What’s in Your Crop Protection Spray Water? Why Water Quality Matters

Farmers spend a lot of time choosing the right crop protection products, but a Lakeland College researcher says they should also pay attention to the water they are using during spray. Cereal research scientist Dr. Balwinder Kumar says water hardness, pH and other factors can affect how well herbicides and fungicides perform. “So the main crux is like, don't guess water quality, just send it to the lab. Or at least you, you like, there are some strip pads available in the market, buy those strip pads for hardness, pH, then we can test.” Kumar says water quality can vary significantly between municipal, well and dugout sources, potentially affecting results even when producers use the same products. He hopes to develop more research around water quality, with the goal of helping producers get more from every dollar they spend.