Want to save yourself headaches later this season? Take a rainy day this spring to set up your sprayer and create your 2021 application plan. Consider these fundamentals and steps to ensure spraying success.
Equipment Setup
Start with a clean tank, says Andrew Adams, BASF claims and stewardship manager. “Contamination from other products can damage susceptible crops,” he says. “Make sure all of your hoses and lines are free of cracks and debris.” Also check to make sure your sprayer is calibrated and your nozzles’ spray patterns are correct.
Label Requirements
Read and follow your chemical’s label, Adams says. Each label is different and contains important, product-specific information and application instructions. “When you are putting in multiple products, follow the most restrictive label and check for additional local and state requirements,” Adams says.
Weather Conditions
Monitor your forecast. “A light breeze of 3 mph to 5 mph is generally desirable, as it suggests you are in stable air conditions,” says Tim Stuenkel, TeeJet Technologies global marketing communications manager. “A dead calm suggests a temperature inversion is present or forming. Unstable air creates conditions that favor long-distance vapor drift.”
Tank Cleanout
“As you switch between crops and various chemistries, you need to make sure the sprayer gets flushed out well, or you can end with crop damage due to incompatibility between the chemical and the crop or between different varieties of the same crop,” Stuenkel says. “Some chemistries can cause damage even at extremely low concentrations.”
Record Keeping
Keep records on your applications, Adams says. Include application rates, weather conditions, equipment calibrations, etc. The product label will tell you everything to document and for how long the records should be kept, but state requirements may be more stringent. Also, records will help you review the success of your applications, Adams says.
