He Seeds Rye While Running Combine

He Seeds Rye While Running Combine COMBINES Modifications 17-5-28 "It provides a cover crop in my controlled traffic lanes and reduces soil erosion caused by wind. It also dries out the traffic lanes, making it easier to plant in the spring," says Nate Andre, Wauseon, Ohio, who mounts a pair of 55-gal. barrels, fitted with metering units off a Great Plains drill, behind the header on his International 1460 8-row combine, allowing him to seed a row of rye into each combine wheel track as he harvests. Andre positions the 55-gal. barrel directly behind the front drive wheels. A metering unit mounts at the bottom of bar-rel. They're operated by 2-speed electric windshield wiper motors. Seed simply drops through a rubber tube into the wheel tracks made by the front tires and is worked into the soil by the lugs on the rear tires. "Normally we seed rye only into soybean stubble because there's not as much residue and because the rye helps keep nitrogen produced by the soybeans from leaching out of the soil," says Andre, who farms with his brother Paul. "We seed about 1/4 to 1/8 bu. per acre. Each barrel holds about 8 bu. of rye. "We've been using a controlled traffic program for the last eight years. Except for a lime truck, all our equipment has tires spaced 120 in. apart. There's one traffic lane every 10 ft. so we drive over only about 15% of the field. Controlled traffic lanes reduce soil compaction and eliminate the need for deep tillage." In the spring, rye is mechanically cleaned off the rows and knocked out of the middles. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Nate Andre, 13529 Co. Rd. L, Wauseon, Ohio 43567 (ph 419 337-0406).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.