Precision Agriculture at Work in Henry County

Dallas Bomar is no stranger to farm work. The 17-year-old high school student has spent years working his family’s 3,000 acres in Henry County. These days, he and his family rely on precision agriculture to maximize their yield.

Precision agriculture plays a crucial role in the Southeast, where crops like soybeans and peanuts are increasingly managed with advanced technologies, including grid soil sampling and pest prediction models.

Precision agriculture comes into play frequently with the farm’s planter and combines as his family works to plant and harvest corn, wheat, soybeans, and cotton, Dallas says. The technology helps the planter distribute seeds evenly. With the combine, it allows farmers to predict crop yield in different portions of the fields.

The family also uses precision ag functions to distribute lime to adjust pH levels, he says.

Although he’s been using the technology in some form for as long as he can remember, Dallas says he also works with some older machinery.

“I can tell a difference in how much technology has changed,” he said.

For so many farming operations, broadband is critical in running precision agriculture functions. The Bomar family is looking into using technology to cut down the time their grain dryer needs to operate. The tech will alert them if the dryer shuts off, and it will run with the help of their Wi-Fi service from TNBA member WK&T.

WK&T is actively expanding its fiber broadband services, bringing high-speed internet to underserved rural areas, where new fiber infrastructure can deliver speeds of up to 2 Gigs. As precision agriculture continues its rapid growth—projected to grow about 10% each year through 2033—reliable internet has become essential for modern farm operations and data-driven decisions.

For now, as he finishes his junior year at Henry County High School, Dallas enjoys participating in the local chapter of the National FFA Organization, of which he’s been a member since 7th grade. His academic agricultural pursuits focus mainly on row cropping, but he also maintains a small herd of cows.