Drones and Foliar Fungicide Application to Soybeans
Drones are unmanned aerial vehicles [UAV] that are being promoted to apply pesticides and fertilizers to crops being grown in the U.S., as well as seeding of cover crops. Benefits from using drones to make these applications include 1) applications can be made when field conditions are unsuitable for ground equipment, 2) detection devices on the drones can be used to detect the presence of a disease so that a fungicide is only applied where needed, 3) drones can more effectively spray fields with uneven margins, and 4) they can more easily avoid obstacles such as poles or a tree line.
A July 2024 article titled “Can Fungicide Applications via Drones Effectively Control Soybean Foliar Diseases” by Carol Brown highlights the following details about and results from research conducted at Purdue Univ.
• The research was conducted to determine the effectiveness of using drones to apply foliar fungicides to manage soybean diseases.
• The research involved comparing fungicide applications by drones to those applied by traditional ground methods.
• Fungicides were applied at R3 and R5 soybean growth stages in carrier volumes of 2 and 5 gal./acre.
• After one year of this preliminary research, fungicide applications by drones performed as well at controlling targeted diseases as those applied by a ground rig.
• There were no yield differences between the types of application–i.e. drone or ground rig–or the carrier volumes.
• The authors pointed out that battery life, drone tank capacity, and licensing and certification requirements that depend on the size of the drone are drawbacks to using drones for applications of agricultural materials to crops. Also, the applied pesticide must be labeled for aerial application.
In the long term, research of this kind will be needed to confirm that using drones to apply foliar fungicides to soybeans is both practical and economically feasible under myriad conditions that will include level of disease pressure and denseness of the canopy, as well as spraying capacity of the drone that is used. This should result in the development of a standard operating procedure for drone application of foliar fungicides to soybeans to control a targeted disease.
Midsouth producers are encouraged to support and follow research with drones to ensure they can be used effectively and economically to apply materials to a planned and/or growing soybean crop.
Click on the following article titles for additional information about drones and their use for agricultural applications.
Drones in agriculture: What are they used for?
Using Drones in Agriculture and Natural Resources
An Overview of Drones in Agriculture
Composed by Larry G. Heatherly, Aug. 2024, larryh91746@gmail.com