Published 7:00 am Thursday, January 16, 2025
Third-generation farmer and first-generation agronomist Michael Navarrete is quick to identify The Soil Doc’s fastest-growing segment.
“Drones, without a doubt,” he said. “The interest has skyrocketed since last season.”
Navarrete started his business in 2021 in the Idaho-Oregon border area. He offers crop consulting, turf care and drone-based application of chemicals and cover-crop seeds. He also grows and sells micro greens and sprouts, and farms 18 acres of field corn.
He works on weed and insect control, and soil health, in a turf-care segment that he will grow as opportunity and capacity allow.
“I limited it because the drone segment is growing so fast,” Navarrete said.
He can contract the use of the 8-gallon drone he owns at a cost based on acres or hours, depending on the crop.
Drone-related interest has been strong among growers of specialty and high-value crops, including onions and sugar beets, Navarrete said.
“We are not replacing big equipment,” he said. “But we have a fit.”
Covering more ground faster is among the advantages, Navarrete said. Plus, a drone “can fit a space that never has been able to be reached until now, which is increasing farm yield overall.”
Drones also may be preferable to airplanes depending on proximity to housing, power lines or other non-agricultural structures, he said.
Application timing is another potential advantage for a drone, Navarrete said. For example, a farmer who uses gravity or furrow irrigation need not wait until the ground dries.
Recent wet springs — drones don’t compact soil — and remnants of Hurricane Hilary last August helped to boost demand, he said. The heavy late summer rain and high humidity meant fungicides were needed in amounts not normally seen during that time of year.
Eventually, Navarrete plans to apply for a license to pilot multiple drones. The Federal Aviation Administration recently approved the practice, known as swarming.
The name of his business is a nod to soil health, he said.
“But at the end of the day, everything comes from the soil,” said Navarrete, who holds the Certified Crop Adviser designation.
Operating independently rather than as a major brand’s field agronomist or a university’s extension educator means he gives up some buying power, volume discounts and instant credibility.
Advantages include the opportunities to “see both sides of agriculture,” said Navarrete, who has been an employee of major seed companies in Illinois and Washington. As for reputation, “it takes time to build that up, and it has taken time. The customer base I do have increased their level of yield because of my expertise.”
He and client growers assess goals, map them field by field and come up with a plan. The first step is a soil test.
“I’m product-agnostic,” Navarrete said.
His grandfather came to the U.S. from Mexico through the World War II-era Bracero program to do farm work, and later became a farm labor contractor and farm owner.
The operation now is about 2,800 acres divided among five families who farm separately.
“My first love had always been research,” Navarrete said.
Michael Navarrete
Title: Owner and agronomist, The Soil Doc
Age: 34
Education: B.A., Spanish, B.S., biology, University of Portland; M.S., agronomy, Iowa State University
Hometown: Ontario, Ore.
Residence: Fruitland, Idaho
Family: Wife, Krista, three children
Hobbies: Bass guitar, coaching kids in sports
