Category: WEED-IT

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

August 5, 2024

Croplands Nut & Tall Tree Crop Market expansion

July 23, 2024

WEED-IT right choice for finances and environment

South Australia grower Brendon Johns says a Croplands WEED-IT sprayer is the only machine he operates that pays for itself in savings.

Brendon and Denise Johns farm north of Adelaide, in the Upper Mid North. Their business is called Northern Grain.

They grow a third each of wheat, barley and lentils, and are working to increase the percentage of lentils up to 50 percent.

All those crops need attention and an intelligent spray program. That means ensuring the right chemical goes on the right plant at the right time. This is good for the crop, the environment and the back pocket.

Ten years ago Brendon and Denise bought their first optical spot sprayer. An optical spot sprayer has sensors on the boom that detect chlorophyl in weeds in fallow and fire spray only at those plants. This is a big saving compared to blanket spraying a whole paddock.

“That was an 800-litre tank with an 80-ft boom and didn’t cover enough ground, but we had it long enough to work out the economics,” Brendon says.

Brendon does the day-to-day management of Northern Grain, while Denise runs the business side. They both have business degrees, and Denise has an MBA.

This gives them a head start as when they bought the original farm off Brendon’s parent’s they considered the structure of the company and set up an advisory board to support growth, communication and governance.

“I wanted to avoid conflict with Brendon about business choices and buying machinery. We needed a discussion process to make important decisions and be accountable for those decisions,” Denise says.

So when they started looking for a bigger sprayer, they needed a way to compare brands which would stand up to scrutiny.

They drew up a matrix of qualities – price, technology, ease of use, servicing, etc. – and rated different models. The winner is their current sprayer, a Croplands Sonic WEED-IT with a 36.6m boom.

The WEED-IT has two tanks with separate controls – a 5000-litre tank broadacre tank and a 1500-litre ‘hot’ tank. They can be used together as a single large tank for one chemical or used separately to do spot-spraying and blanket-spraying and at the same time.

“Going into the seeding season we have flexibility to use different combinations of tanks, depending on the targets.

For example, we can use the main tank to blanket-spray pre-emergent mixes and use the hot tank to spot spray harder-to-kill weeds such as large marshmallows.
Brendon Johns, Northern Grain, South Australia

Over winter they mainly use the WEED-IT with both tanks joined together as a normal boom spray. They have a self-propelled sprayer which does the majority of blanket spraying, while the WEED-IT is the back-up.

“This winter we used them both to spray grubs. When we are busy, we can do up to 1000 ha a day with both sprayers in ideal conditions,” Brendon says.

The joy of spot-spraying is it saves so much chemical. It can use 90 percent less spray in a paddock.

“If we only spray 10 percent of the paddock, it will do enough hectares to pay for itself in three years.”

Denise says not only does the WEED-IT pay for itself in savings, it is also environmentally friendly, because it uses less chemical.

With the WEED-IT, more effective chemicals that cost more also become a viable option.

This is predominantly for summer weeds. It has a good ability to control fleabane and other hard-to-kill weeds using higher rates with products that are not normally economical.
Brendon says

The sensors are spaced 1m apart along the boom and each sensor covers four nozzles. Triple nozzles are on the hot line (the spot sprayer) 250 mm apart, and single nozzles are on the flat line (for blanket spraying) at 500 mm spacing.

Brendon says the Sonic boom follows the contours.

“It is a simple, robust boom spray with little to no maintenance. We find height is important for the sensors, but not as critical as people worry about.”

The WEED-IT offers a variety of ways to fill and mix. It has a venturi system to mix and suck in liquids and powders and powerful pumps to pull in water.

“We often have unskilled labour, like uni students and we don’t let them mix. We usually batch chemicals and suck it straight in.”

Like any machinery, a more experienced person is better, but Brendon says they can easily start people off on the WEED-IT.

“It is relatively simple, so long as they can drive a tractor and use auto-steer. The main control to get right is the sensitivity.

