We are in South Africa in the Eastern Cape region, and precisely in the area known as Langkloof, a valley between the Kamanasie and Kouga mountains in the north, and the Outeniqua- Langkloof and Tsitsikamma mountains in the south. It is the second largest fruit production area in South Africa and apples and pears are the main agricultural products.

Mr. Rademeyer tells us that his farm is 140 ha in extent, of which 80 ha  are planted with apples and the remaining with pears.

He was introduced to Martignani electrostatic machines by their spray technical adviser of 30 years, Mr. Billy Swiegelaar.

After careful analysis of their requirements and of the possible choice of machines, they decided to purchase, within 6 months, 3 x 1500 litre “Martignani” Electrostatic Sprayer B612 Turbo 2, one in December 2009, and one each in February and May 2010, which are now working full time.

Mr. Rademeyer has supplied us with the results of his careful reports on the efficiency of the machines and on the advantages achieved by using the “Martignani” Electrostatic mist blowing system in his farm vs. the conventional air blast sprayers, and the numbers speak for themselves:

Time/Labour saving: 15%

Water Saving (l/ha applied with the Martignani): 40% (Important remark: Vast areas of Langkloof  valley are currently heavily affected by drought)

Chemicals saving: 15% (aiming to 35%)

Furthermore he kindly showed us the modification he had made to the spray heads lay-out and protection plates added to the machine for their orchards to avoid damages
to the heads (see pictures).

We thanked Mr. Rademeyer for his kindness and cooperation and for having shared with us the modification made to the machines, as we, at Martignani, appreciate very much the input
we receive from our clients concerning possible improvements.

For us it is of fundamental importance to constantly develop and improve our machines.

It is our mission to supply products that can help the farmer to achieve the best possible results according to the requirements of the person who has put his trust in Martignani
and our machines.

A few images of one of  Rademeyer’s farm Electrostatic mist blower

Related posts:

1. Dr. Massimo Randi of the Randi Farms S.S.

Related posts:

1. Electrostatic Mist Blower Vs. Air Blast Sprayer
2. Electrostatic Mist Blower vs. Air Blast Sprayer – Vineyard Test

You can download the .pdf file clicking on the link:

Efficiency Comparison Table

Planting distance: 3×5 m – Average ground speed during the treatments: 3.5 kph Martignani-KWH Electrostatic Mist Blower used: Mod. Whirlwind B612  1500 l TURBO 2 with ELECTROSTATIC

Related posts:

1. Dr. Massimo Randi of the Randi Farms S.S.
2. Pest control efficiency of Pneumatic – Pneumatic+Electrostatic – Conventional spraying systems for vine cultivation
3. Pest control efficiency of Pneumatic – Pneumatic+Electrostatic – Conventional spraying systems for vine cultivation

The Randi Farms is situated in the municipality of Fusignano (Ravenna) and is managed by Dr. Massimo Randi with the collaboration of his brother Denis and father Luigi.

The vocation of the farm is decidedly viticultural, being about 25 hectares of vineyards, although other cultivation such as peach trees, wheat and beetrootin smaller quantities are not left out.

The technical approach of “Martignani” Electrostatic-Mist Blowers was integrated some time ago following a professional conference between Dr. Randi and Dr. Bellettini, the latter presently being an agricultural technician (Agronomist) and manager of the Martignani srl Italian counting house.

The contactwas concretised in the spring of 2005 with the purchase of the Mod. Whirlwind B-612 TURBO 2 Pneumatic Mist Bower with Electrostatic charged droplets.

At first the insecticide treatments were carried out by Luigi. It was then Dr. Massimo who dealt with thephytosanitary management of the family vineyards, personally carrying out the defence operations on board a tractor..

We have now come to the fourth season using the Martignani Mist Blower and Dr. Massimo tells us about the convenience of having invested in this equipment and how we have reached the optimization of the productive processes.

At the speed of 8,3 Km/h with a volume/ha of 200 litres, 7,5 ha are treatedin the morning and7,5 ha in the afternoon while the remaining hectares are completed the following day.

Previously, with a conventional atomizer (or Air Blast Sprayer) distributing 600 litres/ha, several refuelling and a total of 4-5 days of time were required.

Only some treatments , such as those against moth infestations of the grape-vines, are carried out at a higher volume (400 l/ha), while the remaining, and larger part, of the field is treated at 200 l/ha.

In these 4 seasons,the Randi family has certainly optimized the technical management of the vineyard in the best possible way, saving tons of water, hours of manpower and above all 20% of chemical product (or active ingredient) used for both contact and systemic chemicals, in every treatment.

Above all, they have reduced the phytosanitary defence operations to only 2 days, enabling them to concentrate and aim the remaining hours of manpower at other activity within the company.

Finally, it gives us great pleasure to report that, for some years, the Randi company has been part of the Bagnacavallo consortium which is the producer and distributor of the well known “Burson” (http://www.vinography.com/archives/2004/07/2000_burson_rosso_ravenna_cons.html ) wine obtained from “Longanesi” grapes.

For further information on the Randi company, visit www.randivini.it and/or send an email to info@randivini.it

Related posts:

1. Mr. Rey Rademeyer Junior of the Delarey Rademeyer Trust Farms in South Africa
2. Interview with Mr. Rolando Bettarini, owner of the Tuscany based wine farm “Fattoria di Piazzano”