New Cropwise Tool Helps Spot Crop Issues

Oct 12, 2026
By Farms.com

New digital platform helps retailers monitor fields and support grower decisions.

Syngenta has introduced Cropwise Explorer, a new digital agriculture solution designed to help agricultural retailers better support growers through improved field monitoring, faster decision-making, and data-driven crop management.

The tool is part of the Cropwise integrated farm management platform and brings together multiple sources of information into a single easy-to-use system. By combining historical field data, current-season crop information and satellite imagery, Cropwise Explorer allows users to gain a clearer picture of field performance throughout the growing season.

Agricultural retailers often oversee many fields across multiple farms. Managing and tracking crop conditions across large areas can be challenging and time-consuming. Cropwise Explorer is designed to simplify this process by providing a centralized view of important field information. Retailers can monitor crop development, review performance trends, and identify potential issues before they become major problems.

"Retailers need tools that save time and help with decision-making," said Greg Uchtmann, digital ag solutions marketing lead at Syngenta. "Cropwise Explorer gives them the ability to see what's happening across the fields they manage and delivers essential information in a format that's easy to understand and share."

One of the platform's key benefits is its ability to detect field anomalies and highlight areas that may require attention. Early identification of agronomic issues can help retailers and growers act quickly, potentially reducing crop stress and protecting yield potential.

The platform also delivers weekly field insights and reports that summarize crop conditions and productivity trends. These reports help users understand what is working well in a field and where management improvements may be needed. By presenting information in a simple format, the system allows retailers and growers to make informed decisions with greater confidence.

Another feature of Cropwise Explorer is its AI-powered summary capability. The technology reviews available field data and generates easy-to-understand insights. This helps retailers prioritize scouting efforts by identifying which fields need immediate attention and explaining the reasons behind those recommendations.

In addition, the platform includes NDVI-based reporting. NDVI, or Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, is commonly used to assess plant health and crop vigor. These reports give users a better understanding of crop development and can help identify changes in field conditions throughout the season.

Cropwise Explorer also supports stronger communication between retailers and growers. Users can connect reports and alerts with other Cropwise tools and services, making it easier to share information and keep growers informed about changing field conditions.

Field scouting remains an important part of crop management, and the new platform includes tools to support this activity. Retailers can record scouting observations, save field notes, and capture images during visits. The information can then be stored, downloaded, and shared with growers, creating a more complete record of field activity.

Another valuable feature is Time Series Analysis, which allows users to compare current crop performance with data from previous growing seasons. The comparison is displayed in a straightforward chart format, helping users recognize patterns, evaluate crop progress, and better understand year-to-year differences.

As agriculture continues to adopt digital technologies, tools that simplify data management and provide practical insights are becoming increasingly valuable. Cropwise Explorer aims to help users turn complex information into actionable recommendations that can improve crop management decisions.

By integrating field data, satellite imagery, agronomic insights and reporting tools into one platform, Cropwise Explorer gives retailers a streamlined way to monitor crops and support growers throughout the season. The solution reflects the growing role of digital agriculture in helping farmers and agricultural professionals manage risk, improve efficiency, and make more informed decisions.

For agricultural retailers looking to enhance field monitoring and deliver timely recommendations, Cropwise Explorer offers a new option for gathering, analyzing, and sharing important crop information.

Photo Credit: pexels-flo-dnd

Video: Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Understanding how a plant responds to stress is one thing.

Using that knowledge to make better management decisions is another.

Systemic acquired resistance, or SAR, is the plant's more direct defense response. When stress or infection occurs, the plant begins signaling throughout its system and preparing defensive compounds.

But if we know that response exists, can we help prepare the plant before the stress arrives?

The answer starts with understanding what triggers the response and what the plant needs to carry it out.

The Trigger and the Fuel

Salicylic acid plays an important role in triggering the SAR pathway.

Think of it as turning the truck on.

The engine may be running, but it still needs fuel to do the work.

In this case, manganese plays an important role in supporting the enzyme systems involved in the plant's defensive response.

This makes manganese status an important part of the conversation. Whether a producer is using tissue testing, sap analysis, or simply scouting for visible deficiency symptoms, the goal is to make sure the plant has adequate manganese available.

Manganese is required in relatively small amounts, but that does not make its role small.

If the plant receives a signal to defend itself but lacks the nutrition needed to support that response, it may struggle to carry out the process efficiently.

The trigger matters.

The fuel matters too.

Prepare Before the Stress Arrives

The best time to think about stress management is before the plant is overwhelmed.

Once a crop is already struggling, management can quickly turn into a game of catch-up.

This is similar to nitrogen management. Once a plant becomes severely deficient, correcting the problem does not necessarily erase the time and yield potential already lost.

Plant defense can work the same way.

Low-rate, targeted approaches designed to support the SAR pathway may fit best ahead of an expected stress event rather than after significant damage has already occurred.

That requires producers to think about predictable stress.

We may not know exactly what the weather will do tomorrow, but we generally know summer heat is coming. We know certain field conditions increase disease pressure. We know a herbicide application can temporarily stress a crop as the plant processes the chemistry.

Even a properly timed and labeled herbicide application can create a temporary response in the plant.

That does not mean the herbicide is bad.

Weeds can create significantly more yield loss than the temporary stress caused by controlling them.

The question is not whether we should eliminate every stressor.

The question is whether we can better prepare the plant to manage necessary and predictable stress.

Not All Stress Is Bad

Stress is a normal part of plant growth.

A perfectly stress-free environment does not exist in the field.

In fact, some stress is necessary for normal plant development. A plant responds to wind, temperature, moisture, sunlight, and countless other environmental signals throughout the season.

The environment is stress.

The plant's job is to manage it.

Problems begin when the stress load becomes greater than the plant's ability to respond.

Extreme heat, drought, high salt concentrations, disease pressure, and even certain management practices can add to that load.

This is where understanding SAR becomes useful.

Instead of waiting until the plant is visibly struggling, producers can begin identifying periods when stress is likely and make management decisions around those windows.

ISR Starts With the Soil

While SAR is a more direct defense response, induced systemic resistance, or ISR, brings the conversation back to soil health.

The longevity of a farm is closely connected to the health of its soil.

Carbon plays a major role because it supports biological life within the soil. Bacteria, fungi, and other organisms interact with plant roots and influence how the plant grows, accesses nutrients, and prepares for stress.

This is why soil health cannot be reduced to one product or one application.

It is a system.

Keeping living plants in the field longer can support biological activity. Cover crops may fit some operations. Better water management can improve soil conditions.