Grape growers might be using drones in order to explore any potential that technology might bring in order to do agricultural chores such as crop spraying, irrigation and monitoring.

A few pioneers are said to be experimenting on the said proposal as it makes sense for the wine country pressing that the Napa Valley has steep slopes. A spokesman for Yamaha Motor Corp. USA, the company that has been testing the RMAX remote-controlled helicopter, Steve Markofski, said that the narrow rows as well as hilly terrain of the land might already be defeated.

He noted that a drone won't be damaging the soil or the earth that tractors do pressing that these damages can actually starve the roots by not letting enough oxygen pass through.

Also, the drones will only be used in private properties or only in the areas that are being used for grape growing so the recent tests did not encounter oppositions from the inhabitants of the said area since drones are being largely contested by civil right groups over privacy concerns.

RMAX stands 9-feet long and weighs over 220 pounds and it has a two-cylinder engine that is navigated by a radio controller. It can also control its movement in case the weather makes it difficult to fly through the area. It has two tanks and three spray nozzles so it could apply pesticides and nutrients equally.

Markofski pressed that they still have to convince the grape growers about this and admitted that it might take a lot of time.

RMAX has already been used in Japan for more than 15 years now and according to reports, another company is eyeing to test the same project in the Napa Valley. A Canadian company called PrecisionHawk has devised a drone that looks like a hawk and was originally aimed to be used to scare away birds that eat grapes in the Niagara wine region.

However, the company realized they could also use their invention to collect useful data such as the population of insects as well as the diseased vines.