In 2023, Swift Aeroseed contracted with Sustainable Chesapeake on a project called Farmer-Led Innovations in Cover Cropping funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). The goal of the project was to improve water quality, soil health, and crop production goals by expanding the acres of cover crops planted in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay watershed, especially those planted after soybeans. To achieve this goal, partners demonstrated innovative cover crop technologies that reduce time, tractor passes, fuel use, and expansion of cover cropping systems.
Aerial seeding with a drone not only does the above, but also improves safety over an airplane or helicopter. We attended the 2024 Mid-Atlantic Spray Drone Workshop hosted by VA Tech’s Eastern Shore Agricultural Research and Extension Center (AREC) and demonstrated aerial seeding with our Leading Edge PV40X.
Through Dr. Mark Reiter at AREC we connected with 5 farmers in September/October 2024 interested in aerial seeding cover crops with a drone. We used hairy vetch at 12lbs/acre on 477 acres and hairy vetch at 18lbs/acre on 555 acres. Radish was used on 1 farm with 80 acres at 8lbs/acre. We are really interested in how well the crops do after this Fall considering rain and weather. We will keep updating this website on what we learn.
