spacing displacement through seed bounce as it lands in the furrow. The belt, together with the two feed rollers
that supply it, are driven electrically and the SpeedTube can be fitted to new or existing planters.
Pressure system Vacuum seed metering is turned on its head in the new-generation Amazone EDX, Lemken Azurit and Väderstad Tempo planters, as they use air pressure to select and hold seed against perforations. Each seed is released into the seed tube when a small wheel on the other side if the perforation blocks the airflow and is then propelled by air to the furrow, where it is captured beneath a soft press wheel to prevent bouncing and ensure intimate seed-to-soil contact.
While the singling process is performed on
otherwise conventional row units on the Azurit and Tempo planters, the Amazone EDX design uses a stainless steel drum located beneath the bulk seed hopper. Perforations punched in lines select the
seed, which is blown down narrow plastic tubes to the row units that, in common with many other planters, are designed to handle conventionally cultivated, min-till and no-till surfaces. Amazone says its EDX precision planters can
achieve work rates 30-50% greater than a conventional seeder, thanks largely to working speeds up to 15kph (9mph), but also because of features designed to make them easier to set-up and quicker to refill. A 6m (20ft) mounted version is said to be
good for 400ha to 700ha (990-1,730 acres), a trailed planter of the same size 900ha (2,200
The Kverneland Optima planter is capable of working at up to 12kph (7mph) with a high- speed kit. It can use its eDrive metering and GEOseed software to plant in conventional rows or in a diamond pattern that permits hoeing of weeds in different directions
acres); a workload of up to 1,500ha (3,700 acres) is within the 9m (30ft) EDX’s capabilities.
Metering system Of its metering system, Väderstad says in laboratory tests, very low levels of misses and doubles were recorded as ground speed approached 17kph (11mph), in contrast to the rapid deterioration seen with conventional planters. Speeds up to 15kph (9mph) are recommended in the field. While hydraulic drive to a bank of
conventional planting units can be used to ▶
An example of the impact on plant population when a 24-row, 76cm (30in) planter makes a 18m (60ft) radius turn with and without Kinze’s curve compensatiing metering speed control
Accurate row-by-row stop and start can reduce seed use by 2-8% depending upon field size and irregularity, according to planter manufacturer Kverneland
▶ FUTURE FARMING | 9 November 2017 21
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