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• Syngenta Turf Foliar Nozzles overcome wind

Syngenta Turf Foliar Nozzles can give turf managers significantly greater opportunities for timely spray application, enabling fungicide treatments at the optimum time and maintaining a regular Primo Maxx growth regulator programme for optimum turf health and quality. Over the coming days, the drift reduction capabilities could provide 90% more spraying opportunities.

Syngenta Application Specialist, Tom Robinson, reports the nozzles typically give three to five extra spraying days per month. However, whilst the windy conditions forecast for the rest of this week are likely to limit application with conventional flat fan nozzles to just early Monday morning and late Thursday evening, the Turf Foliar Nozzle could permit spraying every day, with up to  13 hours available on Thursday.

"The GreenCast five-day disease forecast has identified increasing risk of Dollar Spot as the temperatures rise through the week, with greenkeepers reporting summer Fusarium Patch has also been breaking out, especially on irrigated turf," warned Mr Robinson. "Our research shows that fungicide treatments should be applied as soon as GreenCast indicates a period of risk to prevent disease breaking out, or at least at the very first signs of disease infection to stop spread.

"A timely application of Banner Maxx, Headway or Instrata will be essential to prevent the loss of turf quality over the busy summer playing period. Fitting the Syngenta Turf Foliar Nozzle could make the difference between being able to spray, or not." He highlights that where greenkeepers are using a 'little and often' approach with their Primo Maxx programmes the Turf Foliar Nozzles can help maintain application schedules.


The low-drift capability of the Syngenta Turf Foliar Nozzle (top) can increase spraying opportunites for more timely application, compared to flat fan nozzles (bottom).

Mr Robinson adds that the feedback from sprayer operators since the launch of the dedicated turf nozzles' for foliar application has been extremely positive. "The low-drift capability has proven extremely valuable, especially where many golf courses are on more exposed sites. Importantly the design balances drift reduction with producing up to 75% more droplets per ml than a standard air-induction nozzle, ensuring good retention of the spray on the leaf surface."

Furthermore, the Turf Foliar Nozzle is designed to work at lower water volumes than traditionally used for turf application, optimising performance of fungicides from application rates of 125 to 250 litres per hectare, where label recommendations permit. "This can significantly improve sprayer work rates and help achieve better spray timing, as well as reducing disruption on the golf course," he added. 

The Spray Window Forecast provides a guide to possible opportunities over the coming five days when using either conventional nozzles or drift reduction technology. However, it is only intended as a guide and must be used in conjunction with a local assessment of conditions prior to spraying.

The service is available as part of the free Syngenta GreenCast disease and weather forecasting and turf management website. A mobile version of the site is also available and has proven especially useful for making decisions out on the course. The site is available free for all turf managers, agronomists and students to register at www.greencast.co.uk