Agricultural Aviation (1955)

o agricultural Aviation began in the early 1920s dusting the cotton fields of the Mississippi Delta it originated as a means of fighting the B Weevil which infected millions of Acres of cotton among the first of the aerial dusters were the Delta puffers the puffers were an early airplane built by Huff DeLand and designed specifically for dusting work they take their place today among the aviation Pioneers it was planes like the puffers that inaugurated a new industry agricultural Aviation behind the new industry however and giving it the foundation upon which to build was agricultural research the US Department of Agriculture evaluates new agricultural chemicals the chemical preparations are used to kill insects and to change the growth of plants the chemical industry supplies the USDA and also the Food and Drug Administration with samples of their products for evaluation with herbicides the weed killers screening and evaluation extends to field plots where plant varieties are correlated with families of chemicals aerial application of agricultural chemicals is approaching 50 million Acres annually aerial dusting and spraying has become a specialized field combining Agriculture and Aviation agricultural Aviation has had its problems lack of control in spraying has been largely overcome by experience the weight of pre-war insecticides was overcome by research and an era of new agricultural chemicals improved metering devices have been developed by the people of Agriculture and Aviation working in close Association work has been done by agricultural colleges by USDA experiment stations by general aviation and the chemical industry field procedures for the measurement of distributed chemicals have been established work has been done on the aerial distribution of fertilizers and seeds and Aviation equipment has been developed to meet the needs much experiment continues with the airplane itself cotton is one of our principal crops the buw worm and the bow Weevil have been called the bandits of the Cotton Patch bull worm control should start as soon as newly hatched worms are found the worst enemy of the bow Weevil is good farming practices it pays to keep a weekly count on the B Weevil population in the cotton frequent application of insect Ides can control the Weevil aerial dusting makes it possible to avoid tractor damage to the crop picking time means pounds per acre the result of correct planting fertilizing cultivation and insect control Aviation has another job in the cotton the job of spraying defoliation chemicals defoliant remove the foliage or leaves from the plant cotton defoliants are used in all the cotton producing states and are generally applied by airplane in the San wiin Valley of California defoliant are applied by helicopter helicopters are liked by the cotton Growers for their application control however their high cost limits their use this is another problem of agricultural Aviation yet to be overcome a week after defoliation spraying the plants stand dry and almost leafless the bowls ripen more uniformly and can be gathered at a single picking defoliation hastens maturity and facilitates both hand and machine picking defoliation may be necessary in order to enable a mechanical picker to proceed through a field of rank and matted cotton so it was here with this fiber crop that the industry of agricultural Aviation found its beginning in the Northwest agricultural Aviation is valuable to the fruit industry in particular is the Apple grower problem of windfall damage and normal preh Harvest drop the Fallen apples are bruised now a plant regulator spray retards the growth of the absis layer on the stem and the ripe Apple remains firm to the tree in this work the helicopter has proven practical in an average year the saving of three apples on each tree pays for helicopter and chemicals the application May save up to 40% of the crop depending upon conditions one chemical material widely used is a growth regulator 245 TP it is effective for as long as a month it is important to spray the trees while their leaves are still working and it is important to harvest the fruit at proper maturity plant regulator sprays like 245 TP are used only for the effect they have upon the plant they are not used to poison insects or for plant disease while their use is very specific the result for the grower is Broad less dependence upon nature and more control in managing his crop the success of DDT on the farm was a principal factor in establishing insect control Aviation one crop protected by aerial spraying and dusting is tobacco beautifully camouflaged the tobacco hornworm can rapidly destroy a crop various insecticides can be used to control this field pest an insect infestation can riddle a crop the productivity of this field corn has been destroyed by an outbreak of grasshoppers grasshopper outbreaks can occur in range land or a variety of field crops this is insect damage to a tobacco leaf insect enemies can be controlled by the aerial application of insecticides spray pests before damage to a crop is done insecticides are poisons Growers of tobacco and food crops are required by law to use them within the established residue tolerances field Tobacco For example is not sprayed with parione within 15 days of cutting most insecticides kill warm Bloods and cold Bloods alike properly used they will not cause disease nor increase the susceptibility of disease in animal or man agricultural Aviation is aware of its growing responsibility in the field of Toxicology when the wheat land is wet in the early spring and temperatures low ranchers may put nitrate fertilizer on their fields the object is to produce an early crop maturity and consequently more grain volume ranchers who regularly use agricultural Aviation Services often provide a landing loading strip it is practical to have the strip as close to the field as possible when fertilizing the airplane flies high enough to make a 30 to 40t spread it flies the field twice crossing the SS at a 90° angle the distribution of this top dressing wheat booster is 150 lb per acre put on while the field is still wet the same aerial technique is used for seeding grain crops weeds cause more loss to the Farms of the United States than the combined loss from disease and insects weed loss is second only to loss by erosion pre-emergence herbicides for weed control are applied before planting applications are made to the soil further weed control practices are not required for a considerable period of time the principal use of herbicide such as 24d is the control of weeds and grain crops some 24d preparations are dangerous to use in the presence of neighboring crops such as cotton or field peas this is normal growth for field peas in a 10-day germination period the parent plants of these were treated with 1/4 ounce per a AC of 24d 1 o per acre results in almost complete germination damage consideration of the vapor traveling characteristics of herbicides is of utmost importance in their use by Aviation see the county agent about when to spray weed should be small if one is to get effective and maximum control within 1 to 10 days depending upon the temperature results are seen one application of 24d to a field that has been properly cultivated is generally enough to produce a clean field of grain only minute amounts of herbicide of the growth regulating type is needed to destroy the weed plant this fact makes aerial application extremely practical agricultural Aviation is a young giant rapidly Coming of Age its development parallels the advance of agricultural chemistry a category of chemical research second only to that in the field of medicine researchers opened the door on a new world of plant control undreamed of when aerial dusting and spraying began from a beginning in the cotton of the South it is grown to include every section of the country and many crops as an applicator of insecticides herbicides defoliant and growth Regulators today agricultural Aviation is an integral part of the American farm community oh