Since agriculture's earliest days, farmers have been innovating technology to help in the relentless battle against the elements, diseases, and destructive pests that threaten crop production. Precision agriculture technology enables today's farmers to monitor and respond to these threats in real time and to give their crops precisely what they need, when they need it.

Spray drones are a new tool that combines earlier technology—uncrewed aerial vehicles and crop sprayers—with AI computing capabilities to precisely apply inputs such as fertilizer and pesticide to row crops. Research suggests that in certain cases, drones can improve the safety, efficiency, and cost of input applications. Yet currently, producers see the innovation as a complement to conventional application methods, rather than a replacement. Since the Federal Aviation Administration streamlined regulations for applying agricultural products by drone last year, MAFES scientists have pursued opportunities to study drones' abundant applications.

MSU's Agricultural Autonomy Institute, established in June 2023 to situate Mississippi as the "Silicon Valley of Agricultural Autonomy," has partnered with some of the country's leading agricultural drone manufacturers to advance the university's research mission. One of its most recent collaborations was unveiled in August at an agronomic field day co-hosted by AAI, MAFES, and the MSU Extension Service and held at the MAFES R. R. Foil Plant Science Research Center. Leading Edge Aerial Technologies, or LEAT, a Florida-based company that produces specialized drones designed for spray-and-spread applications, brought its latest model, the PrecisionVision 40X, to demonstrate the technology and educate visitors on its many benefits.

Madison Dixon, AAI's associate director, said that MSU will benefit from Leading Edge's knowledge and expertise by putting spray drone technology into the hands of researchers and farmers alike.

"Our partnership with Leading Edge provides opportunities for MSU scientists to advance research in uncrewed aerial applications," he said. "We're also navigating regulations and certifications effectively so we can extend that knowledge to Mississippi's growers."

MSU also launched a partnership this year with Texas-based company Hylio, whose "Texas-sized" high-capacity AG-272 model and proprietary "swarm technology" have captured attention in the agricultural drone industry. AAI, in collaboration with MAFES and the MSU Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, purchased an AG-230 spray drone platform and signed a cooperative research agreement with Hylio over the summer. In August, a team from MSU traveled to Hylio's headquarters in Houston for flight training.

In addition to developing groundbreaking research on spray drones, Mississippi State is offering training opportunities to get the technology into the hands of agricultural industry. Collaborating with the Mississippi Agricultural Industry Council and the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, MSU hosted a spray drone training seminar in October. The seminar, held simultaneously on-campus and virtually, provided regulatory updates, information regarding approved uses and restrictions, ongoing research conducted at MSU, and additional resources. Additional spray drone training opportunities are being planned.

MAFES scientists are also training the next generation of ag leaders, preparing them to make meaningful contributions to this up-and-coming field. Master's student Hunter Blalock and doctoral student Antonio Tavares have conducted research contributing to a multi-institutional National Institute of Food and Agriculture study of spray drones.

Working with advisor Dr. Whitney Crow, associate professor in the Department of Agricultural Science and Plant Protection, Blalock evaluated the efficacy of insecticide application by drone compared to a high-clearance ground-based sprayer called a "mud master." Using both application methods on cotton, soybeans, and grain sorghum—each crop differing in canopy cover, biomass, and target pest—he found that drone applications were equally effective as applications by the ground rig.

"When we talk about insecticide efficacy, we want to choose the best product for the target pest and to reduce insect populations below a certain threshold," said Crow. "Spray drones typically operate at a lower rate of GPA, or gallons per acre, but even at lower rates, both the aerial and ground application methods gave us the results we wanted to see."

Tavares's work also focused on product efficacy, exploring numerous factors that impact spray drone application such as wind speed, flight heights, nozzle design, and spray droplet size. Additionally, he studied how different crop canopies affect application efficacy—whether the product lands on its intended target.

"Scientists in the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station have been collaborating with the Agricultural Autonomy Institute on spray drone research, and the data that Antonio and Hunter produced will serve as a baseline for some of their studies and guide the needs for future research," said Dr. Darrin Dodds, MAFES associate director and professor in the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.

Spray drone research is still in its early days, yet Mississippi State has positioned itself as a key player in advancing applications of this new technology. MAFES will continue striving to produce innovative research, educate and develop tomorrow's industry leaders, and forge partnerships with industries whose goals align with the university—all to better serve the people working in agriculture at home in Mississippi and beyond.

The research is funded by the Robert M. Hearin Support Foundation.