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NMSU Professor Developing Watering App For Farmers

An engineering professor at New Mexico State University is working on a digital application that could help farmers determine when and how often they should water their crops.

Farmers will be able to use Zohrab Samani's iFarm app — short for Intelligence Farm — on their cellphones and computers.

The app aims to help farmers set up more efficient irrigation schedules by taking into consideration multiple factors, such as wind and humidity levels.

Software developer Vien Tran says the challenge is extending the calculations to incorporate real-time climate data.

The app has been tested on a few local farms.

Much of New Mexico has been struggling with drought for the past two years, and farmers are preparing for another dry year since predictions for any significant moisture this winter are slim.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.