How Wet Has 2012 Been? Rainfall in the UK in 2012

Rainfall in the UK has been in the news almost every week of 2012. From the drought early in 2012 to the floods ever since. And yet the year has not been especially wet. 
How Wet Has 2012 Been? Rainfall in the UK in 2012

New Jersey Biotech 20 Years On

News release from BioNJ. After 20 years a review of progress and thoughts about the next two decades.
New Jersey Biotech 20 Years On

Farewell Patrick Moore

Those of us who grew up in the fifties, sixties or even later, and who have had any interest at all in science, but especially in the planets and stars, will be saddened by the passing of a man who was a childhood hero for so many of us, Sir Patrick Moore...
Farewell Patrick Moore

Going Global with Novanna

One of the benefits for a business of selling products via a website is that it's easy to track sales and measure the effectiveness of your marketing. A business like Novanna Measurement Systems, with a huge range of measurement and testing products, can keep track with the minimum of human input. That's the theory, anyway! More... Going Global with Novanna

Machinery Manufacturers 'Must Innovate'

Machinery Manufacturers 'Must Innovate'
New post on the Novanna website looks at the predicted rise in demand for food and how we need to address it.

Novanna Measurement Systems Have Moved

We have moved our offices (just around the corner, actually), so we're now at:

Novanna Ltd
4 Looms Lane
Bury St Edmunds
Suffolk
IP33 1HE
United Kingdom

Our phone number is still the same:

+44 (0)1284 765997

And the Novanna website, email address and everything else about Novanna Measurements Systems is unchanged, apart from the fact that we're continuing to expand our range.

Soon, in response to one or two customers' comments, we plan to streamline the order process for overseas customers - we'll keep you informed about that.

Academics and Archaeologists Dig Novanna, too

We've added a new post to the main blog over on novanna.co.uk, about the surprise we had when we looked more closely at our website stats.

You can read it here

The Demand for Testing Equipment is International

It never cease to amaze us, even though we're pursuing a policy of global domination, how far our website, www.Novanna.co.uk reaches. Each day on our Facebook Page and Twitter we name today's 'hotspot'. This is a random pick of one location from where we have had a website visitor that day.

Today, for example, we chose a visitor from Madrid. Yesterday it was Bandung, in Indonesia. Another day it might be Derby, or Swansea.

As a UK based company we naturally get more traffic from the UK to our website - around 50% or so - but the list of exotic locations, as well as familiar places in the UK and in mainland Europe, like Paris and Madrid, grows by the day. We can ship internationally of course, just as we can accept payment in GB Pounds, Euros or US Dollars, directly through the website via a secure server.

We've talked a little more about the global nature of our business (and how excited we get about it!) on the website blog, in "Going Global With Novanna".

New Blog Added to the Main Novanna Website

We've decided to add an articles blog to the main Novanna website in order to better inform our readers, customers and followers and allow a smoother transition from blog posts to relevant pages on the site.

Although we'll keep this blog ticking over as well, it's likely the new blog will be the main focus for new content. Soon, we'll create a dedicated page on the site but for now you can access the articles via the excerpts on home page or the company profile page.

So far, we have two articles - one about the range of measuring and testing equipment we supply for all fields and disciplines, and one about the new sprayer testing regulations.

Pop across to the main website at www.novanna.co.uk and have a look! If you have any suggestions for article topics or anything else you want to know about Novanna and our products, just let us know!

Is the National Sprayer Testing Scheme Fit For Purpose?

Unlike other members of the EU, the UK doesn't yet have a compulsory testing scheme for agricultural sprayers (equipment). The need for precise control of chemical sprays is fairly obvious, for four reasons:

1. Excessive spraying is wasteful of chemicals and therefore cash
2. Excessive spraying can be harmful to the environment, crops and potentially consumers
3. Insufficient application will be ineffective and can be a complete waste
4. Erratic or uneven spraying can mean some areas get too much and some get too little to be effective - again a waste of chemicals and cash, and potentially damaging to the environment and crops.

The UK's existing voluntary scheme for sprayer testing - the National Sprayer Testing Scheme - may form the basis of a more regulated scheme.

