Andrew Landers

Development and Validation of a New Deflector System to Improve Pesticide Application in New York and Pennsylvania Grape Production Areas

With falling market prices for grapes, many growers are unable to afford new directed deposition vineyard sprayers. 50% of the juice grape growers in New York and Pennsylvania use Kinkelder sprayers. Kinkleder sprayers are notorious for their high wind speed and air shear nozzles which create a highly visible spray plume resulting in drift and poor deposition. A new air deflector system was designed at Cornell University to provide horizontal airflow. Results in field trials in Vitis labrusca var. Concord, indicates an improvement in deposition throughout the canopy of 25%. Drift was considerably reduced. Further field trails are to be conducted to evaluate the biological effectiveness of the new air deflectors.

Developments Towards an Automatic Precision Sprayer for Fruit Crop Canopies

The challenge for the fruit grower is to apply pesticides precisely to the developing target throughout the growing season. As the canopy develops so does the amount of air and liquid required to provide adequate penetration and coverage. This paper discusses current research at Cornell University in developing new canopy sprayers which will increase deposition throughout the canopy using adjustable air louvres and sensors. Trials have been conducted in orchards and vineyards throughout the 2008 and 2009 growing seasons. Results from field trials show an increase in deposition of up to 30% and a 75% reduction in drift by using adjustable air louvres. Three novel methods of airflow adjustment are reported, systems which keep the air and spray plume within the canopy. Results to date indicate that alternate row spraying in modern super spindle apple plantings may be possible, saving time, labour and fuel or alternatively doubling the output of the sprayer. Results show up to 40% reduction in pesticide use in early season spraying in vineyards using infra-red sensors to monitor canopy growth.

Real time canopy density estimation using ultrasonic envelope signals in the orchard and vineyard

We develop a system to estimate the crop density using ultrasound sensors.The signal obtained is highly correlated with the growing season.Results show that the signal has similar values on both sides of the row.The system is sensitive enough to detect hailstorm effects on the canopy. This paper proposes a real-time method, based on an array of ultrasonic sensors, to estimate canopy density in apple orchards and vineyards. This estimation could be used as a reference to adjust the canopy spraying machine parameters with the aim of improving deposition and avoiding drift. Two sets of experiments were carried out, the first one using a single ultrasound sensor in a greenhouse to determine the signal behavior and adjust the algorithms. The second set of experiments were conducted in the orchard and vineyard, under real working conditions. Results show that the signal obtained is highly correlated with the growing season and it has similar values on both sides of the row, with an error of 14.1% in vineyards and 3.8% in apple trees and it is sensitive enough to detect hailstorm effects on the canopy.

Interactive Effects of Air, Liquid and Canopies on Spray Patterns of Axial-flow Sprayers

Pesticide application to fruit crops such as apples and grapes requires adjustment of thesprayer to direct spray into the canopy zone as it develops over the growing season. The objective ofthis study was to investigate the impact of nozzle orientation on vertical spray patterns at the centerof the grapevine row, using an air-blast sprayer. The interaction between nozzle orientation andairflow was also studied. Results have shown potential for improving deposition and reducing spray drift by carefullyadjusting the nozzle orientation. It was also observed that adjustments in nozzle orientation on twosides of the sprayer should be independent and in consideration of airflow rate and direction on eachside. Orientation of the nozzles to counteract the blast of air in the vicinity of the sprayer air outlethave shown improvements not only in better targeting of sprays to canopies but also in improvinguniformity of deposition between heights. Correct orientation of nozzles has shown to enhance theeffect of air assistance of the sprayer.

Technical Note: Spray Pattern Investigation of an Axial-Fan Airblast Precision Sprayer Using a Modified Vertical Patternator

Evaluation of the spray patterns is essential for making adjustments to an agricultural sprayer that would result in less chemical usage, less spray run-off onto the ground, and increased spray targeting accuracy. Therefore, in this study, a vertical patternator was fabricated to evaluate an axial-fan airblast sprayer. The airblast sprayer was retrofitted with variable rate nozzles and adjustable air-assist flow control, for citrus tree-specific precision spraying. Tests involved evaluating spray patterns at different nozzle flow rates and air-assist settings. Also, the air-assist measurements between the pair of nozzles were measured while the sprayer was stationary (no spray).

Pesticide exposure levels on surfaces within sprayer cabs

Surface levels of pesticides and herbicides were measured at various interior and exterior locations on five tractors (four with cabs using carbon–bed air–filtering systems and one without) and three commercial spray rigs. All equipment was used on farms or by commercial spray contractors for both fruit orchard and vegetable crop applications in central New York State. Sampling was conducted at the end of the growing season in October 2000. The highest chemical concentration levels were found on steering wheels and gauges, and in dust collected from the fabric seats. Contamination of the steering wheel and seat areas could result in operator exposure to pesticides if the tractor is used for other farm purposes such as baling hay or mowing grass where the operator may not be using personal protective equipment. Pesticide residues on the outlet louvers from the air filtering systems of the enclosed cabs often included more compounds and at higher levels than samples from the inlet louvers. A carbon bed once saturated may release compounds back into the tractor cab environment at a later point in time. Information on carbon bed efficiency and specificity of chemical removal in relation to bed size and chemical break through trends is not generally available from the manufacturer, but would be important in future studies to optimize carbon bed replacement schedules.

