By Macie Clugston
Communications Intern
Bayer launched a new app to provide an interactive space that educates growers about pests, diseases and treatment strategies.
Smartphones and tablets have become an essential part of communication and education. The new app, Virtual Root Dig, makes devices more valuable learning tools, Kelli Brown, portfolio manager at Bayer, said.
“We embarked on a journey to reach more people—including our field team, dealers and growers—but we wanted to use a tool that would educate in a fun and engaging way,” she said. “It would even be kind of cool if you wanted to educate kids and people not familiar with agriculture.”
It is not possible to get every farmer to a field day to teach new technology, but the app brings the information to farmers’ fingertips.
After installing the app, place your device on a flat surface. Then, tap and hold your finger on the screen and a corn or soybean plant appears. Pick one, and the plant begins to grow on your device.
The grower can select a specific plant issue to explore and see the disease’s effects on the plant. Users can virtually pull the plant out of the ground and see the impact on the plant’s roots, too.
Videos in the app help illustrate how Bayer’s treatment products work, Brown said.
“A plant can be under moisture and nutrient stress, and we can look at when that tends to occur,” Brown said. “We can get specific and talk about what bio-enhancers do and how they make nitrogen, phosphate and potassium more available. You can see the minerals float around the plant.”
Agriculture is becoming more technological every day, and it is challenging for Bayer’s customers to understand how the new tools will work, Brown said. A large portion of her work includes educating customers on the different cycles and processes in the soil environment.
“The understanding is not there, and that makes it difficult to talk about a product,” Brown said. “This gives us a great opportunity to provide some education.”
Download Virtual Root Dig to your iOS device from the Apple App store.