“If it is set too sensitive, it fires too often. If it is not sensitive enough and it misses weeds. But once it’s set up, it’s set and forget.”

The WEED-IT calibrates automatically for different light conditions and speed of travel. Brendon and his crew usually work at about 16 kph using a 300-hp tractor (although he says 200 hp would be enough).

Each year the sprayer covers their farm three times a year in WEED-IT mode. Then it does another 200 hours and covers half of it as the winter back-up blanket sprayer.

Back-up service from Croplands has been easy. “We don’t need much, but if we do, parts are out of Adelaide overnight.”

Maintenance is straight-forward – just greasing, and cleaning the sensors occasionally. They house it in a shed to keep the electronics out of the rain.

While dust, mud and general bouncing around in paddocks can play havoc on electronics, longevity does not appear to be an issue with optical spot sprayers.

“Our first optical spot sprayer was built in 1997. We were the third owner, and it is still being used by the neighbour.”

leARN mORE

WEED-IT retrofit gives Queensland farmer affordable way to hammer tough weeds

Retrofitting a WEED-IT optical spraying system to a John Deere self-propelled sprayer is giving a Queensland farming family control over hard-to-kill weeds.

Nigel and Trudy Parker and their son Josh grow sorghum, wheat and chickpeas on 1700 ha on Mistie Downs, their dryland farm north of Clermont.

Rainfall at Mistie Downs averages 600 mm per year, which predominantly arrives in summer.

“The beauty of this country is it has a good depth of soil. It captures the summer rain and stores it. A crop is still able to get moisture even in a dry spell” Nigel says.

After rain, there is a weed burst and at that time, it makes sense to blanket spray. The dilemma for Nigel, Trudy and Josh was how to deal with the straggler weeds.

Before we had WEED-IT we would have to spray the whole paddock for minimal weeds. Now we can just target the weeds.
Nigel Parker, Mistie Downs, Queensland

WEED-IT optical spot sprayers can be mounted as a retro fit kit option on tow-behind sprayers, but the Parker family felt it was more economical to add it to their existing self-propelled. They would stay in their comfortable cab without the cost of another tractor.

WEED-IT and the self-propelled John Deere are a good match.

“They are two independent systems. That’s the beauty of it. There are no complications with them trying to talk to each other.”

The John Deere carries the boom and spray tank and looks after the section control. The WEED-IT system is a series of sensors at 1m intervals along the boom. Each sensor controls, four nozzles space at 250 mm.

When a sensor detects a weed, the weed gets sprayed with the closest nozzles. If it is a small weed, one nozzle gets it. Bigger weeds get targeted by more nozzles, ensuring every weed gets hit at the right rate. The sensitivity of the sensors can be altered and they work just as well during the day and at night.

The Parkers’ Deere sprayer has a 36m boom and a 3000-litre tank. That tank can either be used for blanket-spraying or for WEED-IT spot-spraying.

Nigel says it takes about 10-minutes to swap from blanket applications to WEED-IT. “We just turn some taps, and the nozzle bodies screw in or out to swap over. It is not difficult.”

When blanket-spraying, Nigel and Josh travel at about 20 kph and they go 12-15 kph for spot-spraying.

With the WEED-IT, they can save up to 90 percent of spray costs.

“I hope the system will pay for itself in five to six years, depending on the seasons. If it is dry, we don’t see as many weeds and we won’t need it as much. But in a wet year we may use it far more.”

Their WEED-IT gives Nigel and Josh more control over when they spray.

“If we don’t have to have lots of weeds, we can just run over the paddock without using much chemical. It keeps the paddock tidy.

Spraying weeds while still small is one advantage. Another is being able to use higher rates and more expensive sprays to target hard-to-kill weeds such as Feathertop Rhodes grass.

“We can target them more often. We haven’t been doing it long enough to lower the seed bank, but it’s a given it will happen.”

Deciding that the WEED-IT was the tool they needed and which version to get took some time. Croplands Queensland Territory Manager Lachlan Coom and a contractor with a tow-behind WEED-IT came out to the farm to demo the system.