Use of Engineering Controls and Personal Protective Equipment by Certified Pesticide Applicators

A convenience survey of 702 certified pesticide applicators was conducted in three states to assess the use of 16 types of engineering controls and 13 types of personal protective equipment (PPE). Results showed that 8 out of 16 engineering devices were adopted by more than 50% of the respondents. The type of crop, size of agricultural operation, and the type of pesticide application equipment were found to influence the adoption of engineering controls. Applicators working on large farms, users of boom and hydraulic sprayers, and growers of field crops were more likely to use engineering devices. Respondents reported a high level of PPE use, with chemical-resistant gloves showing the highest level of compliance. An increase in pesticide applicators wearing appropriate headgear was reported. The majority of respondents did not wear less PPE simply because they used engineering controls. Those who did modify their PPE choices when employing engineering controls used tractors with enclosed cabs and/or were vegetable growers.

Real time canopy density validation using ultrasonic envelope signals and point quadrat analysis

We develop a non-expensive system to estimate the crop density using ultrasound sensors.Results show that the signal obtained is highly correlated with the PQA.Results show that the system has to be calibrated.Results show that the system has a small error (4.76%) during most of the season. An important goal for orchard and vineyard spraying systems is real-time adjustment of the operating parameters according to the target density, with the aim of keeping the droplets in the canopy, thus improving spray deposition and reducing spray drift. One apple orchard and two vineyards were scanned weekly using an ultrasonic system, the data provided by the sensors was correlated with the data obtained performing Point Quadrat Analysis. Results show the system has to be calibrated for each plant or variety and proved that the ultrasonic system is capable of sensing density within an average error of 4.76% during early, mid-season and full canopy, up to harvest date.

A fixed-spray system for Spotted Wing Drosophila management in high tunnel bramble crops

BACKGROUND: Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) is widely distributed in New York State, with raspberries being especially vulnerable. Its invasion has forced growers to dramatically increase insecticide applications, a significant challenge for high tunnel production. OBJECTIVE: A spray system fixed into the tunnel structure was used to apply pesticide sprays to control SWD in research and commercial bramble plantings in 2013 and 2014. METHODS: All sprays were applied through a system of microsprinkler nozzles attached to overhead polyethylene tubing supplied by a central pump. Identical applications were made in check tunnels using backpack sprayers. SWD traps were deployed near both treatments to check for adults, and weekly fruit samples were collected and held to rear out larvae infesting the berries. RESULTS: 2013 results were variable depending on site, ranging from equal low infestations for fixed vs. backpack at the commercial raspberry site, to 4× higher infestations in the fixed-spray blackberry planting vs. the control; in 2014, infestations were 3–4× higher in the fixed-spray than backpack treatments, although infestation levels in both treatments were commercially acceptable. Fixed-sprayer systems may be particularly useful in high tunnels, owing to their greater practicality, efficiency and pesticide safety.

Dosage Adjustment for Pesticide Application in Vineyards

Traditional pesticide application in grapevines causes large losses to the air and the ground, particularly in early to mid-season applications. Traditional application rates do not differ much according to the season. Canopy size varies as growers choose different row widths, varieties, and trellis designs; however, pesticide labels for vineyard sprays persist in using ground area based application rates. That is why dosage adjustments according to the canopy characteristics have been developed. In the trial described in this article, three adjustment methods, unit canopy row (UCR) (Australia), DOSAVINA (Spain and U.S.), and leaf wall area (LWA) (Germany and Belgium) are compared with traditional American application rates. This article presents the methodology and results of the study. In total, three trials were completed. Results demonstrated that at the early growth stage, deposits with the DOSAVINA and LWA methods were not significantly different from that of the traditional method, and deposits were not different from each other among DOSAVINA, LWA, and UCR (application rates were 327, 281, 234, and 187 L ha-1 for the traditional, LWA, DOSAVINA, and UCR methods, respectively). Concerning the uniformity of distribution, UCR achieved the best results in the early growth stage, followed by LWA. At the middle growth stage, LWA and the traditional method achieved similar results, while deposits using DOSAVINA and UCR were not significantly different. At the middle growth stage, the application rate was increased to 700 L ha-1 for the traditional method and to 560, 327, and 374 L ha-1, respectively, for LWA, DOSAVINA, and UCR. The application rate was increased significantly according to the hugely changed canopy size. The LWA method achieved the best results in terms of deposits and uniformity of distribution. At the late growth stage, the traditional method achieved the highest deposits, while LWA and DOSAVINA achieved similar deposits. The lowest deposits in the canopy occurred with DOSAVINA and UCR. The results showed a high potential for reducing application rates using alternative methods compared with the traditional method. This article discusses only the deposits and coverage rate. In the next few years, biological efficacy trials are planned to confirm the advantages of the selected dosage adjustment methods.