Keeping Good Spray Records

The 2007 growing season is starting out in spits and spurts. We've seen our fair share of rain, been teased with sunny warm weather, but spring has not really kicked in to allow crops to be seeded into nice warm soil. This will likely change this week with warm, dry conditions forecast through this weekend. With this increased activity in the fields some herbicides will be applied before planting or soon after the crop has emerged. Farmers tend to get anxious when they are kept out of the field in the spring by wet weather for a number of days at a time. To compensate for this they may put in longer hours and also take short cuts. In this extremely busy time, the last thing you want to forget is maintaining your spray records.

You are encouraged or may be required to keep spray records to document the following:

• who sprayed
• what product was sprayed
• where was the field that was sprayed
• when was the field sprayed
• why was the field sprayed
• how was the field sprayed

There is no official spray record form which a farmer is expected to use to record their spray activities. There are a number of different record sheets available from various chemical companies, farm software companies and OMAFRA Publication 75. Some individual agricultural supply outlets have developed their own spray record sheets to suit their needs. Keeping good spray records is good for you and your operation.

Keeping good spray records means many things to many people. It's hard to know exactly what constitutes a good spray record. We can all spot a set of records that we feel does not record sufficient information about a particular spray job. If your spray job has resulted in some off-target crop injury, the investigators will want sufficient information in your records to determine if you followed the label instructions as they pertain to the application and use of a particular product. They will also use your records to determine if you did everything possible to apply the material such as not to cause crop injury off-site.

Here is a list of some of the things that you should record every time that you spray. You may wish to add other items that you feel are also important or you can use a shorter list - the choice is up to you.

• date
• field sprayed
• crop sprayed
• crop stage of growth
• weed stage of growth
• soil conditions
• start time
• acres sprayed
• finish time
• herbicide sprayed
• herbicide rate
• nozzles used
• operating pressure
• travel speed
• application rate (GPA or L/ha)
• air temperature
• relative humidity
• wind speed
• wind direction
• sprayer cleanout
• boom cleanout
  

There are hand held devices which make measuring weather parameters like wind speed, wind direction, air temperature and relative humidity quick and easy. Some farmers may consider this list of parameters to record excessive. If there are no problems that occur as a result of your spraying, you may be right. If however, there is a drift problem the list of questions asked will be many times longer. If there is actual drift damage, everything you did or did not do will be called into question. It's better to record more information and not need it than to record insufficient information, because you can't make it up.

Figure 1. Spray droplets being applied by this self-propelled sprayer may
be moved off-target by excess wind speeds.

Figure 2. This Kestrel model 1000 Pocket Wind Meter provides quick and accurate measurement of the wind speed in the field you are spraying. The digital display is easy to read and you can select .

Figure 3. Compass. With about five minutes of training you can use the wind speed units you wish this inexpensive compass to precisely determine wind direction

.

A number of handheld devices are available that can quickly and accurately display wind speed. These pocket windmeters provide an easy to read digital readout of the instantaneous or average wind speed in a variety of units. A windmeter is an essential instrument that should be in every sprayer cab. The sprayer operator should use a windmeter at least at the start and completion of every spray job. Some models of windmeters can also measure air temperature and relative humidity. You have to decide if you need to measure these weather factors when spraying your crops.

To accurately measure wind direction, invest in a compass. It takes about five minutes to learn how to use a compass and from there it should become second nature. A compass provides an extremely accurate measure of wind direction. Instead of describing wind direction as SW or NE, which is actually describing a sector, a compass gives you're the bearing of the wind in degrees which is a line.

Here are a handful of additional suggestions from an environmental lawyer as to what you should do before spraying.

1. read the label
2. calibrate your sprayer
3. get adequate operator training
4. know sensitive crops in the area
5. check your insurance policy coverage
6. use common sense

Spray records should be part of your routine spraying procedure. Keeping detailed records may seem like a nuisance if you don't need them. When there is a spray problem that you know was not a result of your actions, it's nice to have your records to back you up. If you don't have an accurate device to measure wind speed or direction - buy one. If you do have a windmeter and a compass use them every time you spray a field. These instruments are useless if you don't use them.

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