With the 2023 spraying season upon us, Billy Cotter discusses some of the essential upcoming spraying tasks, while Tom Gartland provides a brief overview of the key sprayer settings to maximize performance and minimise drift.
This winter and spring have been particularly challenging for autumn-sown cereal crops. Long periods of rain have been damaging but with temperatures rising and the recent spell of favourable weather are driving crops forward. Winter barley and oats are approaching growth 31/32 and wheat is around growth stage 31. These growth stages are triggers for certain key spray applications.
Wild Oats
Untreated wild oats in winter wheat or barley should be the number 1 priority, according to Billy Cotter.
“Wild oats are better controlled at earlier growth stages. It is important to get herbicides, like Axial Pro, on to the tillers before crop shading becomes an issue. Avoid spraying when the wild oats are not actively growing, keep to recommended rates and follow sequencing guidelines around broadleaf herbicides to get the best results,” Billy advised.
Advice for Plant Growth Regulator (PGR) use
All plant growth regulators work best on unstressed, actively growing crops. Avoid spraying when daytime and night time temperatures are fluctuating significantly.
“We’ve seen at this time of year where daytime temperatures rise to low 20 degrees centigrade and fall to low single figures at night. These temperature swings are rare but should be avoided when applying any PGR’s as they can lead to over regulation or over shortening of crops. It is also better to minimise the number of products in the tank. If these guidelines are followed Moddus is very kind to crops,” explained Billy.
Disease in Winter Barley
All plant growth regulators work best on unstressed, actively growing crops. Avoid spraying when daytime and night time temperatures are fluctuating significantly.
“We’ve seen at this time of year where daytime temperatures rise to low 20 degrees centigrade and fall to low single figures at night. These temperature swings are rare but should be avoided when applying any PGR’s as they can lead to over regulation or over shortening of crops. It is also better to minimise the number of products in the tank. If these guidelines are followed Moddus is very kind to crops,” explained Billy.
Wheat Disease
Septoria is the most visible disease in wheat crops, though there are also reports of yellow rust. Yellow rust is a disease that can quickly establish if not factored into fungicide programmes.
“T1 is a key timing for controlling both Septoria and yellow rust. Elatus Era’s profile on wheat – strong on Septoria and the best available on yellow rust - will fit the bill on many crops this year. Always add the multisite Folpet (Mirror) at T1 to provide additional activity against Septoria and to slow the rate of resistance development.”
Sprayer Set- Up Top Tips
Tom Gartland knows more about sprayer set-up than most. Years of trials and field work looking at nozzle choice, boom height, forward speed and other variables have shaped his thoughts on optimising performance and minimising drift. Below are 3 of Tom’s Top Tips.
- Use drift-reducing nozzles. Drift-reducing nozzles are more accurate, minimise spray drift into the environment and allow for more spraying opportunities in catchy weather.
- Set the Boom height at 0.5 metres above the spray target. We often see sprayers operating at boom heights above this. This leads to poor spray deposition on the target and excessive drift – a waste of spray and environmental contamination.
- Drive at an appropriate forward speed. Boom stability is critical to accurate spray application. A boom that is bouncing is not delivering even coverage. Forward speed must be matched to the terrain and the stability aids, if any, on the sprayer. It is always better to go too slow rather than too fast.