Published on 26/01/2022
Adjuvants come in different categories, according to their function, and include crop oils, markers, super spreaders, penetrants, surfactants, de-foaming agents and drift retardants.
Spray adjuvants themselves generally do not control or kill pests, diseases or weeds. Rather, they modify some properties of the spray solution, such as spreading, sticking, penetration, droplet size, handling characteristics or visual appearance. These modifications in turn improve the ability of the crop protection active ingredient(s) to land on target; cover the target area more effectively and/or be absorbed by plant tissue more quickly, as well as being easier to identify after application, or mixing better in the spray tank.
A key benefit for certain adjuvants in autumn, when weather conditions can be very changeable, is their ability to enhance drying time and rainfastness, giving farmers and growers more flexibility to adapt their plans if necessary.
Nufarm has recently launched a full portfolio of adjuvants to make it easier for farmers and growers to get the best out of their crop protection. Along with known names such as Pulse Penetrant, Bonza adjuvant oil and Contact Xcel spreader, the company has also introduced Flume Super Spreader, Tank and Equipment Cleaner, Foam Wrecker anti-foam agent, and Foam Marker foaming agent, plus Amigo, the drift reduction specialist.
Jeff Hurst, Nufarm territory manager based in Ashburton, says the new products complement Nufarm’s existing crop protection offering and make it easy for growers to source all their requirements from one supplier.
At this time of year, Flume is good news for those who need to protect forage brassica crops from aphids, white butterfly and diamond back moth caterpillars. Brassicas are notoriously hard to wet, thanks to a waxy coating on leaf surfaces.
Spray solution without Flume stays in discrete droplets on the leaf, which are prone to bouncing or rolling off the plant surfaces due to the angle of the leaf, movement of leaves during spraying, or if conditions are windy. Also by this stage of brassica crop development, there are many nooks and crannies for insect pests to hide, protected from insecticide.
Flume makes discrete droplets of water and insecticide flatten out and spread in a thin film all over the surface of sprayed leaves, even wrapping around the underside. This means the active ingredient in the spray has a much better chance of getting into all the hard-to-reach places where pests like to hide.
Jeff Hurst says Flume spreads so well, farmers don’t need as much water in the spray solution when it’s used for ground applications. Appropriate water rates depend on the maturity of the crop, and the type of forage brassica being grown.
In situations where your clients need an adjuvant to reduce spray drift, Amigo is a good choice, because it was formulated specifically for this purpose, Hurst says.
Amigo is plant friendly, and does not cause cuticle or cell injury, unlike some adjuvants – oils for example – which can disrupt chemical uptake and translocation.
Recommended for aerial application, challenging conditions and around sensitive crops and areas, Amigo works well with the Nufarm phenoxy herbicide range, and with CRUCIAL, Lion and WeedMaster.
But with glyphosates in particular, it must not be used in combination with Pulse Penetrant or other organo-silicones, Hurst stresses. “Amigo and Pulse Penetrant are quite antagonistic to each other when combined with glyphosate. It’s a case of choosing one or the other, not both. Used together they compromise each other’s performance,” he says. “That’s because Pulse Penetrant is designed to reduce the surface tension of the glyphosate spray droplet, so that it spreads over a greater surface area. Amigo in effect does the opposite.”
“In New Zealand, Pulse Penetrant is essential with glyphosate in autumn, because it provides a short rainfast time.”
Hurst says it’s also important to note Amigo has no drift reduction effect on Nufarm’s 2,4- D herbicide Relay Super S. This EC formulation already contains emulsifiers that reduce driftable droplets very effectively; adding more can cause destabilization and increase spray drift.
For more detail contact your Nufarm territory manager.