Lachlan talked through what we wanted to achieve. He was very patient. I kept going back with questions: ‘What if we did this?’ Or ‘What if we did that?’
Nigel says

There are lots of WEED-IT systems working locally. “It helped with the decision that what we are doing is not new. It is proven technology and people are happy with it.”

Once Nigel and Trudy decided they wanted WEED-IT retro-fitted to the self-propelled, the next issue was making it affordable. Trucking the sprayer to a Croplands workshop was going to be expensive, so Nigel offered to strip the boom down and then accommodate the installers on the farm.

Josh spent the four days with them helping and learning.

“It was in our interests to look after them and it meant we could see what they were doing in case there is trouble later.”

The hand rail had to be changed in two places to keep the Deere sprayer’s ability to fold for transport and storage in the shed.

There is now an extra monitor in the cab, which does not bother Nigel in the slightest. It is easy to use and Lachlan guided them through it.

Nigel appreciated that Croplands understood that it is a big decision and up-front cost. Their flexibility to do the installation on-farm lowered that cost.

“Doing it at our place worked out well for us. They are a great bunch of people – Lachlan, Doyle, Tim and Damian.”

(It also helps that Trudy is an excellent host and kept everyone well-fed.)

The Parker family’s WEED-IT has already cut their spray bill and is giving them more control over when and what they spray. It is also better for the environment to cut the amount of chemicals needed.

“It has been a handy, valuable tool. It has got to be better to put a little chemical in a smaller area,” Nigel concludes.

Croplands Territory Manager and WEED-IT Product Lead, Lachlan Coom

leARN mORE

Shane and Nicky Beil at Kilcumin Sation, near Clermont, Queensland take deliver of their John Deere 410R with WEED-IT retro-Fit Kit fitted.

WEED-IT a lifeline in Queensland farmer’s fight against resistant weeds.

Queensland farmer Shane Beil says he would not be able to keep farming without his Weed-IT precision spot sprayer.

Shane and his wife Nicky’s farm is Kilcummin Station, near Clermont, in Central Queensland. They run cattle and grow broadacre crops on about 7300 ha.

Crops are primarily sorghum, wheat and chickpeas, and they have also grown mung beans and sunflowers. Except for contract transporters, who cart their grain, Shane and his family manage the day-to-day running of the farm – from planting through to crop care and harvesting.

It is a dryland farm. We have black soils, which are good to work. We run 250 breeders and their progeny, all on natural grasses.
Shane Beil, Kicummin Station, near Clermont, Queensland

“This year we grew 2500 ha of sorghum, which we planted in January and harvested in May. We planted 1250 ha of chickpeas in April and we will harvest them in September or October. The chickpeas are a good option for us because we can get a crop from them when it is too dry for wheat.”

At the beginning of 2024, the Beil family upgraded to a new self-propelled sprayer to boost the efficiency of the cropping program. It is a John Deere 410R with a 36m boom and 3800-litre tank.

To reduce chemical use but still target the herbicide-resistant weeds that many farmers in Central Queensland now have, he also had Croplands fit a WEED-IT retrofit kit (spot spray system) to the new sprayer.

WEED-IT’s ‘green-on-brown’ system for spot spraying on fallow ground can reduce water and chemical use (and therefore costs) by up to 95 percent. It uses near infrared sensors to detect individual weeds as small as 1 cm² at speeds up to 20 kph and then directs spray nozzles to dose them.

The Beil family’s WEED-IT system has sensors mounted every metre along the boom. Each sensor works with four nozzles spaced at 250 mm intervals. Shane says when it detects a weed the size of your thumb, it uses one nozzle. When it detects a bushier weed it uses two, and when it detects a patch it uses four.

Territory Manager, Lachlan Coom fitting the WEED-IT retro-fit kit system.

We used the WEED-IT to do three fallow sprays when we prepared the ground for sorghum in December and January.
Shane Beil

“At the time we did the first spray, the paddocks were fairly dirty. We left a few weeds behind and then we had a bit of rain, so we went again and got 100 percent. We then did a third pass over 10 percent of the area before we planted.”

