Drone services, accessible via a mini-program on China's popular social media platform "Weixin" (domestic version of Wechat), have changed spring field management for small-scale growers in Dangyang City, central China's Hubei Province, who can now have pesticide sprayed on their rapeseed fields with just a few clicks on their phones.
Wei Minshan, a grower at Yanhe Village of Wangdian Town, has planted 200 mu (about 13.33 hectares) of rapeseed this season. For smallholders like him, getting pesticide and fertilizer sprayed at just the right time used to be a heavy task. Now, it's fast and simple.
With just a few taps on an agricultural service mini-program developed by local governments, he said, the drone team can arrive at his village within an hour to spray his rapeseed fields.
"This mini-program works really well. If I book a service today, I can use it on the same day. It offers perfect on-demand availability," he said.
Wei recalled that during peak seasons in the past, booking a drone meant calling at least a week in advance. And it's too costly and troublesome to buy one himself.
This "drone-hailing" model solves real problems for small-scale farmers. Besides, for drone operators, it cuts down on time wasted traveling between regions, boosting both efficiency and how often their equipment is used.
"This is an order that just came in. I saw it on the platform. I checked my schedule, and since it didn't conflict with my other jobs, I grabbed it right away. I would head out this afternoon," said Zhu Zhenhua, head of a local agricultural machinery cooperative.
So far, the mini-program has connected 10 agricultural machinery cooperatives, mobilizing 156 drone pilots and 162 drones. It also provides agricultural news and information services to local farmers.
Click-to-fly drone services make farming easier, more efficient in China's Hubei Province
