Comparison of Spray Configurations in a Spray Cabin Design for Ornamental Potted Plants: A Proof-of-Concept Study

2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 647-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid Zwertvaegher ◽  
Dieter Foqué ◽  
Donald Dekeyser ◽  
Stephanie Van Weyenberg ◽  
David Nuyttens
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Pest Management ◽  
Pest Management ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Spray Deposition ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
Spray Application ◽  
Concept Study ◽  
Potted Plants

Abstract. With the implementation of integrated pest management in the European Union, growers are obliged to manage pests in a manner that minimizes health and environmental risks due to the use of plant protection products. Among other approaches, this goal can be achieved by optimizing spray application techniques. As an alternative to the predominantly used handheld equipment, such as spray guns, spray boom systems might substantially improve spray application, and thus crop protection management, in greenhouses. The aim of this proof-of-concept study was to compare different spray configurations in a spray cabin designed to spray ornamental potted plants that are moving on a conveyor belt. Seven different spray configurations were examined for optimal spray deposition in two crops (azalea and ivy) using mineral chelate tracers. The deposition tests showed that the presented prototype can satisfactorily spray potted plants up to a height of 25 cm including the pot height. The best spray deposition was found with two flat-fan nozzles oriented 35° upward, spraying at 1.0 bar and an application rate of 1047 L ha-1. This configuration increased deposition on the underside of the leaves and at the middle foliage layer compared to the other configurations that were evaluated. The spray cabin with a band spray setting has potential to mitigate the use of plant protection products and achieve a more efficient spray application compared to traditional handheld techniques and broadcast spray boom techniques. Keywords: Crop protection, Integrated pest management, Nozzle type, Spray deposition.

LEGAL REGULATION OF PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES APPLICATION IN VEGETATION IN UKRAINE IN THE LIGHT OF EU REQUIREMENTS

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nataliia Karpinska ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Pest Management ◽  
Pest Management ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Integrated System ◽  
Control Mechanisms ◽  
Pests And Diseases ◽  
Phytosanitary Measures ◽  
Environmental Goals

The article is devoted to the characterization of phytosanitary legislation of Ukraine through the prism of EU requirements. It is indicated that in Ukraine there is a fairly extensive phytosanitary legislation, based on the Law of Ukraine «On Plant Protection» which contains a legal definition of the basic concept. Based on the analysis of this law, the main features of the legal category «plant protection» are identified and characterized as: systemic, preventive economic and environmental goals, a broad object structure of plant protection relations and protection against biological threats (pests (insects, mites, microorganisms, nematodes) , rodents), pathogens (phytopathogens: viruses, bacteria, fungi), weeds (unwanted vegetation in lands, crops, plantations of crops, which competes with them for light, water, nutrients, and contributes to the spread of pests and diseases )). Particular attention is paid to the characteristics of the basic requirements for plant protection, which are divided into three groups, namely: technological requirements, environmental and legal requirements. It is established that in contrast to the limited and debatable list of rights of agricultural entities in the field of plant protection, the responsibilities of such entities are quite detailed and presented in the article in three groups: responsibilities for independent action; responsibilities for promoting the actions of others; responsibilities for the handling of plant protection products. It was found that the legislator in formulating the general responsibilities of agricultural entities (in the opinion of the author of the article), missed an important obligation to apply integrated plant protection, and this aspect is quite fundamental. Based on the analysis of EU legislation, the idea that the implementation of the principles of integrated pest management should be mandatory, and the implementation of integrated pest management is the growth of healthy crops with minimal possible disturbances in agroecosystems and the promotion of natural pest control mechanisms. Methods of plant protection are considered and characterized. The conclusion is substantiated that the modern integrated system of measures is based on the complex application of agrotechnical, chemical and biological methods of plant protection, where the main criterion is the optimization of the chemical method of protection.

ICT based decision support systems for Integrated Pest Management (IPM)in India: A review

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Niranjan Singh ◽  
Neha Gupta
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Decision Support ◽  
Integrated Pest Management ◽  
Decision Support Systems ◽  
Pest Management ◽  
Pest Control ◽  
Support Systems ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Management Information

Pests cause significant losses to crop production in India. Excessive and irrational use of chemicals for pest control not only degrades the environment but also affects the human health due to presence of pesticide residue. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is such a technology, which combines multiple ecologically safer and economically sound pest control methods. IPM being knowledge intensive approach to crop protection emphasizes appropriate decision-making based on knowledge of interaction of the crop, pests, beneficial organisms that prey on pests and whole lot of other information. IPM practitioners or farmers require timely access to the relevant pest management information/knowledge and expertise. So the improved methods of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) such as Decision Support Systems (DSSs) greatly help the farmers in accessing the pest management information and expertise. DSSs are software tools that support decision-making activities. They collect, organize, integrate and analyze all types of information required for decision making and finally use the analysis to recommend the most appropriate action. Many DSSs have been developed for in the field of plant protection by various public and private organizations in the country which have been elaborated in this review.