Shane says he operates the WEED-IT at 18 kph but it is set up to work at speeds up to 22 kph.

John Deere 410R fitted with the WEED-IT Retro Fit Kit

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

Croplands Nut & Tall Tree Crop Market expansion

July 23, 2024

leARN mORE

May we all be as productive and willing to learn in our 90s as Peter Whykes.

Now 91, Peter and his son Chris are the primary sprayer operators on the family’s cropping farm, and they are mastering a new RoGator 1300C with WEED-IT spot spray technology.

Three generations of the Whykes family work their 4700-ha dryland farm west of Charlton in Victoria’s Mallee region. They produce barley, wheat, canola, lentils, peas, fava beans, lupin and vetch and oaten hay.

Because they sow their crops using direct drill or minimum tillage, they depend on agrichemicals to control weeds. They use their sprayer to apply a full range of crop protection – herbicides, insecticides and fungicides.

In April the family took ownership of their second self-propelled RoGator, which is equipped with dual spraying technology. It can do traditional blanket spraying or use its WEED-IT Quadro sensors to target individual weeds.

Peter says he and his sons were impressed with their previous 6000-litre RoGator 1300B self-propelled, so they were keen to upgrade it for the new 7000-litre RoGator 1300C.

“We bought the first RoGator in this area. It is a great machine with a strong boom. We ordered the new one with WEED-IT sensors because we want to reduce our chemical usage.

There are two big benefits to using less chemicals. One is that it is better for the environment and our soils, and the second is we will save money and time.
Peter Whykes

The Whykes family was hoping the new sprayer would arrive as scheduled at the beginning of the year because they plan to use its spot spraying capability during late summer and early autumn.

As it turned out, it did not arrive until April. Although it was late, it did arrive in time for them to see how effective it is. Both Peter and his son Jon are impressed.

“The sensors need to be able to distinguish the green weeds against brown soil, so we will mainly use spot spraying to apply glyphosate and paraquat during the summer fallow prior to sowing.

“It seems to be very accurate and it has done a good job. We were able to target weeds with the sensors while operating at 17-18 kph,” Peter says.

Jon estimates the WEED-IT spot spraying technology will reduce their chemical use during summer and autumn by 50-80 percent.

We would have saved $100,000 if we had used the WEED-IT over the whole summer. We did one job for a neighbour on contract and we used 30 percent of the amount of chemical we anticipated to do the job.
John Whykes

During blanket spraying, Peter says it is easy to prime the boom. An agitator in the tank works continuously and the product is continuously pumped through the boom so there is not a delay when spraying starts.

EASY TO CALIBRATE

The RoGator 1300C is also very easy to calibrate and has impressive section control, both of which come down to Capstan Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) technology. PWM regulates the application rate independent of pressure and it gives the ability to control every nozzle individually.

With Capstan PWM, 50hz solenoids mean nozzles constantly switch on and off up to 50 times per second. This gives the ability to vary the amount of time a nozzle cycles, making it possible to vary application rates while keeping the pressure constant.

“Using the previous system, if you wanted to increase the spray rate, the pump sped up and that increased the pressure so a bigger volume of chemical went out. The problem with that is it can encourage spray drift through fine droplets as the pressure increased,” Jon says.

“With this system, you put in the preselected application rate and pressure. As the speed of the sprayer varies, the pulsing rate of the nozzles adjusts to maintain the rate and the pressure. You know that 99 percent of the droplets are the right size to hit the target.”

nozzle control

Jon says this system also gives full individual nozzle control. This includes turn compensation so that during turns, each nozzle applies the exact rate required to make coverage consistent across the boom.

Individual nozzles also turn off if they are approaching an area that has already been sprayed. Section control in the Whykes’ previous RoGator deactivated and activated a cluster of nozzles.

This meant a number of nozzles would turn on together, even if only one in the cluster was over an area that had been not been sprayed. This could lead to over spraying and the extra costs and potential crop damage it can cause.

