Farmers had a full day of sprayer education at the Calnash Ag Event Centre April 22 during a Cervus Equipment sprayer clinic.
Attendees were invited to get a taste of new technology available to farmers and were shown care and maintenance tips to keeping a sprayer running well.
Perhaps even more interesting was a presentation by Tom Wolf, a leading expert in spray nozzle technology. Wolf’s excitement of spray nozzles is akin to a kid in a toy store; in an interview with Ponoka News he was able to give a brief explanation of the importance of spray nozzles and sprayers.
“It’s (sprayer) the most heavily used piece of equipment on the farm,” said Wolf.
Sprayers used to be the least used piece of equipment, partly over the cost. A new sprayer can cost upwards of $400,000. But Wolf said farmers now use sprayers for fertilizer, pesticide, fungicide and other applications and will cover a farmer’s field three or four times in year.
Spray nozzles are an important factor to a sprayer, said Wolf; important enough that manufacturers such as John Deere do not manufacture a sprayer with nozzles built in. They leave that to the farmer to decide because of different variables.
This is where Wolf steps in. Much of his research has advanced technology in spray nozzles and he says a set of nozzles will determine what happens with a chemical.
He says outfitting a sprayer with three sets of nozzles will cost a farmer $2,000 — a bargain compared to the rest of the machine — and if done right, will increase a farmer’s production.
“Without the right nozzle on this unit, it is useless,” Wolf stated.
He provided attendees with tips on the best boom height, ideal times to spray and what nozzles work better with what chemicals.
Technology improves farm practices
Speaking on sprayer technology was Jason Riseley, integrated solutions specialist with Cervus Equipment.
In the last six months new technology has been developed that allows a farmer to monitor a sprayer’s operation from the comfort of his home. Riseley says technology through a company called JDLink is designed for larger farm operations where the farmer is more of a manager of equipment and operators.
Farmers can closely monitor all parts of the sprayer from their computer or on a mobile Android or iOS device. Plus, equipment issues are transmitted to a dealership through JDLink.
“It’s another tool they can use to manage their operators,” explained Riseley.
Another innovation with this technology and newer sprayers is the ability to transfer data wirelessly, directly to equipment.
Currently, if a farmer wants to load field boundaries, set auto track A/B lines or even add field prescriptions, they must enter the information into a computer and then transfer it with a USB flash drive.
This new technology removes that step and Riseley suggest this will be of additional benefit to a farmer who needs a new prescription — data that applies input rates to a field — can now call an agronomist who can set the rates, and then apply the data wirelessly.
“This is just the beginning of the ever-growing technology,” he explained.
Farmers were also shown new John Deere sprayer models that have increased capacity and a longer wheelbase to balance the weight of the sprayer tank.