Activity | Press release ILVO with new demos and formulas at 2023 edition of Machinery Days

Flemish soil in prime condition: look in the pit and up at the treetops!

ILVO's soil experts will explain their work using a real soil pit constructed on the implement days. They talk about compaction, deep rooting and soil health.

Also during the ILVO demonstrations with the compost turner, they explain the rules of farm composting, and the recipes to promote beneficial soil life (worms, fungi, bacteria...) and carbon storage in a soil. Soil health again, in other words.

For the first time, there is a separate ILVO booth where agroforestry - forest agriculture - is shown and explained. Yep, profitability is also a research topic there!

Self-propelled tractor, autonomous spraying robot, drone detection of Colorado beetles....

The developments in precision agriculture technology are hard to keep up with. Anyone who finds agricultural machinery interesting should not miss this. Will we eventually see a "herd" of smart smaller agricultural machines without a driver (i.e., autonomously) doing field work? Will we see them recognize weeds and spray only the necessary spots? Will the arable farmer gain extra sharp eyes, via drone flights and artificial intelligence that has learned to recognize a particular plant stress or pest? There will be ongoing demos and on-site explanations at delineated demo zones behind the ILVO crops and tent.

Worry-free data sharing: through the DjustConnect platform

You'll also learn more about the how and what of data sharing when you stop by the DjustConnect booth. What data are all actually present on your farm, without you using it or allowing it to be used? How does it work if you as a farmer take a "gateway," of which you have all the digital keys? What digital applications are already using DjustConnect? Why should you register as a farmer? The team is ready to answer all your questions.

Sit, listen, learn... ILVO holds 10-minute presentations in the tent

As always, the LV Department, the Environment Department, VLAM and ILVO have an exhibition tent at their joint booth. Part of it ILVO is using this year to share its scientific knowledge with you. Every 15 minutes a new talk by an ILVO expert will start, about research results or projects that are surprising or promising. You are welcome to ask questions. You can also chat outside while the next speaker takes the microphone.

Here's a sampling of the presentations:

What happens when you combine oats in a mixed crop with white lupin, with yellow pea or with field bean?
You'll hear about digital data sharing... In Flanders, DjustConnect is the agricultural sharing platform that monitors property rights.
Being critical with grass choice, how much does it save?
Precision agriculture, agri-food technology, AI, sensors ... are there any pioneer farmers with experience?
Agroforestry is subsidized, but what does practical experience and research say?
Mulching, a weapon against extreme weather?
Nematode alarm! In some cases to be removed with ... a green cover crop.
Arable farming, dairy farming, pig farming? 'KLIMREK' (climate account) makes your farm scan, and much more.
Mowing and management of non-fertilized grass near natural areas: still a nutritional silage?
Where do protein crops like edamame or dry beans fit into our "classic" crop rotation?

Free admission in the tent! See the program of these mini-lectures also on site.

Inspiration around new crops

In past editions, ILVO emphasized its breeding work, demonstrating its many developed grass and clover varieties. This year, ILVO has laid out more than 20 different agricultural crops in the demonstration fields. "The goal is that we give farmers and horticulturists the opportunity to get to know the wide variety of crops or their combination, which they do not often have in their rotations until now."

Among the ground covers, leafy radish stands out. The latest upcoming varieties are capable of destroying up to 90% of the root knot nematodes and beet cyst nematodes present with their resistance properties. Narrow plantain -from ILVO's new breeding program- can boost biodiversity, drought resistance and palatability in pasture mixtures. The crop is also known in international research for its methane-suppressing and health-promoting properties for ruminants.

Chickpea, quinoa, soybean, lentils, etc. are the protein crops for human consumption that can be grown locally in the future with greater crop security. There is also recent news about field bean, fodder pea and alfalfa, and certain crop combinations that are catching on, in the demonstration fields in Oudenaarde.

ILVO at the Machinery Days

ILVO can be found at booth #161 and demo trial fields. Address: Heurne, next to the N60 Ghent-Oudenaarde. 23 and 24 September 2023