Most seasoned canola growers know a staggering amount of canola seed never becomes a viable plant, and it’s not due to disease or poor germ. An unfortunate side effect of running an air drill is, well, air, or rather the damage that air can do to tiny canola seed as it pushes it through the… Read More
Do you consider a top hat and monocle essential dress for seeding season? Do you carry one of those little dogs in a handbag inside your tractor cab with you? If so, it makes sense that you would be driving around your field throwing canola seed all over the place through broken hoses and missing… Read More
Ah, nothing says spring like the first robin, mud on your boots and, yes, farm auctions. From a box of random bolts, to a shiny, barely used tillage implement, auctions are a great place to pick up hard-to-find-new items, a good deal or pay far too much for a popular item. As the spring auction… Read More
The drive to get on the field to plant in a timely manner can sometimes overshadow the importance of planting only when the soil is ready. What’s more, if there’s any tillage to be done before planting, a late start can start feeling very late indeed. But if you head out planting before the soil… Read More
Canola seed is darn expensive. So is equipment. Buying new equipment to save on seed only makes sense if you make the most of the iron purchase. If you’re one of the many farmers curious about integrating a shiny new or not-so-new planter into the equipment mix with your sights set on saving on canola… Read More
Here we go again. It’s time to start thinking about getting into the field. That means taking a real, good look at your corn planter and getting it ready to do the job it’s supposed to do. Not having your planter setup properly is a yield robbing nightmare. In this episode of the Corn School… Read More
At one time when you heard someone talk about precision ag it was about minimizing overlap of the sprayer and driving the planter straight. After a winter of farm shows and meetings I have come to the conclusion in certain regions that precision ag is evolving into being about real planting precision. In the corn and soybean… Read More
Planters can offer significant advantages over seeders — precise depth placement, seed singulation and gentle handling of seed, to name a few — but the machines are also best suited for large-seeded, tall-growth crops like corn and sunflowers, not canola. Recent interest in planters for canola has encouraged at least one company, Monosem, to begin… Read More
There are few things that get a farmer’s blood pumping like a field ready for the seeder and shiny new iron to drag across it. With the growing corn and soybean acres in the west, more farmers have adopted row crop planters, and, inevitably, wondered how good a job they would do on other crops…. Read More
Demands and expectations are very high on seeders and planters. Seed must be delivered quickly and gently, then metered accurately and placed precisely in the furrow, regardless of conditions. The planter then has to close up the furrow, pack it down and carry on, all the while adjusting for terrain and trash at over five… Read More
The National Farm Machinery Show, held each year at Louisville, Kentucky, is a dream show for anyone who likes iron. It’s a huge show, with giant crowds and all the latest and greatest machinery on display. At this year’s show, KINZE Manufacturing unveiled its newest planter — the 4900 model. The 4900 features a brand… Read More
While Australia and Canada have much in common in regards to farming, the two countries’ growing seasons are also drastically different in many ways. One major similarity is farmers’ love of a good head-to-head equipment comparison, and what better to compare than seeder set-ups. That’s exactly what ABC News’ Landline program covered in a recent… Read More
RealAgriculture.com attended the National Farm Machinery Show for the first time last week. We will definitely be attending again the future. We have a number of videos and interviews from the show in the coming weeks but until then here is all the photos that Shaun Haney took down in Louisville We think that you will… Read More
Investing in a sectional control option on a new seeder isn’t an inexpensive proposition, however, you may change your perception of the true cost once you see just how much it can save you. Chris Morson, with Seed Hawk, took Shaun Haney on a tour of Seed Hawk’s software program that incorporates Google Earth images… Read More
Ken Ferrie wants you to slow the planter down. And then stop. Yes, really. While the planting season is a hectic one, rushing, especially in wet conditions, is a recipe for disaster. Ferrie, an independent agronomist, wants farmers to slow down and better match planter speed to planting conditions. What’s more, he wants you to… Read More
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