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Know How / Cultivation and drilling

News and user views on the latest cultivation techniques to optimise crop establishment, minimise environmental impact, improve soils and reduce costs through direct drilling, minimum tillage, conservation tillage – as well as traditional ploughing and drilling techniques.

Latest cultivation and drilling articles

CULTIVATION AND DRILLING

Four-wheel FarmDroid allows for crop bed seeding and weeding

The ability to seed and weed crops grown in beds is a key driver for the development of a four-wheel version of the usually three-wheel FarmDroid autonomous tool carrier. It…

MACHINERY

Farmers share kit ideas for sowing SFI seed mixes cheaply

Getting the right kit for establishing SFI and Countryside Stewardship seed mixes needn’t cost a fortune. James Andrews takes a look at some nifty home-spun setups. See also: Low-input cropping plan…

CULTIVATION AND DRILLING

Cheshire contractor's five custom seed drills for SFI sowing

Variable seed sizes, different sowing depths and the need for cost-effective establishment make environmental mixes tricky to get right. But thanks to their five modified seed drills, each of which…

CULTIVATORS

Adjustable wing helps Amazone cultivator adapt to soil

Amazone has introduced an adjustable 360mm-wide wing share for its Cenius and Cenio mounted cultivators that’s designed to work in a range of soil types and conditions. By mounting the…

PLOUGHS

On test: Kverneland's updated six-furrow LO plough

Kverneland has updated its long-serving LO plough range, most notably with a transport kit that promises to have it faithfully following the tractor on the road. The Trailer Transport System…

CEREAL DRILLS

Driver’s view: Claydon Evolution big improvement over Hybrid

Three years after investing in a 3m Claydon Hybrid to speed up crop establishment, Thomas Langley had picked up sufficient extra contracting work to find himself on the back foot…

Cultivation and drilling reviews and tests

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CEREAL DRILLS

Is French-made Novag disc drill king of cover crop drilling?

French farmers are established as some of Europe’s pioneers in the brave new world of cultivation-free drilling and pre-season cover crops, so it’s no surprise that the country is home…

CEREAL DRILLS

Direct drills revisited: 6m Virkar Dynamic DC

Two years on from its arrival at Ralph Castle’s 170ha Oxfordshire arable farm, the 6m Virkar Dynamic DC looks as if it could play a prominent role in finally getting…

CEREAL DRILLS

Direct drills revisited: Sumo swapped for versatile Weaving

There have been some changes since Farmers Weekly last checked in at Chestnut Tree Farm, with Tom Hounsfield previously running day-to-day operations and drilling done with a custom 4m linkage-mounted…

CULTIVATION AND DRILLING

Driver's view: Jack Tooley's McConnel Seedaerator

McConnel’s Seedaerator is a single-pass strip-till dril that cultivates and seeds the crop in bands. Nottinghamshire farmer Jack Tooley talks us though the highs and lows of his machine. What…

CEREAL DRILLS

Direct drills revisited: 6m Weaving GD trumps old version

After five years of running a 4.8m Weaving GD drill on the 500ha arable he farms with his father, Edward, Henry Muntz decided to upgrade to a new 6m model.…

CEREAL DRILLS

Driver’s view: David Bird's Primewest Cross Slot

Suffolk grower David Bird gives his verdict on the performance of the Primewest Cross Slot no-till drill. Find out how it works, its good points and what could be improved.…

MACHINERY

Fertiliser drills: What are the options?

Why seed & fert? Power harrow drills Solo drills Disc & tine cultivation The technique of placing fertiliser at drilling time is moving out of its traditional stronghold in Scotland…

CEREAL DRILLS

Direct drills revisited: 10m Dale Eco XL

This year marked a decade of Dale Drills at Whiting Ash Farms in Malvern, Worcestershire, and David Fellows sees no prospect of that changing in the future. His latest model,…

CEREAL DRILLS

Driver’s view: Swithin Waterer's Sly Boss drill

Swithin Waterer of Halstead, Essex, explains why he opted to go no-till with a Sly Boss drill. He tells us how it has performed, what he likes best about it…

CEREAL DRILLS

Contractor rates his simple Yorkshire-built combi disc drill

Armed with a row of soil-loosening legs, a power harrow and a set of Vaderstad disc coulters, the Combi-Plus drill from Bramleys Seed Establishment offers plenty of options for getting…

CEREAL DRILLS

Driver’s view: Andrew Tucker’s Novag T-ForcePlus 440 drill

We get the lowdown on the 4m Novag T-ForcePlus 440 drill owned by Monkton Farleigh Farms near Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, which is driven by farm manager Andrew Tucker. See also: What's in…

MACHINERY

12 no-till drills on show at farmer-organised demo day

Reduced-tillage drilling continues to gain popularity as farmers look for new ways to improve soil structure and reduce cultivation activity during the autumn. With that in mind, hundreds of growers headed…

