Case study on “Centralizing sprayer cleaning management”

The region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, which includes the two autonomous provinces of Bolzano and Trento, is one of the most productive fruit-growing areas in Italy. Grapevine cultivation is also particularly important. The average farm size is very small, so the number of sprayers is high and there is a higher concentration of spray equipment, especially in the areas where farming the land is the main activity. A survey carried out during the EIP-Agri “Pflanzenschutz” Operational Group confirms that, among fruit growers, the washing of the sprayer and the tractor at the end of the treatment is more frequent at the farm centre rather than in the field and, that among the interviewed farmers, there is a high preference of managing the equipment washing in collectively organized areas. The high number of sprayers, the distance between farm and collective washing stations, the initial investment and management costs, seem to be the main critical points that need to be evaluated for any type of solution. However, the several advantages offered by collective systems should lay the foundation for the creation of pilot devices, which would also help studying and searching for solutions to maximize their rational and efficient use