Syngenta Seeds is offering for purchase the exclusive NK® Brand Agrometer™ Growing Degree Units (GDUs) Monitor.  With the Agrometer, growers have instant access to local GDU data on their farm - weather data that is vital in making risk management decisions about hybrid and variety portfolios. 

“Weather has always been the most uncontrollable variable in agriculture,” said John Harker, NK Brand technical information manager, Syngenta Seeds.  “Understanding this challenge, we always look for ways to give our customers a competitive edge in the marketplace.   The Agrometer does that by taking some of the guesswork out of key management decisions required to get a successful crop to market.”

The NK Brand Agrometer, exclusively designed for Syngenta Seeds, helps growers interpret localized weather data on their farm.  Through the measurement of heat accumulation, GDUs can be used to predict stages of corn plant growth from planting through harvest.  Comparing local data to GDU-based crop development information allows growers to more accurately evaluate crop conditions. 

Each day, the NK Brand Agrometer automatically records, calculates, displays and stores local GDUs.  By comparing current GDU data with historical data, growers can determine crop progress.  Such information can help growers make more informed seed selections, as well as planting, scouting, spraying, harvesting, storage and marketing decisions.  For example, selecting a portfolio of corn hybrids with flowering and silking features to compensate for local weather patterns is a significant advantage of using data collected from the Agrometer. 

Additional weather insight is available through the Corn GDU History Calculator on the NK Brand Web site at
www.nk-us.com/infosilo/agrometer.  This Web function offers comparison of local weather conditions to long-term data, as well as links to various local growing-season updates.

NK Brand agronomists agree that when heading into a new planting season, it is important to be armed with as much information as possible.  Harker said, “In addition to offering a broad portfolio of NK Brand hybrids designed for optimum performance in various weather conditions, the Agrometer is another way we partner with our customers to give them an advantage.” 

Syngenta is a world-leading agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. The company is a leader in crop protection and ranks third in the high-value commercial seeds market. Sales in 2002 were approximately US$6.2 billion. Syngenta employs some 20,000 people in over 90 countries. Syngenta is listed on the Swiss stock exchange (SYNN) and in New York (SYT).

NK^® and Agrometer™ are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company.