Sprayers101 Archive
Search our archive of expert-written, data-driven analysis of spraying techniques, equipment, strategies, and more.
Working with an Arborist: Drive-Along Diaries #1
April 23rd, 3:45 am I was excited. Today would be my first in a series of drive-along experiences with Ontario sprayer operators. However, to…
The Drive-Along Diaries: Prologue
I feel it’s important to occasionally remind myself why I do what I do, and who I’m doing it for. With that, let me…
Basic Sprayer Math Demystified
Sprayer math can be intimidating, but the effort gives solid value. When combined with a calibrated sprayer you reap the following benefits: There are…
Nitrogen Application Technology in Winter Wheat
With an ever growing selection of options for nozzles and streamer bars, many growers are asking the question, what should I outfit my sprayer…
What’s a Ramsay Valve?
This article has been modified with kind permission from an article on Retrofit Parts. Liquid pressure in an agricultural sprayer must be controlled so…
Exploring Spray Drones in Soybean
White mould is caused by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and it’s an annual threat to soybean when cool, wet conditions correspond with flowering. Variety…
How to Succeed with a Soil Drench Application in Strawberries
In 2016, Ontario berry growers were surveyed to determine the typical spray volume they used to apply unspecified crop protection products. For strawberry growers…
Exploding Sprayer Myths (ep.14): Maverick’s Mojo
Have you lost that loving feeling? Well here’s your chance to get it back while learning how to operate spray drones safely, effectively, and…
Insecticidal Management of Rangeland Grasshoppers using RPAS
This article summarizes a 2022 paper that can be downloaded here. Grasshoppers are an integral part of rangeland ecosystems, but population outbreaks can cause…
The Economics of Spot Sprays
At first glance, spot sprays are a no-brainer. Why spray a whole field when you can save product by spraying just the weeds? But…
Greeneye makes impressive debut
Green-on-green sprayer competes with Blue River and Bilberry One distinguishing feature of the new agriculture is the rapid development of new technologies. Ideas move…
Evaluating Wheat Head Coverage from Two New Nozzles
We’ve written extensively about angled flat fan nozzles and their ideal operating parameters (i.e. pressure, boom height, droplet size, volume and travel speed) for…
Rotary-Wing Drone Spray Coverage and Drift in Field Corn
This work was performed with Mark Ledebuhr (Application Insight LLC.), Adrian Rivard (Drone Spray Canada) and Adam Pfeffer (Bayer Crop Science – funding partner).…
Avoiding Skips from PWM Sprayers
Does this sound familiar? “This year was the first year we used a growth regulator on our wheat. After heading, we noticed a wavy…
Wheat Head Coverage from Rotary Drones
Editor’s Note: This work was performed in 2023. A more recent exploration into wheat head coverage was performed in 2025. This article is not…
Spraying from Seven to Seven (or) Drop Pipes Next Season – Parody
We were long overdue for a new classic rock parody, so we decided to re-tackle one of the greatest rock ballads ever written. With…
Calibrating a Plot Sprayer for Airblast Crops
The calibration of handheld plot sprayers is an important part of agricultural research, and this article already covers all the bases… as long as…
Calibrating a Plot Sprayer
It’s the rite of passage of many agricultural summer students across the world: applying experimental treatments to field plots using a research sprayer. The…
How to Calibrate a Drone
Calibration is a fundamental step in any spray application. To apply the correct product rate, we need to know how much liquid per unit…
Airblast Nozzles – Distributing Flow
There’s a certain deer-in-headlights expression that creeps onto a sprayer operator’s face when we discuss nozzle selection. We sympathize with our field sprayer clients given…
Airblast Sprayers for Small Operations
Did you come here looking for advice on which sprayer is best for your small operation? Are you looking to ditch the backpack mist…
Air-Assisted Boom Sprayers
Air-assisted boom sprayers have been around since the 70s. More common in Europe than North America, they have demonstrated value in mitigating drift and…
Mode of Action and Spray Quality
The decision on which application method is best for herbicides boils down to two main factors: (a) target type and (b) mode of action.…
Drone Sprayers – Are we Ready?
One of the fastest moving new agricultural technologies is spray drones. Hardly a month goes by without some sort of new capability, some new…
Recirculating Boom Options
If you read this site, you know we’re fans of recirculating booms. We love them for three reasons: If you’re new to the concept…