Kverneland has integrated the well-known a-drill onto the e-drill power-harrow mounted seed drill. This extra seeder with separate hopper and metering device will allow for the application of an additional type of seeds or fertiliser, extending the scope of application of the e-drill maxi plus even further.
Sustainable and efficient
There are good reasons to promote the establishment of additional crops or to apply extra nutrients whilst seeding. An additional crop will suppress weed growth but not compete with the leading crop. The extra crop catches the mineral nitrogen in the soil, as well as air nitrogen, when mixing with leguminous plants, transforming it into organic nitrogen. Thus, nitrogen will still be available for the next crops. Fertilisers are applied with precision to support plant growth, specifically during youth development avoiding its wash-out into groundwater
All this will be a major contribution to sustainable farming by encouraging root development, reducing the risk of erosion and increasing biodiversity and humus content. Sustainability will protect farmers’ most valuable asset: the soil. Utmost efficiency and cost saving is achieved by the combined application of various types of seeds and/or fertiliser all in one pass.
Wide scope of application
There is a wide scope of application and numerous possible variations for this integrated seed drill:
Already the e-drill maxi plus, as the combined grain and fertiliser model of the power harrow mounted seed drill, is equipped with a divided hopper with adjustable ratio of 60:40, 70:30 or 100:0 and two independently working metering devices.
|
|
By integrating the a-drill, an additional extra seeder comes into play and offers a multiple choice of combinations: Two types of material are precisely deposited by the CX-II double-entry coulter (2 distribution heads) on the e-drill maxi plus; whereas the third type of material is applied via the baffle plate from the integrated a-drill into the soil flow of the following harrow:
- 3 types of material in one pass: 1 type of seed (e.g. wheat/barley) plus fertiliser in the sowing rows plus slug pellets via the following harrow
- 3 types of material in one pass: 1 type of seed (e.g. wheat/barley) plus fertilser in the sowing row plus 1 type of seed (e.g. clover) via the following harrow
- 3 types of material in one pass: 2 types of seed in different sowing rows (e.g. beans & rape seed) plus slug pellets via the following harrow
- 3 types of material in one pass: 2 types of seed in the sowing row (e.g. beans & rye) plus 1 sort of seed (e.g. clover) via the following harrow
Flexible adjustments
The a-drill has 8 outputs which will spread the flow of seeds or fertiliser by the baffle plate uniformly into the soil flow of the following harrow over the entire working width.
The a-drill is delivered with different types of rotors: for small seeds (rape, mustard, cabbage, clover, etc.), medium rotors for seeds like vetch, grass or sunflowers and for large seeds (peas, horse beans, etc.) or fertiliser. The agitator placed above the rotor ensures a steady stream of seeds. A brush, located at the base of the rotor, will regulate the flow and improve the setting accuracy. Up to 8 different rotors are available for fine, medium and large sized seeds.
