‘Smart Horticulture’: Orchardly, Fyllo to launch IoT devices for Kashmir apple growers

Srinagar, December 2: Apple growers have a reason to celebrate after Orchardly, a top AI-based Agritech startup of Jammu and Kashmir, and Fyllo, an AI and IoT-enabled agri-science platform based out of Bengaluru, joined hands to transform the temperate orchard ecology in India.

The Orchardly-Fyllo partnership aims to deliver precision agriculture IoT hardware including Automatic Weather Stations & Precision Agriculture devices; and premium agronomy services to the growers of temperate fruits of the country.

Initially, the services will be available to the apple growers of the Kashmir region. It will begin an era of precision farming in the apple sector of J&K. This will also help our growers to grow export-quality apples and increase their productivity with less input.

Orchardly is the first Agtech startup of J&K that specializes in horticulture to offer growers advisories and disease predictions based on soil health and current weather information. Their goal is to employ smart agro insights to increase grower profitability and environmental sustainability.

To reduce producer risks and improve crop quality and productivity, the company offers actionable advice based on AI-disease models that are orchard-specific, crop-specific, crop-stage-specific, and topology-specific.

Orchardly has offered agronomy solutions to the valley’s over 10,000 apple farmers, including micro-weather forecasts, spray advisories, and comprehensive integrated nutrition management guidance. Orchardly has also assisted farmers in making informed decisions.

Given its expertise, Fyllo recognizes the precise needs of plants in real time, and the AI-powered agri-science platform gives farmers immediate guidance. 

For each physiological stage of the crop and soil, the start-up has created crop-specific models for irrigation, nutrients, diseases, pests, and weather management. 

Fyllo provides assurance regarding the quality and quantity of agricultural output. Their IoT technology analyses and comprehends the precise needs of plants in real-time, and the AI-powered agri-science platform then gives farmers immediate guidance. Fyllo has decreased the use of pesticides and fertilizers by 30% and saved 10+ billion gallons of water. With ever-changing climate and consumer demand, farmers need to produce safe, quality food and that’s where Fyllo plays a crucial role.

 “We are jointly launching some smart IoT devices for our apple growers which will definitely help them to increase their income by growing better apples.” “We will deploy an IoT device at the farm that will bridge the data gap between farmers and farms,” Ehsan Quddusi, CEO of Orchardly, said.

 “The IoT device contains an array of sensors and sends data to our cloud servers. We analyze the device, crop, and soil data using machine learning and agronomy models to provide actions and insights on the app,” said Sumit and Sudhanshu, directors at Fyllo,

Orchardly director Uzair said the world is moving towards sustainable farming and it is very important for us to reduce the use of pesticides, fungicides, and fertilizers in our farms. “The use of this IoT smart device in our orchards will help us to bring down the inputs at least by 30% and thereby reducing the residue levels on our fruits and make them ready for the international market”, he said.

“We are setting up a joint R&D center to work on various diseases & pests of the temperate fruits especially apples and will bring in tech intervention for their early prediction,” said Dr. Renganathan, Chief Revenue Officer at Fyllo.