Spraying a pecan orchard to protect it against insects and diseases is a rigorous task. Maintaining a 14- or 21-day schedule for scab control from April to August can cause many growers lots of stressful days and sleepless nights. Wind is the primaryobstacle to timely and effective spraying. It is not uncommon throughout the Southeast to have daily winds of 5 to 10 knots, and while such winds are relatively calm, it is enough to prevent thorough spray coverage with even the best of ground-driven air-blast sprayers. On many days, a grower may only have 2-4 hours of relatively calm winds to spray, which is not enough time to stay on schedule or ahead of the next rain event.
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