22 minute read
Plenty of choice under the sustainable banner
Machinery Plenty of choice under the sustainable banner
This year’s Groundswell event proved popular, and exhibitors reported that although visitor numbers were moderate, those who came were keen to nd out about the latest machinery to improve soils, drill and incorporate cover crops, and establish main crops using reduced cultivation techniques. David Williams reports.
New mounted disc option
The J.J. Metcalfe & Son display featured a new Sow & Hoe seed coulter, designed to cut o weeds and bring the roots to the surface to dry out, while placing a 12mm band of cover crop seed at the rear. The one-pass establishment tool was designed primarily for vineyard use, although it has applications for UK organic farms too. Also displayed for the rst time at the event was a mounted disc option to suit Horsch Sprinter and CO drills. Designed to cut through trash, and reduce surface disturbance by the following coulters, the discs cost £250–300 per unit including the mounting. Mike Metcalfe is pictured with the new discs on the stand.
Multiple applications
Garford managing director Jonathan Henry said that demand for mechanical inter-row weeders is growing as farmers seek to reduce dependence on herbicides. “Tighter regulatory control is a factor and growers are keen to protect future use of actives we have currently available through the use of blended control systems, where a mix of chemical and mechanical weed control is utilised.
“Our guided toolbars are extremely versatile, and up to 20 per cent of those we supply are equipped to perform at least two functions, such as applying fertiliser or performing spray chemical applications while hoeing the crop,” he explained.
Jonathan said that the question asked of his team most frequently during the show was whether the inter-row hoes would work in cereals – highlighting growing demand from farmers for large-scale mechanical weed control.
Perfect seed placement
Checking the performance of a Weaving GD3000M drill are (l-r) Simon Weaving, Mike Lane, Tricia Cullimore of NIAB, and Tim Camps of S Camps & Sons – farmers based at Abington, Cambs.
Opico product demonstrator Tom Brooks, Opico Sky product manager Glenn Bootman and local dealer Chandlers area sales manager based at the Barnack depot Craig Footman are pictured (l-r) with the Sky Agriculture Easy Drill at the event.
Dealer and manufacturer teams kept busy
Pictured (l-r) Mark Rumble, Jonathan Henry, Alice Baxter (who is working her third year in the Garford factory as an apprentice engineer), and Allan Knight.
Preaching to the converted
Considerable interest in the Dale Eco drill was reported by directors James (left) and Tom Dale. “This was a show where we knew we were preaching to the converted,” explained Tom. “However, we o er tine drills where many of our competitors feature disc coulters, and the tines mean we can operate with a lower drill weight as tines penetrate hard ground more e ectively. We use narrow tines which are easy to pull, and we can o er a wide range of speci cation options. The drills are easily set up and adapted for establishing companion or cover crops and most of the hoppers we supply are split allowing multiple products to be placed. Row spacing is adjustable too, and up to 75cm is possible,” he added.
Dale also displayed the Meir low disturbance subsoiler which is designed to achieve thorough soil loosening while minimising movement on the surface. Dale Drills’ own leg and point design is used and there are various packer options.
Successful rst season
Novag exhibited its drills last year at Groundswell for the rst time, although Covid-19 restrictions meant that none of the French manufacturer’s representatives could be present. However, this year there were specialists to answer questions who were kept busy throughout the event. Bradfordon-Avon based Monkton Farleigh Farm farm manager Andrew Tucker (right) is pictured with Novag sales manager Lucas Zickermann. Andrew purchased a Novag drill last year and used it to successfully establish all his autumn and spring cropping. “I didn’t see a Novag drill operating before I placed my order, but I had looked at a Cross Slot drill which has a similar seeding design,” he explained. “One of my main concerns when moving from a conventional establishment regime using one of the UK’s most popular drills to a zero-tillage system was whether the drill would penetrate hard ground and maintain a constant depth, but the Novag drills are well made and heavy and it hasn’t been a problem. We established 400ha of arable crops including wheat, oilseed rape, spring barley, spring beans, linseed, and cover crops and by late June they were all looking well, and we were looking forward to nding out how they all yielded at harvest.
“Our soils are mainly Cotswold Brash – very shallow with lots of stones, and I think a key advantage of the Novag design is that the seeds aren’t placed in a hard slot where they are vulnerable to wet or dry conditions, or slugs – in fact, we didn’t use slug pellets at all this year – even after cover crops.”
