by Bill Lavender
LUMPKIN, GA — For a company working in timber, especially with helicopters, it’s not easy to stay on top of the game. With fertilizer prices skyrocketing, particularly diammonium phosphate (DAP) climbing as high as 500% in less than three years, for a crop that can delay applications, makes diversity a key element, along with a strong background in timberwork. This diversity is what keeps B & S Air, Inc. going in the challenging aerial environment of fertilizing trees, treating timber blocks for post, pre-plant and site-prep herbicide treatments, not to mention a frost patrol mission to save a peach crop.

President and owner of B & S Air, Shaun Harris, started out in timber in 1983 in west Georgia ground spraying forestry blocks with backpack crews and logging skidders, as well as planting pines. In the mid-1990s, Arsenal, a woody herbicide, came on the market with an aerial and ground label. Shaun, along with his partner, Brad Stovall, recognized this as an opportunity to expand their operations. The logging skidders required a 25 GPA application rate for coverage on older tree stands in challenging terrain. Brad and Shaun spilt off the operations in late 2006, with Shaun taking over the aircraft ops.

B & S Air started subcontracting aerial spraying work to helicopter operators, taking advantage of the new Arsenal label. In 1997, the company bought its first helicopter, a Hiller with the Soloy turbine engine conversion. The helicopter was to be used primarily for herbicide applications. The following year, the second Hiller Soloy was bought and today’s chief pilot, Ken Massengale, started flying for B & S Air.

After seven successful years (2004) with the Hiller, B & S Air changed to the OH58 helicopter, the military version of the Bell 206 Jet Ranger. Garlick Helicopters made the conversion from military to civilian certification into the Restricted Category. This conversion provided a lighter and larger rotor blade, improving the performance of the aircraft. The OH58 can carry 90-100 gallons in its Simplex tank with an Isolair plumbing system powered by an Ag Air hydraulic pump. Even though the OH58’s payload was comparable with the Hiller, outsourcing maintenance and the difficulty in finding parts for the Hiller made the OH58 a better choice of ships for B & S Air. In 2005, a second OH58 was added to the fleet. That same year, B & S Air operations included fixed wing applications of dry fertilizer.

Traveling wherever needed within the eastern U.S., from Texas to Virginia, B & S Air used a turbine Ag-Cat and an Ayres 660 Thrush for some forestry ops. To help with the contract work loads, outsourcing was done with subcontract applicators.

Pineland forest, like loblolly and slash pine, require fertilizer applications every five years on a 25-year growing rotation. DAP applications are made primarily in July and August, with some in winter, at 125 pounds to 200 pounds per acre. In the fall, urea applications start at 300-350 pounds per acre. These applications continue through winter and finish up in early May when the ground temperature reaches 72°F.

“We are finishing up urea applications with our subcontractors. With DAP up from $250 a ton three years ago, to $800 to $1,000 a ton now, and climbing, we’ll have to wait and see what the price of DAP will be in July, as to whether there will be a significant cut back on acres treated by growers,” explained Shaun. Fertilizing work makes up about 20-30% of B & S Air’s year round work.

However, the two OH58s stay busy with forestry, range, pasture and some right-of-way applications. Booms outfitted with the Accuflow check valve and nozzle that can emit solid stream applications at 5-15 GPA minimizing drift. Typical swath widths are 45 feet at 100 feet.

B & S pilots, Ken Massengale and Paul Rupert, are able to precisely apply forestry herbicides with Ag-Nav GPS guidance. Ken favors the older style Ag-Nav lightbar with its multiple display for ground speed, ground track, line number, acres sprayed, direction and feet off line. This information can be printed and sent along with the customer’s invoice. The unit interfaces with an AutoCal for flow control.

B & S Air employees an IT person to create their shape files by scanning and converting graphical maps. Timber companies, particularly, and private landowners require proof of application by a print out from the Ag-Nav. Also, the shape files help the pilots avoid sensitive areas.

In the spring, herbaceous weed control applications are made, followed by site-prep applications using glyphosate and Imazapyr. During the summer and until November, Imazapyr is used for “release” applications. Release applications controls woody vegetation in young pines seedlings.

B & S Air also does a considerable amount of mechanical tree planting of seedling pines. This starts in November and continues into the spring.

Earlier this year, the Central Georgia peach crop was threatened with a late frost in low-lying areas of the orchards. Frost on peach blooms will cause the bloom to die, destroying the valuable crop. B & S Air was called in for frost patrol by positioning its two OH58s on standby at the peach farm for four days, until the threat of frost passed. The aircraft and pilots, with mobile rig, stayed around the clock, waking before daylight in preparation to fly over the peach orchards that would disturb the still frost laden morning air, bringing down inversion warm air. The peaches suffered no damage from frost, thanks to the OH58s.

It is all about diversity and the ability to accommodate. B & S Air, Inc. has a handle on that part of forestry work in the eastern U.S.