A new app available from Oklahoma State University will allow farmers to monitor crop growth or evaluate damage and use the information to adjust management decisions.

Canopeo is a free mobile app developed by the OSU App Center and students and faculty of the department of plant and soil sciences. It’s the first mobile application released developed from concept to release through the center. It is available for download for both Apple and Android smartphones.

Users take photos of vegetation with a smartphone and the app allows them to quantify green vegetation in the crop canopy.

“Green canopy cover is an excellent indication of crop progress, especially early in the growing season,” said Tyson Ochsner, Sarkeys Distinguished Professor in Applied Soil Physics with OSU’s Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

The app analyzes images and provides an accurate measure of percent canopy cover for row crops, grassland, turfgrass and other green vegetation. OSU Research Communications announced release of the new app in a recent news brief.