Andrew said that the Novag drill proved easy to set up and use – even though any instruction he needed had to be provided through video calls with the French-based team. “The back-up was excellent, and I am very pleased with our decision to invest in the Novag drill,” he explained. “Having sold our previous conventional drill, we are dependent now on the Novag, but we did keep an old power-harrow drill which will be good for levelling if the elds become uneven.”
Low-disturbance options
The Pan Anglia stand featured alternative and replacement low-disturbance soil engaging elements. Discs which are a direct replacement for wellknown brands of direct-drill were in particularly high demand, explained area sales manager Chris Killingback who is pictured (left) with fellow area sales manager Roger Goodwin.
Reducing the tilled area
Kverneland area sales representative Don Campbell is pictured with the company’s Kultistrip strip-till cultivator.
Versions up to 6m and 12 rows working width are available, and Don explained that with 45cm row spacing, less than 50% of the ground service is moved. “Most demand is for establishing spring crops such as sugar beet, maize and pumpkins although demand is growing for vegetables too,” he continued. “Some growers prepare a tilth in the autumn then leave it to overwinter before a pass to freshen it up ahead of drilling in the spring, but there are other users who delay cultivations until just before planting, and drill crops immediately after.
“Additional uses include slurry incorporation, and there are users applying fertiliser in the strips too. This sort of reduced tillage system is what people are talking about currently.”
Arable version
A new version of the Moore UniDrill was displayed at the event. ‘’The existing Guttler Packer was speci cally designed for grassland work, so we have introduced a new pneumatic tyre packer to cater better to arable applications,’’ explained Moore UniDrill’s sales specialist, Arron Pearce. ‘’This allows working in adverse conditions as well as in direct drill, min-till or conventional drilling situations. The chassis is longer which increases space for increased trash ow. With the introduction of levelling boards and optional following harrows, a consolidated seedbed is left for maximum seed germination.’’
Cost-e ective drone crop monitoring
DroneAg has increased the functionality of its crop scanning app, allowing growers to monitor and assess their oilseed rape crops, from pod development through ripening to senescence. “Using our subscriptionbased monitoring app allows growers to scan their crops as often as they like, to accurately determine the best times for crop treatments and applications so that best practise can be achieved,” explained sales and marketing director Dan Lambe (right) who is pictured with DroneAg founder Jack Wrangham. Dan added that an Android version of the company’s Skippy Scout crop scanning app is being introduced primarily for overseas markets where availability of Apple smartphones is less widespread than in the UK.
On-farm drain system planning
John Deere main dealer Tuckwells displayed a Shelton trencher, a Zurn Top-Cut Collect weed seed head collector, and a John Deere 750A directdrill. The Zurn Top-Cut Collect has proved a successful investment for several UK contractors this season – who are o ering a black-grass head removal service to customers. “It cuts o and collects weed and volunteer heads which stick out above the crop,” explained Zurn UK director George Dance who was assisting on the Tuckwells stand. “Herbicide-resistant weeds remain a major problem, and in many situations removing the heads completely from the eld just before the main crop is harvested is proving an e ective control option.”
Tuckwell farms farm manager Kris Grzelak was also on the stand – explaining bene ts of the T3rra water management software which is compatible with John Deere iGrade. “We have used it on the Tuckwell family farm very successfully,” he said. “It allows precise vertical control of implements in multiple planes and it’s easy to survey the site to obtain elevation data, then design a drainage scheme online, and apply it by sending the work instruction to the John Deere in-cab display. It can be used just as easily for installing a single drain or a complete scheme, and the same software is suitable for land forming too,” he added.
Pictured on the Tuckwell stand are (l-r) Kris Grzelak, Gary Buckle, George Dance, Tim Thornton, and Sam Jones.
Predictive disease modelling
Sencrop provides a subscriptionbased weather station service, using data from a large network of weather stations across the UK and Europe. Customers simply purchase one or more stations which are installed on their farms, and data sent from the stations to Sencrop’s ‘cloud’ is available to subscribers through a user-friendly smartphone app. Various subscription levels are available depending on the number of stations installed and how many users need access to the data. Larger farms operating at multiple locations have reported signi cant cost-and time-saving bene ts from using Sencrop’s system. One of the main bene ts has been when adverse weather conditions have prevented eldwork at one location and checking the app has revealed that conditions remain suitable elsewhere.
