Earn Credit for Course on Air Blast Sprayer Calibration

The Almond Board of California (ABC) recently hosted a Training Tuesday on the topic of application best management practices for air blast sprayers and ground rigs. Among other speakers, the training featured University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) farm advisor Lynn Wunderlich, who is based in the Central Sierra area.

Wunderlich provided information about an online course available to almond growers looking to learn more about application practices and earn continuing education credits.

Below are the details of this course – growers, applicators, and other industry members are encouraged to participate. In addition, all are welcome to watch a recording of ABC’s Training Tuesday on application best management practices. Visit ABC’s YouTube channel or Almonds.com/TrainingTuesdays to view the training.

About the course:

• Title: Air Blast Sprayer Online Calibration Course
• Authors: Wunderlich and farm advisor Franz Niederholzer, with support from UC Integrated Pest Management (IPM) online course designers Petr Kosina and Cheryl Reynolds.
• Cost: The course is currently available for FREE if no continuing education units are applied for. Those seeking credit may pay a fee to earn credit in the following areas:
  • CA DPR:
    • 0.5 – Pesticide Laws & Regs
    • 2.0 – Other
  • CCA: 2.0 – IPM
  • AZ Dept of Ag: 2.5
• Length: This course includes five interactive learning modules.
• Topics: The course provides information on the basic principles of spray calibration, including calculations. The course also describes the components of a sprayer and examines at how droplet size, nozzle type and weather conditions influence drift and spray coverage. Conditions for pesticide applications under the 2018 Pesticide Use Near Schoolsites regulation are also addressed.
• Course Access: The course is hosted on the UC IPM Online Training Platform on the eXtension Campus website. Participants may create an eXtension Campus account (free of charge) or use their Google or Microsoft account to access the course. Interested persons may also visit the “Online Training” webpage on the UC IPM website to locate the course.