MONROE - Small planes flying low over fields to drop seeds, pesticides and herbicides have caused concern among some rural residents in Green County, but pilots say there is nothing to fear.
Damon Reabe has been flying planes since 1997. His family business, Reabe Spraying Service of Plainfield, has been in business since the late 1940s, and Reabe has flown over fields across the state.
"It's important to know whether we're applying cover crops or pesticides, our activity is a safe, regulated and legal activity," Reabe said. "It's an intricate part of providing the food supply."
Recently, National Resources Conservation Service Conservationist for Green County Jason Thomas said he has been approached by people who worry about what planes are dropping in the area.
Thomas said while the confusion is common, it is important to know the difference between chemicals and seeds dropping. The reason seeds were falling in late summer months was because of the impending winter, and the use of cover crops by some farmers in the area to protect the fields.
"Cover crops are applied into standing grain crops," Thomas said. "They're used where it's not easy to apply via the typical method, like a drill-type planting."
Thomas said Green County has only been utilizing cover crops, which hold nutrients in the soil and help prevent erosion, for roughly three years and over 2,000 to 3,000 acres. Falling seeds include species such as cereal winter rye, oats, and a number of mixes like rye and radishes or oats, radishes and crimson clover.
Reabe has a simple test for those who may wonder about what planes are dropping over fields. If the plane, which flies roughly 160 miles per hour over an average of 6,000 acres per day, is spraying liquid pesticides or herbicides, it will be flying directly over crops at a low height. This is a contrast from a plane dropping seeds or fertilizer from a spreader mounted below the body of the machine, which will be zooming overhead just above the tree tops, roughly 50 feet in the air.
Damon Reabe has been flying planes since 1997. His family business, Reabe Spraying Service of Plainfield, has been in business since the late 1940s, and Reabe has flown over fields across the state.
"It's important to know whether we're applying cover crops or pesticides, our activity is a safe, regulated and legal activity," Reabe said. "It's an intricate part of providing the food supply."
Recently, National Resources Conservation Service Conservationist for Green County Jason Thomas said he has been approached by people who worry about what planes are dropping in the area.
Thomas said while the confusion is common, it is important to know the difference between chemicals and seeds dropping. The reason seeds were falling in late summer months was because of the impending winter, and the use of cover crops by some farmers in the area to protect the fields.
"Cover crops are applied into standing grain crops," Thomas said. "They're used where it's not easy to apply via the typical method, like a drill-type planting."
Thomas said Green County has only been utilizing cover crops, which hold nutrients in the soil and help prevent erosion, for roughly three years and over 2,000 to 3,000 acres. Falling seeds include species such as cereal winter rye, oats, and a number of mixes like rye and radishes or oats, radishes and crimson clover.
Reabe has a simple test for those who may wonder about what planes are dropping over fields. If the plane, which flies roughly 160 miles per hour over an average of 6,000 acres per day, is spraying liquid pesticides or herbicides, it will be flying directly over crops at a low height. This is a contrast from a plane dropping seeds or fertilizer from a spreader mounted below the body of the machine, which will be zooming overhead just above the tree tops, roughly 50 feet in the air.