Boom auto fold and cruise control

“Another big step up with our new RoGator is the auto fold function for the boom,” Jon says. “With this one, there is just a single button that you push to fold out or in.”

“The new RoGator also has two auto cruise controls. You select the work speed and the turning speed and then you can just switch between them.”

sustainable spraying with WEED-IT

With its ability to reduce drift and spot spray, the new RoGator with WEED-IT is helping the Whykes family keep up with the very latest in technology and stay ahead of the regulators.

They believe that in the future all farmers and contractors will have to be able to show that they are only using the chemicals they need to use, and that they are only applying them where they need to go.

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

August 5, 2024

leARN mORE

With a combined 108-years of experience in the farm machinery game, machinery dealer group O’Connors share Croplands’ passion for delivering world-class technology to Australia’s world-class farmers.

It is with this in mind that we are pleased to announce a new partnership with the appointment of O’Connors as authorised dealers of Croplands market-leading WEED-IT optical spot spraying technology.

Croplands WEED-IT systems now available at O’Connors dealership locations

Established in north-west Victoria in 1964, O’Connors is an award-winning machinery dealership offering an extensive range of both new and used agricultural equipment, precision agriculture products, innovative technology and exceptional customer service.

Along with community engagement this makes O’Connors a reliable, local partner. Having developed teams of high-quality staff at each location with extensive knowledge and a high level of technical training, O’Connors confidently offers farmers the level of support they deserve to be at their best.

Tom Sheridan, Group Sales Development Manager at O’Connors is excited for the partnership and the opportunities it presents for broadacre farmers in the O’Connors Dealership Network.

“Our customers are some of the most innovative farmers in the world and we need to ensure we can supply them with equipment that keeps them at the forefront of profitable and sustainable farming practices. The WEED-IT Optical Spot Sprayers by Croplands are widely respected as the industry leaders in spot spraying technology, with a calculatable and achievable return on investment for farmers who are dedicated to achieving a successful summer fallow.”

Mr Sheridan explained “When we were presented with the opportunity to market the product across our fifteen dealership locations it was a simple business decision for our group.”

O'Connors Croplands WEED-IT Training — O’Connors staff have undertaken training in the WEED-IT system

O’Connors Staff recently undertook technical training in the WEED-IT system and the capabilities of the product.

O’Connors Machinery Sales Representative, Alex Noonan, one of the staff involved, was impressed with the capability of the equipment.

“It’s certainly a product that our customers have been asking after – the opportunity the reduce chemical use in the summer fallow management period is a high priority for broadacre farmers.” he said.

The addition of Croplands WEED-IT to the O’Connors dealer network represents another significant step for the group as they also celebrate a recent expansion through the acquisition of the former Sunrise Ag Case IH dealerships in Swan Hill, Ouyen and Mildura. These acquisitions take the group’s footprint to fifteen locations and allow the organisation to enhance its product, parts and service offering for the benefit of their customers now and into the future.

Broadacre TrailedO’Connors will be offering the full range of Croplands WEED-IT optical spot spraying solutions and parts as well as retaining the Broadacre Trailing and Compact Sprayers and Components product offering in the acquired Sunrise dealerships.

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

August 5, 2024

leARN mORE about weed-it

Croplands Customer - Simon Donovan — Brother and sister, Simon and Sarah, from Donovan Farming Company take deliver of their new RoGator RG1300C with WEED-IT technology fitted.

Central Queensland farmer Simon Donovan has used RoGator self-propelled sprayers for 14 years.

He says every model has been better than the previous one, and his latest has been kitted out with great new technology – WEED-IT optical spot spraying system, Raven XRT boom-levelling and Ag Leader GPS.

Simon manages Duaringa Station. It is one of three properties in Central Queensland owned by his parents Bruce and Beryl Donovan under the umbrella of Donovan Farming Company Pty Ltd.

They produce durum wheat, chickpeas, cotton, sorghum and corn on 4800 ha. The RoGator covers that ground at least four times a year.

