NIK service specialists advise: How and with what modules to renew our spring planter?

2020 turned out to be extremely difficult for farmers. The drought brought with it new challenges that farmers had to deal with. In the harsh and difficult conditions, it turned out that no-till technologies could overcome the trials of this year's campaign.

This time around, NIK service specialists advise how farmers can upgrade their spring planter so that they can achieve higher productivity at no-till for the upcoming spring campaign. The solutions are suitable for the renewal of different types of planters, and can be made in one go or upgraded subsequently, according to the needs and the change in technology from year to year.

Touching on the topic of no-till technologies and precision spring sowing, we cannot help but start with the solutions of the American company Precision Planting.

“The technologies of Precision Plantingcan be implemented on a large number of spring planters. Thanks to this American brand, farmers can retrofit their machines so that they work at a higher speed, while at the same time increasing the sowing parameters and making it more qualitative”, explains Pavel Kaloyanov, part of the NIK service team.

What are the Precision Planting modules that I can radically change the results of spring sowing, and how exactly?

DeltaForce allows monitoring of applied pressure on the soil of each of the sections of the planter

How it works DeltaForce?

On each section, a sensor is installed to monitor the weight of the planter and a hydraulic cylinder, which applies (if necessary) additional pressure. The goal is to achieve the desired seeding depth. What is different about this cylinder is that it not only applies pressure, but can lift the section if necessary.

“On the other hand, if the soil conditions are mild and the section's own weight is in excess, the pressure sensor detects it and the cylinder lifts the section. Thus, regardless of the variety of soil conditions in the field, a uniform sowing depth is achieved and the seeds have the same conditions for initial development,” explained Pavel Kaloyanov.

SpeedTube — higher sowing speed even with No-Till

What is SpeedTube?

SpeedTubeis an elevator for the seeds. Thanks to the system, gravity seeding is eliminated, which also allows the operation itself to be carried out at a higher speed even in poor conditions.

Furrow Force — smart pressure control of the section blunter module

What is Furrow Force?

FurrowForceis a new system in the portfolio of Precision Planting. It helps close the row, much like DeltaForce — regardless of soil conditions.

The system is equipped with a pressure monitoring sensor and an airbag for controlling the pressure of the section dimming module. The control is automatic by means of a control module and is independent for each section.

How can we move to quality no-till sowing with little cost?

Apart from the decisions of Precision Planting, if they want to switch to no-till, farmers are well advised to look at the options offered by the American manufacturer Yetter. The colters that the company produces are universal and can be installed on multiple models of planters.

“Most often we combine Yetter colterswith cleaners for plant residues. The colter is a disc that cuts the surface soil layer, thus requiring less effort of the opening discs to reach the desired seeding depth. We install them on each section of the planter,” explained Pavel Kaloyanov.

The colter, along with a plant residue cleaner, is a good combination for a seeding section with less pressure, guaranteeing a clean order, without plant residues, in which to place the seeds.

“Another possibility at Yetter, which gives excellent results in the field, is that the colters are combined with Precision Planting's CleanSweep, through which the pressure of the sweepers is adjusted,” said the service specialist.

From Pavel's experience in Bulgaria, one solution stands out, which performs well, namely the closing spike wheelsYetter. They serve equally well to close the row in dry and wet soil conditions.

Do you have any questions? NIK service specialists are at your disposal!