Agriculture changes on a constant basis, in part thanks to technology. Drone technology has been around for several years now, but in 2019 it was introduced to Adair County agriculture. Working with a  local custom applicator, drone technologies were evaluated by the Cooperative Extension Service in corn research plots in Adair and surrounding counties.

One advantage to drones however is their ability to spray in locations that are inaccessible to helicopters.   Furthermore, helicopters are often unavailable to many local farmers as the window for fungicide applications are narrow.   

Results suggested that drone applications have similar efficacy to helicopter applications of fungicides. Evaluations also show a decrease in disease severity of drone fungicide applications compared to untreated checks. In plots where disease was highly present, yields were increased by 22.8 bushels per acre by drone applied fungicides.  

The research results where shared during Extension meetings, via newsletters and newspaper articles.  As a result, a second local entity in Adair County has purchased a drone and began offering drone applied fungicide application services.  Farmers have also reported they feel comfortable utilizing this new technology as a result of the research conducted.