10 Business Practices a Farm Owner Should Know

Farming is one of the significant economic activities practiced in almost all parts of the world. To maximize the profit, farmers should have the relevant skills and knowledge. For instance, in crop farming, spraying is an important activity with a very narrow margin for making errors. Therefore, the following are ten essential spraying tips a farmer should know.

Tiny droplets take longer to reach the target

A droplet with a diameter equal to that of a human hair (100 microns) takes about 11 seconds to fall a distance of 10 feet. At the same time, a smaller droplet of 50 microns in diameter takes 40 seconds to drop the same distance of 10 feet. It takes that long because of the higher air friction that drags it. Therefore, the possibility of wind current moving the smaller droplet away from the intended target is higher than the larger droplet due to the time difference.

Pressure determines the size of droplets

When you increase sprayer pressure, the size of the droplets decreases and vice versa; therefore, varying the pressure determines the movement of spray material in the air and the likelihood of hitting the intended target. Hence it is better to slow down and reduce nozzle pressure when spraying crops to minimize the drifting of the droplets.

Smaller droplets dry faster

They dry faster, especially when the temperatures are warmer. Water in a droplet with a diameter of 150 microns takes a few seconds to evaporate. After evaporation, the wind is likely to blow away the chemical residual, causing a drift problem.

Each nozzle produces unique droplet sizes

Despite sprayer nozzles being identical, their droplets are not of the same size. If you are spraying a medium size of the droplets from the nozzle is 225 to 325 microns, about 10% of the droplets will be smaller than 150 microns, while another 10% will be larger than 450 microns. Therefore, the small droplets will be drifting.

Spray drift is affected by the weather

When temperatures are warm, drift is very high. For instance, the drift distance at 80 degrees and 10 miles per hour wind speed will be equal to 50 degrees and 15 miles per hour wind speed. Also, a distance of three feet or more between the crop and nozzle increases drift significantly.

Balance between coverage and efficacy

If you are spraying 15 gallons of pesticide per acre, the coverage of 400 microns’ droplets is 270 drops per square inch. Reducing droplets size to 300 microns, the coverage will be 640 drops per inch. Hence the extra droplets increase the efficiency of contact pesticides. On the other hand, larger droplets are effective for systemic pesticides.

Reading the labels is essential

Different pesticides usually recommend the size of droplets for various crops. For example, several new pesticides recommend droplets size of 250 to 350 microns when spraying soybeans.

Venturi nozzles are better at balancing efficacy and drift

The new style of Venturi nozzles is better than the old style because they can produce larger droplets at a specific pressure. They have a tiny hole that allows air to get into the liquid forming air bubbles, and this increases the size of the droplets hence reducing drifting. Venturi nozzles’ new style operates at low pressure, thus balancing efficacy and drift.

Manage rate controllers

It is necessary to maintain constant coverage. In some instances, you can decide to increase spraying speed from 5 mph to 10 mph. to spray the same volume, you will need to double the flow rate and increase pressure by a certain factor to get the same volume. Hence controllers are good if you understand how they function.

You are in charge

Achieving the best results from your sprayer does not depend entirely on the controllers, nozzles, and other hardware. The knowledge you have about your equipment also determines the results. For instance, a solo sprayer is an excellent piece of equipment, but if you don’t have the skills to operate them, they can be just tools that you can easily misuse. Hence learn how to use the equipment to reduce the drifting of the spray

Autobiography

Eric Reyes is a passionate thought leader having been featured in 50 distinguished online and offline platforms. His passion and knowledge in Finance and Business made him a sought-after contributor providing valuable insights to his readers. You can find him reading a book and discussing current events in his spare time.