Okanagan water-stress check

Choose the orchard block to walk first.

During water restrictions, the question is not whether satellite imagery can diagnose the problem. The useful question is whether it can point the first walk toward the most likely block area before the crew spends the morning guessing.

Request reviewed first-walk brief See brief samples

Decision checklist

Pick one block before asking for a brief.

Which block has the most expensive walk if the crew guesses wrong?

Which block is under current water pressure, irrigation limits, or valve uncertainty?

Which block has recent weather, slope, replanting, or boundary factors that could confuse a satellite first pass?

Which block has enough recent clear imagery to make a first-walk triage useful?

Which block can provide three quick ground shots if the brief needs confirmation?

Field notes

Use satellite as a first pass, not the answer.

How to choose which orchard block to walk first during water restrictions

Start with the block where a wrong inspection order costs the most: stressed young trees, high-value crop, known irrigation pressure, or a long drive between blocks. The first-walk brief should narrow the area, not replace the walk.

Satellite first pass for cherry orchard water stress

A satellite first pass can highlight a coherent low-vigor area, a weak edge, or a block that changed differently from nearby blocks. It cannot prove the cause. For cherries, the ground check still needs irrigation, soil, slope, canopy, and recent management context.

What 10m Sentinel imagery can and cannot tell orchard growers

Sentinel-2 can be useful for triage when the signal is broad enough and the scene is clear. It can miss row-level problems, confuse mixed boundaries, and blur narrow strips. Treat it as a map for where to look first, not as a diagnosis.

Okanagan orchard water restriction checklist

Before walking every row, pick one block, confirm the boundary, open the satellite preview, request a reviewed first-walk brief, and collect the three photos or videos the brief asks for. If the satellite confidence is weak, the honest result is still useful: do not over-trust that scene.

Free reviewed brief

Send one orchard block. Get a reviewed first-walk brief.

The brief tells you where to check first, what Farmbit sees, what to verify on the ground, and what the satellite evidence cannot prove.

Request reviewed first-walk brief