There are currently only a few selective products registered that can be used on lettuce. So producers have to use non-selective products. Our highly accurate spot spraying is essential because it allows producers to secure a 4 cm spray-free zone around each individual crop plant. This means that weeds can be sprayed with non-selective herbicide (if allowed in the respective country) without any crop being affected. And the other way round for fertiliser. What we actually make possible is to apply a non-selective product in a selective way.
Our algorithm is currently available for iceberg lettuce. We've already applied successful treatments in many different countries:
- The Czech Republic, for Leading Farmers
- France, for Floréale (producer of Florette salads)
- Spain, at Bonduelle
- Germany, at Agravis
More varieties on the way
Lettuce comes in many different varieties. To meet the very diverse needs of salad producers, our team are working hard to get our algorithm to various species. It means being able to visually detect additional lettuce and additional weeds, on various soil types and lots of additional parameters.
Our team has already advanced a lot on visual recognition for additional varieties such as romaine lettuce, red Batavia and oak leaf salad. These are being validated and will be available soon for ARA users. We've made enough progress to offer a few demonstrations.
Demonstration in Switzerland
In the early days of autumn, 2002, we showed how efficient ARA is in lettuce processing to the Association of young European market gardeners. The demonstration happened while the association was visiting Stoll Production SA in Yverdon-les-Bains (Switzerland), very close to Ecorobotix headquarters.
This demo showed the processing of many varieties: iceberg lettuce of course, but also red Batavia and oak leaf salad.
These young professionals were impressed by the results, spraying accuracy and sparing of chemicals. Our thanks to Julien Stoll for organising this meeting and interesting conversations!