The family purchased their first RoGator in 2004. A local contractor had one and it seemed robust, so that was their choice when their old sprayer needed replacing. They are now onto their fourth one.

For the durability and the toughness of the machine, we have found RoGators to be second to none.
Simon Donovan, Donovan Farming Company

Every model has seemed great, but then the next one arrives and it has improved. It is a nice feeling knowing that the manufacturer is listening to farmers and making the changes.

For example, Simon wanted to spend more time in the paddock. He now has a 6000-litre tank with the chassis upgraded to accommodate this.

“There have been upgrades in the wheel motors, so it handles the conditions even better.”

The filtration system has also improved. Previous models relied on filters at the nozzles and Simon had to organise his own filtration system.

“It never worked that well. This machine has its own awesome filtration system. They have nailed it. It is built to handle the volume of water we want to use.

“Another improvement is to the boom. Other brands don’t seem to handle our conditions. We can’t fault this one.”

RoGator RG1300C boom — RoGator. Better booms. Better yields.

The boom is 36m, fully recirculating, and is equipped to do both broadcast spraying and spot spraying with WEED-IT.

weed-it precision spraying

The WEED-IT system has blue LED sensors at 1m intervals along the boom. Each sensor controls four nozzles which are fired when a weed is detected. The superior mode of detection used by the WEED-IT system ensures very small weeds can be targeted before they set seed.

With spot spraying we are saving at least 80 percent in chemicals even though we apply at a higher rate.
Simon Donovan

“We are really smashing it, hitting the plant with four times the rate.”

He can also use more targeted sprays, which are usually more expensive.

Croplands WEED-IT Nozzles — With WEED-IT fitted to his RoGator RG1300C, Simon can target those hard-to-kill weeds.

A particular problem in central Queensland is Feathertop Rhodes grass, which is becoming resistant. The WEED-IT system allows him to control it.

“If I didn’t have this I would have to put steel in the ground and break up the soil structure. I am hitting the target weeds harder and saving ourselves a lot of work and money.”

Spot spraying is slower at about 14 kph compared to the 24 kph Simon drives when using the RoGator as a blanket sprayer.

raven XRT delivers boom stability

At those speeds Raven XRT boom-levelling is quite handy.

“When I turn corners or drive through a washout the boom height stays consistent. It does not hit the ground so it protects the boom. It should really be compulsory.

“Each WEED-IT sensor is worth $5000 so you don’t want to start smashing them up. Without Raven I have to rely on my ability to keep it level.”

Raven XRT’s radar-based sensors detect the ground and keep the boom stable in three dimensions. This also helps reduce spray drift because the boom is at a consistent height above the crop.

unprecedented product recovery

The RoGator has a recirculating boom and ClearFlow product recovery. It uses air to push unused product back from the lines into the tank, or it can blow it out of the nozzles.

Combined with the rinse tank, they clean the RoGator out and ready for its next task. So, it is not hard to change from herbicides to fungicides or foliar fertiliser.

RoGator ClearFlow product recovery — ClearFlow full-recovery system minimises waste and contamination.

A large induction hopper allows for easy mixing of any product, be it liquid or granules, while in the tank the product is constantly moving and mixing.

With OptiMotion, the amount of agitation automatically changes as the level in the tank drops.

operator comfort

Simon says the new RoGator 1300C is really user-friendly. The cab is comfortable and quiet, which is just as well since he feels like he lives in it.

It becomes his office and is set up with air-conditioning, a sound system, Bluetooth and connections for his iPad.

The RoGator even comes with its own weather station.

“It gives you the humidity and wind’s speed and direction. Info is king. We can make decisions on the go, so the chemical is on the target and we do not affect neighbours,” Simon says.

He particularly likes the reversing camera. It reduces the stress of backing a large machine when kids and animals could be around.

RoGator RG1300C cab — The RoGator cab combines functionality and comfort.

The width of the wheel track is adjustable from the cab to fit with different tramlines.

