Why would I use them?
We are now in a world of precision agriculture. We plant our corn as evenly spaced as possible to ensure maximum yields and kernels per cob. We use GPS in our sprayers to maximize field coverage and minimize overlap, and we plant our wheat by how by seeds per acre, to not only cut down overspending, but also to ensure that we have enough plants to provide maximum yield. Looking at ways to improve nitrogen application only makes sense if you take wheat seriously.
Streamer bars are definitely worth consideration if you apply liquid nitrogen to your wheat crop. Applying nitrogen is a costly adventure and we want to ensure that every unit applied has the maximum benefit intended. Streamer bars basically allow your liquid nitrogen to go straight to the ground without having or needing pressure to push the nitrogen on an angle. The pictures below illustrate how nozzles vs bars distribute Nitrogen differently.
Uniform Application
I prefer stream bars over a stream tips for the simple reason that they improve your application uniformity no matter the boom height, or terrain you are crossing. Nozzles can be affected by both of these issues. When you change boom height with a nozzle, you “can” create overlap or missed areas. From my observations, application has increased uniformity even in rainy , windy conditions and boom height was not a huge concern .
Less Burn
Streamer Bars deliver a larger droplet size that will always fall straight down towards the ground. The benefit of these comes when you are applying a second or later application of fertilizer. Sometimes a late N application can create leaf burn. I have seen significantly less burn in late nitrogen applications from streamer bars. The droplets appear to roll of the leaf easier and there is no misting. If burn does occur, it is usually only on lower leaves of the plant, hopefully avoiding any damage to your main light absorber, the flag leaf.
These two reasons above were more than enough proof that streamer bars were well worth the purchase. C&M Seeds now has streamer bars on our research sprayer to ensure proper nitrogen placement allowing our plot system to have the most accurate results possible. If you use liquid nitrogen, maybe it is time to check out streamer bars for your business.
For further information regarding streamer bars and why to consider them, follow the link below. It outlines the benefits very well.
