What kind of crops are suitable for drone spraying?
Spraying crops with precision is a challenging task with the traditional spraying methods. As a farmer, you know how much labor effort or cost it takes. This is why more farmers are increasingly switching to drone spraying for their crops.
Agriculture drone spraying is transforming modern farming with efficiency and cost savings. With the help of drones, it is simple to reduce excessive chemical use or increase yields.
Agriculture drones are now becoming an essential aspect of modern farming to spray fertilizer or pesticide exactly where they are needed for better harvest.
But do you know which kind of crops are best suited for drone spraying? Get to know with us which crops are suitable for drone spraying!
How Drone Spraying Works?
In simple words, drone spraying works like a high-tech sprinkler but with pinpoint precision!
Agriculture drones come with advanced GPS sensors or spray nozzles to spray fertilizers or pesticides evenly across your fields. Drones spray just where it is required using pre-programmed flight paths. As a result, it reduces a lot of chemical waste.
Why are farmers choosing agriculture drones over traditional methods? Drones save time, reduce labor effort as well as reduce chemical usage by targeting specific areas.
Farmers are increasingly using agriculture drones for almost everything, from spraying pesticides to improving crop nutrition.Â
On top of all, agricultural drones are the more environmentally friendly choice for spaying when compared to other traditional spraying methods.
Crops That Are Suitable For Drone Spraying
There is no denying that drone spraying offers many benefits to farmers. But did you know that not every crop reacts the same way to drone applications? Yes, choosing drone spraying for the best suitable crops gives you better yields.Â
Let us look at some of the crops that are best suited for drone spraying!
Cereals & Grains
When weeds or pests start to damage your crop, managing large fields of grains or cereals becomes a difficult task. This is where drone spraying makes your challenging task a simpler one!
Agriculture drones can cover large fields in minutes to spray pesticides or fertilizers more evenly. Also, drones reduce the excessive use of chemicals by spraying the just right dose for every plant.
When compared to manual spraying, you can save more time as well as get healthier crops with drone spraying.
Examples: Wheat, rice, maize, barley
Fruits & Vegetables
Accuracy is essential when spraying fruits or vegetables. This is because it can be easily damaged. Agriculture drones make it easy to spray specific areas where pests or diseases are found.
Hence, you can reduce chemical waste while growing healthy plants. Drones can also fly over rows of vegetables or orchards without causing any damage to the plants. Choosing drones for spraying fruits or vegetables is an efficient choice!
Examples: Tomatoes, potatoes, grapes, citrus fruits
Cotton
Pests like bollworms are common in cotton, which reduces the yield significantly. The pest management is now far more effective with the help of agricultural drones. Drones can increase efficiency by spraying pesticides directly into the crop canopy.
Drone spraying is also effective for other commercial crops (jute or tobacco) to improve crop health or pest control.
Tea or Coffee Plantations
Most tea or coffee plantations are on hilly terrain, which is more difficult to spray with traditional spraying methods.Â
Agricultural drones are perfect for coffee or tea plantations because they can fly over rough terrain to spray at the correct height. This allows farmers to save time as well as distribute fertilizer or pesticides more evenly.
Oilseed Crops
Undoubtedly, oilseed crops need uniform spraying for better harvest. This makes drone spraying ideal for oilseed crops. Drones improve plant health by evenly distributing fertilizers or pesticides with pre-programmed flight paths.
This uniform distribution helps to prevent patchy growth or inconsistent pest control.
Examples: Soybeans, sunflower, mustard
Sugarcane
Spraying sugarcane manually or with tractors can be difficult due to the crop's height. However, agricultural drones make it simple by flying above the crop canopy to spray efficiently.
Drone spraying helps to protect crops from pests or diseases without damaging the plants.
What Should You Consider When Choosing Drone Spraying?
Here are some things to consider when choosing drone spraying for crops!
Consider the crop height and density! For tall crops like sugarcane, drone spraying will be effective.
Most tea or coffee plantations are on hilly terrain. This is where drone spraying will be more helpful.
Drones are effective for targeting pests like bollworms in cotton.
Consider weather conditions before using drone spraying. The best time to spray is when the weather is calm.
It is important to think about the growing stage to avoid spraying when the crop is too young or sensitive.
Choose Drone Spraying for the Right Crops
Drone spraying is an essential aspect of smart farming. When you choose the drone spraying for the right crops, you can get many benefits like precision spraying or improving crop health.Â
Make use of agriculture drones to improve your yields in a more sustainable way!