Drones escort wheat harvest in Shandong

In the high-standard farmland demonstration area of Hedong district – located in Linyi city in East China's Shandong province, unmanned aerial vehicles fly over the lush wheat fields, spraying fine mist-like pesticides onto the wheat seedlings.

This marks a critical period for wheat growth, with risks of common diseases and pests such as wheat rust, gibberellic disease and aphids. To ensure stable wheat yields and increased income, Hedong district regards drone pesticide spraying as the core task of current agricultural production. The district follows a prevention-oriented and comprehensive control strategy, with plant protection technicians monitoring and tracking wheat diseases and pests in the fields to guide prevention and control measures accurately.

The work of pesticide spraying serves to combat wheat diseases, including powdery mildew, red spider mites and wheat stripe rust during the wheat growth period. The drones' swift flying speed, high efficiency and uniform pesticide dispersal help farmers save costs and are well-received by the local community.

As wheat planting enters into the critical disease and pest control period, Hedong district is partnering with top local agricultural service enterprises to deliver comprehensive and high-quality services to farmers, ensuring a successful summer grain harvest across the district. (Edited by Du Xiaping)

A drone sprays pesticides on the farmland. [Photo by Zhu Mengcang for chinadaily.com.cn]

Agricultural experts inspect wheat growth. [Photo by Zhu Mengcang for chinadaily.com.cn]