Precise pesticide application-an earthworm field study.

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Science
• Ecotoxicology
• Soil Ecology

Background:

• Digitalization in agriculture promotes precision pesticide application, leading to heterogeneous chemical exposure for soil organisms.
• Current understanding of field-level impacts of precision pesticide application on soil organisms is limited, hindering regulatory standardization.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effects of standardized precision pesticide application patterns on earthworm communities at the field level.
• To provide empirical data for soil risk assessments and inform sustainable pesticide use strategies.

Main Methods:

• A field study was conducted using Carbendazim applied in a checkerboard design with 50% treated and 50% untreated areas.
• Three different scales of checkerboard patterns were tested to evaluate the impact of spraying pattern scale.
• Effects on earthworm communities, differentiating between anecic and endogeic earthworms, were assessed.

Main Results:

• Earthworm communities showed less negative impact in partially treated fields compared to blanket-sprayed fields.
• The scale of precision spraying patterns influenced the effects, with larger scaled patterns resulting in less pronounced impacts.
• Anecic earthworms were generally more affected than endogeic earthworms, with the largest scale pattern showing no initial abundance decrease.

Conclusions:

• Pesticide application patterns significantly influence soil organism responses, demonstrating that 'how' pesticides are applied matters.
• Precision application, particularly at larger scales, can mitigate negative impacts on earthworm communities compared to conventional methods.
• Findings support the need for more empirical data in environmental risk assessments for precision agriculture technologies.