“This show has been excellent,” explained Sencrop UK sales manager Harry Atkinson. “The farmers here are quick to recognise bene ts of the exclusive service we o er, including features recently added such as crop disease modelling. Our cercospora model has been assessed by British Sugar, and it was concluded that treatments applied at the time of warnings provided by our system were most e ective. We are continuing to develop new features, including irrigation modelling for potatoes.”
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Tilth: An advantage this year
Geo Claydon is pictured with a UKmanufactured Claydon Evolution 4.8m drill at the event. New Evolution models feature a larger hopper, simpler drilling depth adjustment, improved pressure adjustment for the rear ski-boards and the opportunity to t a wider range of seeding attachments.
“For a growing season like this one, the tilth created by our unique coulter system provided huge bene ts,” he explained. “Usually, we have a few hard frosts which crack clods on the surface and create natural tilth which provides bene ts whatever type of drill is used, but that didn’t happen this year so where there was no tilth, the moisture losses were higher, and early spring growth was slow. Where growers had surface tilth, this provided insulation and contained the moisture and we saw better early crop development compared to where zero-tillage techniques and disc drills were used. Many Claydon users are predicting a favourable harvest.”
Strip-tillage solution
The Carre Inro strip-till cultivator generated many enquiries on importer KRM’s stand. Most demand is to prepare land for seeding using precision drills which place seeds directly into the cultivated strip, explained the company. Biggest cost and carbon reductions are achieved when it is used for direct crop establishment, although interest is growing for interrow companion crop seeding too. Seeding units are an option, and disc coulters are used mainly for establishing oilseed rape. Fertiliser application and slurry incorporation systems are also available. The four-row rigid frame Inro displayed costs £23,670, and a larger 12-row mounted model is approximately £69,000.
Pictured with the Inro are area sales managers Chris Wear (left) and David Wagsta .
Ultimate sustainability
The New Holland T6 Methane tractor was used to demonstrate the UKmanufactured Horizon zero-till drill at the event. McArthur Agriculture specialises in grain equipment and storage. A JCM VibroMax grader displayed on the stand allows multiple crops to be separated and cleaned to a high standard in a single pass at rates up to 40tph. “We started o ering the grader as a solution for farmers who were inter-cropping last year, and sold several,” explained regional sales manager Terry Royston. “I feel that we are at the tip of a rapidly growing market which is very exciting. The three-stage dresser removes impurities and admixture to the high level of cleanliness required, and it will clean and prepare crops for conventional markets too.
“We o er smaller cleaners with just two screens which could also be used, although multiple passes are needed to separate multiple crops, so the process takes longer. However, for those starting out and just dipping their toe in the water with inter-cropping these provide a practical and cost-e ective solution.”
Inter-cropping cleaner
Protecting the soil
Essex-based Brocks Wheel & Tyre supplies complete wheel and tyre assemblies for tractors, self-propelled sprayers, and other agricultural machines. “As we expected, most enquiries at this event have been for high performance tyre options to reduce compaction and soil damage,” explained BWT business development manager Eugene Brock (pictured). “We stock and supply many BKT and Bridgestone VF and IF tyres which operate at lower in ation pressures while carrying the same weight as conventional radial tyres.
“Using VF tyres also allows narrower options to be tted while maintaining the same ground contact area, making them ideal for selfpropelled sprayers. This is an advantage for road transport, and it also reduces the amount of crop run down later in the season. As a wheel supplier, we have been very much aware of the changes in agriculture in recent years, including regenerative farming, and can recommend and supply a range of options for most machines and situations.”
Busy event for Weaving team
Steel fencing solution
McVeigh Parker supplies livestock equipment and fencing across the whole of the UK through a network of eight branches.
Director, Chris Hambridge (pictured), explained that the company o ers a wide range of fence types, but its speciality is all-steel fencing which lasts much longer than traditional wood construction.
