Farming Monthly National June 2018 | Page 49

| ATV Honda ATV Unbeatable for grassland weed control As warmer temperatures encourage rapid grass growth, weeds also take advantage of the same great growing conditions. For weed control in hard-to-reach areas, on soft, sensitive ground or challenging terrain, a Honda ATV is the ideal alternative to a heavy, tiring and slow knapsack sprayer. onda’s utility ATVs for farm use include models from 250–680cc, all with rugged load racks and capable of accessing areas where most other farm vehicles would struggle. Early last year Honda added its Pioneer 700 utility vehicle to the line-up with 2 or 4 seats and a tipping load bed, and available with a comprehensive range of accessory options. They all have large flotation tyres with high levels of grip, but exert less ground pressure than a person walking. For travel over soft, wet grassland and even young growing crops damage is minimal, allowing these machines to operate when other farm vehicles would cause damage. A wide range of weed control implements are available from Honda-approved manufacturers, including mounted and trailed sprayers, trailed mowers and weed wipers. For cost-effective, selective control of weeds extending above grass or crop height a weed wiper is ideal. The Logic Contact 2000 range of rotary weed wipers comes in 1.5 and 2.5m working widths and consists of a ground- H www.farmingmonthly.co.uk driven, contra-rotating brush to which herbicide is applied from a mounted tank. The unit is carried on a pair of low ground pressure tyres and set to travel just above grass height so that only taller plants are touched by the chemical-laden bristles. Because only target plants receive an application, wastage is minimal and less chemical is needed. Chemical application to the revolving brush is precisely controlled to suit the weed density, avoiding under application and ineffective weed control, or over- application and drips which could kill non-target vegetation. Accurate targeting of weeds, reduced chemical use and absence of spray drift means the Honda ATV and weed wiper combination is proving extremely popular with farmers across the UK as well as environmental organisations operating in sensitive areas. Mounted sprayers are a popular alternative to knapsack or larger tractor-mounted sprayers. Chemical is applied through a hand lance or boom and supplied from a tank carried on the Honda ATV. An electric-driven pump, powered from the ATV, avoids the need for manual pumping and a range of pump sizes and control systems offers flow capacity from a single nozzle such as a hand lance or wider multi-nozzle booms. Boom width and tank size can be matched to the area to be treated as well as the rated capacity of the ATV racks, and for larger areas the Pioneer UTV is ideal, capable of carrying high capacity versions such as Logic’s 270-litre Deck Mounted Sprayer which can be matched with booms up to 7 nozzles or 3.5m wide. Whatever your farm or estate situation, your Honda dealer has the knowledge and experience to help identify the ideal combination of ATV or utility vehicle, and applicator to suit. From the entry- level TRX250 Fourtrax 2wd with a small mounted sprayer to one of the popular TRX500 Foreman 2/4wd ATVs, or the class-leading Pioneer with a larger sprayer or weed wiper there are models to suit almost any enterprise and budget. All new Hondas come with free of charge operator training through the industry-approved EASI scheme. June 2018 | Farming Monthly | 49