SEE & SPRAY™ NOW IN USE ON FARM
John Deere introduced See & Spray™ Select in March 2021, with machines available factory-equipped with advanced spraying technology. Farmers can use See & Spray Select, to minimize input costs and only spray weeds when they are detected. It puts an end to broadcast spraying.
See & Spray Select uses camera technology to detect color differentiation in the field and is ideal for small-grains farmers who manage weed pressure on fallow acres. As the sprayer moves through the field, its cameras rapidly detect only green plants within fallow ground and triggers an application to those plants. See & Spray Select has a similar hit rate to broadcast spraying2 while applying 77% less herbicide on average1. This opens the opportunity for farmers to save on their non-residual, pre-emerge herbicides. Joel Basinger, marketing manager for John Deere stated that research has shown that weeds sprayed with complex tank mixes with more than two modes of action are 83 times less likely to develop herbicide resistance.
Built on a 400 or 600 Series Sprayer and factory equipped with See & Spray Select, it is the only OEM solution available that enables farmers to have both a spotspray and a broadcast machine in one integrated package. This helps you cover more acres per day because you’re not stopping as often to refill. This technology is available on newer John Deere 400 and 600 Series Sprayers, which includes the 408R, 410R, 412R, 612R and 616R. If the job requires it, you can easily switch to broadcast spraying without leaving the sprayer’s cab. When finished with fallow spot-spraying and a post-emerge broadcast application needs to be made with the same tank mix, John Deere ExactApply technology can be used and can save up to 5% in broadcast chemical costs.
Sprayers come from the factory with fully integrated precision ag technology that delivers important data farmers and operators need to make informed agronomic and equipment decisions to benefit their operation. Data is collected in the John Deere Generation 4 Display and streamed via the JDLink™ connection to the John Deere Operations Center where it can be analyzed. This spot-spraying is only the beginning of the John Deere See & Spray journey as we help transition from field, to zone, to row, and now to individual plant spraying. John Deere continues working on future solutions that will meet additional customer needs beyond See & Spray Select.
Follow the progress of sprayer technology on farm in Denmark, where farmers have been using spot spraying maps for their wheat herbicide application for the first time. Watching from the cab they have been able to see individual nozzles being turned on and off based on the application map data. The first results look encouraging, no missed weeds and significantly reduced amounts of herbicide. The “Spraying with Stijn” series can be followed on social media.Â
