CIAE Tractor Drawn Pre-Emergence Herbicide Strip Applicator-cum-Planter
Weed plants compete with the crops for soil nutrients, moisture, light, and space resulting in poor yields and economic loss. Mechanical control of weeds has limitation such as labour shortage. Also, chemical control of weeds has a negative effect on the environment. A large amount of herbicide use leads to deterioration of soil and groundwater. Blanket application of herbicide over entire field is the existing practice of herbicide application in India. Applying herbicide over crop rows (strip application) and mechanical cultivation between the rows can serve the problem. The 6-row pre-emergence herbicide strip-application system was designed and developed as an attachment to the inclined-plate planter to apply herbicide at the time of sowing in widely spaced crops to control weeds along the crop rows, often not possible in mechanical weeding. It consists of a frame on which 6 flat fan spray nozzles are mounted by means of clamps, a single action piston pump with 9 l/min capacity, pressure regulator valve, and pressure gauge and pressure pipes. The spacing between the spray nozzles, angle, and height of spray nozzles can be varied by adjusting the clamps. The developed system has the ability of strip as well as the blanket application of herbicide. The same machine can be used as post-emergence herbicide/pesticide applicator after the removal of furrow openers and increase the height of nozzles from the ground. The field capacity of the developed system was found to be 0.4 ha/h. It can save about 40-50% herbicide.