“We purchased Varidome S3 with Dual Spray System for use in oil seed rape and sugar beet to help us control our worst weed, black grass, as well as volunteer OSR or weed beet. Utilising RTK GPS, we could drill both crops at maximum accuracy with a row spacing of 50cm. We use the same A-B lines for the Varidome and band spray a desiccant, such as Diquat, between the rows and the prescribed chemical on the row all at the same time. If done at an early growth stage, Varidome can reduce your chemical costs by up to 60%. With the saving in chemicals, as well as the increase in yield potential on both growing crop and subsequent crops, this machine can see a payback time of as little as two years.“

Edd Banks, Partner
Thomas Banks & Partners

“We have two Varidome Hybrids for asparagus and a Varidome 100HiFlo model for salad onions.

With a particular problem with thistles and mare’s tale in asparagus, we wanted a machine for controlling weeds post-harvest, without getting chemical onto the foliage. With Varidome Hybrid, we are able to control weeds under the asparagus canopy, right up to the base of the plants and over the entire contour of the beds. We can subsequently make second applications when the fern is high.

Varidome 100HiFlo for onions allows us to apply chemicals directly onto the weeds without contact onto the flag leaf and subsequent crop damage, whilst achieving good control. Furthermore, it has increased the window of opportunity for us to spray the crops as it is not affected by wind.
We looked at alternative machines and were of the opinion that Micron offered a good quality build of the machine and a much more advanced parallelogram system on the individual carriages with the narrow domes. The unique rubber shrouds on the bottom of the shields could not be matched by any other manufacturer either.

We estimate the machines will have paid for themselves within two years.“

Mr Simon Stockdale
Sandfields Farms Ltd