RESUMO
An IR thermometry enables non-contact temperature measurements of the crop canopy, capturing infrared radiation emitted by objects without physical contact, which is beneficial for accurate Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI) estimation as it minimizes interference and temperature reading alterations. In this study, handheld IRT was used to measure the canopy temperature of selected crops in 32 farms, 8 each in crop of Maize, chilly, groundnut and Black gram which were predominantly grown in Bapatla and Prakasm districts. Canopy temperature (Tc) and temperature of non-water stressed crop (Tnws) were measured 4 times during the Rabi season on clear sky days. The results concluded that at the initial stage, crops were grown with residual moisture of Kharif paddy hence at that stage CWSI values were low. The highest CWSI in the season was observed for the crop black gram about 0.524 and the lowest was observed for the crop chilly about 0.245. The seasonal average CWSI values for Maize, Chilly, Groundnut and Black gram were 0.382, 0.323, 0.358 and 0.399, respectively. CWSI determination helps to monitor the crop stress level, by knowing it, it is easy for irrigation scheduling by taking a threshold CWSI value to start irrigation. The average CWSI for each crop can be taken as a threshold value for irrigation scheduling.
RESUMO
Spraying is a crucial practice in agriculture, especially for the application of chemical pesticides that play a vital role in protecting crops. However, there has been a worrisome rise in the annual consumption of pesticides, leading to significant concerns. The excessive use of these pesticides has resulted in substantial wastage, which is a cause for alarm. To address these issues and enhance the efficiency of pesticide application, a tractor-operated boom sprayer was developed to ensure effective spraying. The study focused on evaluating and optimizing three operational factors: spacing between nozzles (30, 40, 50 cm), spray boom height (80, 90, 100 cm), and pressure (17.5, 21.0, 24.5 kg.cm-2). A factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD) approach was employed, 81 experiments were conducted and data were analyzed statistically by using the SPSS software package to investigate the effect of operational parameters on the performance of the sprayer. The results revealed that the operational parameters were significantly influencing the swath width and percent of overlap during spraying. The optimum combination of operational parameters was obtained using the R-software, the optimum combination for obtaining maximum swath width and minimum overlap is spacing between nozzles at 50 cm, spray boom height at 90 cm, and operating pressure at 24.5 kg.cm-2. The swath width and overlap at optimum combination were 7.77m and 43.12%, respectively. Implementing this optimal combination significantly improved the performance of the spraying activity, ensuring better coverage.