Strip-till drill down to size

Strip-till drill down to size
ON FARM OPINION
Strip-tillage is becoming
increasingly popular, but for
smaller farmers adoption of
the technique can be trickier.
CPM visits one farmer who
has found a viable option in
the McConnel Seedaerator.
By Emily Padfield
Smaller farmers arguably face many
disadvantages over those with thousands
of acres. There’s the whole ‘economies
of scale’ quandary, and the ever-present
difficulty in finding more land to work.
Lack of buying clout means they generally
have to pay higher costs.
And then there’s the machinery
predicament. Newer kit, often targeted at
larger farmers, can be too large and more
importantly too expensive for those with
fewer acres, meaning they’re faced with
56 crop production magazine august 2015
buying second-hand larger machines or
smaller, more traditional solutions.
This was the case for Notts arable farmer
Julian Powell. Six years ago he started
looking into strip tillage for his 132ha of
arable crops. “The concept really appealed
to me, especially as we have to be careful
on this acreage with costs,” he explains.
“But perhaps a more important driver
for the swap from inversion tillage was soil
quality. I felt that strip tillage was the tool to
achieve a better soil structure.”
Too expensive
However, he thought many of the drills
available were too expensive for his acreage
and in some cases, far too complicated. To
begin with, he was dissuaded from moving
away from ploughing, he explains.
“I asked various advisors and experts
about going down the route of strip tillage
and they all advised against it on the basis
that I had sandy land that ‘needed to be
ploughed’ due to the danger of it slumping.
“I kept trying to find someone who
believed that it would work and someone
that was doing it.”
It was advisor Andrew Wells from the
Arable Alliance that put him in contact with a
couple of growers who’d been strip-tilling for
five years with a Claydon drill.
However it wasn’t until two years ago,
when a larger farm nearby bought a strip-till
drill and Julian Powell was able to look over
the fence and talk to the manager as to the
pitfalls and benefits of going down that
route, that his mind was made up.
“It was then that I decided to look around
for suitable drills. But I was faced with
Julian Powell believes that going down the
strip-till route will not only reduce his costs,
but also improve soil quality.

Several coulter options are available, including
this twin shot version which delivers two rows
of seed.
disturbed or killed by the plough were
getting eaten.”
The soil type is predominantly sand, with
some sandy clay in parts, he adds. “In 2012,
we had too much moisture, even for us. But,
being sandy land, we do need moisture. We
need it to rain little and often really as we’re
only ever a fortnight from a drought.”
Of the 132ha, 30ha is in sugar beet, 12ha
is in potatoes, 32ha is wheat, 30ha is winter
wheat and 13ha is in a first for the farm,
Belepi wheat. “This year we planted Belepi
after sugar beet in Nov, but it has a wide
sowing window from mid-Oct to April.”
In a bid to improve soil structure, Julian
▲
“
The
strip-tilling
idea really seemed
to tick all the
boxes. ”
looking at second-hand machines which
I felt were still too overpriced and not really
what I wanted.”
The previous establishment method was
plough-based, he explains. “We’d plough
with a Lemken 5f Europal 8 with a
Kverneland 10-ring press and crosskill roller,
pulled by a New Holland T7.200, and then
use an Accord drill on a Kuhn CD300 with
Packliner roller.”
Drilled land would then be rolled with a
set of 8.4m Edlington rolls. “Wearing-part
costs on this land are quite high, so it
was also a point to bear in mind when
thinking about any machinery replacement
decision,” he adds.
All straw is chopped on the farm and for
many years this has been ploughed down
instead of staying on the top to break down.
“I started to believe that ploughing straw
down wasn’t doing any good to the top of
the soil profile. When I’d plough, there’d be
the typical flock of seagulls following the
tractor, and worms that hadn’t been