scholarly journals Comparing Spray Gun and Spray Boom Applications in Two Ivy Crops with Different Crop Densities

HortScience ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dieter Foqué ◽  
Jan G. Pieters ◽  
David Nuyttens
Keyword(s):  
Plant Protection ◽  
Spray Deposition ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Spray Application ◽  
Adaxial Side ◽  
Crop Density ◽  
Application Techniques ◽  
Spray Distribution ◽  
Greenhouse Growers ◽  
Spray Gun

Flemish greenhouse growers predominantly use handheld spray guns and lances for their crop protection purposes despite the heavy workload and high risk for operator exposure associated with these techniques. These spray application techniques have also shown to be less effective than spray boom equipment under many conditions. Handheld spraying techniques are less expensive, however, and they are more flexible in practical use. Many growers also erroneously believe that high spray volumes and pressures are needed to assure good plant protection. The aim of this work was to evaluate the spray deposition, penetration, and uniformity between a manually pulled horizontal spray boom as compared with a spray gun under controlled laboratory conditions. In this study, we evaluated six spray application techniques, i.e., three spray boom and three spray gun techniques. In general, the deposition results were comparable between the spray boom and the spray gun applications. The spray boom applications, however, resulted in a more uniform spray distribution. At the plant level, the spray distribution was not uniform for any of the techniques used; the highest deposits were observed on the upper (or adaxial) side of the top leaves. Using spray guns at a higher spray pressure did not improve spray penetration in the canopy or deposition on the bottom (or abaxial) side of the leaves. Of the different nozzle types tested on the spray boom, the extended range flat fan XR 8003 gave the best results. Crop density clearly affected crop penetration and deposition on the bottom side of the leaves.

scholarly journals Field assessment of a pulse width modulation (PWM) spray system applying different spray volumes: duty cycle and forward speed effects on vines spray coverage

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Grella ◽  
Fabrizio Gioelli ◽  
Paolo Marucco ◽  
Ingrid Zwertvaegher ◽  
Eric Mozzanini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Precision Agriculture ◽  
Pulse Width ◽  
Pulse Width Modulation ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Field Conditions ◽  
Advanced Technology ◽  
Real Field ◽  
Spray Application ◽  
Spray System

AbstractThe pulse width modulation (PWM) spray system is the most advanced technology to obtain variable rate spray application without varying the operative sprayer parameters (e.g. spray pressure, nozzle size). According to the precision agriculture principles, PWM is the prime technology that allows to spray the required amount where needed without varying the droplet size spectra which benefits both the uniformity of spray quality and the spray drift reduction. However, some concerns related to the effect of on–off solenoid valves and the alternating on/off action of adjacent nozzles on final uneven spray coverage (SC) have arisen. Further evaluations of PWM systems used for spraying 3D crops under field conditions are welcomed. A tower-shaped airblast sprayer equipped with a PWM was tested in a vineyard. Twelve configurations, combining duty cycles (DC: 30, 50, 70, 100%) and forward speeds (FS: 4, 6, 8 km h−1), were tested. Two methodologies, namely field-standardized and real field conditions, were adopted to evaluate the effect of DC and FS on (1) SC variability (CV%) along both the sprayer travel direction and the vertical spray profile using long water sensitive papers (WSP), and (2) SC uniformity (IU, index value) within the canopy at different depths and heights, respectively. Furthermore, the SC (%) and deposit density (Nst, no stains cm−2), determined using short WSP, were used to evaluate the spray application performances taking into account the spray volumes applied. Under field-controlled conditions, the pulsing of the PWM system affects both the SC variability measured along the sprayer travel direction and along the vertical spray profile. In contrast, under real field conditions, the PWM system does not affect the uniformity of SC measured within the canopy. The relationship between SC and Nst allowed identification of the ranges of 200–250 and 300–370 l ha−1 as the most suitable spray volumes to be applied for insecticide and fungicide plant protection products, respectively.

scholarly journals Past and future of sustainable viticulture in Switzerland

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 01013
Author(s):  
O. Viret ◽  
J.-L. Spring ◽  
V. Zufferey ◽  
K. Gindro ◽  
C. Linder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pest Management ◽  
Cover Crop ◽  
Mating Disruption ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Crop Management ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Grape Berry ◽  
Calibration Development ◽  
Education Process

