Drone Spraying in Grayson County, TX for Hay, Wheat and Pasture

Drone spraying prices in Grayson County

Drone spraying in Grayson County, TX is quoted per acre, application only. Drone operators serving the county charge $11–30 per acre, and the typical Texas drone rate is about $12. Texas A&M AgriLife's 2026 custom rates for North Texas put aerial herbicide at $9.27 per acre and aerial insecticide or fungicide at $8.36. Our rates:

Service	Typical rate	Notes
Wheat and row-crop herbicide	from $11/acre	Corn, sorghum
Wheat and corn fungicide or insecticide	from $11/acre	Leaf rust, aphids
Pasture and hay weed control	from $12/acre	Broomweed, ragweed, nightshade
Hay insecticide	from $12/acre	Fall armyworm, grasshoppers
Brush spot work	from $20/acre	Mesquite, honey locust

Each visit has a $250 minimum, and neighbors on the same road can share a trip. Product is billed separately. Quotes reflect acres, tree lines, homes nearby and the spray volume on the label.

A county of small farms

Grayson County had 2,851 farms in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, averaging just 139 acres, and 68% of them were under 50 acres. Pasture covers 44% of farmland and cropland 47%.

Crop or livestock	2022
Hay and forage	49,760 acres
Wheat	36,702 acres
Corn	12,274 acres
Grain sorghum	5,318 acres
Cattle	40,648 head
Horses	9,396 head

Cattle, grain, nursery and sod, and horses lead farm sales. Drone spraying in Grayson County fits small places that a big rig won't bother with: horse pastures, hay meadows and small wheat fields along the US-75 corridor.

Pasture weeds: size matters

Grayson County AgriLife guidance splits pasture weeds into two groups:

• Annuals, spray small (4–10 inches): broomweed, ragweed, sunflower, woolly croton before 10 inches, marshelder before 12 inches, lambsquarters, and marestail at the rosette stage.
• Perennials, spray after flowering starts: silverleaf nightshade, horsenettle, dewberry and blackberry.

Graze off or cut ryegrass in spring so bermudagrass can come through. Johnsongrass, dock, honey mesquite and honey locust are spot-treated.

Wheat: leaf rust at flag leaf

In 2024, leaf rust was showing in many Grayson County wheat fields by late April, and fungicide went on from flag leaf to heading. Wheat here is planted from late August through fall, and much of it is grazed before it heads. A drone can put fungicide on headed wheat without leaving wheel tracks.

Armyworms and grasshoppers in hay

In 2024, grasshoppers reached treatable levels in Grayson County hayfields by late July, and fall armyworms hit treatable numbers in early August. Both can strip a bermuda meadow quickly after summer rain. Scout hayfields weekly from July to frost, and plan the spray around cutting dates and product haying intervals.

Corn and sorghum

Corn is side-dressed by late April and harvested in late July. Fungicide at tassel protects yield in wet years. Grain sorghum is checked for sugarcane aphid and headworms at heading, usually one pass, with harvest around August.

A Grayson County spray year

Window	Typical drone work
March to April	Wheat herbicide, ryegrass management in bermuda
Late April to May	Wheat fungicide at flag leaf to heading
May to July	Annual pasture weeds at 4–10 inches, perennials after flowering
June to July	Corn fungicide at tassel, sorghum at heading
Late July to frost	Grasshoppers and fall armyworm in hay

Blackland and Cross Timbers

Field condition	Ground sprayer	Spray drone
Blackland clay after rain	Bogs down	No soil contact
Sandy Cross Timbers pasture	Trees, stumps	Flies over them
Small horse pastures	Gates and fences	Flies over fences
Wheat at heading	Wheel-track losses	No crop contact

Blackland Prairie covers the east of the county, with the sandy soils and post oaks of the Cross Timbers on the west.

The Collin County line

Grayson County isn't on TDA's regulated-herbicide list, and neither are Fannin, Cooke or Denton. Collin County, just south, is. There, 2,4-D, MCPA, dicamba and quinclorac need a TDA permit, spraying stops above 10 mph wind, and high-volatile esters are banned within 4 miles of susceptible crops. Fields that touch the Collin line are checked against those rules before booking.

Lake Texoma, Hagerman and North Texas Regional

Lake Texoma and the Red River form the county's northern edge, and Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge sits on the lake near Pottsboro. North Texas Regional Airport at Perrin Field, between Sherman and Denison, has a control tower, so nearby flights need FAA authorization. Operators check airspace for every field, map the lake, refuge, homes and stock ponds as no-spray zones and check FieldWatch's DriftWatch and BeeCheck before every job.

Texas licensing for drone application

The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) requires a Commercial Applicator license with the Aerial category plus a use category such as Pasture and Rangeland or Field Crops. The FAA requires Part 107, Part 137 and, for drones of 55 pounds or more, a Section 44807 exemption.