DRONE SPRAYING OF FUNGICIDES TO CONTROL ASIAN SOYBEAN RUST

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.973512507017

• Palavras-chave: Glycine max, Phakopsora pachyrhizi, remotely piloted aircraft

• Keywords: Glycine max, Phakopsora pachyrhizi, remotely piloted aircraft

• Abstract: This study aimed to determine the viability, assess technical parameters, and test the efficiency of agricultural drones as a vehicle for spraying fungicides to chemical control of Asian soybean rust, compared to application technologies using backpack sprayers and tractor-mounted sprayers. The trials were conducted over two soybean seasons, during the 2020/2021 and 2021/2022. In the first season, treatments consisted of three types of spraying: drone at 10 L/ha application rate, tractor-mounted sprayer at 150 L/ha, and backpack sprayer pressurized by CO2 at 150 L/ha. In the second season, a treatment using the drone at 5 L/ha application rate was included. Evaluations were made by estimating rust severity at different times, calculating the area under the disease progress curve, the percentage of control compared to the untreated control, leaf defoliation percentage, thousand-grain weight, and yield. The results indicate that fungicide spraying by drone can control Asian soybean rust as effectively as CO2-pressurized backpack sprayers and tractor-mounted sprayers.