Top-fruit growers in County Armagh have been shown drone and remote-controlled ground-sprayer methods at an orchard demonstration supported through a Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs horticulture initiative. The event focused on equipment intended for orchard application.
The demonstration included a drone and a remote-controlled ground sprayer. DAERA said the methods were presented to growers as part of work under the Innovation Driver and Support Scheme, which sits within its Horticulture Pilot Scheme.
The department said the equipment was designed to support orchard spraying applications while reducing soil compaction. That is the stated intended benefit of the techniques demonstrated, rather than a confirmed outcome measured at the County Armagh event.
The session was held for growers involved in top-fruit production. By bringing the equipment into an orchard setting, the demonstration gave attendees an opportunity to see the drone and remote-controlled sprayer methods in the context for which they were being promoted.
DAERA has identified the Innovation Driver and Support Scheme as part of its wider Horticulture Pilot Scheme. The County Armagh event was therefore presented as innovation support for production horticulture, with the emphasis on practical spraying technology.
The two types of equipment have different forms of operation: the demonstration featured an aerial drone and a remotely controlled sprayer used on the ground. Both were included in the information provided by DAERA about the event for orchard growers.
The department’s account does not claim that the demonstration has already delivered reduced compaction or improved application on particular farms. Instead, it describes the techniques as designed to improve orchard application and to reduce the effect of machinery on soil.
The event highlights the pilot scheme’s use of demonstrations to present technology to the production-horticulture sector. For the growers attending in County Armagh, the focus was on the potential role of drone and remote-controlled spraying equipment in top-fruit orchards.