Systems and rates of aerial application of fungicides in irrigated rice

ABSTRACT The present research studied the performance of flat-fan and hollow-cone nozzles, with application rates of 20 and 30 L ha-1, and rotary disc atomizer with application rates of 10 and 15 L ha-1. The test was conducted with a fungicide spray tank composed of Azoxystrobin + Difenoconazole, in which the density and penetration of droplets into the canopy were evaluated using a water-sensitive paper and the distribution of the active ingredients in the plant was evaluated through the chromatographic analysis. Higher application rates resulted in higher droplet density in the upper stratum of plants. In all treatments, the penetration of the droplets was 26% into the middle stratum and 23% into the lower stratum, in relation to the top of the crop, resulting in an average 25% penetration of droplets into the leaf canopy. The active ingredients were distributed in greater quantity in the upper stratum of the plant. For the same weight, the upper part of the ‘Puitá Inta CL’ rice cultivar has a leaf area 6.4 times larger than the lower part. It was concluded that higher application rate leads to higher droplet density in the upper stratum of the leaf canopy and that all systems and application rates promoted similar penetration of droplets into the canopy.