Use Crop Rollers For Easy Planting In Cover Crops

Use Crop Rollers For Easy Planting In Cover Crops NO-TILL EQUIPMENT I&J Mfg sells a range of crop rollers that work to knock down existing cover crop plantings on no-till farms They specialize in innovative solutions for both tractor attachments and horse-drawn farm equipment I&J’s crop rollers are designed for no-till farming systems that utilize cover crops The I&J front-mounted crop rollers knock down the weed-suppressing cover crop into a dense mat that the tractor can plant in directly during the same pass Roll over a lush stand of hairy vetch or rye the company claims and the kill will be so complete that observers would guess it was sprayed with herbicide The device tests at 90 percent minimum crop knockdown even for stalky varieties This boosts efficiency and ensures less equipment use in the long run Using the crop roller within a no-till system can reduce the number of field operations for corn from eight to two I&J Mfg based this cover crop roller and crimper’s design on what didn’t work with standard stalk choppers It’s built with a single cylinder with two bearings rather than eight rolling drums and sixteen bearings found on a chopper Extensive testing proved that a 16-in dia pipe with 4-in blades proved most effective These blades are welded and replacements can be bolted on as needed Likewise it operates in a chevron pattern instead of parallel blades preventing it from bouncing and kicking up the soil While the roller is easy to attach and take off it can be filled with any non-freezing liquid to add up to 75 lbs per foot This changes the weight of the 10 1/2-ft roller from 1 835 lbs empty to 2 635 lbs filled with water The roller is sold in widths of 8 ft 3 row 10 1/2 ft 4 row and 15 1/2 ft 6 row though it’s possible to get custom-built widths up to 60 ft Each roller fits a standard category I or II 3-pt hitch and the company offers a 3-pt adapter for the fronts of tractors that don’t already have one Pricing ranges from $3 900 to $9 900 based on size and before freight costs Call directly for a quote on custom sizing Contact: FARM SHOW Followup I&J Mfg 10 S New Holland Rd Suite 2 Gordonville Penn 17529 ph 717-442-9451; www i-jmanufacturing com

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