In collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development instructors, and Luxembourg Industries Ltd.
ALTA is the largest company in Israel in the field of pesticide application in agriculture using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The company has a license for spraying using UAVs from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Civil Aviation Authority in Israel.
About two years ago, the company developed the “Venus” system, which is carried on a drone and to which are attached Splat tubes (manufactured by Isca, USA), containing various pheromone preparations intended to confuse moth species in a number of fruit crops in Israel. The system was adapted to automatically disperse a precise amount of the pheromone preparation (also in various degrees of ointment or liquid), in accordance with the company’s recommendations for the dosage of the preparation to be applied to the trees. The dispersion rate and speed are fully controlled from the pilot’s remote control. In recent years, the company has gained unprecedented commercial operating experience in tens of thousands of dunams in spraying and applying a variety of pesticides.
Extensive observations were conducted over two years to examine the effectiveness of drone application of pheromone preparations for controlling moth species (with an emphasis on the false apple moth) in various fruit crops in Israel. The observations were conducted in collaboration with senior professionals at the Israeli Agricultural and Forestry Administration, inspectors, growers, and field personnel from the Luxembourg company (which markets the Splat preparations). The completion of the licensing process for the drone application method with the Ministry of Agriculture on a commercial scale constitutes an unprecedented and innovative breakthrough in Israeli agriculture.
In the current citrus season, ALTA launched an upgraded and improved system, called “Venus-Trio”, which carries 3 large tubes containing 750 grams of splat each (a total of 2.25 kg of product). This development enabled a groundbreaking upgrade in the application method, which is reflected in greater speed of application, efficiency, and improved accuracy of aerial pheromone application.
As part of the Almond Friendly Pest Control Project, managed by the Ministry of Agriculture, conducted in 2018 and 2019, in some of the observations, the application of the pheromone to confuse the carob moth was carried out by drone and the method was found to be effective, fast and very economical in manpower compared to the manual application method from the ground. Since the carob moth is mainly found in the upper part of the trees, the ability to apply the product to the treetops allows the pheromone to be released in the most appropriate area to obtain effective confusion. The study findings show that the male carob moth can be effectively confused, with an aerial splat application, in large almond trees and with late applications when the foliage is developed and dense.
ALTA’s development department is currently working on developing a unique technology that will enable early and effective application of the product via drone, even on almond trees with partial foliage or trees without leaves at all. In addition, the company plans to later apply additional products to apple orchards, vineyards and cotton fields.
ALTA’s expertise and uniqueness is in developing dedicated aerial application systems for various types of pesticides (paste, granules and liquid). These systems produce innovative solutions in the agricultural field and achieve improved application accuracy, significant savings in manpower, and maximum efficiency.