CTS for airblast sprayers – A learning process

As Canadian farmers begin to adopt closed transfer systems (CTS), growing pains are to be expected. Instructions for installation and use are primarily European and field-sprayer centric. We’ve seen precious little in the way of practical advice for incorporating CTS into airblast operations. This is a “live” article which we’ll update periodically. We encourage readers […]

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Airblast Spraying in Poor Conditions

Some springs are tougher than others. This article was originally written in 2019, which was particularly challenging. The frequency and duration of rain events left limited opportunity for orchard sprays. Even then, the periods between rains were transitions between warm and moist conditions and cold fronts, which makes wind gusty and changeable. These same periods […]

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Adjusting Orchard Airblast Sprayers for Spring

For those on the fly, hit play to hear a shortened, narrated version. I have far too many photos and videos of airblast sprayers blowing straight up through treetops, or downwind through the last row, during spring applications. I chose not to include any in this article to avoid people recognizing the operations. If you […]

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Airblast Spring Start-up and Winterizing

Any description of airblast sprayer start-up must, contextually, make assumptions on how it was winterized for long-term storage. This cyclic relationship is why I use a chicken-and-egg title slide when giving this presentation. The inability to describe one process without the other is further complicated by the possibility that the sprayer is brand new and was […]

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Establishing an optimal airblast carrier volume

An orchardist taught me this trick: If you want to know if spray will penetrate a canopy, you should be able to see sunlight through the shadow at high noon.

North American product labels may or may not include carrier volume recommendations. When they do, it could be based on a two-dimensional value like the planted area, or perhaps on row length which is more appropriate for trellised crops that form contiguous hedge-like canopy walls. Volume may be tied to product concentration, which sets minimum […]

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