Cultivation and drilling buying advice

Cultivation and drilling insights and practical advice

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CEREAL DRILLS

Ultimate Guide to buying a direct disc drill 2023

With the Agriseeder drill from Erth Engineering listed for the first time, this year’s Ultimate Guide to disc coulter seed drills reflects an even bigger choice of machines for single-pass…

BLACKGRASS

Why farmers should tailor blackgrass strategies to dormancy

Trials being carried out at a blackgrass research site in Cambridgeshire show that farmers can gain extra control of blackgrass with their integrated approach by taking seed dormancy results into…

PEST MANAGEMENT

How harvest cultivations can help beat flea beetle in OSR

Shallow cultivations carried out shortly after the combine can help reduce adult flea beetle populations, but more research is needed to refine advice to growers. Speaking at a recent Limagrain…

PLOUGHING AND CULTIVATION

Plough, min-till and no-till compared: year one

A major trial has been set up to find the most profitable and sustainable way to grow arable crops by comparing three different establishment systems over five years. Establishment systems…

CEREAL DRILLS

How to fit a fertiliser kit to a John Deere drill

John Deere’s 750A drill is recognised as being one of the longest-serving no-till seeders used in Europe today. Other smaller manufacturers from around the globe are working hard to grab…

CEREAL DRILLS

Ultimate Guide to buying a direct disc drill

For growers who prefer disc coulters for establishing new crops straight into arable stubbles or a green cover, there are plenty of options – including several newcomers – as this…

PLOUGHING AND CULTIVATION

Transition farm switch to strip-till boosts margins and soil

At a Farmers Weekly Transition project farm walk in Suffolk, Claydon Drill demonstrated how low-disturbance systems can boost soil health and improve margins. Claydon’s 360ha Gaines Hall arable farm and…

CEREAL DRILLS

Ultimate Guide to buying a direct tine drill 2023

In the Ultimate Guide listing for direct drills using tine coulters, Claydon has the most changes from the previous edition thanks to the changeover from the Hybrid to Evolution design.…

ROLLS

12m Cambridge rolls buyers guide: Options and prices

Crop establishment trends might come and go, but whatever the cultivation or drilling regime, there’s almost always a role for the humble Cambridge roll. Beyond the usual seed-bed consolidation tasks,…

TECHNOLOGY

How moisture-seeking drilling kit helps drought-hit Aussies

A new drilling outfit developed in Australia is using clever moisture-sensing tines to automatically alter sowing depth according to soil conditions. Moisture Planting Technologies (MPT), based in New South Wales,…

DRILLING

Direct-drilling: Main findings from major five-year trial

Farming on heavy land in Leicestershire, Joe Stanley was skeptical that reducing cultivations by adopting a direct-drilling system would increase farm profitability and improve the environment. But after seeing the…

CEREAL DRILLS

Retrofit openers offer drill customisation on a budget

An increasing number of farmers are swapping their manufacturer-supplied drill openers for retrofit replacements in a bid to reduce soil disturbance and improve seed establishment. Switching to aftermarket openers isn’t…

Cultivation and drilling technology

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CULTIVATORS

Case-IH introduces AFS Soil Command for cultivator

An automatic control system designed to ensure consistent performance from multi-element cultivators has been introduced by Case-IH in North America to help improve seedbed quality. See also: Tips on selecting…

TECHNOLOGY

Dot and Raven combine precision tech systems

Two precision technology companies are teaming up to add as many bells and whistles as possible to the Dot Power Platform, which was featured in Farmers Weekly earlier this year.…

CEREAL DRILLS

6m disc drill ticks the boxes for contractor’s CTF system

While striving to limit the travel of machinery across arable acreages is a very worthy cause, it’s not always that practical. True controlled traffic farming (CTF) zealots will tell you…

TECHNOLOGY

How moisture-seeking drilling kit helps drought-hit Aussies

A new drilling outfit developed in Australia is using clever moisture-sensing tines to automatically alter sowing depth according to soil conditions. Moisture Planting Technologies (MPT), based in New South Wales,…

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CULTIVATION AND DRILLING

Video: Horsch reveal drilling innovations and tillage tweaks

German implement maker Horsch is experiencing strong UK sales from its tillage and crop protection machines. However, with the uncertainty surrounding glyphosate regulation and Brexit, the company thinks that exploring…

CULTIVATION AND DRILLING

Video: Grower builds cover crop broadcaster for £3,000

A farm-built broadcaster costing less than £3,000 has given James Hopkinson the opportunity introduce cover cropping as part of a "regenerative" approach to the arable enterprises he manages. The tractor-mounted…

PLOUGHS

Video: On test - Hubert's seven-furrow plough

Late last year, Suffolk firm Agri-Hire agreed a deal to take on Dowdeswell’s engineering operation with a commitment to restarting plough production on a national scale. Dowdeswell folded last summer,…

MACHINERY

Video: Autumn drilling season captured from the skies

After the success of last year’s harvest drone video we have been out with the cameras again, capturing autumn work in all its glory, from above. Our drones have flown over…