As explained in previous posts (1 and 2), the application time of a pesticide might be described by using different events as a reference.
This is a proposal to harmonize the data entry to convert the application time information in the labels into a digital (i.e. computer-readable) format.
The following eight fields cover most of the events taken as a reference for setting the application time:
- Crop growth stage convertible to BBCH scale. For example, «apply at flowering» will be coded as CSB 61-70. CSB standing for convertible stage to BBCH scale and 61-70 as the figures linked to flowering in the BBCH scale. If the label provides the crop growth stage in terms of BBCH scale (i.e. so no need to convert them), it will be coded as CSBB
- Crop growth stages related to plant size (height, diameter, etc) or other attribute that makes the crop growth stage non-convertible to BBCH abbreviated as CSN or any other crop growth scale (e.g. Feekes, Zadocks, etc) abbreviated as CSF, CSZ, etc.
- Target stage, abbreviated as TS. For example, «apply at the onset of symptoms» would be coded as «TS Symptoms». If the target is a weed, the target stage could be expressed in BBCH format. E.g. «at two leaf stage of grass weeds» would be coded as TS 12
- Cultural practice events, as CP. For example, «apply after pruning» would be coded as «CP > Pruning». Note, despite the fact the emergence of the crop could be described using BBCH scale, the emergence will be allocated as a cultural practice event. Doing this way, all the important events for herbicides as planting and emergence will be located under the same field.
- Time of the year convertible to a range of dates, abbreviated as TY. For instance, «apply in spring» will be coded as «21/03-21/06» in the Northern hemisphere and as «21/09-21/12» in the Southern hemisphere
- Time Frame before or after a previous application or an event. This field will be abbreviated as TF and will have negative figures when the application occur before an event (e.g. 5 days pre-planting would be coded as «TF -5 (CP PLANT)». Positive figures will be used when the pesticide application that occurs after the event. (e.g. within 5 days after planting would be coded as «TF 0-5(CP PLANT)»)
- Crop growth stages related to the age of the crop-plants that last longer than a year, abbreviated as AG.
- Weather events as WE. For example, «prior to snow cover» would be coded as «<Snow-cover»
This example is proposed as a design to be developed as a backoffice tool.
The aim of this design is to develop some rules to create expressions that represent the time of application of a pesticide by using logic operators (and, or, etc) ;math operators (greater than , greater than or equal to,etc.) and abbreviations. In the following table some examples of abbreviations.
| Wording | Abbreviation |
| Crop Growth Stage Convertible to BBCH scale | CSCB |
| Crop Growth Stage expressed originally using BBCH scale | CSBB |
| Crop Growth Stage expressed originally using Feeks scale | CSF |
| Crop Growth Stage expressed originally using Zadocks scale | CSZ |
| Target Stage | TS |
| Cultural Practice | CP |
| Time of the year convertible to a range of dates | TY |
| Time Frame before or after a previous application or an event | TF |
| Crop growth stages related to the age | AG |
| Weather events | WE |
| day | d |
| year | y |
| optional | op |
| hours | h |
Logical operators used:
| Logical operators |
| AND |
| OR |
| NOT |
Mathematical operators used:
| Wording | Abbreviation |
| after, later, … | > |
| before, by, … | < |
| within | ≥ |
| generally, around, roughly… | ≈ |
| from XXX to YYY | XXX-YYY |
Additionally different applications will be separated by a plus symbol «+» when mandatory. If they are optional, they will be separated by «op»
Here some examples from different countries:
CASE 1. Veltyma, Canada.
The following time of application description was found in the Canadian label for product «VELTYMA» (you can download the label´s PDF below):
«Apply VELTYMA at the beginning of flowering or at the onset of symptoms. Apply a second time 10-14 days later if disease persists, or weather conditions are favourable for disease development.»
So how to digitize this? Following the coding and abbreviations explained above, the three line long time of application could be abbreviated as
(CSB 61-65 OR TS Symptoms) + op [IF TS Persist OR WE Favorable (TF 10-14d )]
CASE 2. FBN Deltamethrin 5 EC, Canada
«Apply prior to flowering when tents are visible, generally mid to late May»
Would be coded as:
CS 00-59 AND (TS Tents visible ≈ 10/05-31/05)
CASE 3. Filon, Germany
«From the 2nd year, before budding»
CSN Budding AND AG ≥2y
CASE 4. MEDIA MCPA Ester 600, Canada
«From the 3-leaf expanded to the early flag-leaf stage (wheat, barley, rye). From
the 1-leaf expanded to the early flag-leaf stage (oats).
