Sprayers101 Archive
Search our archive of expert-written, data-driven analysis of spraying techniques, equipment, strategies, and more.
Exploding Sprayer Myths (ep.8): Volume
In this episode of Exploding Sprayer Myths, we lay out four steps to determining the most appropriate spray volume required to achieve good coverage.…
Deciding on the Right Way to Spray
“What is the right way to apply this pesticide?” It’s one of the classic questions. Applicators know that spray method determines the efficacy of…
Pulse Width Modulation For Newbies
I was recently asked to describe Pulse Width Modulation to a non-farming audience. My instinct was to send them back to what we’d already…
Storing Pesticide Mix Overnight
Not being able to finish a tank due to weather or any other reason happens to just about everyone. Is it OK to simply leave…
The Buzzword Conversation – Parody
Buzzwords: Addictive vocabulary with a shelf life.We love these terms, and they seem to make their way into our language virtually overnight. But perhaps it’s gone…
How Do Hydraulic Low-Drift Nozzles Work?
Low drift nozzles have become the standard way to apply pesticides from a boom sprayer. In order to use them properly, we need to…
Exploding Sprayer Myths (ep.7): Boom Height
It’s a new season of Exploding Sprayer Myths so we’ve got a new opening sequence! In this episode we demonstrate the importance of nozzle…
Should Backpack Sprayers be Used to Test Airblast Products? – Part 2
In Part One of this article, we showed that approximately 40% of minor use label expansions and registrant submissions rely on data from hand…
Should Backpack Sprayers be Used to Test Airblast Products? – Part 1
Peer-reviewed journal publications claim there is a significant difference in spray coverage and deposition patterns when an agrichemical product is applied using an airblast…
Three Features that Should be Standard on all Sprayers
One of my main activities in the winter is public speaking. Attending producer meetings gives me the privilege of meeting many farmers, learning about…
Spray Drift – Why is it still happening?
Despite the abundance of information available on spray drift, we continue to see widespread incidents of damage to a variety of crops every year.…
How to Properly Set Up a Crop Sprayer
Article reprinted with kind permission from an original article written by Oliver Hill in the February, 2017 edition of Farmers Weekly. Photos ©Kathy Horniblow. Crop spraying…
Sprayers Haiku 2017
In 2016 we asked the Twitterverse to play along as we wrote sprayer poems in the form of haiku. The response was tremendous and…
Canopy Management for Improved Airblast Coverage
Managing the canopy of any perennial crop (e.g. pruning, hedging, leaf stripping, etc.) is an important consideration. The benefits are manifold: It affects the…
Boom Collisions on Twitter
An interesting technology recently came to our attention. The Horsch BoomSight detects potential obstacles and as the sprayer passes it raises the boom to…
Does Higher Pressure Increase Spray Penetration?
A very common question we hear at sprayer demonstrations is: “I want to drive the spray deeper into the canopy – does higher pressure…
Spray Equipment From the 2016 Great Lakes EXPO
Michigan’s Great Lakes EXPO is a massive horticultural convention that draws international speakers and more than 4,000 attendees to Grand Rapids every December. Like…
Selecting a Field Sprayer Nozzle
This article is reproduced, with permission, from Ohio State University Extension’s factsheet FABE-528. Although nozzles are some of the least expensive components of a sprayer,…
Steps to Calibrate your Field Sprayer
Calibrating a boom sprayer is not as difficult as it sounds. There are several ways to calibrate a sprayer. Regardless of which method you…
How to evaluate airblast coverage
Note: While there’s nothing wrong with this article, a more recent article on this subject can be found here. It’s nearing the end of…
The Sprayer Operator – The Most Important Factor in Spraying
Spray application is one of the most important activities regularly done in any crop operation. It can also be one of the most expensive and…
Evaluating an Anti-Drift Adjuvant in an Airblast Sprayer
Most pesticides are either pre-formulated with the required adjuvants, or the label specifies their addition. However, compelling claims by manufacturers create interest in tank mixing additional adjuvants…
How to Assess Spray Coverage in Vegetable Crops
Sprayer operators recognize the importance of matching their sprayer settings to the crop to optimize efficacy. For example, spraying a protective fungicide in field…
Continuous Rinsing should be considered in North America
Overview This article expands on an earlier article: here. Before we dive into the details, let’s start with a quick video summary filmed by…
Thrips Control in Cut Flowers – A Good Try
In August, 2016, we were contacted by a cut-flower grower specializing in Dahlias. There are photos in this article, but they don’t do justice…