From Field to Flight

Here are some tips and suggestions to consider when adding a drone to the farm.

- By Adrienne Held

Joseph Kern readies his drone for applications, calibrating swath quality.

The sky is the limit when it comes to the utility of drones on the farm, and their popularity is soaring. Uses range from crop scouting and fungicide application to seeding cover crops.

Over the past decade, the use of spray drones has been doubling year-over-year, said Arthur Erickson, CEO at Hylio. “Drones have a lot of benefits when it comes to deposition and efficacy of the application of fungicides,” he said. “Even with reduced carrier rates, you're still getting equal if not better control of the fungus compared to a ground sprayer.”

Prices range from a few thousand dollars for smaller drones with cameras for scouting, to $40,000 for the larger spray drones. While the investment is less than a traditional ground rig, there are some considerations before adding one or more to your farm fleet.

License to Fly