Technical performance evaluation of a double row tractor operated yam minisett planter

Uniformity in plant spacing, evenness of dropping, planter capacity and among others has been identified as constraints facing planter performance. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the technical performance of the developed double row yam minisett (DRYM) planter. Category (I) tractor 50 hp was used to carry out field trials to determine the metering efficiency, effective field capacity, evenness of dropping, fuel consumption and wheel slippage. Three (3) yam varieties (pona, dente and CRI afase biri) of the average weight of 50 g with moisture content (82 %) were used for the test. Multivariate and (ANOVA) statistical method was used for analyzing the similarities among the tractor speed using OriginPro 2018 software. Metering efficiency (80.4%), effective field capacity (3.84 h/ha), field efficiency (66.6%), evenness of dropping (81.00%), and wheel slip (3.39%) were recorded. The use of developed planter will be expected to reduce human drudgery and also timeliness improvement. The study concluded that planter should be used on relatively flat (ploughed-harrowed) land to avoid wheel not touching the ground.

Cotton Emergence and Yield Response to Planter Depth and Downforce Settings in Different Soil Moisture Conditions

US cotton producers are motivated to optimize planter performance to ensure timely and uniform stand establishment early in the season, especially when planting in sub-optimal field conditions. Field studies were conducted in 2017, 2018 and 2019 to evaluate the effect of seeding depth and planter downforce on crop emergence and yield in cotton planted in different soil moisture conditions. Field conditions representative of dry, normal and wet soil moisture conditions were attained by applying 0, 1.27 and 2.54 cm of irrigation within the same field. Two cotton cultivars (representing a small-seeded and a large-seeded cultivar, 9259–10,582 and 11,244–14,330 seeds kg−1, respectively), were planted at seeding depths of 1.3, 2.5 and 3.8 cm with each seeding depth paired with three different planter downforces of 0, 445 and 890 N in each block. Cotton was planted in plots that measured 3.66 m (four-rows) wide by 10.67 m long. Results indicated that crop emergence was affected by the seeding depth across most field conditions and higher crop emergence was observed in the large-seeded cultivar at 1.3 and 3.8 cm seeding depths in dry and wet field conditions, respectively. Lint yield was also higher for the large-seeded cultivar at the 3.8 cm seeding depth across all field conditions in 2017, and in dry field conditions in 2018. Planter downforce effect on crop emergence varied among the cultivars where the large-seeded cultivar exhibited higher crop emergence than the small-seeded cultivar at 445 and 890 N downforce. Planter downforce of 445 N yielded greater than the 0 and 890 N treatment in dry field conditions in 2017. The study results suggest that matching planter depth and downforce settings for prevalent soil moisture conditions at planting along with appropriate cultivar selection can help in achieving optimal emergence and yield in cotton.

Row-crop planter performance to support variable-rate seeding of maize

Current planting technology possesses the ability to increase crop productivity and improve field efficiency by precisely metering and placing crop seeds. Planter performance depends on determining and utilizing optimal settings for different planting variables such as seed depth, down pressure, and seed metering unit. The evolution of “Big Data” in agriculture today brings focus on the need for quality as-planted and yield mapping data. Therefore, an investigation was conducted to evaluate the performance of current planting technology for accurate placement of seeds while understanding the accuracy of as-planted data. Two studies consisting of two different setups on a 6-row, John Deere planter for seeding of maize (Zea mays L.) were conducted. The first study aimed at assessing planter performance at 2 depth settings (25 and 51 mm) and four different down pressure settings (varying from none to high), while the second study focused on evaluating planter performance during variable-rate seeding with treatments consisting of two seed metering units (John Deere Standard and Precision Planting’s eSet setups) with five different seeding rates and four ground speed treatments which provided a combination of 20 different meter speeds. Field data collection consisted of measuring plant emergence, plant population and seed depth whereas plant spacing, plant population after emergence along with distance and location for rate changes within the field were also recorded for the variable-rate seeding study. Results indicated that both depth setting and downforce affected final seeding depth. Measured seed depth was significantly different from the target depth even though time was spent adjusting the units to achieve the desired prior to planting. Crop emergence did not vary significantly for the different depth and downforce settings except for target depth in Field 1. Results from the variable-rate study indicated that seeding rate changes were accomplished within a quick response time (< 1 s) at all ground speeds regardless of magnitude of rate change. Data showed that planter performance in terms of emergence and plant spacing CV was comparable for most of the meter speeds (17.4–33.5 rpm) among the two seed meters utilized in the study. Plant spacing CV increased with an increase in meter speed, however no significant differences existed among meter speeds in the range of 17.4–33.5 rpm. Results implied that correct seed metering unit setup is very critical to obtain expected performance of today’s planting technology. A concerning find was that the quality of as-applied maps from the commercial variable-rate display was not reflective of the actual planter performance in the field. The study recommended that operators need to ensure the correct planter and display setups in order to achieve needed seed placement performance to support variable-rate seeding.