The company’s Triple X fencing system consists of all-steel posts with integral fence wire clips, X Fence wire netting, steel strainers and a choice of metal wire types. It has recently been approved and quali es for government grants. It costs approximately 20% more per metre than traditional creosotetreated wood, but over a 30-year period the cost works out at just over half as much due to its longer service life. “Farmers we speak with are fed up with replacing modern treated timber fencing which has a very short life,” stressed Chris. “After recently gaining the formal approval for grant contributions, we expect increased demand for our cost-e ective solution.”
Reduced tillage solutions
Members of the Kuhn team reported a very busy event at which visitors expressed interest in reduced tillage solutions. (l-r) Edd Fanshawe, Rupert Greest, Justin Lucas, Duncan McLeish, and Julian Plank.
Managing wild edges
Hugh Somerleyton, founder of WildEast (left) is pictured with Tim Hopkin, founder of the Land App. The Land App is an independent business which is funded by landowners, which “brings technology and nature together so everyone – farmers, farm advisors, land agents, ecologists and surveyors – can protect the legacy of our landscape and secure its future”. It’s a live, evolving platform, in which registered farmer users can map their existing farm, access new sources of funding, demonstrate environmental stewardship and support local nature recovery. The app is also used by estate/land owners and land agents. It provides free access to much of the Land App’s core mapping power, and additional paidfor subscription options open up the data and functionality further.
The Land App is currently working with WildEast, with who it has built an algorithm which automatically identi es special opportunities for the creation of ‘WildEdges’ on farmland; with just an SBI number, you can generate a free WildEdges management plan for your holding.
At Groundswell ’22, Tim de ned a WildEdge as being a linear habitat comprising of hedgerow, scrub, tussocky grass and wild owers. This creates habitat, produces a diversity of food supplies, bolsters ood holding capacity, signi cantly increases carbon capture and acts as a corridor for wildlife by increasing connectivity. By creating new WildEdges, as well as mapping current ones, both nancial and environmental gains can be realised and managed. Cereal disease prediction services are advancing rapidly at Microgenetics, which launched its SwiftDetect test for septoria last March. “We now have a test for the wheat diseases yellow rust, brown rust and mildew,” said Chris Steele, crop diagnostics product manager at SwiftDetect (pictured talking to Farmers Guide senior sales executuve Jo Blower, with research scientist Charles Grant on the right). “We also have a test for ramularia in barley. It has gone well – we have doubled last year’s sales.”
SwiftDetect can reveal the level of disease, even in the latent period, with results in one business day. The patented method gives it such sensitivity and speed, that it’s able to test down to just a few pathogen cells of disease in your crop. Your results will provide you with actionable insight, so you can make more informed crop management decisions.
Chris also con rmed that a test for light leaf spot in oilseed rape is also well and truly in the pipeline, so watch this space.
Disease prediction allows more e ective decision making
UK demand for millet as an alternative crop
Soya UK director David McNaughton chatted to Farmers Guide's Jo Blower and editor Rachel Hicks at Groundswell, discussing the recent drop in demand for spring cropping options as a result of the high commodity prices for wheat and OSR currently, as well as the potential for UK-grown millet contracts due to the di cult situation in Ukraine. David explained that the UK demand for millet is around 10,000t, with only around 2,000t being currently domestically grown – and the remaining 8,000t imported from Ukraine. Soya UK is actively encouraging UK growers to seriously consider millet as an alternative cropping option.
Farm machinery business welcomes new brand to dealership
Rea Valley Tractors (RVT), the West Midlands and mid-Wales farm machinery business, will become a New Holland dealer from 1st November 2022, while continuing to supply products from JCB, Kuhn and a number of other leading manufacturers.
The appointment as a New Holland dealer for agricultural tractors and harvest machinery throughout Shropshire, part of Sta ordshire, Cheshire, part of Lancashire, mid and North Wales, marks a signi cant change for RVT, which currently operates four branches and employs 130 sta .
Rea Valley Tractors managing director, Steve Petford, said: “In discussions concerning the longterm development of the company, the options presented by our current tractor supplier e ectively involved either down-sizing or selling the business, scenarios that were emphatically opposed by RVT’s chairman and main shareholder Simon Clarke, not least because of the impact on jobs.
“Instead, we have taken an alternative route, taking charge of our own destiny by successfully negotiating to take on the New Holland territory for tractors and harvest machinery across an area that is larger than the one we have today, and also an extended JCB territory that will include Cheshire from 1st January 2023.”
