The Effect of the Tunnel Spraying Technique and Nozzle Type on the Spray Deposit and Drift During Spray Application in Strawberries in Ground Cultivation

The measurements of spray deposit on filter paper samples attached to strawberry leaves and spray drift to the ground up to the distance of 7.5 m from the sprayed strawberry plants were performed. A multitunnel type tunnel sprayer (Klip Klap, Denmark) and an AGROLA mounted field crop sprayer with a 10 m boom were used. Four types of nozzles were used representing single- or double-jet flat-fan nozzles. The tracer (BSF) deposit on the upper leaves surfaces was generally higher for the field crop sprayer (14,775.0–23,205.5) than for the tunnel sprayer (6,189.4–12,417.7 ng·cm⁻²). The deposit on the lower surfaces of leaves was 1.9 to 18.0 times lower than on the upper surfaces and ranged from 540.6–1599.4 ng·cm⁻² for the tunnel sprayer to 893.9–3007.1 ng·cm⁻² for field crop sprayer. There was no significant effect of double-jet nozzles on the deposition on the lower surfaces and on the uniformity of application (CV% and U/L). The spray drift differed significantly between the tested sprayers. For the field crop sprayer, the drift up to the distance of 7.5 m beyond the sprayed area ranged 0.89–6.31% of the applied spray dose, while for the tunnel sprayer it was not more than 0.07%.