Monthly Archives: February 2023
Use Winter to for Preventive Maintenance
on Your Sprayers
Ric Bessin, UK Extension Entomologist
As winter begins to wind down, we need to get our equipment ready for the coming growing season. When it is time to begin spraying and planting, we don’t want to spend precious time to fix and repair equipment. It is during this down time when we should do some routine maintenance on our sprayers. Spray equipment in poor repair can lead to poor application which will cost you money.
Look for Leaks
Before your start, put on a pair of gloves to protect yourself from pesticide residues. Begin by filling your sprayer with clean water, but before you engage the pump, look for leaks from around the pump, hoses, strainers, and nozzles. Pay particular attention to the hoses, as these often show signs of wear sooner than other more durable parts. Besides obvious leaks from hoses, inspect hoses for cracking and signs of dry rot as these can burst when pressurized. Places where hoses might crimp with folding booms are prone to cracking as hoses age. Engage the pump and look again for leaks. Check the pressure gauge and test the cutoff valves to be sure they are working.
Scrutinize Strainers
The job of strainers is to keep gunk from reaching and plugging nozzles. With just routine use there can be significant debris buildup with the inline strainer from the tank or the individual strainers in front of each nozzle. Sometimes these can be cleaned with a soft brush, other times they need to be replaced.
Next, the Nozzles All nozzles wear over time. This leads to increasing and irregular flow rate from nozzles and poor spray patterns. In place of uniform applications across a field, there may be streaks due to places of over and under applications. While some nozzles materials, such as ceramics and stainless steel, may be more resistant to wear, all nozzles will show signs of wear eventually. Sprays containing abrasive materials such as wettable powders and flowables cause more wear to nozzles. Before conducting a catch test, be sure each of the nozzles are of the exact same type and are not mismatched. Start your sprayer with the clean water and observe the pattern from each of the nozzles, look for streaks and clogs. The pattern from each nozzle should be the same. Run a 30-second or 1-minute catch test for each nozzle, output from each nozzle should be within 5% of the average output from all nozzles. Nozzles that are worn or cannot be unclogged need to be replaced and the catch test repeated.
Regularly Recalibrate
Now that your sprayer is working properly, it needs to be recalibrated. As new strainers and nozzles can change the spray output. Calibration should be done at a minimum once a year, but for those that use a sprayer more frequent or after changing to different nozzles (going from flat fan to hollow cone for example) recalibration must be done more often. For instructions for calibrating a sprayer are in the Recordkeeping Manual for Private Pesticide Applicators.
How to Grow Figs in Kentucky
If you want to add a new fruit variety to the home garden, consider growing figs! Figs do not have a lot of disease and insect issues in comparison to other fruits in the state. The fruit are good for eating fresh, drying, and preserving in jams and jellies as a value-added product. Since figs prefer warmer temperatures in their natural environment, it is important to provide winter protection and site plants correctly in order to have successful fig production.
Plant figs close to the south side of a building. This location is best because it provides protection against winter winds and offers higher temperatures through the winter. Make sure that fig plant are at least 3 to 4 feet away from the wall of buildings. Locate figs in an area that receives 8 hours of sunlight during the growing season. Figs grow in most soil types, but avoid soils infested with nematodes.
Early spring while figs are dormant is the best time for planting. If planting bare-rooted plants, cut back the tops about one-half of their original length. Container grown plants with good root systems will not require the tops cut back. Inspect the root system of container-grown plants to see if the roots have grown “pot bound” where roots have grown in a circular pattern in the pot. If yes, carefully straighten the roots when planting or cut them back to the point where they turned. Plant the plants 3 inches deeper than they were growing in the nursery. Backfill the planting hole with original soil from the area and water thoroughly. Do not add fertilizer or other soil amendments to the planting hole.
Selecting Fig Varieties
When searching catalogs for fig varieties, purchase plants from reputable southeastern nurseries. Most of the time, they guarantee plants for a year and will replace if there are any problems. Check with the nursery company about their exact policy before buying.
Two recommended cultivars for growing in Kentucky are Celeste and Chicago Hardy. These varieties are cold hardy and can withstand freezing temperatures better than the other garden fig varieties. Both varieties are also self-pollinating, so they do not require another variety when planting.
Here are a few basic descriptions about each cultivar:
Celeste figs produce a light brown to violet color fruit that is small in size. Even though it has smaller sized fruit, the flavor makes up for because of its high sugary contents. It is very good for eating fresh and is excellent when used for preserving. Since this cultivar is winter hardy to 0 degrees Fahrenheit, it is best to grow in a container so it can be taken in during the winter months.
Chicago Hardy figs exhibit medium sized purple fruit. Fruit produced on older wood will appear in early summer while fruit on new growth appears in early fall. This variety is good for planting outdoors since it possesses good heat and drought tolerance as well as good cold hardiness.
If interested in learning more about growing figs in Kentucky, the Warren County Extension Service is hosting a class on Growing Figs on Tuesday, February 28th at 6:00 PM. Our speakers for the evening are Martin and Joleen Stone from Lovee & Rose Farm in Richardsville, KY. Class is free and open to the public. If you would like to attend the class, please contact the Warren County at (270) 842-1681 to register.
Happy Gardening!