Field Validation of Seed Meter Performance at Varying Seeding Rates and Ground Speeds

High planter performance requires achieving near-perfect seed meter performance in the field during planting. In-field meter performance can be impacted by several factors including meter setup, ground speed, seeding rate, planter vibration, and field conditions. A study was conducted to evaluate the field performance of two different seed meters (John Deere Standard and Precision Planting eSet) at varying seeding rates and ground speeds during planting. Study treatments consisted of planting corn at seeding rates of 49,000, 59,000, 69,000, 79,000, and 89,000 seeds ha-1 at four different ground speeds of 6.1, 7.1, 8.2, and 9.5 km h-1. These ground speeds and seeding rates were implemented in a strip-split plot design in the field with seeding rates blocked within the individual ground speed replications. Field tests were performed by uploading a variable-rate seeding prescription map into the planter rate controller and then travelling at the desired ground speed for each planter pass. Field data collection consisted of measuring plant population and plant spacing in the plots separately for each seed meter. Meter performance was evaluated by computing percent skips, multiples, singulation, coefficient of variation (CV), and crop emergence from the field data. Statistical analysis on field data suggested that the percent skips, singulation, CV, and crop emergence were significantly (p&lt;0.05) affected by the seeding rate, and the ground speed did not have any significant (p&gt;0.05) effect on these variables. The percent multiples and CV values also differed significantly (p&lt;0.05) between the John Deere Standard and Precision Planting eSet meter at different ground speed and seeding rate treatments. The percent skips (0.5-3.8%) observed in the field data were, on average, higher than the percent multiples (0.0-1.8%) for both seed meters. The percent skips in general decreased with an increase in the seeding rate whereas no particular trend was observed in the percent multiples. The singulation values varied between 96.0% and 99.4%, and they were not statistically different between the seed meters. The percent CV values increased with an increase in the seeding rate indicating higher variability in plant spacing with increases in the seeding rate. The mean percent emergence for both seed meters ranged from 92.8% to 99.3%, and it was influenced by the seeding rate for the JD Standard meter. A weak association (R2 values between 0.2028 and 0.6587) between the meter performance parameters (percent skips, singulation, and CV) and the meter speed was determined for both seed meters. Results from the study suggested that meter performance was significantly affected by the seeding rate, and the type of seed meter had a significant impact on percent multiples and CV (plant spacing) values attained during planting. Keywords: Field performance, Ground speed, Meter speed, Seed meter, Seeding rate.

Effect of Heterogeneous Field Conditions on Corn Seeding Depth Accuracy and Uniformity

Optimization of planter performance such as uniform seeding depth is required to maximize crop yield potential. Typically, seeding depth is manually adjusted prior to planting by selecting a row-unit depth and a row-unit downforce to ensure proper seed-soil contact. Once set, row-unit depth and downforce are usually not adjusted again for a field although soil conditions may vary. Optimization of planter performance requires automated adjustments of planter settings to varying soil conditions, but development of precision technologies with such capabilities requires a better understanding of soil-planter interactions. The objective of this study was to evaluate seeding depth response to varying soil conditions between and within fields and to discuss implications for development and implementation of active planting technologies. A 6-row John Deere MaxEmerge Plus planter equipped with heavy-duty downforce springs was used to plant corn ( L.) in central Alabama during the 2014 and 2015 growing seasons. Three depths (4.4, 7.0, and 9.5 cm) and three downforces (corresponding to an additional row-unit weight of 0.0, 1.1, and 1.8 kN) were selected to represent common practices. Depth and downforce were not readjusted between fields and growing seasons. Seeding depth was measured after emergence. Corn seeding depth significantly varied with heterogeneous soil conditions between and within fields and the planter failed to achieve uniform seeding depth across a field. Differences in corn seeding depth between fields and growing seasons were as high as 2.1 cm for a given depth and downforce combination. Corn seeding depth significantly co-varied with field elevation but not with volumetric soil water content. Seeding depth varied with elevation at a rate ranging from -0.1 cm/m to -0.6 cm/m. Seeding depth co-variation to field elevation account for some but not all site-specific seeding depth variability identified within each field trial. These findings provide a better understanding of site-specific seeding depth variability and issues to address for the development of site-specific planting technologies to control seeding depth accuracy and improve uniformity. Keywords: Depth control, Downforce, Planter, Precision agriculture, Seeding depth, Uniformity.

Design requirements of a human-powered planter

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to establish client and design requirements of a human-powered planter. A total of 13 client requirements and 13 design requirements were established for prioritizing planter performance, thus providing benefits to users.