From milk stage to maturity (wheat, barley, rye)
Do not apply more than one treatment per year»
For wheat, barley and rye the application time would be coded as :
CSB 13-37 OR CSB 71-99
For oats:
CSB 11-37
CASE 5. Lepinox Plux, Germany
«Spring to autumn. ES 83-85»
CSBB 83-85 AND TY (21/03-21/12)
CASE 6. Boxer , Germany
‘nach der Saat UND vor dem Auflaufen’ In English: ‘after sowing AND before emergence’
(CP >PLANT) AND (CP <EMERGENCE)
CASE 7. Mamet® SM Granules, Japan
Depending on whether the rice was seeded or transplanted the application time varies.
«7 days after (after 5 leaf stage of rice) flooding in direct dry-sowing culture of paddy rice upto 3.5 leaf of barnyard grass»
[CP FLOODING (TF 7d)] AND (> CSB 5) AND (<TS 13.5)
«10 days after transplanting (after 5 leaf stage of rice) up to 3.5 leaf stage of barnyard grass»
[CP TRANSPLANT (TF 10d)] AND (> CSB 5) AND (<TS 13.5)
CASE 8, Actinol® B, Japan
«Growing season (onions from the 1-leaf stage onwards) to the start of tillering (weeds 1-2 leaves), but no later than 30 days before harvest.»
(>CSB 11) AND (<TS 11)
CASE 9, Canada
«Apply to the developing ferns after harvest of spears is completed or to Newly planted non-harvested asparagus fields apply as soon as ferns are 30 cm high.»
(CP > HARVEST) OR (AG<1y AND CSN =30cm)
CASE 10, Canada
«Apply when the majority of the plants are ripe and dry. Pods will be fully filled and the bottom pods will be tan or black in colour.»
CSB 85-90 (CP DESICCATION)
CASE 11, Canada
«APPLY WITHIN 3 WEEKS AFTER POLLINATION»
CASE 12, Canada
«Do not apply until 21 days after transplanting or 35 days after seeding»
(CP TRANSPLANT TF>21d) OR (CP SEEDING TF>35)
CASE 13, SEVERAL TARGET STAGES Canada
«ADULTS AND NYMPHS. APPLY WHEN DAMAGE IS APPARENT AND MORE THAN 15 GRASSHOPPERS PER SQUARE METER ARE FOUND IN CROP»
«APPLY NO LATER THAN 6 DAYS AFTER THE FIRST ADULT FLY HAS BEEN TRAPPED»
«MORE THAN 50 APHIDS PER CANARY SEED HEAD»
CASE 14, Several months combined with cropstages, Canada
«Begin applications with the first spray in late May at 1st pistillate, repeat at early June, July and August, with the last spray no later than husk split.»
TY 20/05-31/05 + TY 01/06-10/06+ [(TY 01/07-31/08) AND CSN <HUSK-SPLIT]
CASE 15, copper2
Rose, Lilac, Forsythia Bacterial Blight
«Mix 6 g in 1 L of water. Apply once in October and again in January. «
TY 01/10-31/10 + TY 01/01-31/01
«During blight conditions in April and May, apply 2 g per 1 L of water. Repeat at 7-10 day intervals»
TY 01/04-31/05 AND TS Blight-conditions
CASE 16, UK
This time of application applies to oilseed rape for feeding which can be a biannual crop
«31 OCTOBER IN THE YEAR OF PLANTING»
TY 31/10 and AG <=1Y
CASE 17, UK
«5 DAYS BEFORE DRILLING OR PLANTING THE FOLLOWING CROP OR 24 HOURS BEFORE CULTIVATION AT 5.0 L/HA OR 2 DAYS BEFORE DRILLING OR PLANTING THE FOLLOWING CROP AT 1.5 L/HA.»
[CP PLANTING (TF-5)] OR [CP CULTIVATION (TF-24h)] (dose 5 l/ha)
CASE 18, UK
«5 WEEKS BEFORE FORCING. APPLY FROM SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER.» for crop chicory
[CP FORCING (TF-5w)] AND [TY 01/09-31/12]
CASE 18, UK
Here the time of application of a herbicide.
«8 LEAF STAGE OF MAIZE (BBCH 18) (SPRING). ONLY APPLY BETWEEN 1 MAY AND 30 SEPTEMBER.»
CASE 19, UK
«9 OR MORE LEAVES UNFOLDED. A MAXIMUM TOTAL DOSE OF 0.5 L/HA CAN BE APPLIED BETWEEN BBCH 14 AND BBCH 19 (NO FURTHER APPLICATIONS ARE ALLOWED IF APPLIED BEFORE BBCH 19) OR A MAXIMUM TOTAL DOSE OF 1.0 L/HA CAN BE APPLIED BETWEEN BBCH 20 AND BBCH 69.»
