Giant No-Till Drill Really Does The Job

Giant No-Till Drill Really Does The Job DRILLS Drills (42C) 5-4-16 They're calling it the first true no-till drill and the biggest thing to cross the prairie since the buffalo roamed. It's the giant-size new no-till drill from Pioneer Manufacturing which can apply as much as 2,000 lbs. pressure per seed opener while banding phosphates and nitrogen around the seed, and applying herbicides to control weeds. "Our drill works as well in stubble ground as a conventional drill in fine-tilled soil. We believe it's the first true no-till drill on the market," says Guy Swanson, head of the Spokane, Wash. firm which has had various prototypes of the drill in the field for eight years. The 20-ft. wide drill features row spacing from 7 1/2 in. to 24 in., seeding with a unique double-disc opener that has a slicing coulter. A "scuffer" disc kicks straw and other debris out of the seed trench ahead of it. A major feature of the machine is that it allows the use of liquid, gas or dry fertilizer. Phosphate can be planted with the seed, while nitrogen is banded to the side and below. "There's no interference from surface residue as there is with top-dressed fertilizers," points out Swanson. Liberal quantities of herbicides ù particularly Roundup, Paraquat, Hoelon, Sencor and Fargo ù as well as insecticides, can also be applied with optional equipment. ' "We can carry as much as a 25,000 lb. payload on our 20-ft. drill, making it a one-trip planter. Fuel use per acre is cut from an average of 6 1/2 gal. per acre to about 1 1/2 gal. per acre. With the yield increases brought about by increased moisture trapped in the ground ù one inch of soil moisture translates into 7 bu. of grain ù and the precise placement of our fertilizers, we've calculated about a $40 per acre increase in income with this drill," says Swanson. "Other benefits, especially when you get into the mountain grain areas of the west, include ten times less soil erosion with the drill and the ability to seed slopes as steep as 55?," Swanson points out. Three series of the drill are available, ranging from the 10-ft. 15,000 lb. model to the 20-ft. 33,000 lb. biggest drill. Minimum horsepower requirements run from 125 hp. to 270 hp. Prices range from $40,000 for the smallest drill to $135,000 for the largest model outfitted with all options. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Guy Swanson, Pioneer, South 4305 University Road, Spokane, Wash. 99206 (ph 509 922-2958).

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