Development and technical validation of spray kit for coffee harvester

Abstract

Spraying a coffee plantation simultaneously with harvesting ensures that the coffee plants are protected from pests and diseases, which are intensified during this period. In addition to economical operation, the pulverizer adapted to all harvester models promotes greater uniformity in pulverized syrup dispensing since the spray tips are arranged evenly around the plant. Two experiments were carried out in the municipality of Capelinha and Varjão de Minas, MG, comparing the Pulverizer Kit with two volumes of syrup to the Arbus 2000 standard and Arbus 2000 Cerrado, respectively in experiment 2. The experiments were conducted using a randomized block design, with seven and ten replications, respectively, for plots of 20 plants to evaluate the deposition of the syrup in the upper, middle, and lower thirds of the plants. It was concluded that the Sprayer Kit adapted to the coffee harvester is a suitable option for spraying simultaneously to the harvest, using syrup volumes lower than those commonly used in coffee cultivation. The application with Arbus 2,000 had difficulty in reaching the upper third of the coffee tree, whereas this did not occur when the coffee was pulverized using the Spray Kit, regardless of the volume of syrup used.