In this stage coming from FERA the min dose in the file is 0.5 and the max dose is 1. Only one line.
There should be two lines one for those 0.5 l/ha and stage coded as:
CSBB 14-19
And another line for 1 l/ha and stage coded as:
CSBB 20-69
CASE 20, UK
«A MAXIMUM TOTAL DOSE OF 0.45 L/HA MUST BE OBSERVED BETWEEN CROP EMERGENCE IN THE YEAR OF PLANTING AND 1 FEBRUARY IN THE YEAR OF HARVEST.»
[CP >EMERGENCE (AG<1y)] AND [TY<01/02 (AG>1y)]
CASE 21, UK
«AFTER AUTUMN LEAF FALL AND BEFORE GREEN CLUSTER STAGE.»
(>CSCB97) AND (<CSCB 07)
CASE 22, UK
«AFTER DRILLING PRIOR TO COVERING»
CP >PLANTING AND CP <COVERING
CASE 23 UK
This stage does not make sense in terms of BBCH scale
«AFTER FINAL CROP HARVEST AND BEFORE LEAF FALL. WORKERS MUST NOT RE-ENTER THE TREATED CROP BETWEEN TREATMENT AND LEAF FALL.»
crop harvest is BBCH 99
leaf fall starts at BBCH 93
So the official coding following BBCH scale does not make sense, so alternative:
(CP >HARVEST) AND (CSCB <93)
CASE24 UK
«APPLY AFTER BBCH 10 UP TO BEFORE END OF JULY IN YEAR OF APPLICATION»
CSBB>10 AND TY<31/07
CASE25, UK
two lines like in case 19
«APPLY AT MAXIMUM RATE: UP TO AND INCLUDING FLAG LEAF LIGULE JUST VISIBLE STAGE OR AT MINIMUM RATE: UP TO AND INCLUDING FIRST AWNS VISIBLE STAGE.»
CASE 26, UK
The following label has crop application information in three different parts of the label.
«APPLY POST-HARVEST. FROM INFLORESCENCE EMERGENCE STAGE (BBCH 50). BUT NOT BETWEEN BBCH 60 (FIRST FLOWERS OPEN) AND BBCH 69 (END OF FLOWERING).»
CASE 27, UK
Banana treatment in storage
AT THE COLOUR STAGE 3.5-4.0 OF THE 1-7 COLOUR STAGE.
AT THE COLOUR STAGE 4 OF THE 1-7 COLOUR SCALE.
CASE 28, UK (hops)
BEFORE THE BINES REACH 2M IN LENGTH OR BEFORE THE END OF THE FIRST WEEK IN JUNE. WHICHEVER IS THE SOONER.
FIRST[(CSN <2m) OR (TY<07/06)]
CASE 29, UK (maize)
UP TO AND INCLUDING 8 TRUE LEAF STAGE. DO NOT APPLY BEFORE 1 MAY OR AFTER 1 JULY.
CSB <=19 AND TY (01/05-31/05)
CASE 30, UK (winter oats)
UP TO BEGINNING OF ANTHESIS. ONLY ONE APPLICATION BEFORE 30 APRIL FOLLOWED BY A SECOND AFTER 1 MAY. OR TWO APPLICATIONS MAY BE MADE AFTER 1 MAY.
CSB <=60 AND (TY <30/04 AND TY >01/05) OR (TY >01/05)
CASE 31, UK (forest nursery, herbicide)
PRE-EMERGENCE/PRE-PLANTING. BETWEEN 1ST OCTOBER AND:- SOUTH OF A LINE FROM ABERYSTWYTH TO LONDON: BEFORE 31ST DECEMBER. NORTH OF THIS LINE: BEFORE 31ST JANUARY.
CASE 32, Canada
APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE MADE IN THE EVENING OR NIGHT WHEN CUTWORM ACTIVITY IS HIGHEST
Case 33 , Canada
IN THE FALL TO WELL ESTABLISHED CROPS IN THE 3-LEAF STAGE OR LARGER OR IN SPRING FROM FULL TILLERING TO THE SHOT BLADE STAGE.
DO NOT APPLY DURING AND AFTER THE FLAG-LEAF STAGE
Crop: winter wheat
CASE 44, Japan
開花前3日～開花後3日位(気温20度以上) 3 days before and to 3 days after flowering (20 C temperature or higher)
LIMARE 
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