Ag leader for more control

GPS, auto-steer and sectional control are through Ag Leader.

Runs on Duaringa Station are up to 8 km long and auto-steer takes the fatigue out of the day.

“You can change everything on the go. You don’t have to get out of the cab to make an adjustment.”

a drive system that practically runs itself

The RoGator has an 8.4-litre, 340hp, engine connected to a new SmartDrive transmission which automatically adjusts engine RPM to the power required – this means Simon sets the speed and the RoGator does the rest.

“Fuel efficiency is awesome. It does not work harder than it has to.”

RoGator RG1300C Smart Drive — SmartDrive. All-wheel traction control. All the time.

service and support

Croplands Toowoomba supplied the sprayer, and Simon says product delivery was done really well.

“Croplands spent all day with me. This is a massive investment and you get what you need. Training and the answers to any questions are only a phone call away. I can’t fault them.”

No matter how great the technology, a business has to justify the investment and the RoGator adds up for the Donovan family.

“With the amount of work we do, we should pay it off in 1100 hours. I plan to turn it over on 3000 to 3500 hours,” Simon concludes.

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

August 5, 2024

leARN mORE

The Liverpool Plains Groundspray team with their new RG700B with WEED-IT technology fitted.

A RoGator RG700B has proven to be the ideal ground spraying tool for New South Wales contractor Bob Sipple.

Bob purchased his second self-propelled RoGator RG700B sprayer in July 2021, to replace his previous RoGator RG700, which he had for five years.

“The two RoGators are both essentially the same. We had a good run overall with the first RoGator 700. It was a good machine.

“We probably do 1200 to 1500 hours a year on it. It all depends on the season. In the summertime we do night work if we get behind, so we do some big days.”

Bob has been operating in the Liverpool Plains region for 25 years from his base at Quirindi in northern New South Wales.

Liverpool Plains Groundspray operates on 15 to 20 properties all year round mostly doing broadacre spraying plus some dryland cotton spraying.

“Over Spring, growers are sowing sorghum, cotton, beans and sunflowers. This year there has been a reasonable amount of rain, so there will be quite a bit of cotton over the summer.

“Then we do Winter wheat, barley and chick peas. Most people will plant half the farm and leave some of the farm fallow. We usually get good rainfall all year, so people can sow summer and winter crops, which keeps us busy.”

dual purpose machine

RG700B with WEED-IT sensors — RoGator RG700B with WEED-IT spot spraying sensors fitted.

Bob’s new RoGator RG700B has a 120-ft boom and a dual-purpose spray line with WEED-IT Quadro sensors that allow him to do both broadacre spraying and spot spraying.

The boom is fitted with Arag 2×2 nozzle bodies, each of which has two nozzles for spot spraying and two for broadacre spraying.

Local Croplands agent, NFS Ag in Gunnedah, sold Bob his Rogator RG700B and installed its dual-purpose spray system.

Along with the option to do spot spraying or full boom spraying, the RoGator RG700B can work on 3m-4m wheel spacing. This gives Liverpool Plains Groundspray the flexibility to operate in the different terrains found in northern New South Wales.

“We have a mix of sloping country with contours and flat plain and sub plain country, so there is plenty of variety,” Bob says.

He says the RoGator 700 sprayers are a good size and lightweight compared to other sprayings, so they do not leave big wheel tracks.

“Sprayers can be quite heavy these days. The main thing with the RoGator is that it is light – we don’t want big wheel tracks everywhere.”

Bob likes the 120-foot aluminium boom, which is sturdy and provides good coverage so he can get through a large area of work in a day.

The sensors that operate with WEED-IT Quadro spot spraying technology ensure precision spraying by detecting chlorophyll in the leaves of actively growing weeds in fallow fields. Spray nozzles are then activated via a 50Hz 6-volt PWM-capable solenoid releasing a burst of spray directly onto the weed. This advanced mode of detection enables faster travel speeds and targets even the smallest of weeds.

