Soil Compaction with Neil Halpin
Neil Halpin (Senior Agronomist, QPIF/DEEDI) examines the problems with and causes of compaction in the traditional cane farming system. By the time the crop is harvested, 90% of the bed has been compacted whereas with precision controlled traffic only 30% of the bed is contacted, leaving more are for plant growth.
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Wednesday, December 17, 2008[ , Read more... ]
Zonal tillage with Peter Russo
Peter Russo shows us his zonal tillage machine. It covers three rows in a single pass, and is fixed at 1.8 metre centres. The cultivation for each row consists of a pair of scolloped discs at the front, followed by a coulter disc to cut through any trash stubble, a winged ripper tine and a crumble roller.
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Wednesday, December 17, 2008[ , 1 comment... ]
Bed Renovation with Neil Halpin
Neil Halpin (Senior Agronomist, QPIF/DEEDI) walks us through the limitations of conventional tillage and some of the challenges moving to a controlled traffic row spacing. Rotary hoeing needs to be followed by a sub-surface rip and cross rip. This requires a huge investment of energy, 30% of which is wasted because of rolling resistance, with the tractor tire running over soft ground, and the energy spend by ripper tine spend relieving the compaction behind the tire. This is the argument for permanent beds, and traffic zones where is is easy for the tractor to work.
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Wednesday, December 17, 2008[ , Read more... ]
Soil PH Test with Neil Halpin
suSCon Blue, used to manage cane grubs works better in acid soils, so it has been a while since lime was applied on many cane farms. This could be a problem for growers considering a legume fallow, which requires a neutral Ph for high yielding crops. So getting your soil tested is important. Neil Halpin (Senior Agronomist, QPIF/DEEDI) shows how you can perform a quick Ph test of your soil using a simple test kit. The results are surprisingly accurate.
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Tuesday, December 2, 2008[ , 1 comment... ]
2m Zonal Ripper with Martin Thompson
Martin Thompson describes his zonal ripper, used to prepare a 2 metre bed system with 600 mm duals. He rips the stool area, then comes back in two to three weeks time when the clods have started to dry on top, and follows with a bed former. Martin says "it cuts a lot of time down, a lot of fuel use, and running on guidance, its all simple".
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Thursday, November 6, 2008[ , Read more... ]
Zonal Tillage with Tony Chapman
Tony Chapman shows us his zonal tillage machine. Built from readily available second hand parts and a frame from an old trash incorporator. Tony says the 1.8 meter centred, three row cultivator saves fuel, time and maintenance costs.
Posted by Henry Thomas, 3 years ago on Thursday, September 18, 2008[ , Read more... ]
