--- title: "Farmers Could Use Drones to Grow Better Christmas Trees" description: "‘Tis the Season Researchers at North Carolina State University are exploring the use of drones to monitor the growth of Christmas trees in the Blue Ridge Mountains. “Instead of going out and measuring individual trees, a person could fly a drone,” research associate Justyna Jeziorska said in a statement. That could prove especially handy since […]" date: "2019-12-19" modified: "2019-12-19" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/farmers-drones-grow-better-christmas-trees" categories: - "Drones" - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" tags: - "christmas" - "drones" - "the digest" - "trees" --- # Farmers Could Use Drones to Grow Better Christmas Trees ![Researchers at North Carolina State University are exploring if drones can be used to monitor the growth of Christmas trees in the Blue Ridge Mountains.]() *\Image: Edmund Garman/Victor Tangermann\* ## 'Tis the Season Researchers at North Carolina State University are exploring the use of drones to monitor the growth of Christmas trees in the Blue Ridge Mountains. "Instead of going out and measuring individual trees, a person could fly a drone," research associate Justyna Jeziorska said in [a statement](). That could prove especially handy since the most popular Christmas tree species in the area, the Fraser fir, grows best in mountainous areas and on steep slopes. ## Robofeller Drones have been used to 3D-scan natural landscapes in the past, but current landscape analysis software tends to make individual trees appear like short domes rather than anything that actually looks like a tree. That makes the process of analyzing the trees' height and diameter near impossible, which is why the NC State team is developing new 3D-processing techniques. In addition to monitoring the Christmas trees' size, drones could also tell farmers if the trees are diseased by detecting discoloration or even spray herbicides and pesticides on them from above, according to the researchers. ## Farmer's Helper The team is hoping their drone techniques could be used by other types of tree farmers in the future as well. "If this research shows that drones are useful for managing Christmas trees, the info we provide will allow someone with their own interest and their own drone to do it themselves," project collaborator Zac Arcaro said in the statement. **READ MORE:** [It’s tough to grow a Christmas tree. Can drones help?]() \[*Futurity*\] **More on Christmas trees:** *[Robots Decorate Trees, Perform Carols in Store’s Holiday Display]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()