Long-time precision farming technology consultant and advocate Harold Reetz died Aug. 15. 

The Piatt County Journal-Republican in Illinois posted his obituary Wednesday. 

Reetz started his career at Purdue University in the agronomy department and went on to work at the International Plant Nutrition Institute (formerly the Potash and Phosphate Institute) for 28 years. From 1995-2009, he was the founder and lead organizer for the InfoAg Conference and co-coordinator of the International Conference on Precision Agriculture in 2008 and 2010. He also served as executive director of the International Society of Precision Agriculture.

Throughout his career, Reetz taught farmers about high-yield cropping systems, nutrient management, precision farming technology and on-farm research through his consulting business, Reetz Agronomics in Monticello, Ill.. He conducted training programs on new technology throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and the Soviet Union.

Reetz incorporated new technologies in his research, including global positioning satellites, geographic information systems, remote sensing, computer simulation and electronic communications tools to improve yield, profitability and environmental quality. Another of his trademark approaches was the 4 R's: right source, right rate, right place and right time.

In total, he authored more than 400 articles about crop production, soil fertility management and computer applications in agriculture, in addition to speaking at 20-30 conferences a year.

Read some of Reetz's advice to precision farming specialists and about his work in the articles below:

Precision Perspective: Tech Evolution Makes Crop Modeling a Viable Tool

3 Technology Takeaways from the International Conference on Precision Ag

Dealers Take Precision Data From the Cab to the Computer

Shipping Out, Part 1: The Rising Tide on Yields