RVT will continue to support customers with repairs, routine servicing and parts for the John Deere products they have been selling, and are convinced that the potent combination of New Holland, JCB and Kuhn, together with its Bailey, Grimme, Joskin, Ag Leader and other important franchises, will be a long-term success.
RVT has depots at Shrewsbury and Newport in Shropshire, Welshpool in Powys, and Sudbury in Derbyshire, with new branch locations to be announced in due course.
The company has applied for planning permission to substantially enhance the Shrewsbury depot with new buildings that will double the amount of workshop space and improve working conditions, provide a technical training facility and covered storage for used machinery.
The development will also enhance presentation of the Isuzu commercial vehicles supplied exclusively from the Shrewsbury branch.
There are also plans to signi cantly expand the workshop facility at the Sudbury depot, where the focus will be on JCB and Kuhn sales and support, to increase servicing and repairs capacity and improve working conditions.
RVT chairman, Simon Clarke commented: “This is a new dawn for Rea Valley Tractors. After 38 years, we are really excited by the opportunity not only for our business, but customers alike by supplying and servicing machinery from world-class British manufacturers. Combined with our skilled workforce, knowledge of the area and drive to move our business forward, the future is tremendously exciting.
“The decision to change RVT’s main franchise has not been taken lightly; but we were determined to protect the jobs of our dedicated sta by securing a pro table long-term future for the business. We look forward to sharing our plans with you in the coming months.” FG
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DISC ROLLER CONTOUR
Precise cultivation & consolidation
MULTI-PURPOSE PRIMARY & SECONDARY CULTIVATOR
Precise depth control and contour following gives uniform soil movement across the full operational width - vital if employing reduced tillage or creating stale seedbeds for blackgrass control.
• Hydraulic SAT system - “contour” following system on folding models. • DSD - depth synchronised disc, system ensures the whole soil profile is moved across the full working width. • Hydraulic depth control • 2 rows of opposing 510mm sabre discs • Single or twin V-profile or twin U-profile roller rings - optimum re-consolidation for weed germination. • Working widths from 2.75m to 7.75m.
FRONT LEVELLING SHATTABOARD
Currently with over a 10% market share, the Bednar Swifterdisc product range is a highly universal disc cultivator within a compact frame, the manufacturer says. They are suitable for high output quality stubble cultivation, as well as for seedbed preparation. Soil can be accurately processed as shallow as 25mm with these cultivators.
Bednar Swifterdisc cultivators are available in working widths from 3–18.4m. In the UK market, the Swifterdisc XO_F model series (working width 4–7.5m) is one of the best sellers. The great advantage of these disc cultivators, according to Bednar, is their high versatility.
The Swifterdisc cultivators can be equipped with two types of discs – the classic standard notched version or specially pro led Agressive discs, which provide “excellent cutting, mixing and incorporation of crop residue”.
Two diameters of 520x5mm or 560x5mm are available.
The Crushbar front levelling bar is very popular equipment on these machines. It’s hydraulically adjustable from the tractor cab, which is ideal for increasing the year-round use of the disc cultivator in seedbed soil preparation, as well as being ideal for operating on ploughed land, Bednar reckons.
If you are a farmer who grows catch crops or large quantities of oilseed rape or corn, the front Trash Cutter is also a good option. The Trash Cutter roller is an “ideal choice” for cutting crop residue and hard stalks. This speeds up the crop residue and decomposes better in soil, preventing future diseases and fungicide challenges, the manufacturer adds.
The Swifterdisc can be equipped with the Bednar Alfa Drill seeding unit while in production, for seeding catch crop and small-seed plants during stubble cultivation, all in one pass. The time and fuel savings are “considerable”.
A large number of Swifterdisc machines are available in the UK for demos – contact your authorised Bednar dealer for further information or to book. FG
VERSATILITY IT’S TRUE NAME
HIGH SPEED DISC CULTIVATOR FOR STUBBLE CULTIVATION OR SEEDBED PREPARATION
stubble cultivation seedbed preparation
The SWIFTERDISC model product line includes highly universal disc cultivators with a short frame. Soil can be processed to a depth of up to 14 cm. The main advantages include: toothed discs or aggressive discs (520/560 mm), maitenance-
