Helicopter spraying operation
Forestry Commission copyright image of Forest Research photographs courtesy of Glenn Brearley, Roslin. B
A Fisons helicopter sitting in a field below Drumtochty Forest having just sprayed or about to spray insecticide on an area of the forest being attacked by Larch sawfly Anoplonyx destructor. Photograph IAA.
Must be one of the earliest helicopter spraying operations carried out by the Forestry Commission. Can anyone remember the event?
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Groups: Aircraft in Forestry Work, Forest Research, Forestry Areas, Forestry in Action
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Fisons Helicopter - Drumtochty Experiment No.254 Entomology.
This was an experiment set up by Dr Miles Crook who was Entomologist at Alice Holt Lodge who later became the Principal Entomologist at Aberdeen University. There were a lot of Larch trees in Drumtochty Forest in the early years including some fine stands of hybrid larch of Atholl estate origin the finest or which was adjacent to the castle kitchen garden. Most larches were planted on the Eastern and South Eastern slopes and comprised European larch, Japanese larch and to a lesser extent Hybrid Larch. In the early sixties these crops volume increment was reduced considerably by the ravages of larch saw-fly. This experiment was set up on the slopes above Upper Coullie Farm which was owned and cultivated by Mr Alexander Reid who allowed the helicopter to land in his field and load up with DDT spray to try to control the larch saw fly population.
On the hill 27 sample plots were laid out and carefully measured, five trees in each plot with vernier girth bands fixed on to record increment throughout the growing season in the sprayed plots and in the controls. The hardest job was marking the plots to guide the pilot. We climbed the trees at the top of the hill and placed coloured flags in sequence on the trees to identify the spray routes. At the bottom of the hill there was a forest road and we had a 55 foot pole mounted behind our Landrover moving it each time to indicate the flight path for each spray boom width.
When the spraying operation was completed we placed five sample trays in each plot, which were inspected each day and the number of sawfly larvae found in the trays recorded. The whole operation required a lot of precision foremost of which was to get the right weather for the spraying operation and five in the morning was often good, but sometimes between 9-10pm the wind speeds were again suitable. The trays had to be carefully sited so that they could be found each day and the recording of larvae numbers carried out. The vernier girth circumference bands had to be very carefully read so that you did not get a smaller reading on your next visit.
This spraying operation was carried out for the 10 years of the 1960s decade. However by the end of this period people were becoming more aware of the environment and the dangers of aerial spraying and mindful of the fact it needed perfect weather conditions to ensure no drift of the chemicals being applied. There was no dramatic increase in increment in the treated plots and the project was wound up after the ten year trial period. (Note that the person sitting in front of the stack on the tractor side could be John Keenleyside)
This account was prepared by John Keenleyside from memory 45 years after conclusion of the Experiment No 254 ENT. John Keenleyside was in charge from 1961 to 1970 of the small Forest Research outstation located at Drumtochty which covered the old counties of Aberdeen, Kincardine and Angus.
Comment left on 20 December 2014 at 10:33 by Norman Davidson