Spot-spraying Goosegrass in soybeans

Weed control is a constant battle for soybean growers, often leading to wasted chemicals and unnecessary expenses. But what if you could target weeds with laser precision, saving significant money and boosting sustainability? That's exactly what Leonardo achieved using PIX4Dfields and a DJI Agras T50 drone for spot spraying application.

Images of the soybean field taken during the drone flight

Identifying 10 hectares of soybean out of 55 with Eleusine (Goosegrass)

A common problem plagued Leonardo's 55-hectare soybean crop: stubborn Eleusine (goosegrass) was spreading. blanket herbicide application (spraying the entire field) would have led to significant waste. He therefore chose PIX4Dfields for a smart spraying solution.

From the drone flight to the target field application:

• Scouting & image capture: high-resolution drone imagery captured after flying over the soybean field was processed fast and offline in PIX4Dfields.
• PIX4Dfields’ Magic Tool was used to automatically detect all Goosegrass plants in seconds.
• A prescription map was created based on the above data for a targeted herbicide application. The initial treatment area was just 7 hectares. After some adjustments using PIX4Dfields’ Buffer tool, the final actively sprayed area was a mere 10 hectares out of the total 55. That's a massive reduction from spraying the entire field!
• No-spray zones: instead of creating complex flight obstacles, the grower intelligently designated non-application zones directly within the DJI Agras T50 drone's control interface. This allowed the drone to seamlessly pass over healthy areas, optimizing flight efficiency and saving valuable time.

PIX4Dfields’ prescription map for DJI Agras T50

Cutting down on agricultural input costs by 82%

The chemical mixture in the treated area included:

• Clethodim: 1 liter
• Glyphosate: 2 liters
• Siliconized Vegetable Oil: 100 cc/ml

Flight plan of the DJI Agras T50 spray drone displaying the prescription map created in PIX4Dfields for the targeted herbicide application

Choosing smart, targeted spraying resulted in using inputs to treat just 10 hectares of soybeans out of 55. This dramatically reduced the total inputs of this application from flight time to slashing overall chemical mix liters sprayed on the field by 82%!

A profitable strategy: spot spraying year-round

Building on the success of the goosegrass project, Leonardo quickly integrated this precision approach for continual cost savings across the entire season.

He tackled a highly challenging weed next: glyphosate-resistant ryegrass in his soybean fallows. This weed demanded expensive chemicals (clethodim and oil), making a blanket application financially painful. However, using PIX4Dfields’ Magic Tool for automatic weed detection, Leonardo turned a large problem into a small, targeted, and profitable job for both himself and the growers.

On a 20 ha field, the drone inspection showed that only 2.79 ha actually needed treatment. This hyper-specific prescription, created in minutes and offline in PIX4Dfields, avoided spraying 86% of the field, targeting the herbicide precisely where it was needed and cutting unnecessary expense.

Drone image of a soybean field with glyphosate-resistant ryegrass (left) and all resistant ryegrass plants detected on the field using Magic Tool in PIX4Dfields

This targeted strategy wasn't limited to a single field. Over the course of the Argentinian winter, Leonardo and his team scaled their operations, completing around 300 hectares of targeted herbicide applications. By consistently using PIX4Dfields, they achieved remarkable and sustained herbicide savings of up to 90%, proving that smarter agriculture is simply more profitable.

PIX4Dfields’ prescription map, directly uploaded on DJI Agras T50 controller for targeted herbicide application at the soybean field

The profit formula: scaling spot spraying across all weeds

The success wasn't a one-off. This data-driven approach was also used by Leonardo for other challenging scenarios:

• Acacia in soybeans: Only 5 out of 50 hectares treated.
• Sorghum Aleppo in soybeans: A mere 2 out of 11 hectares targeted.
• Chloris and Eleusine Patches: Just 17 out of 180 hectares required treatment.
• Fungicide applications: applied only where disease pressure was high, avoiding healthy crops entirely.
• Glyfosate-resistant ryegrass in winter fallow.
• Lamium amplexicaule weed in wheat crops.

In every case, PIX4Dfields created the prescription maps for the targeted application at the field, guiding the spray drone on spraying only the areas with weeds and ensuring optimal chemical use and maximum flight efficiency.

This real-world case study proves the immense benefits of drone-based spot spraying:

• Slash input costs: direct and significant savings on expensive herbicides and fungicides.
• Less compaction and trampling: selective application using drones prevented trampling and excessive compaction caused by ground sprayers.
• Boost sustainability: less chemical use means a reduced environmental footprint and minimal off-target effects.
• Maximize efficiency: smart navigation over no-spray zones reduces flight time and drone wear and tear.
• Scalable success: this method works across various weed types and crops, offering versatile solutions.

Integrating advanced tools like PIX4Dfields and DJI Agras T50 drones isn't just about adopting new technology; it's about embracing a smarter, more profitable, and sustainable future for agriculture.