Coverage | Sprayers 101

Perspective on rates, volumes and coverage

Jason Deveau (Spray_Guy) July 23, 2020

This short article is a thought exercise designed to give some perspective on chemical rates, carrier volumes and the foliar area we expect them to protect. Imagine we are spraying the fungicide Captan on highbush blueberry. In Canada, the label rate is to apply ...Read More

Mode of Action and Spray Quality

Tom Wolf (Nozzle_Guy) May 22, 2020

The decision on application method for herbicides boils down to two main factors: (a) target type and (b) mode of action. In general, broadleaf plants are easier to target and wet due to their comparatively large target (leaf) size and their high wettability. There ...Read More

Rainfastness of Insecticides and Fungicides on Fruit

Wendy McFadden-Smith September 24, 2019

This article was co-authored by Kristy Grigg-McGuffin, OMAFRA Horticulture IPM Specialist In view of the frequent heavy rains in many regions this season, understanding rainfastness, or the ability of a pesticide to withstand rainfall, is important to ensure proper efficacy. All pesticides require a ...Read More

What’s with dew? – Tips #9

Jason Deveau (Spray_Guy) July 5, 2019

When warm air is cooled, it loses some of its moisture-holding capabilities. This change often occurs at night, when plants (and other objects) cool. Once the temperature of the surface of the leaves, for example, drops below the dewpoint, it causes water to condense, ...Read More

How Airblast Spray Droplets Behave (or Misbehave)

Jason Deveau (Spray_Guy) January 21, 2019

Some pesticide labels require or prohibit certain droplet sizes to reduce the potential for drift. But, even when labels are silent about size restrictions, operators should be aware of the potential for droplet size to affect coverage. In the case of airblast, droplets should ...Read More

Coverage Articles