Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/744696
40 NOVEMBER 2016 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com A s commercial apple growers plant more profitable high-density orchards, those longstanding traditional orchards, with wide rows of stately trees 20 feet tall, are gradually becoming a thing of the past. The sprayers growers use to apply chemicals in these newer orchards? Not so much yet. Instead, at the start of each season, many growers roll out the airblast sprayers their grandfathers used, along with the widely held belief, "If it ain't broke, why fix it?" Those sprayers, designed or built in the 1960s, fea- ture a large axial fan to push a liquid spray of water and chemicals across wide rows and into huge canopies. Growers needed those sprayers in traditional orchards, but today, orchard systems have changed, and in modern orchards they are often spraying at too high a volume, too high a speed and missing their targets. That's the message of Andrew Landers, a faculty fellow at Cornell University's Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future and one of the world's leading spray technology researchers. Landers touted the benefits of modern sprayers at the International Fruit Tree Association Study Tour in New York in July, saying growers can more effec- tively deliver their spray, thereby reducing chemical use, Spraying with precision IFTA New York study tour Cornell researcher offers tips for making your grandfather's sprayer more effective, but says precision sprayers are the future. by Shannon Dininny Products & Solutions for Agricultural Safety • Chemical Gloves • Full-Face Respirator • Half-Face Respirator • Chemical Splash Goggles • Chemical Resistant Boots • Disposable and Reusable Suits Available Add a Cooling-Vest on hot days as a heat stress precaution www.oxarc.com Washington - Idaho - Oregon - Shop Online 1-800-765-9055 Safety First: Follow chemical manufacturer's guidelines for decontaminating the spray suite. Do not use suit if there are cuts, holes, tears, missing snaps, or separated seams. Chemical Protective Suit