ON FARM OPINION
Individual pressure-adjustable press wheels
follow each coulter and keep seed depth accurate
and firm for good seed-to-soil contact.
Powell started growing cover crops four
years ago, before sugar beet. “Initially
I started with mustard and then fodder
radish. But it soon became obvious that my
system to establish a cover crop was far too
expensive, and time consuming. They were
also established at a time the soil was in
danger of drying out.
“That’s why the strip-tilling idea really
seemed to tick all the boxes.”
It was at Cereals 2013 that he first came
across the McConnel Seedaerator. “I had
experience with McConnel before with a
Shakaerator and Rhino topper, so already
liked the brand.
“And what really attracted me was that it
had been designed for smaller farmers like
me. Ultimately it’s not hugely complicated,
▲
nor is it expensive –– two major pluses for a
smaller acreage.”
The McConnel Seedaerator features nine
hydraulic reset legs with spacing set at
333mm across. There’s a choice between
LD (low disturbance) and WL (winged leg)
legs. The LD is fitted as standard and works
to a depth of 150mm, whilst the WL option
cultivates the soil from 150mm to 300mm
and has a replaceable winged point. Both
leg options have tungsten carbide face
and are interchangeable.
Cleated tyres
Following the legs, large pneumatic
cleated tyres consolidate the soil before the
contour-following seed coulter places the
seed in a wide band at a consistent depth.
Next, pressure-adjustable rear press-wheels
firm the soil for good seed-to-soil contact.
Newer models get a Venturi, domed
distribution head and larger diameter seed
hoses that delivers greater consistency and
uniformity of seed, explains Wayne Brown of
McConnel.
By cultivating only the seeding zone, the
soil around the channel is undisturbed and
crop residue remains on the surface, giving
good conditions for a living, biotic soil, he
says. “Over time, this delivers improvements
in soil quality, aeration, water percolation and
moisture retention.”
When the product was first launched, the
company was keen to keep an eye on the
machines to help with any user questions
and make sure they had sufficient back-up.
“The arrangement was that I’d have
the drill and as long as it worked to my
satisfaction, then I’d buy it,” explains
Julian Powell.
He’d been quite confident that it would
work and that McConnel would stand by
their machine, and true enough, he has
bought and kept the test machine that
came to the farm.
“Because we were in the first year of
production, we were fairly limited in terms of
extras or options, but Julian’s machine had
a 1250kg hopper, which has now become
standard and tramline control,” adds
Wayne Brown.
There were no pre-emergence markers
available at the time but there are now,
as even those growers with GPS or RTK
guidance sometimes still request them,
he says.
Julian Powell has moved over to RTK
High tensile springs help maintain pressure of the
press wheels on the drilled surface.

A GMR 3200 trailed sprayer is used on the farm,
which also applies liquid fertiliser.
Tech specs: McConnel
Seedaerator
Tech specs: McConnel Seedaerator
● Working width: 3m
● Seed hopper capacity: 1250kg
● Leg specification: Nine leading legs (low
disturbance and winged) at 333mm spacing
● Coulter contour following: +/-100mm
● Coulter depth: 0-150mm
● Seeding depth: 5-150mm
● Weight: 2000kg to 2570kg (specification
dependent)
● Minimum power requirement: 140hp
● Transport width: 2.8m
● Price: From £28,000
now, and reckons he doesn’t need to have
markers added. The following harrow is
standard.
The 3m machine was the perfect size
for the farm, he says. “I wanted something
I could pull with 150hp and for it not to be
excessively heavy. The 3m machine fitted
the bill and weighs 2000kg empty, which
is roughly in between the Claydon and
the Mzuri.”
What he particularly likes are the
individual depth wheels behind each
coulter, as on sandy land it can be very
easy to drill too deep.
“It’s very easy to set the depth wheel
accurately, and it’s also very forgiving so you
can vary the speed if you need to. I’d heard
comment that those with some other makes
had to limit their speed as soil could get
thrown into the ridges.”
Instead of choosing a coulter off the shelf
and fitting it to their drill, McConnel has
developed its own that doesn’t throw the soil
as much, which in wetter periods can be a
problem, explains Wayne Brown.
“The coulter is the biggest feature of the
drill,” he adds. “There are different options
available – a twin-shot that drills two rows
in one, a standard single coulter and a
narrower pea and bean coulter.”
Initially, Julian Powell has the single-band
coulter, but found that to him, it looked as
though too much bare ground had been
left unseeded.
“Last drilling time we drilled the Belepi
with the twin coulter, and that looks more
like it should,” he reckons.
This new twin-shot coulter is 170mm wide
–– 40mm wider than the standard coulter
–– and is made from Boron steel with a
At the rear, one row of tines is standard, but it’s
possible to spec it with two or batter boards,
depending on the desired finish.
hard-wearing Armatech coating.
The coulter delivers two 25mm bands
100mm apart, placing the seed at the outer
edge of the cultivated band. “It seems to
give plants additional space to tiller to its full
potential,” notes Julian Powell.
“On our lighter land, the twin-shot seems
to produce a crop that looks better and
gives the appearance similar to one that’s
conventionally established.”
Because the coulter’s at a shallow angle,
the soil flows round it rather than bringing
great clods up, he adds.
Julian Powell intends to drill 30ha of cover
crops with the drill this autumn before sugar
beet next spring and is currently looking at
▲

