The updated Green Area Index (GAI) phone app developed by BASF and ADAS now offers the same accuracy seen in conventional widths for growers drilling in wider rows.

Designed to calculate the green area index of oil seed rape, the tool uses digital images of the crop uploaded to the website or accessed by the app downloadable from iTunes. The software then calculates the ratio of green tissue to ground area.

Users will now be able to vary the row width on a drop-down option on the tool, allowing width adjustment up to 30cms.

“The GAI tool is already fairly accurate, particularly for conventionally-drilled crops,” says Sarah Clarke of ADAS. “This fine tuning will make the GAI measure for wider row crops much more accurate.

“The wide row facility is a welcome and significant development,” says Mark Hemmant of Agrovista. “More and more oilseed rape cops are being grown in wide rows, as many as half to one-third of crops, particularly in eastern counties.

“Anything that makes the GAI measurement more accurate is extremely important, as it helps to make the correct decisions for managing the crop effectively in the spring,” he adds.