LandPKS is a free mobile app that allows farmers, ranchers, gardeners and other land managers as well as K-12 and university students to easily identify their soil, access NRCS soil information, record their management and precipitation, and monitor soil health and vegetation. The LandPKS app can be used by university and K-12 students as a digital educational resource. In partnership with the Asombro Institute for Science Education, LandPKS recently released a three-lesson module that engages students on fundamental land management topics using the app. The curriculum meets Next Generation Science Standards for grades 5 – 8, and it is also relevant for older students and adults.
With the recent addition of the LandManagement and SoilHealth modules, LandPKS now provides a complete package to support adaptive management for small farmers and others who either cannot afford or lack the time to learn and use more complex software.
Access to soil information is available by either creating a site or simply tapping a location on the map in the bottom menu. Adding information on the soil at your site to the LandInfo input module improves soil identification.
In the LandManagement calendar you can record plantings, harvest, tillage, fertilizer, weed and pest control, residue management, erosion control, precipitation and irrigation. Options such as the ability record irrigation in gallons, minutes or inches allow the app to be used by nearly anyone.
The SoilHealth and LandCover modules support rapid NRCS- and BLM-compatible monitoring of soil health, and vegetation cover, general composition, and structure.
A new data privacy option allows users to decide not to expose their data on the public data portal.
The app can be used by university and K-12 students as a digital educational resource. In partnership with the Asombro Institute for Science Education, LandPKS released a three-lesson module that engages students on fundamental land management topics using the app. The curriculum meets Next Generation Science Standards for grades 5 – 8, and it is also relevant for older students and adults.
We are continuing to improve the app and welcome your ideas, suggestions for improvement, and stories of how you have used or could use LandPKS.
LandPKS development is led by the USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range in cooperation with the University of Colorado – Boulder, and New Mexico State University. The app can be downloaded from the iPhone App and Google Play stores. They can be reached at contact@landpotential.org and more information is available at LandPotential.org