Russian scientists have found a way to increase crop yields by 20%

Russia has found a way to increase crop yields by 20% and reduce fertilizer consumption by 5%. The effect can be achieved through the use of agrodrones - special drones that will apply plant protection products on the surface of the soil cover, as well as provide monitoring of agricultural fields. This was told to "Izvestia" in the Southern Federal University (SFU).

In the fall of 2024, such a laboratory of agrodrones has already been opened in the advanced engineering school "Cyber Platform Engineering" of the South Federal University, the university added.

"The technologies of group application of drones developed by the laboratory are advanced and would allow reducing the number of operators to control the system, which would help increase the economic efficiency of unmanned aircraft systems," said the head of the laboratory Andrei Leschev-Romanenko.

Based on drone imagery data, it is possible to build a model that reveals the relationship between external signs and the physiological state of the plant. In accordance with the tasks of agricultural producers, the UAV group will in the future carry out autonomous monitoring of agricultural fields up to 100 hectares, concluded the SFU.

Earlier, on November 13, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation reported that the agro-industrial complex of Russia in 2024 is increasing production volumes. It specified that the indicators in livestock breeding, food and processing industry are growing. In addition, the results in crop production are forecasted to be not lower than the level of average annual values. It is expected that about 1.7 million tons of fruits and berries will be harvested, which is 13% higher than the average for the last five years (1.5 million tons), and the harvest of apples will be about 1.6 million tons. In addition, it is planned to obtain about 7.3 million tons of potatoes in the organized sector, as well as about 7.4 million tons of vegetables.