New wheat variety Belepi, planted in late Nov, is
looking impressive.
the options. “What’s noticeable is the drop
in price of cover crops. Two years ago it was
£70/ha for seed radish, now because there
are a lot more options and players in the
market, it’s a lot easier to get hold of.”
One piece of advice given to him by
independent cultivation specialist Steve
Townsend was that it would take some time
to get fields level with the new system.
“We were told that it might take a degree
of min-till to get fields more level, but we
didn’t have a min-till cultivator.”
He invested in a Simba X-Press with ST
bar, both to create stale seedbeds and to
keep fields level. “We had the ST bar option
so that we have the choice to go deeper if
needs be.”
▲
The Simba X-Press is used to get a grass
weed chit, although there isn’t a lot of
blackgrass on the farm. “We strawed down
some carrots a few years ago and managed
to bring ryegrass and brome in, which is
more of a problem on our light land. We
don’t grow carrots any more.”
Learning curve
Land is worked to a depth of about 5cm,
although he admits that it’s a bit of a learning
curve. “The intention is to continue with stale
seedbeds to maintain a good level of weed
control.”
Immediately after combining cereals, the
field receives a pass with the X-Press
to create a chit, after which it gets an
application of glyphosate, then if necessary
another pass with the X-Press and a second
spray. “The second spray is crucial,”
he maintains.
After sugar beet, he uses the X-Press with
the ST bar down to about 150mm to get rid
of any compaction left by the heavy harvest
machinery. He still ploughs once in every
four years, before sugar beet is planted.
“For the first time in my life, I’ve been
complimented about how the crops look,
although I’m not sure if that’s a bit of a
back-handed compliment.”
The wearing parts savings will be
considerable he goes on to add. “But
I guess one of the biggest drivers is
the better soil quality that’ll result in
the future.” ■
Farm facts
Julian Powell, Yew Tree Farm, Retford, Notts
● Area farmed: 132ha owned
● Staff: Julian Powell
● Soil type: Sand/sandy clay
● Cropping: Sugar beet (Hadyn, Springbok
and Pasteur), potatoes (Taurus), winter
barley (Cassia and Glacier), wheat
(JB Diego and Belepi)
● Mainline tractors: New Holland T7.200,
Claas Arion 640 with loader
● Combine: New Holland CX8070 Elevation
(shared between three farmers and hired)
● Drills: 3m McConnel Seedaerator and 3m
Kverneland Accord
● Cultivators: Simba Great Plains X-Press
● Sprayer: GMR 3200-litre trailed 24m
● Other: Lemken Europal 8 5f plough; 8.4m
Edlington Cambridge rolls; Kverneland
10-ring press; McConnel topper and
subsoiler