Fusarium head blight, commonly known as wheat scab, remains one of the most challenging diseases for North Dakota wheat growers. The disease can reduce yield, lower grain quality, and increase deoxynivalenol, or DON, a toxin that can result in dockage or rejection at the elevator. Fungicides can help manage wheat scab, but successful control depends heavily on timely application during the narrow flowering window.
That timing can be difficult in wet years. When wheat reaches early flowering, field conditions may be too wet for a ground sprayer to enter without causing rutting or delaying treatment. Spray drones may provide another option because they can fly over wet fields and apply fungicide without driving through the crop or soil. However, more local field data are needed to understand how drone applications compare with ground sprayers under North Dakota conditions.
This season, Dr. Karn’s Lab at the NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center conducted a replicated field study to compare fungicide application methods for managing Fusarium head blight in hard red spring wheat. The study included three treatments: an untreated control, fungicide applied with a ground sprayer, and fungicide applied with a Hylio AG-230 spray drone. Miravis Ace was applied at the same product rate, with the ground sprayer using 15 gallons per acre and the drone using 5 gallons per acre. The drone application was made at 12 feet above ground level and 10 miles per hour.
Source : ndsu.edu