The Plant Protection Products (Sustainable Use) Regulations 2012came into force in July but there is some confusion about so called 'grandfather rights' and the use of continuous professional development to assess sprayer operators' eligibility to continue spraying. But this new regulation is focused on sprayer operators rather than the machinery, and it's likely that we'll see further regulation of equipment testing in the near future.

In any case, you may be better off complying with the EU sprayer regulations right now:

Regulation in other EU countries are both stricter and clearer, and sprayer test equipment used by testers in these countries is more accurate and so can easily cope with the voluntary UK scheme as well as the EU rules. In particular, our test equipment allows for closer control of individual sprayer heads, leading to more precise spraying and optimal use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers.  

Even if your sprayer equipment complies with current UK standards it may still not be doing the best job for you and your crops. We strongly suggest you have your sprayer equipment tested using kit that complies with tougher EU rules.
 

We're at Four Oaks Trade Show

We're delighted to be exhibiting at Four Oaks, on 4 and 5 September, where you'll be able to find out all about our wide range of measuring and testing equipment.

Four Oaks is billed as "The UK's Premier Show for Ornamental Horticulture", and horticulturalists are a significant proportion of our customers at Novanna, but we'll be happy to answer questions about any of our product ranges and to discuss any problems, ideas or questions you may have. 

Four Oaks is not far from the M6, at:
Farm Lane, Lower Withington,
Macclesfield, Cheshire,
SK11 9DU

Come and see us - we're on stand B27!

Happy Customers Come Back for More

One way to know your customers are happy with the service you provide is when they come back to you for more. When they come back for more of the same it means the products you sell are excellent, too.

Consumables are one thing - you can attribute re-orders to habit, convenience or price - but instruments and equipment usually need a bit more thought and customers are more discriminating about where they order new measuring and testing equipment.

At Novanna, we are always very pleased to get a second order from a customer, and especially when the new order is a repeat of the first one. An example came on Friday when we had a customer order three more rain gauges to go with the three we had just delivered. The "4110 professional Hellman raingauge" is just one of the gauges we sell but it's certainly proving to be a popular one. At just £58 plus VAT and delivery, it's great value, too:

Remember, we offer a broad range of portable scientific measuring and testing equipment on our Novanna website.

The Updated Novanna Website

At Novanna, we plan to continue to add to our wide range of scientific quality portable test and measurement equipment, and we're adding new items and ranges to the website all the time.

That means the Novanna website is the first place to look for equipment to satisfy any measuring or testing needs you have - and if you can't find what you need on the website, call us and ask.

As well as adding to the website we're also committed to making the site as simple as possible for you to navigate. Of course, it's in our interests that you find what you want on our site and order it from Novanna, but it's also wonderfully convenient for you to be able to find everything you need in one place, with simple online payment and fast delivery guaranteed.

Your commitment to excellence - whether in crop yields, construction standards, food safety or anything else - makes Novanna (and our dedication to providing the best possible equipment in the most convenient way) an essential supporter of your business. From now on, think of Novanna as a part of your business as well as a trusted supplier of essential kit and equipment. 

Find us at http://www.novanna.co.uk.

Portable Scientific Test Equipment for Any Field

Novanna offers a wide range of professional-quality, scientific test equipment for many fields, including agriculture, construction, research, education and more.

Starting with agriculture, we've developed and expanded our range to include testing and measuring equipment for biogas, water and construction, sprayers, and even archaeology and education.

Sales and enquiries have come from as far afield as Argentina, the US and India, as well as from all corners of the UK and mainland Europe, and the Novanna website should be your first port of call for ALL types of top quality testing equipment, whatever field you work in.

If you can't find what you want on the Novanna site, just call us on 01284 765997.

Before You Buy Fertiliser...

Before you buy any fertiliser there's something you really must do, which is to find out for sure exactly what fertiliser (if any) you need for your soil, your crops and your conditions.

As you might have guessed, that something is soil testing!

Read more about how and why soil testing is so important for your pocket, your production and your conscience, in our new article on the Novanna website: What to do Before You Buy Fertiliser

Order Our Free Brochure

You can now order our full-colour printed brochure to be delivered free to your door, using the form on the right of this page.

The brochure includes the full range of agricultural measurement, soil testing and other analysis equipment from Pronova of Berlin, to be delivered directly to you by Novanna in the UK.