Switzerland is a pioneer country in the development of integrated production (IP) and integrated pest management (IPM). The overall goal is sustainability at the ecological, economic and social level to produce high quality grapes. In 1993, the IP-IPM head-organisation VITISWISS was created. The starting points were the improvement of pest management by the biocontrol of spider mites and the control of grape berry moths by mating disruption and an optimal soil management, followed over the years by state-of-the-art sprayer calibration, development of disease forecasting models (AgroMeteo, VitiMeteo), leaf-area adapted dosage of plant protection products, enhanced biodiversity, water and cover crop management. The efforts and the results gained in a continuous education process by the growers are considerable, but not enough for consumers and politics concerned by the use of plant protection products. The absence of acaricides and insecticides as well as forecasting systems available on the internet (www.agrometeo.ch) for the control of downy and powdery mildew, represent the major progresses. Where mechanisation is possible, herbicides can progressively be replaced by mechanical technics, which is not possible in steep vineyards. The general irrational unscientific trend against “synthetic” plant protection products requests alternatives for the control of fungal diseases and for cover crop management under the vine rows to avoid excessive water-nitrogen competition particularly in the actual context of climate change.

scholarly journals Critical Success Factors for the Adoption of Decision Tools in IPM

Agronomy ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 710 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rossi ◽  
Sperandio ◽  
Caffi ◽  
Simonetto ◽  
Gilioli
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Pest Management ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Critical Success Factors ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Decision Tools ◽  
Critical Success

The rational control of harmful organisms for plants (pests) forms the basis of the integrated pest management (IPM), and is fundamental for ensuring agricultural productivity while maintaining economic and environmental sustainability. The high level of complexity of the decision processes linked to IPM requires careful evaluations, both economic and environmental, considering benefits and costs associated with a management action. Plant protection models and other decision tools (DTs) have assumed a key role in supporting decision-making process in pest management. The advantages of using DTs in IPM are linked to their capacity to process and analyze complex information and to provide outputs supporting the decision-making process. Nowadays, several DTs have been developed, tackling different issues, and have been applied in different climatic conditions and agricultural contexts. However, their use in crop management is restricted to only certain areas and/or to a limited group of users. In this paper, we review the current state-of-the-art related to DTs for IPM, investigate the main modelling approaches used, and the different fields of application. We also identify key drivers influencing their adoption and provide a set of critical success factors to guide the development and facilitate the adoption of DTs in crop protection.

scholarly journals OPTIMIZATION OF CONVENTIONAL AGRICULTURE (TILLAGE X FERTILIZATION X PLANT PROTECTION) FOR SOYBEAN IN THE TRANSYLVANIAN PLAIN

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 44-52
Author(s):  
Felicia Mureșanu ◽  
Teodor Rusu ◽  
Felicia Chețan ◽  
Rozalia Kadar ◽  
Diana Hrișcău
Keyword(s):  
Plant Protection ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Plant Size ◽  
Soil Tillage ◽  
Agricultural Technologies ◽  
Conventional Agriculture ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Tillage System

"The purpose of this study was to improve conventional agricultural technologies in soybean crop to ensure a higher yield and reduced environmental impact under climate conditions specific for the Transylvanian Plain. For the experimental design a three-factorial experiment was set up (tillage x fertilization x plant protection products). Factor interaction was evaluated using formula AxBxC-R:4x4x4-3 to highlight the benefits of the practices. This study examined yield crops and size of the soybean plants in an effort to identify best practices. Yield was highly increased in conventional soil tillage system (3420 kg/ha), whereas for the minimum soil tillage system and for direct sowing there were no significant difference 2755-2995 kg/ha and 2605 kg/ha, respectively. Crop performance in terms of yield was highly influenced by the soil tillage system (57.5%), followed by plant protection treatments (22.9%) and fertilization (11.8%). Fertilization with N40P40 + gulle + green fertilizer ensured the highest soybean production (3132 kg/ha). Plant protection treatments during vegetation determined significant yield increases, with high influence of insecticides and a cummulative effect when both fungicides and insecticides were used (3193 kg/ha). Highest size of plants was registered in conventional soil tillage system. Overall crop protection treatments during vegetation (insecticide + fungicide) triggered not significant increases in plant size, except Teo TD soybean cultivar."

scholarly journals Evidence-Based Phytoiatry, a New Approach in Crop Protection

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 171
Author(s):  
Marcello Iriti ◽  
Elena Maria Varoni
Keyword(s):  
Plant Protection ◽  
Crop Protection ◽  
Plant Protection Products ◽  
Scientific Quality ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Novel Concept ◽  
Based Medicine ◽  
First Time

In the past decades, the scientific quality of biomedical studies has been hierarchically depicted in the well-known pyramid of evidence-based medicine (EBM), with higher and higher levels of evidence moving from the base to the top. Such an approach is missing in the modern crop protection and, therefore, we introduce, for the first time, this novel concept of evidence-based phytoiatry in this field. This editorial is not a guideline on plant protection products (PPP) registration, but rather a scientific and technical support for researchers involved in the general area of plant pathology, providing them with evidence-based information useful to design critically new studies.

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