If Asian Soybean Rust hits this summer, farmers and custom applicators may want to look to a direct injection system for their sprayer units to help them juggle a busier-than-normal spray schedule.

“If ever there were a year where direct injection made sense, this one appears to be heading that way,” says Arnie Sinclair, general marketing manager for Ag Chem, a division of AGCO. “If conditions are right, rust can advance quickly. Certainly time wasted on rinsing the sprayer would be more effectively spent spraying fungicides to control the problem.”

Sinclair points out a number of advantages to consider with a direct injection system:

• Avoid cleaning time.
  When chemicals are mixed directly into the sprayer’s main carrier tank, it’s common to eat up an hour of field time twice or more a day cleaning the tank and flushing booms. The downtime can quickly add up to hundreds of dollars in extra labor, lost acres and lost time.
• Eliminate cost of cleaners and anti-foaming agents.
  This can save another $40 or more a day.
• Prevent waste.
  Direct injection prevents unused product left over in the main carrier tank after finishing a job.
• Reduce equipment costs.
  Rather than dedicating sprayers for specific products, applicators can quickly switch from herbicide to fungicides or other chemicals with the same machine.

Direct injection systems, such as the SCS Sidekick (photo) manufactured by Raven Industries, is an easy add-on to existing spray units. Ag Chem offers the Raven units as aftermarket through Ag Chem spray parts dealers and as factory installs. The Sidekick is compatible with virtually any control console, including Falcon® II, Viper™ and Raven SCS systems offered in new RoGators or as upgrades. Cost of the injection system, including the tank, is usually less than $5,000.

Ag Chem Offers Free Spray Guide for Soybean Rust

To help growers and custom applicators stay on target with the right nozzles and other important fungicide application techniques, Ag Chem created an easy-to-read spray guide. “Spraying Fungicides is Different” provides recommendations on nozzle types, boom height, pressure and water volumes required for thorough fungicide coverage. It’s all done in the context of comparing fungicide application to the more common experience of spraying herbicides. To receive a free copy of “Spraying Fungicides is Different,” call Ag Chem toll free at 1-877-454-3346.

AGCO Corporation, headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, is a global designer, manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment and related replacement parts. AGCO distributes its products in more than 140 countries. AGCO offers a full product line including tractors, combines, hay tools, sprayers, forage tools, tillage equipment and implements through more than 9,200 independent dealers and distributors around the world. AGCO products are distributed under the brand names AGCO®, AGCO®Allis, AGCOSTAR®, Challenger®, Farmhand®, Fendt®, Fieldstar®, GLEANER®, Glencoe®, Hesston®, Lor*Al®, Massey Ferguson®, New Idea®, RoGator®, SisuDiesel™, Soilteq™, Spra-Coupe®, Sunflower®, Terra-Gator®, Tye®, Valtra®, White and Willmar®. AGCO provides retail financing through AGCO Finance in North America and through Agricredit in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Spain and Brazil. In 2003, AGCO had net sales of $3.5 billion

™Viper is a trademark of Raven Industries.