This blog post is based on the 25th Practice Abstract from the second batch of Farmtopia Practice Abstracts.
Mediterranean orchards such as olive and citrus plantations often have significant variation in tree size, vigour and planting density. Yet conventional spraying typically applies the same amount of plant protection product or fertiliser across the entire field.
This can lead to over- or under-application, increasing input costs and potentially causing unnecessary environmental losses. SPRAYBUS, developed through a Farmtopia Open Call Sustainable Innovation Pilot, explores how variable-rate technology can be made more practical for small and medium-sized orchard farms.
Variable-rate spraying directly from the tractor
Variable Rate Technology (VRT) can adjust application rates according to differences within a field. However, many existing solutions require farmers to use external GIS software, create prescription maps, transfer shapefiles and operate specialised machinery. For farmers with limited digital skills or heterogeneous machinery fleets, this can make precision spraying difficult to incorporate into everyday operations.
SPRAYBUS takes a different approach.
The in-cab Agricultural Digital Solution uses freely available Sentinel-2 satellite imagery and vegetation indices to identify orchard management zones. It then automatically adjusts spray doses and section control according to crop vigour.
The prescription maps can be generated and executed directly from the tractor cab, without requiring external GIS software or manual shapefile transfers.
Designed for existing machinery
One of the main practical features of SPRAYBUS is its compatibility with different types of agricultural machinery. The system works with both ISOBUS and non-ISOBUS equipment, allowing farms using conventional machinery to access variable-rate spraying without necessarily replacing their existing sprayer.
The solution can also operate offline, which is particularly useful in rural areas with limited mobile connectivity.
Operational data are stored locally and synchronised later, allowing farmers to continue working without a permanent internet connection.
Faster preparation, simpler operations
Field validation showed that SPRAYBUS could generate and execute variable-rate prescription maps directly from the tractor cab and operate reliably with both ISOBUS and non-ISOBUS machinery. One of the most significant practical results was the reduction in the time needed to prepare prescription maps.
Under the tested conditions, preparation time was reduced from a conventional workflow of approximately two days to just 1-3 minutes.
This can make a substantial difference for farmers who need to prepare applications as part of their normal field operations rather than through a separate data-processing workflow.
Spraying trials also showed that variable-rate applications maintained crop coverage comparable to conventional spraying while significantly reducing spray deposition on the soil. This indicates the potential to reduce off-target losses without compromising canopy coverage.
Connecting spraying with farm records
SPRAYBUS was also integrated with the Farmtopia Digital Field Book and Pest Risk Data services.
This means that information from field operations can be recorded automatically, reducing the amount of manual administrative work required after spraying. The integration can also support regulatory documentation, while the offline functionality allows operations to continue in areas where connectivity is unreliable.
Practical recommendations for farmers
Before implementing variable-rate spraying, farmers should make sure that orchard boundaries are correctly defined and that the sprayer has been properly calibrated. Prescription maps should also be checked before application to ensure that the identified management zones correspond to actual crop variability. For farms using conventional or non-ISOBUS machinery, SPRAYBUS offers an opportunity to introduce variable-rate spraying without major machinery investment.
Farmers can also benefit from generating prescription maps directly in the field, particularly when conditions or management decisions change shortly before an application.
Where connectivity is limited, the ability to work offline and synchronise data later can help avoid interruptions to field operations.
Finally, involving farmers during system configuration and testing the solution under real operating conditions can help build confidence and make adoption easier.
Making precision spraying more accessible: SPRAYBUS demonstrates that precision agriculture does not necessarily have to involve complicated software workflows or the replacement of existing machinery. By combining satellite imagery, variable-rate application, ISOBUS compatibility, offline operation and digital farm records in one system, the solution aims to make precision spraying more accessible to small and medium-sized orchard farms.
The Farmtopia pilot shows how simplifying the technical workflow can help farmers move from complex prescription-map preparation to a more direct process: identify field variability, generate the application map and execute it from the tractor.
About this Practice Abstract
Official title: A Precision Variable-Rate Spraying Solution for Orchards Using Satellite and ISOBUS Technologies (SPRAYBUS OC SIP)
This blog post was created from Practice Abstract 25, part of the second batch of Farmtopia Practice Abstracts.
Publisher: Soluciones Agrícolas de Precisión S.L. (Agrosap), Agroplanning Agricultura Inteligente S.L. and University of Seville
Authors: Salvador Correa; Jacob Carballido; Manuel Pérez-Ruiz; Ana Gómez
Contacts: manuelperez@us.es; salva@agrosap.es; j.carballido@agroplanning.com