To get your free brochure, simply enter your name and address in the form on the right of this page >>>

Potato Harvest 2012 - Mixed Reports

We're seeing some wide variations in the potato harvests for 2012 - not surprising, given the extremely variable weather during the growing season so far.

While some Scottish growers have been able to lift their early crops ahead of schedule, others have lost large areas of their crops to flooding and waterlogged soil. Overall, the picture seems to suggest a lower than normal potato yield in 2012, although there is time for this picture to change, especially with second crop and later varieties.

This lower yield might itself mask a problem of oversupply, though, according to the Potato Council chairman Allan Stevenson. This oversupply obviously affects prices and profitability but that's not a problem this year:

"There is a structural oversupply in the UK industry - simply too many growers growing too many potatoes, leading to low prices and us all losing money," he said.

"We can't keep doing that. No one can make a living, and no one can invest. But this year it's looking like there won't be that oversupply, which is fantastic news."

For the industry as a whole that's probably true, although you might feel differently if you're one of those who lost a large part of your crop this year. I'll be interested to know how you've coped with the difficult conditions this spring and whether you've been able to recover from an early-season disaster. Please add your comments below.

Meanwhile, a reminder that Novanna Measurement Systems supplies testing and measurement equipment for all kinds of agriculture.


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Rural Broadband - Is Mobile a Better Solution?

One reason the government might be dragging its heels over rural broadband provision must surely be that so many people these days access the Internet via a mobile device. So could mobile technology be the future for domestic and business Internet, too?

With more smart phones now being bought than 'conventional' mobiles and Internet access via mobile devices passing 50 percent of the total usage, would rural broadband cabling ever be cost effective?

I ask this as a genuine question. Whereas I'm writing this blog post on a laptop, via a wireless connection to my BT Broadband service, you may just as easily be reading it on a mobile device with no physical connection to the Internet at all.

And if that's the shape of things to come, I could just as easily be writing this blog on an iPhone, iPad, Android or Microsoft Surface device in the very near future.

I happen to live in a town with reasonable broadband but my brother in law is just as likely to access the Internet on his Blackberry as he is on his very slow rural broadband connection. Part of the thinking behind Novanna is that farmers increasingly use similar devices when they're out and about.

Now that reaching the Novanna website from a smart phone is as easy as phoning a supplier - easier, since you can search for Novanna online - part of our thinking is that farmers will find it more convenient to buy directly from us than to arrange a purchase by phone, even when they're miles from the office or too busy to find a phone number, especially once they have an account with us.

A smart phone costs less than a laptop, Mac or PC, even if 'line charges' are higher at the moment. Tablets and hybrid devices like the new one from Microsoft could just as easily work in an office, and the Microsoft Surface might even be a game-changer. 

There's a big debate going on about rural broadband, fibre optic cabling and so on, but the real issue is Internet access and there's more than one way to skin a cat.

Am I missing something here? Please feel free to agree or disagree. 

(BTW, we're also happy to send you a brochure by good old fashioned snail mail!)

Releasing Available Phosphorous

Phosphorous (P) is an important element for growing plants and is regularly added to soil to improve growth and yields. However, simply adding phosphorous won't help your yields if it just gets locked into the soil. Over 75% of added phosphorous can easily stay trapped in the soil, unavailable to growing plants.

Lack of available phosphorous can affect yields even if the problem occurs early in the growing season.

We've already written about the importance of soil pH in making nutrients available but it's been shown that insufficient zinc (Zn) has an effect too, specifically with the release of phosphorous.

This is why some phosphorous-based fertilisers also include zinc and why added zinc can make the difference between an effective phosphorous treatment and a wasted one.

There are two ways to find out if adding zinc will help your soil and your crop yields - trial and error or accurate soil testing in advance. Trial and error can be an expensive business with an unknown outcome, while the cost of soil test equipment can easily be covered by one successful harvest.

Soil Testing and Analysis: What is a pH Meter?

Soil Testing and Analysis: What is a pH Meter?: A frequently asked question is: "What is a pH meter?" Soil acidity (and acidity of any substance) is expressed as 'pH' and so a 'pH meter'...

