{"id":934,"date":"2019-11-12T15:44:16","date_gmt":"2019-11-12T15:44:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/?p=934"},"modified":"2021-12-08T16:08:11","modified_gmt":"2021-12-08T16:08:11","slug":"tree-planting-drones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/tree-planting-drones\/","title":{"rendered":"How Do Tree-Planting Drones Work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"\/<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

With the environment suffering the brunt of human\ncivilization, we have it all to do to keep our forests alive for present and\nfuture generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enter drones.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At least one startup has heeded the call and is adding its shoulders to the proverbial plough by creating drones capable of planting trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The British startup, BioCarbon Engineering, located in Oxford, believes that tree planting drones could be the missing element<\/a> needed to supercharge our reforestation efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it is not difficult to see why anybody would hold that\nbelief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to experts at Worldview International Foundation<\/a>, a non-profit that has been plating trees by hand across Myanmar since 2012, two operators working with 10 drones could theoretically plant up to 400,000 trees in a single day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Do Drones Plant\nTrees?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Drones capable of planting seeds are no longer a part of\nscience-fiction. UAVs are already been used in the many parts of the\nagricultural cycle and this includes the planting phase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s how Biocarbon Engineering\u2019s tree planting drone\nworks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The drones first fly over the chosen area to create a 3D map of it. This is a \u201csmart map\u201d that collects data including soil condition, topography, and other related data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The control team uses data from this \u201csmart map\u201d, combining\nit with satellite data to create an algorithm for a unique planting pattern\nthat works for that piece of land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The drone then follows this algorithm when shooting biodegradable pods \u2014 filled with seeds and nutrients \u2014 into the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no one-sized fits all approach to this method. Each\ntree species and piece of land requires its own separate analysis to determine\nthe best approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tree planting drones fly six feet above the ground and shoot\nthe germinated seeds at a speed that will get them firmly embedded in the soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With BioCarbon Engineering\u2019s system, one pilot could operate\nsix drones, and each drone can plant up to 120 trees in a minute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the\nAdvantages of Using Drones to Plant Trees?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

BioCarbon Engineering is just one out of a few startups that are looking to take advantage of the power of drones in order to plant trees. And this emerging trend is due to the many advantages that tree planting drones have over planting by hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of these advantages are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speed<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A seasoned tree planter can plant between 2000 to 4000 trees\nper day, and that is commendable. That constitutes several acres each day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, tree planting drones dwarf that easily. A single operator can easily plant 120 trees a minute with a single tree planting drone. According to representatives at DroneSeed, a Seattle based startup that aims to use drones for reforestation, a single operator piloting 15 drones could cover the equivalent of 360 manual labor hours<\/a> on a typical day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All around the world, there are 300 million acres of trees that\nhave been cut down since the 90s. In order to quickly repopulate such\nstaggering sizes with trees, disruptive technology like tree planting drones\nneed to be looked at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Imaging<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Satellite imaging has previously been used to analyze the soil\nbefore planting trees. These satellites have the advantage of being able to\nview land at scale, making it easy for tree planters to plan large scale\ncampaigns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there is an added advantage that planters enjoy when\nthey into incorporate drones into the analysis process the way startups like\nBioCarbon Engineering are doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drones offer spatial resolution in much better detail than\nsatellites can. And this helps with deciding the best way to go about planting.\nWhile satellites can spatial resolution in the range of 20-50 centimeters per\npixel, drones top that with a few resolutions of a few centimeters per pixel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Satellites are also not available all the time for imaging.\nThey are times when they are limited by orbit coverage patterns. Drones on the\nother hand, can be deployed at any time and within a few minutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Access<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In addition to being many times faster than human hands at\nplanting trees, tree planting drones are able to access areas that are beyond\nthe reach of planters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By using drones to plant trees, areas like steep\nmountainsides or areas with contaminated soil can be cultivated without putting\nhuman beings at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scale<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The speed with which tree planting drones work indicates a\nhigh possibility of scaling their operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The possibility of a having one pilot operating many drones\nto plant trees multiplies the effect which these devices could have on reforestation\nefforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cost<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Forestry companies spend millions recruiting the labor\nneeded to make achieve reforestation goals. Drones cut those costs in several\nways:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First of all, having one pilot operating several drones at a\ntime, doing more work per drone than a human planter, greatly reduces the cost\nof planting. Personnel costs are among the highest which forestry companies\ntypically have to bear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drones also plant seeds, meaning that no amount is spent on\nnurseries. Planting trees by hand usually requires growing seeds in a nursery\nuntil saplings are ready for transplanting. This costs money and man hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When using drones to plant trees, planters need not be\nrestricted to only one tree type. Representatives at Seattle based DroneSeed\nsay it is quite possible for them to load 80 to 200 different tree species unto\ntheir drones to plant on the same piece of land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maintenance<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Using drones to plant trees goes beyond using them only at\nthe planting phase. Drones can be integrated into every phase of the planting\ncycle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They can be used in soil imaging and soil analysis, with the\nadvantage that they are cheaper and more flexible that satellites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They can be used all through the planting phase to deliver\nseeds to the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They can also be used in the maintenance phase after\nplanting. DroneSeed, for example, uses their drones to fertilize the trees they\nplant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Are Tree\nPlanting Drones Being Used?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Drone startups like BioCarbon are operating a wide variety\nof locations today. And the number of places looks to keep increasing as more\ngovernments wake up to the urgent need for reforestation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Lauren Fletcher, founder of BioCarbon Engineering,\nthe company already has projects lined up or already underway in areas like\nAustralia, Brazil, Myanmar, Canada, Brazil, and the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DroneSeed, another treeplanting drone startup is carrying\nout tests and planting trees within the US in areas like Oregon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The one major incentive that motivates these startups to\nexpand quickly is the impact which tree planting drones could have on\nreforestation efforts when deployed at scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking in 2017, Mr. Fletcher said, \u201cWith our system,\ntwo people will be operating a small swarm of drones, and they\nwill be able to plant 100,000 trees a day\u2026.If you get 600 teams working\naround the world, we will be able to plant a billion trees a year \u2014\nand that\u2019s a scale that makes a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And those are numbers that could make a world of difference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With the environment suffering the brunt of human civilization, we have it all to do … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":945,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees.jpg",825,457,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees-300x166.jpg",300,166,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees-768x425.jpg",768,425,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees.jpg",825,457,false],"img_rate_products_categories":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees-552x306.jpg",552,306,true],"img_rate_products_slideshow":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees.jpg",825,457,false],"img_rate_products_preview":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees-168x93.jpg",168,93,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees.jpg",825,457,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/drones-planting-trees.jpg",825,457,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Sam","author_link":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/author\/sam\/"},"uagb_comment_info":2,"uagb_excerpt":"With the environment suffering the brunt of human civilization, we have it all to do ... Read more","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=934"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3130,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/934\/revisions\/3130"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=934"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=934"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dronesvilla.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=934"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}