—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 4,1978 1
114
Subsoiling and planting combined
WILSON, N.C. - Lely of
Wilson is introducing a
concept that enables the
grower to “rip’ or subsoil in
the row and at the same tune
to spray, till, incorporate
and plant. It is still
recommended to conduct
primary tillage in the Spring
or Fall although in some
instances farmers have gone
with the complete rig behind
harvester and planted com.
Subsoihng under the row is
mainly popular because it
allows roots to reach deeper
to more moisture which is
important, especially during
stress periods in the Sum
mer. It has been found that
subsoiling in the row during
the same trip as planting is
the most effective way in
many soils with hardpan
trouble. University studies
concluded that 75 per cent of
compaction reoccurs during
the first trip after subsoihng.
This makes npper-bedder
arrangements in a separate
pass before planting less
attractive. Lely is the first
company to offer a complete
system that is close con
nected to the tractor. It
consists of the f olllwing;
1. The Rownpper with up
to six parabolic shanks
which cause greater soil
shattering with less hor
sepower requirement. The
unique shank design
whereby the pivot point is
positioned in front of the
frame bar enables the shank
to lift virtually immediately
when it strikes an obstacle
and to not break away to the
rear first This in turn makes
close coupling nf an im
plement such as the Lely-
Roterra possible. Row
spacmg is adjustable on
some models Shanks are 1 L
inch thick, clearance from
the bottom of frame to shank
tip is 26 inches.
2 The Lely-Roterra will
level the soil, reduce clods
and prepare an ideal
seenoed in a single trip
3 Chemicals are applied
through the unique Lely
system whereby the
sprayboom is mounted
behind the Lely-Roterra and
chemicals are sprayed
forward into the whirling
tines after the soil has been
leveled and the clods par
tially reduced. This method
provides excellent wind
protection and ideal mixing
of chemicals to precise
depths.
4 Because of the close
coupling of the whole
combination and the depths
control roller, lift assist
wheels are not required and,
for example, unit planters
can be attached directly to
the combination. The
alternative would be to use
the unique Lely Bridge Hitch
with quick attach hook-up to
the tractor which will enable
the farmer to either opeiate
the planter alone or the
combmation of Rowripper,
Lely-Roterra. Spray
System, or the whole
combmation.
5. Lely also offers the
complete spray system,
including tanks, pumps, and
controls. The unique Lely
Spray Command control
system warns the operator
in the cab when a nozzle is
not performing properly,
enables him to electrically
increase or decrease the
output and also enables the
operator to cut off and start
automatically the spray
when the combination is
raised and lowered at the
turn row.
The system has been
tested intensively during the
past two growing seasons. It
is ideal for farmers who care
about maximum produc
tivity. It can be operated at
good field speed of 4 to 6
miles per hour. By com
bining five or more trips, the
grower greatly increases his
total output per acre in a
production time unit such as
a day in comparison to wider
implements in single passes.
The Rip-Stip System is
mainly suitable for soils with
compaction problems. In
case of acreage with and
without compaction
problems, the shanks can be
easily raised where ripping
under the row is not
necessary. A bedder at
tachment can easily be
placed behind the Rownpper
in case some farmers wish to
rip and bed.
This one-trip method of preparing and planting crease yield while keeping field operations costs
the soil is thought to be one way farmers can in- down.
When considering hor
sepower requirement it is
advised to have 150 hor
sepower available for four
row units and up to 200 for
six row units. This depends
upon soil circumstances, etc.
Although this may seem
high, it should be considered
that five trips are combined
in one and that at 4 to 6 miles
per hour, the total capacity
far exceeds that of the total
combination of individual
trips by other implements.
With the RIP-STIP System
the grower has greater
flexibility because what he
has done during a given day
does not have to be redone as
is the case often when heavy
rain occurs after discing,
etc. The risk of not in
corporating chemicals soon
enough is totally eliminated,
as well. A 20 per cent crop
difference was even ob
served in one test supervised
by a county agent.
Lely specializes in
systemized farming,
therefore, it is able to offer
high capacity, well matched
systems. If the farmer has
the tractor and the planter,
Lely has the rest available
and will warrant it. Many the components or com- through its authorized
patents have been granted binations. Lely is conducting dealers with the complete
and others are pending on field demonstrations Lely ßip-StipSystem.