They are really good. We pick up quite a bit of spot spray work as there is quite a bit of demand from growers
Bob Sipple, Liverpool Plains Groundspray

Inside the cab, the RoGator has all the standard features including Trimble autosteer, and air bags for safety.

The RoGator can travel on the open road at 50 kph, so Bob can travel between jobs efficiently.

LOCAL SUPPORT

Bob has been dealing with NFS Ag for a number of years and buys all of his equipment from them.

“They are only 80 km away, so they are pretty handy. They always come over when we have a breakdown and are here when we need them.

“Our last RoGator had minimal down time. There were some little things, but as a rule it just kept going.”

Bob has no hesitation recommending RoGator sprayers and WEED-IT technology to other contractors and farmers.

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024

August 5, 2024

leARN mORE

WEED-IT is an important tool for controlling difficult weeds such as ryegrass, sow thistle and fleabane.

Brendon Schultz is a broadacre farmer on the Liverpool Plains in NSW in partnership with his wife Amy and father-in-law Kevin Perkins. They grow wheat, barley and sorghum.

Brendon Schultz with his WEED-IT toolbar – supplied and installed by Croplands dealer, NFS Ag

They bought their first WEED-IT in January 2020, when drought pushed them into the purchase.

“Stressed weeds are harder to kill,” Brendon says.

WEED-IT’s core feature is a series of blue LED sensors along the boom of the sprayer, which detect weeds and then sprays them – and only them. It uses a fraction of the spray compared to a traditional boom sprayer.

The saving in spray is huge. Brendon can use higher rates of more effective (and more expensive) chemicals, and still save money because he uses so much less.

We are getting coverage rates between five and eight percent of the paddock. It allows us to use higher rates that would have been cost prohibitive and we still use far less herbicide.
Brendon Schultz

“It also allowed us to use other chemistries that also would have been cost prohibitive.”

Brendon saves time with the WEED-IT because he sprays less often.

“We are not getting the escapes that didn’t get killed in the first application.”

Brendon bought the WEED-IT system of controller, sensors, nozzle bodies and solenoids, and addedthem to his existing sprayer. The boom is 12m and it is used with a 600-litre tank.

WEED-IT is a flexible system. It can be bought as an add-on, as Brendon has done, or it can be bought as a complete spray unit, and it can do both spot spraying and broadacre applications.

Some versions of WEED-IT can even do both at the same time. For example the Croplands WEED-IT trailed sprayers are complete spray units with two tanks and two regulating systems. These sprayers can apply two different sprays at different rates at the same time, one as broadacre and one as a spot sprayer.

Brendon uses his WEED-IT solely as a spot sprayer and runs a larger sprayer with a 34m boom for broadacre spraying.

WEED-IT uses blue LEDs to detect the chlorophyll in plants as blue is more sensitive than red. The blue lights can be used at night, which Brendon frequently does.

“The sensitivity is adjustable. Typically we run in the middle of the range. We know if it is misfiring if a lot of nozzles are going off, but there are not many weeds. That happens if the ground is very wet or in certain types of stubble. Then we just decrease the sensitivity.”

The spray line is 700 mm above the ground, clear of stubble, and the sensors are 1100 mm above the ground to prevent shading of weeds. Each sensor is a metre apart and controls four nozzles.

Controlling the WEED-IT is done via its own monitor, which Brendon says is easy to use.

Added to it is GPS control to prevent overlaps or missing sections.

Brendon’s dealer is NFS Ag Machinery in Gunnedah.

He says they have provided good service and can supply everything he needs.

“We had a few small issues with software and they have been quick to come out and get the machinery running again.”

Before WEED-IT, Brendon was spraying herbicides more frequently.

“Now we load up the tank with the brew and we know it is going to kill those weeds.

“The results are very good. We get it done first time in a manner that is economical.

Environmentally and economically it’s a long way in front of where we were.”

Latest Posts

Robot Ready Pinto integrates with SwarmFarm’s autonomous SwarmBot

January 7, 2025

October 22, 2024

October 16, 2024