Soil Fertility and Soil pH

Soil fertility is dependent on several factors, only one of which is the level of nutrients in the soil. What matters to plants is the level of available nutrients, which can be only a small percentage of the actual nutrients in the soil.

The main reason why nutrients may not be taken up by plant roots is the acidity or pH. Closely connected also are soil conductivity and activity, which are also ways of testing the amounts of positive hydrogen ions in the soil.

This means there are several ways you can test your soil's fertility and assess whether an 'unfertile' soil is actually depleted in nutrients or (more often) is simply unable to release those nutrients into the plant roots.

Simply correcting the pH of your soil might easily release all the nutrients needed by your growing plants, but only accurate testing or a longer period of trial and error will tell you. Testing in advance is usually better than finding out later, when your crop yields are lower than hoped and serious money has possibly been wasted on fertilisers your soil didn't need.

Naturally, all the soil test equipment you need is available from the Novanna website!

Collecting Soil Samples for pH and Other Testing

It is important to get a representative sample of any area you wish to monitor, almost regardless of the size of the plot or field, since you will be treating the area in the same way. Unless there is a significant difference in the soil across particular parts of a field you will expect to treat a whole field in the same way and therefore you can combine your samples for testing.

The total amount to be collected for each test is between a half and one kilogram.

Collect the samples in a roughly 'W' pattern, with sample points at fairly regular intervals, put each sample in a clean polythene bag and label it clearly.

To make the sampling process easier, use a soil auger that takes a representative core sample, then either send your samples to a laboratory or use a soil testing kit, such as those available from Novanna.

Repeated testing over a period of about a year or more will help you to build a picture of your soil's character and response to treatments, climate, planting, harvesting and so on, while a more prolonged period of testing can only add to your understanding of your soil's behaviour.

Soil pH Testing and pH Meters

Chemists use pH as a measure of acidity or alkalinity, on a scale from 0 to 14. The higher the pH number the more alkaline a substance or mixture is, and 'neutral' is therefore around pH 7.

As it happens, this neutral pH is also the best acidity level in soils and growing media for the majority of plants, as it allows nutrients in the soil to be released and absorbed by the plants' roots. This acidity can be measured in a number of ways, including liquid analysis using indicator strips (like the litmus paper you might have used in school chemistry lessons) or electronic measurement of soil activity or conductivity (measuring the level of positive hydrogen ions in the soil), with pH meters.

Acidity can be different when the soil is 'resting' compared with when crops are actively growing and so it's important to measure the pH of your soil at different times of year and at different stages of the growing cycle to build a clear picture of your soil's pH cycle.

Soil can also have very high levels of nutrients 'locked up' due to non-optimal pH, and adding fertiliser to soil in these circumstances is expensive and wasteful.

By measuring at testing your own soil you can take these measurements as often as you like and in as many sample sites as you wish, to build a full understanding of your soil and take the appropriate action (often simply liming) without overdoing it 'just to make sure'.

A full range of soil analysis kits and equipment is available to buy online directly from Novanna Measurement Systems. 

Article - Why Soil Analysis?

We've added a new page to the main website, called Soil Analysis - the Whats and Whys.

On that page you'll find an explanation of the role of soil analysis in optimising crop yield and nutritional value by making existing soil nutrients available to growing plants, thereby minimising waste and pollution from excessive fertiliser and chemical use.

You'll the article at http://www.novanna.co.uk/why-soil-analysis

Soil Analysis and Testing - New Video

Here's the latest video from Novanna, highlighting our soil analysis and testing equipment. We also supply all ancillaries and consumables for soil analysis and other agricultural measurements.



This is a perfect time of year to test and analyse your soil and Novanna will deliver your analysis kits and equipment within days of ordering online at www.novanna.co.uk.

Agricultural Measurement Systems, Soil Analysis and More

Our new video has just been uploaded to Youtube, and here its is!



As`you can see, the video explains many of the types of products available online from Novanna, including soil analysis test kits, water test kits and biogas measurement and control systems.

Soil Analysis - When to Test Your Soil

Soil can be tested at any time, as long as you're not suffering a prolonged drought and no nitrates or sulphur have been applied recently. "Recently" in this instance means about 30 days for nitrates and about 3 months for sulphur.

