At Willoway Nurseries, Smarter Spraying Means Better Labor Use and Healthier Plants

At Willoway Nurseries in Avon, Ohio, better spray technology is translating directly into healthier, more resilient plants.

This smarter, more precise approach to spray application is not only improving plant performance but also folding staff back into the nursery to perform more strategic work.

On a recent visit, their team walked us through three newer technologies in their spray lineup: a Birchmeier backpack, a Gandy granular applicator, and the centerpiece: a “smart sprayer” developed with the USDA.

Replacing the Guesswork in Spray Application

Willoway was one of the first growers to test the USDA’s smart sprayer system. The first version uses laser sensors to detect when a tree is present.

Each spray nozzle is controlled by an electric solenoid that adjusts in real time based on tractor speed and canopy size.

You can have taller trees on the left and shorter ones on the right, and it adjusts on the fly, explained Head Grower Manager Thad Kohlenberg.

Despite the sprayer’s advanced capabilities, it’s been easy to use.

“It’s just a basic iPad up there. There’s nothing really technical to operate,” said Will Mihalega, who oversees plant health. “It’s all pretty simplified.”

And that’s just the first generation.

Version two – a system that scans canopy shape using imaging instead of lasers – made application even more optimized.

“A camera takes thousands of images, and you can make a digital representation of the
actual pattern of the branching, and it adjusts the sprays to that,” said Kohlenberg.

“It takes the silhouette of the tree and only sprays the silhouette,” described Ben Averitt, Staff Horticulturalist – R&D at Willoway.

The third generation is more versatile. It’s smaller, lighter, and modular, designed without a power take-off (PTO) so it can mount on lighter vehicles and navigate tighter rows.

A Toolkit of Sprayers

The smart sprayer isn’t doing it all alone. Willoway also uses an Orbit-Air Gandy granular applicator, a converted seeder with a 24-foot boom and air assist blower, to apply pre-emergent herbicide across field rows.

Before they started using the Gandy three years ago, five workers went up and down the rows wearing a respirator mask, each covering 11 miles a day.

Now the Gandy, operated by one person, can do the job in the same amount of time.

“It puts the most perfect pattern across that area,” said Mihalega.

The granules on the herbicides were so fine that they were nearly invisible coming out of the nozzles.

“You can see [it’s] even all the way across if you look at the pot,” Kohlenberg said.

Not only does the Gandy applicator deliver an ultra-consistent pattern, it’s also dramatically improved weed suppression.

“The weed control is so much better. We used to have sporadic weeds in there,” Mihalega pointed out. “Now it’s just crystal clean.”

Their third go-to tool is the Birchmeier backpack sprayer, a compact, air-assisted tool ideal for tight greenhouses and property edges.

“It’s basically a little air blast in your hand,” Mihalega said.

The team uses it to target areas a big tractor can’t reach – like under bamboo stakes or along neighboring property lines – without risking chemical drift.

“It’s got a handle [where] you can turn the fan up and down to suit different distances,” Kohlenberg added. “And also, you can change the droplet size on it.”

Tech That Pays Off Every Day

For a nursery operating at Willoway’s scale, the benefits are straightforward: smarter spraying frees up skilled labor, offers better consistency, and produces healthier plants.

“It’s one of the things that people are most interested in when they visit,” said Kohlenberg. “It’s not highly adapted in the industry, but it’s probably something everybody should be looking at for the investment.”

These tools are helping nurseries become more efficient in the constant push to do more with less.

In the past five years, Willoway’s labor expenses have jumped 45%. Smarter spraying gives them the flexibility to continue operating efficiently… even grow.

As the nursery scales up use of biological controls, sensor-driven fertigation, and degree-day pest prediction, they are seeing healthier crops, fewer inputs, and more consistent production.

“It comes back to sustainability – reducing our cost of imports for producing a plant,” said Kohlenberg. “And then we’re getting better results with the application and [reducing] wear and tear on guys.”

Tags: herbicide, smart sprayer, Willoway Nurseries