crops from cotton to soybeans.Open guide →17 articlesOrganic Farming and CompostArticles on what organic farming is and why it matters, how it differs from sustainable agriculture, and practical composting with worms, bamboo and biochar.Open guide →18 articlesFruit and Orchard CropsGrowing and market articles on bananas, arecanut, avocados, almonds, kiwi and pistachios, with ag lime prices, fruit fly control and fruit industry trends.Open guide →16 articlesGreenhouse, Hydroponic and Vertical Farming GuidesArticles on vertical farms, hydroponics, aquaponics and greenhouses: how they work, what they cost to build and run, their drawbacks, and which crops pay off.Open guide →25 articlesIrrigation and Farm Water ManagementPivot, drip and smart irrigation costs, crop water needs for soybeans and almonds, drought impacts by region, and ways farms can save water.Open guide →13 articlesAgriculture Drones: Prices, Spraying and UsesWhat agriculture drones and drone services cost, including prices in India, plus spray drones, sensors, software and the main uses on farms.Open guide →17 articlesFarm Management Software and AppsArticles comparing farm management software, planning and scheduling tools, weather and plant diagnosis apps, marketplaces and supply chain systems for farms.Open guide →18 articlesAgri Supply Chains, Traceability and Food ExportsBlockchain food traceability, farm logistics, cold storage and packaging, and agricultural exports from Canada, California, Alabama, Chile and more.Open guide →20 articlesWeeds and HerbicidesGuides to weed control methods, choosing and using herbicides such as Roundup, paraquat and clethodim, spotting crop injury, and picking the right sprayer.Open guide →18 articlesCarbon Farming and Carbon CreditsHow carbon credits pay farmers in the USA, Australia and the UK, how to sell them, VM0042 rules, biochar and the science of soil carbon and farm emissions.Open guide →

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How to use these farming guides

Our farming articles are grouped into the 30 topic guides above, so you can get to the useful ones without searching the whole blog. Each guide opens with a short introduction, a few articles to start with, and then sections on narrower questions. If you know your crop, start with the crop guides. If you have a specific problem, such as a pest, a dry spell or a fertilizer bill, go to the guide for that problem. The table below is a quick map.

Every topic guide ends with a short list of related guides for moving sideways, for example from pests to diseases, or from irrigation to soil. Mining topics, from gold and copper to mine water and equipment, have their own set of mining guides. Many guides also have a section of articles written for a particular country or US state, grouped together near the end.

If you want to…Start with
Grow a particular crop betterRice, wheat and corn, vegetables, fruit and orchards
Deal with a problem in the fieldPests, diseases, weeds
Use water and fertilizer more carefullyIrrigation, fertilizer and plant nutrition, soil health
Choose farm technologySatellite crop monitoring, precision farming, farm software
Plan finances, land and salesFarm finance, farmland value, crop prices and markets

Guides by crop

The crop guides follow a crop from planting to sale. Rice, wheat and corn covers growth stages, yields and the cost of production per acre. Cotton, soybean and oilseeds looks at climate and water needs for cotton, soybean, canola, peanuts and beans. Vegetable and horticulture crops and fruit and orchard crops are the places for potatoes, tomatoes, bananas, avocados, almonds and pistachios. Oil palm, cocoa and sugarcane deals with plantation crops, spacing and yield. If you grow under cover, the greenhouse, hydroponic and vertical farming guide explains how those systems work and what they cost to run, and organic farming and compost covers certification and practice. For planning the sequence of crops on a field, see crop planning, rotation and yield.

Soil, water, nutrients and crop protection

Most of the yield a farm loses goes to a handful of causes: pests, disease, weeds, too much or too little water, and nutrients in the wrong place. Each has its own guide. Crop pests and insect control starts with identification and integrated pest management. Crop diseases and plant health covers fungal, bacterial and viral problems and how to diagnose them. Weeds and herbicides explains how herbicides work and how to avoid resistance.

On the inputs side, soil health and soil management covers pH, salinity, organic matter and testing; fertilizer and plant nutrition explains NPK, the essential nutrients and price swings; and irrigation and farm water management compares pivots, drip and scheduling methods. Climate change and farm resilience brings together reading on drought, floods, frost and heat.

Farm technology

Six guides cover the tools. Satellite crop monitoring and remote sensing explains NDVI, NDRE, NDWI and the other vegetation indices and what each one shows. Precision and smart farming covers variable-rate application, IoT sensors and robotics, and AI in agriculture looks at disease and weed detection, advisory apps and adoption. Agriculture drones deals with spraying, imaging and what drone services cost. Farm management software and apps compares planning, record-keeping and diagnosis tools, and farm machinery and equipment helps with tractors, sprayers and buying used.

Money, markets and land

Farming is a business with thin margins, and five guides deal with the money side. Agriculture industry and farm business covers farm business ideas, labor and the problems farmers face. Farmland value, land prices and investment explains what land earns and how it is valued. Farm finance, loans, schemes and tariffs covers loans, grants, subsidies and trade rules. Crop prices and agri markets looks at how prices are set and what inputs and equipment cost. Agri supply chains, traceability and food exports follows produce from the farm gate to the buyer. If you work in or want to join the sector, agriculture careers, jobs and education covers roles, pay and training.

Sustainability, carbon and forests

Three guides deal with land stewardship. Sustainable and regenerative farming sets out the principles and practices, such as cover crops, reduced tillage and rotations. Carbon farming and carbon credits explains how farmers can earn credits for storing soil carbon and what the standards require. Forestry and deforestation covers forest loss, conservation, agroforestry and the laws that now ask buyers to prove their supply is deforestation-free.

If you’d like to see how your own fields are doing, our satellite crop monitoring covers 166 crops and more than 975,000 acres in 135 countries. Each field report covers crop health, water need for the next seven days, soil, a yield estimate, pest risk and a fertilizer dose, with no sensors or drones to install.

Questions about these farming guides

Who writes the Farmonaut farming guides?

They are written by the team at Farmonaut, a satellite and AI company that works with farmers, agronomists and agribusinesses. The articles are general guidance, so check local recommendations and product labels before acting on them.

Where should I start if I’m new to farming?

Start with the agriculture industry and farm business guide for the basics, then the guide for the crop you want to grow, and the soil health and irrigation guides. Those cover the decisions that matter most in a first season.

Do the guides cover farming outside the US?

Yes. Many articles look at specific countries and regions in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and Oceania, alongside US states. Each topic guide groups the regional pieces together.

What is Farmonaut?

Farmonaut is a satellite and AI company for agriculture and mining. On the farming side, it monitors fields from satellite data and gives each field a report on crop health, irrigation, soil, yield, pests and fertilizer, through a web app and Android and iOS apps.

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