Farm Requirements And Cultivation Strategy

Across MJ Easey's 2,100-acre operation, cultivation practices place a strong emphasis on ploughing, as the farm aims to create clean, level seedbeds across soil types ranging from sand to heavy clay.
Cropping includes: Sugar beet, winter wheat, winter barley, oilseed rape, and spring beans.

“Ploughing gives us a fresh start, and does a great job of aerating and levelling our soils, which gradually slump throughout the year,” says farms manager Ian Savage.

“It’s an essential part of our cultivation practices, with around half our acreage going across the mouldboards each season. The remainder is min-tilled.”

MJ Easey's Kverneland 3400B Specification and Setup

The seven-furrow Kverneland 3400B, supplied by local UK dealer Tuckwells, continues the farm’s on-land ploughing approach.

MJ Easey’s specification includes No. 28 bodies, 100 cm point-to-point clearance for improved trash handling, a hydraulic rear depth wheel, and Kverneland’s innovative TTS (Trailer Transport System).

"The 3400B is a better plough than our old model," he says. “There’s double stays on all the mouldboards, a better push-pull framework for the hydraulic vari-width, and the central skimmer adjustment for each pair is brilliant,".

Performance In The Field

Powered by a John Deere 8RX 370, the setup delivers up to six acres per hour at a working depth of 8 inches, a 17-inch furrow width, and a forward speed of 8 km/h.

In the field, operator Liam Baker is part in the day-to-day operation of the Kverneland plough.

“I only ever plough on-land even though this plough can be run in-furrow. It’s a far more comfortable seating position, compared to being sat on an angle, when working in-furrow." says Liam.

"And, ploughing on-land lets me make the most of GPS." explains Liam.

"The plough is set to a 3 m working width, and I always leave a 12 m headland, so it’s only four runs around to finish off. We run on a 32 m tramline systems, and working this way means I always pull through the headland tramline.”

Adjustment and soil finish quality

Liam reckons the Kverneland 3400 B VARIOMAT is a big step forward.

“Number two and number six skims run behind the tracks, and not only is this a higher wear point on metal, but the skims need to be set deeper than the rest, to accommodate the tread marks,” he says. “With central adjustment, it’s very easy to do, and this helps to maintain a high-quality finish.”

“There’s much more scope for adjustment,” he says. “I can almost keep the rear three furrows out of work, just by making the most of the hydraulic depth wheel.”

Headland management and transport

With plough functions controlled via the tractor’s CommandPro joystick, Liam says headland turns are smooth and efficient.

“I can lift the front, then the rear, which keeps headlands short and tight, and it’s the same when dropping back in,” he says. “And when it comes to transport, the 3400B follows like a trailer thanks to TTS and the rear wheel. It’s really safe, because there’s no swing-out when turning and it also keeps the weight off the tractor when running down the road.”

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