Sprayers could be be made simpler, experts say.

What to look for in a new sprayer

Consider good cleaning, easy filling, the right boom — and ignore colour

Sprayers are expensive, absurdly so, according to Tom Wolf, Saskatoon-based spray application specialist. In an Ontario Agricultural Conference seminar with Jason Deveau, application specialist for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Wolf gave his recommendations on what characteristics buyers might want to prioritize before signing on the dotted line. A few wishlist […] Read more

Smart-Apply places spray precisely in orchard crops.

John Deere connects with sprayer control company

Smart-Apply precisely places spray based on high-value crop canopy

John Deere is moving further into precision spaying of specialty crops with an alliance with an innovator of intelligent control systems. The company has entered into an allied distribution agreement with Smart Guided Systems to sell and support its Smart-Apply Intelligent Control System through the John Deere dealer channel in the U.S., Canada, and Australia. […] Read more

Spray monitors in orchards can help identify areas that are missed.

Simple smart technology helps fleet and spray monitoring

Keeping ahead of maintenance can help reduce downtime and repair costs on farms

A group of University of Waterloo engineering graduates who first got together as a student design team to convert a Camaro into a hybrid electric vehicle has turned its talents towards improving agricultural fleet management. Their small Ontario start-up, Intelliculture, is now working to help farm profitability with intelligent, simple, and affordable telematics to help […] Read more

The Horsch Leeb SP 6300 self-propelled sprayer’s Boom Pro Plus controlling system allows five boom sections to move independently.

Horsch self-propelled sprayer to roll into Canada

The company’s Leeb SP 6300 brings some new features to the market

Glacier FarmMedia – The Horsch Leeb SP 6300 self-propelled sprayer is a different platform and concept than what’s offered by most sprayers, said Jeremy Hughes, product manager for Horsch. “The focus of this sprayer is to improve spray quality. What we want is to mitigate drift and maximize coverage, making sure more live droplets land […] Read more

The sectional recirculation valve re-circulates the liquid while it’s spraying. Once liquid enters the boom through the SRV2, nothing goes back into the tank.

Total boom section cleanout possible in five minutes

New valve maintains aggressive recirculation when most needed

Glacier FarmMedia – A new spray boom recirculation valve promises to reduce sprayer clean-out time to five minutes, and eliminate dumping rinsate and active product on the ground. The Sectional Recirculation Valve (SRV) was developed by the Drift Reduction Technology (DRT) Corp. in Wisconsin. The company focuses exclusively on improving the safety and accuracy of […] Read more


Buhler Industries’ plant at Willmar, Minn., which today makes Versatile high-clearance sprayers, will take up more product lines as the company shuts its Fargo, N.D. facility. (Versatile-ag.com)

Buhler to halt Farm King manufacturing at Fargo

Work to move to company's Minnesota plant

Farm equipment maker Buhler Industries plans to gather its U.S. manufacturing work into one plant in Minnesota this summer and halt operations at nearby Fargo, N.D. The Winnipeg company, whose product lines include Versatile tractors and sprayers and Farm King application, tillage and hay equipment, said Monday it’s “optimizing” its U.S. production to boost efficiency […] Read more

Developed by Pentair Hypo in conjunction with BASF, the Easyconnect Closed Transfer System totally seals the jug to the hopper so not a single drop can escape.

Easyconnect seals chemical transfer

A specially designed fill valve creates a sealed connection with a chemical container

Glacier FarmMedia – It’s not often we see major crop protection companies work together on technology, but that’s what’s happening as they develop a new universal closed transfer system (CTS) for chemicals. The CTS Easyconnect consists of a specially designed fill valve that creates a sealed connection between the CTS and the chemical container. The […] Read more

The U7AG from Forward Robotics Inc. This craft is being designed to address regulatory concerns, while being suitable for larger acreage Canadian farms. According to the company, the craft is priced competitively with an 80-foot pull-type sprayer or in the area of $50,000.

What’s piloting interest in sprayer drones?

Users say flexibility, lower costs are key factors in growing interest despite technological and regulatory limitations

Drones are now being used for spray applications in countries around the world. And while not commercially commonplace in Canada yet, companies and ag-service providers continue investing time and resources in the technology. Despite ongoing technical issues and unanswered practical questions, some think sprayer drones can bring a variety of agronomic, health, and human resource […] Read more


Lemken’s new Nova sprayer has tank capacity of 4,800 or 7,200 litres.

Lemken launches self-propelled sprayer

The larger sprayer completes the gradual addition of application equipment to the company’s lineup

Lemken is jumping into the self-propelled sprayer market with its new Nova machine. The company has been working on creating a self-propelled sprayer since it entered a strategic partnership with the chassis manufacturer in 2017. The sprayer fits into the large self-propelled market with tank volumes of 4,800 or 7,200 litres and boom widths from […] Read more

A Xarvio Smart Sprayer demo on display at Ag in Motion in July 2019.

Smart sprayer shoots weeds with a targeted herbicide blast

The technology will mean driving slower, but using much less product

Glacier FarmMedia – A Smart Sprayer, equipped with boom-mount cameras coupled to Xarvio image recognition technology, can identify 20 species of weeds and trigger a surgically precise herbicide blast to one specific weed. Why it matters: Conventional field spraying coverage dumps millions of litres of unneeded herbicide on millions of Canadian acres, which represents a […] Read more