The problem
Professional pesticide users must keep records of what they apply, and farm assurance inspectors ask to see spray and fertilizer records. On a small mixed farm those records often live in a notebook in the tractor and get written up later. If writing up 12 applications a month takes 10 minutes each, and pulling the records together before an inspection takes 6 hours a year, that's 120 minutes a month plus 30 minutes a month on average, 2.5 hours.
What the AI does
fieldmargin is a farm mapping and records app. Its pricing page lists located notes, field jobs, input recording for sprays, fertilizers and seed, and records of where animals graze and the treatments given. Plus adds unlimited inputs, full livestock management, full reporting with field history and input reports, and report export and printing, for up to 50 team members. Map the fields once, add the products you use as inputs, and record each application as a field job from the phone when it's done. Before an inspection, export or print the field history instead of copying out the notebook. The person spraying still works from the product label; the app records what was done, it doesn't decide what's safe.
A worked example
A 160-hectare mixed farm in Wiltshire with winter wheat, spring barley, grass and 60 beef cattle uses about 15 different sprays and fertilizers a year. The owner does the spraying and an employee spreads fertilizer and muck.
Before
12 applications a month written up from notebooks at 10 minutes each, plus 6 hours a year before inspection: 2.5 hours a month
After
Each application logged in the field in about 2 minutes, and reports printed for inspection in 30 minutes a year: about 0.4 hours a month
What it's worth
About $69£52€62A$100C$98 a month saved, against about $28£21€25A$40C$39 for fieldmargin Plus. That is 2.1 hours a month (2.5 hours down to 0.4) at an assumed $33£25€30A$48C$47 an hour. Plus is shown at $27.69£20.82€24.78A$39.97C$39.14 per farm per month excluding VAT; the page also says annual billing saves up to $119.67£89.98€107.08A$172.76C$169.16 a year, so check whether the price shown is the annual rate.
How to set it up
- Map the farm's fields on the free plan, using the RPA boundaries option if you farm in England, and invite whoever sprays or spreads.
- Move to Plus once you need more than 5 inputs, and add each spray, fertilizer and seed you use.
- Record each application as a field job on the day, with product, rate and field, from the phone.
- Each month, check the jobs against the chemical store and delivery notes so nothing is missing.
- Before an assurance inspection, export or print the field history and file it with your other records.
What goes wrong
- The free plan keeps only 30 days of job history and 5 inputs, and Essentials also stops at 5 inputs. Records you must keep for years need Plus or above.
- The app records applications; it doesn't check rates, buffer zones or label conditions for you. fieldmargin's pesticide checking feature is only on Pro, at $49.86£37.49€44.61A$71.98C$70.48.
- A job nobody logs leaves a gap in the record. Agree that nobody leaves the yard with an unlogged application.
- Export a copy of your records regularly, so the farm keeps them if you ever change app.