Drone Spraying in Yellowstone County, Montana

Drone spraying prices in Yellowstone County

Drone spraying in Yellowstone County, MT is quoted per acre for one pass, application only. You source the product through your co-op, agronomist or sugar company program, and an MDA-licensed operator applies it at label rate.

Service	Typical rate	Notes
Wheat & barley herbicide and fungicide	from $12/acre	wild oats, rust, Russian wheat aphid
Alfalfa insect control	from $12/acre	weevil, aphids between cuttings
Sugar beet passes	from $13/acre	Cercospora, weeds
Irrigated corn & dry beans	from $12/acre	fungicide, mites, white mold
Rangeland noxious weeds	from $14/acre	leafy spurge, spotted knapweed
Ditch bank & field edge spraying	from $14/acre	spot treatment

Montana drone spraying typically runs $9–$19 per acre, with a statewide typical figure near $13, and local operators quote on request. Our starting rates sit just below the state typical figure. Price depends on acres, product volume, field shape, pivots and ditches, power lines, farm buildings and travel from Billings. Small fields are billed at a 20-acre minimum.

Farming around Billings

Yellowstone County is Montana's most populous county, but outside Billings it is big farm and ranch country. The USDA 2022 Census counts 1,186 farms on about 1.43 million acres, averaging 1,209 acres, with about 159,200 harvested acres. Wheat leads at about 60,300 acres, followed by alfalfa and hay at about 43,400 and corn at about 2,900. Irrigated sugar beets, malt barley and dry beans grow in the Yellowstone River valley, and cattle graze the rangeland that makes up most of the county.

Crop	Common targets	Typical drone window
Winter & spring wheat	Wild oats, kochia, stripe rust, Russian wheat aphid	May–July
Malt barley	Wild oats, net blotch	June–July
Alfalfa	Alfalfa weevil, aphids	May–August
Sugar beets	Cercospora leaf spot, kochia, beet curly top	June–September
Rangeland & pasture	Leafy spurge, spotted knapweed, cheatgrass	May–June, fall

Irrigated ground along the Yellowstone

From Laurel through Billings, Huntley, Worden and Ballantine, ditches and pivots water the valley's highest-value crops. The Huntley Project and other irrigation districts supply sugar beets, malt barley, corn, dry beans and alfalfa. Wet fields after irrigation keep ground rigs out, and tall corn and closed beet canopies are easily damaged. Drones spray on schedule without ruts and reach pivot corners and ditch edges in the same flight.

Sugar beets for the Billings factory

Sugar beets from the valley go to the sugar factory in Billings. Cercospora leaf spot needs repeated fungicide passes from July into September, and herbicide-resistant kochia is a constant problem. Drones help growers keep a tight spray interval and work through wet stretches, following rotation advice from the sugar company agronomist.

Dryland wheat on the benches

North of the river around Broadview, Molt, Acton and Shepherd, dryland wheat and barley grow on large benches. Fields are big and rainfall is low, so every pass must pay. Drones help with:

• Wild oat and broadleaf weed passes in spring wheat and barley.
• Stripe rust fungicide in wet years.
• Spot treatment of kochia and aphid hot spots instead of whole fields.

Leafy spurge, knapweed and cheatgrass in Yellowstone County

Leafy spurge and spotted knapweed spread across Yellowstone County rangeland and along the river, creeks and roads. Cheatgrass takes over disturbed ground and raises fire risk. Ranchers often face county weed district requirements to control listed noxious weeds. Drones reach steep coulees, river breaks and ditch banks where trucks can't drive, and spot treatment saves product on large ranches.

Yellowstone River and Billings airspace

The Yellowstone River, Clarks Fork confluence area, Pryor Creek and many irrigation canals cross farmland. Labels require buffers from water, and drones hold mapped buffers precisely. Billings Logan International Airport controls airspace over the city and nearby farms, so operators get FAA authorization before flying there.

Spray calendar for Yellowstone County

Months	Typical jobs
April–May	Burndown; alfalfa weevil; leafy spurge
June	Wild oats and broadleaf weeds in wheat and barley; sugar beet herbicides; knapweed
July	Stripe rust; Cercospora in beets; corn fungicide
August–September	Late beet fungicide; dry bean passes; second alfalfa insect pass
September–October	Fall cheatgrass and knapweed; rangeland weeds

Why Yellowstone County farmers use drones

• Irrigated fields treated without ruts or crop damage.
• Pivot corners and ditch banks covered in the same visit.
• Steep rangeland reached for noxious weed control.
• Precise buffers along the river and canals.
• Wind discipline: flights move to calm early mornings.

Montana licensing for drone spraying

The Montana Department of Agriculture (MDA) licenses pesticide applicators. Anyone spraying for hire by drone needs a commercial applicator license that includes the aerial category, along with the categories that match the work, such as agricultural pest control or rangeland. Farmers using restricted-use products on their own land need a private applicator license.

Federal rules require an FAA Part 107 remote pilot certificate, a Part 137 agricultural aircraft operator certificate and a Section 44807 exemption for drones over 55 pounds. If a label prohibits aerial application, the product cannot be applied by drone.

How booking works

1. Send field or pasture locations, acres, crop and what needs treating.
2. We match you with an MDA-licensed, FAA Part 137-certified operator working in Yellowstone County.
3. You approve the per-acre quote and spray window.
4. The operator maps the field, applies and sends you the application record.

Communities we cover

Billings, Laurel, Lockwood, Shepherd, Huntley, Worden, Ballantine, Custer, Broadview, Molt and Park City, plus farms along the Carbon, Stillwater, Musselshell, Treasure and Big Horn county lines.