This buyers' guide appears in the February 2018 issue of Potato Grower.
There’s not much prettier than a field of potatoes in bloom, unless it’s that same field being watered, the summer sun hitting the spray and making a rainbow that follows you as you drive past. But there’s a lot more to getting a good crop than just pumping water on your field with whatever equipment is cheapest and most readily available. Our buyers’ guide features some of the most innovative irrigation equipment on the market, custom-made for your farm’s success.
Irrigation Accessories Co. (IACO)
(360) 896-9440
www.boombacks.com
Hose Boom
The development of part-circle rotator sprinkler heads—eliminating watering on and in front of pivot towers—prompted IACO to develop one of its Boombacks to work specifically with Nelson’s PC-R 3000 sprinkler. The simple concept has produced dramatic results.
By using IACO’s Hose Booms to spread water out near the end of a pivot, irrigators lower the average application rate, reducing agricultural runoff and allowing the soil to make full use of the water being applied. IACO’s Innovative Boom Technology uses this concept to save water and increase crop quality and yield. Compared to traditional technologies, Innovative Boom Technology increases water savings by up to 33 percent and yields by as much as 37 percent.
Lindsay Corporation
www.lindsay.com
www.fieldnetadvisor.com
FieldNET Advisor
FieldNET Advisor, an advanced irrigation management solution, will be available for use on potatoes and other crops for the 2018 growing season. The latest addition to the FieldNET by Lindsay line of products, the tool uses patented technology to deliver the information growers need to make faster, better-informed decisions about when, where and how much to irrigate—improving yields while reducing water usage and other input costs.
After entering the field’s crop type, hybrids and planting dates, the simple, easy-to-use tool will:
- Track the available soil water throughout the field;
- Create a high-resolution map showing the soil water depletion levels across the entire field;
- Forecast the crop’s future water needs and predict when and where, without additional irrigation, yield reduction due to water stress will occur;
- Automatically generate VRI prescriptions; and
- Integrate into FieldNET’s remote monitoring and control platform.
Nebraska Irrigation
(800) 397-1100
www.nebraskairrigation.com
sales@nebraskairrigation.com
NI Red Pivot Lube
NI Red Pivot Lube is truly a one-of-a-kind product. Formulized in the U.S. by Nebraska Irrigation, this product is designed to truly demulsify water. Included in Nebraska’s additive package are tackifiers and unique friction modifiers that climb to the outer bearings and help maintain and form a seal for longer gearbox life.
Consider Red Pivot Lube for all of pivot gearbox service needs.
Net Irrigate LLC
(800) 961-9549
www.circlescout.net
sales@netirrigate.com
CircleScoutGX
With Net Irrigate’s CircleScoutGX, growers can run state and GPS monitoring for center pivot irrigation systems. The simple four-wire installation is designed for the do-it-yourself grower. This tool allows growers to use an Android or iPhone mobile app to see where a pivot is and set heading alerts. CircleScoutGX works with all pivot brands and requires no up-front hardware costs. It is fully warranted during lease terms.
Rain Bird Agriculture
www.rainbird.com/ag
(
626) 812-3400
ClimateMinder Entry-Level
Soil Moisture Monitoring System
With the new entry-level ClimateMinder soil moisture monitoring system, growers can view their fields’ soil moisture data from any internet-enabled device.
Ideal for row crops, permanent crops or fruits and vegetables, the ClimateMinder system includes a cellular monitoring station, a pressure switch and an intuitive website to access field data from anywhere. Growers can choose either a 16-inch probe with four soil moisture measurement depths or a 32-inch probe with six soil moisture measurement depths. Appropriate probe selection is based on crop type.
The system measures soil moisture and records soil conditions every 15 minutes, transmitting that data every three hours. This makes it possible for growers to track irrigation events and look at historical trends to determine the effect each irrigation cycle has on their fields and crops. Fertigation depth can also be monitored.
Reinke Irrigation
(402) 365-7251
www.reinke.com
www.MyReinCloud.com
ReinCloud
ReinCloud by Reinke offers growers a better way to collect and display field and irrigation data for improved irrigation management. Users can manage and monitor irrigation systems, analyze soil moisture data, check the weather and more from a single mobile web application. Through ReinCloud, growers have access to Reinke irrigation system data, as well as data from connected in-field hardware and industry-leading data partners.
ReinCloud collects, stores and analyzes data, then presents it on a user-friendly dashboard. Growers can easily customize individual dashboards and add widgets that are most important to their daily field management and monitoring operations. ReinCloud is accessed through a smartphone, tablet or laptop with internet connectivity.
