Plan and apply a broadleaf herbicide to a wheat crop

What is going on

The wheat in paddock 12 is at stem elongation and broadleaf weeds are past threshold. The Irrigation and Plant Supervisor has created a planned entry in the Chemical Use and Storage Register and wants the job done on Friday morning before the crop passes the label growth stage. The boom sprayer was calibrated last month and the calibration record is in the Plant and Equipment Register. A neighbour's vineyard runs along the eastern boundary and a drainage channel crosses the northern corner. The forecast is for a light westerly early, strengthening by mid-morning.

Your brief

Plan, prepare, apply and record a compliant herbicide application to 110 hectares of wheat, meeting the label, the weather conditions and the buffer distances, with every step documented in the Chemical Use and Storage Register and the sprayer pre-start records.

Work through it

You do not need to do it all. Doing a few of these will show you what the work is like. Your ticks and notes stay on this device.

• Read the Agricultural Chemical Management Policy and the Chemical Preparation and Application Procedure and list the label checks, weather limits and records required for this job.
• Review the planned register entry CHM-26-120, confirm the product is registered for the crop and target, and note the withholding and re-entry periods.
• Assess the site: identify the vineyard and drainage channel as sensitive areas, set buffer distances and decide the start time and the wind conditions under which you will stop.
• Calculate the product quantity for 110 hectares at the label rate and the calibrated sprayer output, and record the second-person check of your figures.
• Complete the sprayer and tractor pre-start check from the Tractor, Quad Bike and Machinery Operation Procedure and list the personal protective equipment you will wear from the label.
• Describe the mixing sequence, the container rinsing and the rinsate handling at the wash-down area, and where the empty containers go.
• Finalise the Chemical Use and Storage Register entry with product, rate, total quantity, area, weather readings at intervals, times, applicator and the withholding end date, and update the Field Activity Log.

What someone in this role would produce

• Job plan with buffers and stop conditions
• Product quantity calculation with second check
• Sprayer pre-start record
• Completed Chemical Use and Storage Register entry
• Field Activity Log entry