You can test your soil when crops are growing, and doing so will help you to plan any treatment that may be needed after harvest. Testing bare stubble fields may give unrealistically lower nutrient levels, but measuring your soils pH at this stage will give you a good guide to the need for liming.

If you haven't tested your soil for a while, then the best time for testing is right now. You can get soil testing and soil analysis kits delivered from Novanna within a few days, saving you the waiting time for lab results and giving you control over your soil analysis and conditions.

Testing Soil pH

Measuring and controlling the pH value of soil is essential for commercial growers, as each crop variety has an optimal pH range to produce the maximum yield.

In general, the optimum pH range for uptake of nutrients is around 6.5 to 7 but this will vary for individual varieties. A value significantly higher (more alkaline) or lower (more acidic) will affect the availability of essential nutrients and hinder plant growth and development.

Testing the soil yourself in situ means you can quickly detect and address a non-optimal soil pH without needing to wait for lab results. The same goes for all aspects of soil, and test kits are available to test each important characteristic of your soil.

Until recently, buying agricultural quality soil testing kits online was very difficult, but now Novanna Measurement Systems offers you a complete range of pH measuring devices in our online shop.

Each of the soil testing kits and other measurement systems we offer will give you all the speed and accuracy you need to get the maximum yield from your agriculture or horticulture business.

Why Carry Out Soil Testing?

There are numerous reasons for testing your soil, just as there are many characteristics of soil that you can test, either for agriculture and horticulture or for civil engineering and construction.

But soil testing for farmers and growers mainly helps you take control of your soil and create optimum growing conditions with the minimal use of pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers.

These chemicals are not just potentially harmful to the environment, they are also expensive to apply in large quantities. With our equipment and your expertise and experience as a farmer or grower, Novanna helps you produce better, more nutritious crops or healthier animals, and all at lower cost.

Reducing the chemical usage on one field will probably save you the price of the test equipment!

Soil testing, water testing and biogas equipment are all available from the Novanna website, to buy online today. Delivery takes about a week (sometimes less) and we're constantly adding to our range of top-quality testing and measurement equipment for agriculture, horticulture, biogas and similar industries.

Visit www.Novanna.co.uk and find the best range of testing and measuring equipment available online.

Protect the Environment with Novanna Agricultural Testing Equipment

On-site, or in-the-field measuring systems allow you to use the minimum quantities of chemical fertilisers, treatments and dressings, help you avoid over-dosing, and protect crops, livestock and the environment from excess chemical intervention and run-off.

Timely applications are also more effective than delayed ones, and immediate treatment to correct imbalances and deficiencies are more effective than delayed treatment as a result of waiting for lab results.

That's why Novanna sells agricultural-quality test and measurement equipment to enable you to know, within reasonable margins, the condition of every part of every field you manage, and why we sell them directly through our website so your test equipment can arrive and be put to profitable use quicker than a single sample can be tested in the lab.

Buy agricultural measuring kits and equipment online at Novanna.co.uk and expect delivery in days.

Buying Agricultural Measuring Systems Online

Although a search on Google will reveal several companies selling agricultural measuring equipment, only Novanna in the UK has a full range of top quality test kits and other measuring equipment available to buy online.

The benefits of buying online are:

1. Simplicity - just a few clicks and your order will be on its way to you
2. Control - you measure, you decide and you order whatever chemicals, treatments or other products you need, without being 'sold to'
3. Speed - know the results of important tests 'in the field' in minutes, rather than waiting for lab results
4. Prices - prices are competitive and crystal-clear on the website. You don't have to phone to ask and the on-site shopping cart will give you a running total as you place your order
5. Quality - Novanna only sells the best agricultural-quality test and measurement equipment available, with new products and ranges being sourced, assessed and added all the time.

Find Novanna Ltd at http://www.novanna.co.uk and create your Novanna online account here. 

Introducing Novanna Measurement Systems

Novanna is a new and innovative company selling agricultural-standard measurement systems by leading manufacturers online. This includes soil analysis systems, water analysis kits and more.

Basically, anything you need to measure or test in a farming (agriculture or horticulture) context is catered for by Novanna Measurement Systems, with delivery in just a few days or less.