Drones are no longer just for capturing breathtaking aerial shots; they are now helping farmers clear weeds to achieve “sky-high” harvests.
A recent study confirmed that agricultural drones can effectively control weeds in wet direct-seeded rice, performing just as well as traditional backpack sprayers in both weed suppression and grain yield.
The experiment, conducted by the DA-Philippine Rice Research Institute in Central Luzon State University (CLSU) and the DA-Research Outreach Station for Lowland Development, compared: a) the agricultural drone spraying herbicides at 20 and 40 liters per hectare, b) using the traditional backpack sprayer, c) unweeded plots, and d) manually weeded plots.
Results showed that the 20L/ha drone treatment achieved 80–100% weed control without causing phytotoxicity, or plant damage caused by chemicals. It matched the backpack sprayer in producing the highest grain yield.
Researchers emphasized that the findings prove that drones are not just a tool for convenience, but could transform weed management into a modern practice in direct-seeded rice farming. This is especially useful for large rice fields and areas with difficult terrain, where manual spraying slows down operations.
“This gives us a concrete basis for developing future standards and best practices in drone-based pest control,” said Weed Scientist Dindo King M. Donayre of PhilRice.
Donayre added that this study is a key step in further development of the Institute’s Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach. The goal is to combine drone spraying with seeding and fertilizer application into a complete IPM system—cutting production costs, ensuring safer and faster applications, reducing environmental impact, and delivering superior pest management.
The team will continue validating the results through trials in different sites. They will also study the economic viability of drones to ensure practical adoption by farmers.
