Apirl/May 2005
Commercial Agriculture

Spray That Sticks Around

Adjuvants from Southern States improve performance of crop-protection chemicals.

Rantz Smith of Trenton, Fla., says adding a small amount of a surfactant to his spray tank is about as good an investment as any he can make.

Take Your Pick Here are a few of the adjuvants and surfactants available from Southern States: Mission, new for 2005, is a methylated soy oil surfactant that's very effective under high-temperature and low-humidity conditions. It spreads herbicide quickly and evenly, penetrates the leaf and does not evaporate from the plant surface. SpraySaver, also new for 2005, is a concentrated, low-use rate adjuvant. It increases average spray droplet size and reduces "bounce," thereby improving retention by up to 30%. It is especially good for use with fungicide and insecticide sprays and with herbicides that do not require a nitrogen additive. Adept, a non-ionic surfactant, boasts 100% active ingredients and an 80% surfactant load, highest in the industry, which means more surfactant reaches the leaf surface giving greater penetrating power to the herbicide. Affix's unique HPG polymer increases droplet size, enhancing canopy penetration and deposition. It also reduces spray droplet bounce, increasing retention and absorption of post-applied herbicides. Reliable is a crop-oil concentrate surfactant designed for use with postemergent herbicides. It maximizes herbicide performance while protecting sensitive crop plant tissues from injury. Sil-Spread, a silicone surfactant/wetter/spreader promotes rapid movement of chemical into plants. Sil-Kist surfactant is a blend of Sil-Spread and non-ionic co-surfactant for use in water-based crop protectant formulations.

"A gallon of fungicide can easily cost $100," says Smith. He sprays 500 acres of watermelons for gummy stem blight on a seven- to ten-day schedule. A surfactant adds only a few dollars to the cost, he notes, but dramatically improves the treatment's effectiveness.

"I use a surfactant primarily as a drift-reducer," he explains, noting that windy springs make it difficult for spray droplets to reach their target.

Murray Tillis of nearby Chiefland uses surfactants with spray applications of herbicides and fungicides for 2,300 acres of peanuts and 300 acres of watermelons.

"Surfactants help chemicals to spread and stick," Tillis explains. "A lot of these chemicals won't work well without a surfactant. They're just good insurance."

Smith and Tillis are both customers of Southern States-Trenton. In addition to providing crop and livestock supplies, the store custom sprays about 70,000 acres of peanuts, corn and pasture over a seven-county area, according to manager Jason Raulerson.

"About 90% of all the chemicals we apply require the use of a surfactant," Raulerson notes. "But we'd use one anyway, because it just makes the product work better, and it costs only 25 to 50 cents per acre."

Hugh Haynes, agronomist with Southern States in Troy, Ala., explains that surfactants are one of several types of adjuvants or additives that modify the action of a chemical. They are designed to accomplish different purposes with different types of crop protection chemicals.

Surfactants improve the spreading, dispersing, wetting and other properties of liquids; when a spray drop-let hits the leaf surface, it achieves maximum coverage.

In simple terms, adjuvants help spread droplets on the plants, and cause them stick to the plant and not bounce off.

"Southern States offers a wide variety of proprietary adjuvants to enhance and add value to crop protectants," Haynes says. "Your Southern States dealer, agronomist or field sales associate can help you determine which product will work best with the chemical you're using and the specific application."