DROPLET DISTRIBUTION AS A FUNCTION OF COTTON INTERROW SPACING AND ANGLES OF SPRAYER DISPLACEMENT

ABSTRACT Application technology factors may be influenced by changes in plant architecture, such as height and leaf area. This study aimed to evaluate which angle of sprayer displacement in the application of pesticides in relation to the direction of cotton sowing, cultivated in the ultra-narrow row, narrow row, and conventional systems, provides the best application quality characteristics in the different thirds of plants. The experiment was installed in a split-plot design with four replications in the 3 × 4 factorial scheme, composed of three cotton cultivation systems and four angles of sprayer displacement in relation to the direction of the sowing rows. The evaluated characteristics were mean volumetric diameter, density and coverage of droplets, number of droplets, and open area in the interrows without leaf. The upper third presented the highest values of mean volumetric diameter, number of droplets, and density and coverage of droplets for all interrow spacing and application angles. The angle of displacement of 30° in relation to the sowing row presented the best results in relation to the number and density of droplets. The spacing of 0.90 m in the interrows increased the number of droplets, droplet density, and coverage in the lower third of plants.