Valley Irrigation
(800) 825-6668
www.valleyirrigation.com
irrigation@valmont.com
X-Tec Center Drive
The new Valley X-Tec advanced DC drive motor with FastPass technology delivers the combination of top-performing speed for quick irrigation cycles with dynamic power to take on even the toughest terrains. It operates at up to twice the speed of a standard, high-speed AC center drive motor. The advanced DC drive can move at speeds as low as 1 rpm—just 1 percent of maximum motor speed—or ramp up to a fast 136 rpm.
The X-Tec can do more than move twice as fast as standard AC motors. It can also move at full torque at any speed to handle rough terrain like rocks, hills and slopes. The patented alignment technology and robust DC motor keep the pivot moving at a smooth and consistent pace, even over varied terrain.
ICON Smart Control P
anels
PIC: ICON Series, Valley_horiz_4c
Valley presents some of the smartest center pivot irrigation control available today with the Valley ICON series of smart irrigation panels. No matter the field, no matter the pivot, the Valley ICON line has a solution for every need. This new series of panels consists of the Valley ICON10, ICON5, ICON1 and ICONX smart irrigation panels.
Every panel in the Valley ICON line of smart panels comes with an intuitive touchscreen interface and built-in AgSense ICON Link.
Whether you’re buying a new center pivot, upgrading your existing irrigation panel, or changing over from another brand of pivot, you’ll experience a new level of technology operating an intuitive, full-color touchscreen interface.
Zimmatic by Lindsay
www.zimmatic.com
Water Pumping & Filtration Solutions
Zimmatic by Lindsay has introduced a fully integrated line of water pumping and filtration products designed to help growers maximize the efficiency of their irrigation systems. The innovative products give growers the ability to operate a seamlessly integrated irrigation solution.
The wide range of pumping solutions includes variable frequency drive (VFD) panels, which save energy, ease strain on the irrigation system and reduce maintenance costs. The panels automatically adjust pump speed to match the system demand, saving energy and water.
A new programmable logic controller (PLC) has been added to Zimmatic’s VFD pump panels. The user-friendly PLC boasts a 3.5-inch touchscreen that guides users through a startup menu, allowing for quick setup and easy-to-understand monitoring. The VFDs also can be fully integrated with FieldNET by Lindsay for continuous remote monitoring and control.”
Zimmatic’s advanced filtration solutions include sand separators, pump protection separators and pump intake screens.
T-L Irrigation Co.
(800) 330-4264
www.tlirr.com
sales@tlirr.com
GPS Navigation Corner System
T-L Irrigation Co., the exclusive world manufacturer of hydrostatically powered pivot irrigation systems, has been awarded two patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its GPS navigation corner system.
These patents present the unique method of waypoint navigation that T-L has implemented for its GPS navigation corner system. Also included is the addition of a wheel angle sensor, exclusively offered by T-L, for improved track-on-track accuracy. Combined with T-L’s continuous movement, low maintenance and reliability of T-L’s universal hydrostatic design, the GPS navigation corner system represents the optimum in simplicity and pivot corner System performance.
Pierce Corporation
(541) 998-0300
www.piercecorporation.com
www.icontrolremote.com
iControlRemote
iControlRemote technology is designed to easily manage irrigation systems remotely without changing existing control panels. This new tool lets growers manage systems from any computer, tablet or mobile phone using a standard web browser.
The iControlRemote is installed inside the last tower box of a center pivot and, using a built-in SIM card which automatically selects the preferred network, connects the pivot to the iControlRemote website.
Using the iControlRemote doesn’t require users to change their existing panel or to add another junction box next to the existing panel. Additionally, it can be used with basic panels or advanced panels whenever the panel includes the Auto Reverse function.
The iControlRemote.com website allows users to monitor the current stats of their irrigation systems, including current end pressure, speed percentage, angle, end gun, total hours and total hours with water.
Omni Enviro
(800) 263-0048 
www.maximumh2o.com
Maximum H2O
Omni Enviro’s Maximum H2O system physically restructures water at a molecular level by breaking down the hydrogen bonding that naturally occurs between water molecules. This restructured water is less viscous, enabling better permeation, flow and uptake by plants and improving soil moisture content and water penetration depths. This in turn fosters deeper, more complex root development.
The process also breaks minerals down into smaller units and holds them in suspension so they don’t create scale. Maximum H2O also increase the delivery of oxygen to the root system while flushing salts and scale from the soil, making soils mellower.
With the Maximum H2O system, growers can reduce water usage by 10 to 30 percent and pumping costs by 10 to 15 percent, while improving flow rates by 10 to 15 percent.
Maximum H2O improves the effectiveness in spraying, cooling and wash-down applications, saving up to 50 percent on fertilizers, herbicides and other chemicals.