Direct/Strip-till drilling photo gallery

[Badshot]

Hes got very big tyres and light tractors and a very low rairnfall why not?

You really need to get out and see some heavy land, Essex has had a lot of rain over the last winter. Here in Kent it was barely possible to walk the fields for the entire winter, and I am maybe only 70 miles in a straight line. Rolling heavy clay land when wet will it not do it any favours, regardless of cover, it will still compact and seal the surface. This is the difference between heavy and light land DD.

can't quite believe you are suggesting rolling in December

 

[SilliamWhale]

You really need to get out and see some heavy land, Essex has had a lot of rain over the last winter. Here in Kent it was barely possible to walk the fields for the entire winter, and I am maybe only 70 miles in a straight line. Rolling heavy clay land when wet will it not do it any favours, regardless of cover, it will still compact and seal the surface. This is the difference between heavy and light land DD.

can't quite believe you are suggesting rolling in December

I've been to Simons place about 3 times. Do people on all thr heavy land in the country do nothing at all between November and March, no ploughng, spraying, nothing? Maybe the a light knife roller style would work.

 

[Daniel]

I've been to Simons place about 3 times. Do people on all thr heavy land in the country do nothing at all between November and March, no ploughng, spraying, nothing? Maybe the a light knife roller style would work.

They shoot over it...

 

[Feldspar]

I've been to Simons place about 3 times. Do people on heavy land do nothing at all between November and March, no ploughng, spraying, nothing?

Pretty much. That's what we did this year with the exception of spraying the rape twice. As said above, skiing and shooting.

Rolling on a frost could work I suppose.

 

[clbarclay]

Its like one of the good old kids games, "when I went to the park, I took........"

My turn

When I farm heavy land, over winter I went
Shooting,
Sking
and
Turkey plucking

 

[Badshot]

I've been to Simons place about 3 times. Do people on all thr heavy land in the country do nothing at all between November and March, no ploughng, spraying, nothing? Maybe the a light knife roller style would work.

The last three years it has been impossible to do anything, no fencing, spraying, ploughing, literally anything from October to march.
This is why it is important to know what soil type is being talked about.

 

[Simon C]

But you could kill it another way? Rolled it maybe in December and sprayed it off in February, or not..?

Strange isn't it how every year is different. Some years it can be quite dry but the last two winters have just been continuously wet, it's not the amount or rain, but that there was never a break for things to dry up a little. From the end of October until the beginning of March this year, I could not even cross any fields with the quad bike without making a mess. As for rolling, I could not even have backed across a bit of grass in the yard just to hitch on to the things. Most of my farm is in one block so the only way of looking at crops in the winter is to set out on foot from the yard, but since there would be no way of doing anything about any observed problems, I tend not to bother.

You would think I farm in Ireland or Wales or some other wet place but no, this is the driest part of the British Isles. I suppose the soil type is the biggest problem, but being flat as well, means it takes for ever for the water to get away. I always envy people farming on hills, the water must just run off the side of their fields and become someone else's problem.

 

[Baling Hay]

Strange isn't it how every year is different. Some years it can be quite dry but the last two winters have just been continuously wet, it's not the amount or rain, but that there was never a break for things to dry up a little. From the end of October until the beginning of March this year, I could not even cross any fields with the quad bike without making a mess. As for rolling, I could not even have backed across a bit of grass in the yard just to hitch on to the things. Most of my farm is in one block so the only way of looking at crops in the winter is to set out on foot from the yard, but since there would be no way of doing anything about any observed problems, I tend not to bother.

You would think I farm in Ireland or Wales or some other wet place but no, this is the driest part of the British Isles. I suppose the soil type is the biggest problem, but being flat as well, means it takes for ever for the water to get away. I always envy people farming on hills, the water must just run off the side of their fields and become someone else's problem.

Try farming in N.Ireland, it amazes me every year how dry England is in comparison!

 

[Feldspar]

I always envy people farming on hills, the water must just run off the side of their fields and become someone else's problem.

Taking their soil with it. No thanks.

 

[Feldspar]

Spring barley going in a treat. I'm budgeting on 10 t/ha in this area already.

@SilliamWhale - I think there is a limit to the Rolf Derpsch plant in mud idea!

 

[SilliamWhale]

Spring barley going in a treat. I'm budgeting on 10 t/ha in this area already.

View attachment 138888

@SilliamWhale - I think there is a limit to the Rolf Derpsch plant in mud idea!

Looks like you need some drainage.

 

[Clive]

Spring barley going in a treat. I'm budgeting on 10 t/ha in this area already.

View attachment 138888

@SilliamWhale - I think there is a limit to the Rolf Derpsch plant in mud idea!

i think you might have slot closing issues there !!!

 

[Richard III]

Spring barley going in a treat. I'm budgeting on 10 t/ha in this area already.

View attachment 138888

@SilliamWhale - I think there is a limit to the Rolf Derpsch plant in mud idea!

I nearly choked on my coffee when I saw that.

 

[Feldspar]

i think you might have slot closing issues there !!!

Guttlers would sort it.

 

[Badshot]

Spring barley going in a treat. I'm budgeting on 10 t/ha in this area already.

View attachment 138888

@SilliamWhale - I think there is a limit to the Rolf Derpsch plant in mud idea!

I have a feeling there will need to be a follow up picture of that area, once the crop is up and away showing just how miraculous this strip till is

When it is as wet as that there is little you can do, we dried up from that weeks ago here, hard to believe you are still as wet as that.

 

[Feldspar]

I have a feeling there will need to be a follow up picture of that area, once the crop is up and away showing just how miraculous this strip till is

When it is as wet as that there is little you can do, we dried up from that weeks ago here, hard to believe you are still as wet as that.

Fortunately that is literally the worse 50m2 on the entire farm. We pushed a ditch in without putting a pipe / lead in and it just forms a pond. Rest of the field was pretty decent.

 

[Jim Bullock]

Strange isn't it how every year is different. Some years it can be quite dry but the last two winters have just been continuously wet, it's not the amount or rain, but that there was never a break for things to dry up a little. From the end of October until the beginning of March this year, I could not even cross any fields with the quad bike without making a mess. As for rolling, I could not even have backed across a bit of grass in the yard just to hitch on to the things. Most of my farm is in one block so the only way of looking at crops in the winter is to set out on foot from the yard, but since there would be no way of doing anything about any observed problems, I tend not to bother.

You would think I farm in Ireland or Wales or some other wet place but no, this is the driest part of the British Isles. I suppose the soil type is the biggest problem, but being flat as well, means it takes for ever for the water to get away. I always envy people farming on hills, the water must just run off the side of their fields and become someone else's problem.

Simon...now you see what I have been moaning about..
We farm mainly flat"ish" land which has been totally saturated since the end of October...why I do not know when our rainfall was lower than previous years. I suspect its down to soil temperatures and evaporation. We have resorted to the "Flexi-tine" just to open the soil up and allow us to drill beans and wheat. We did Shakerate a few headlands and areas where we made a mess spreading FYM and compost last Autumn these have turned to mud and are very nearly impassable ...clear message do not do any cultivations in the Autumn prior to a Spring crop.
However where we have/had cover crops I can direct drill spring beans with few problems...even now still a bit too wet, except from where we flailed off during February here the surface foliage has obviously been removed and the soil has dried out and is now friable.... So my conclusion is to grow a cover crop and shred it in February..wishful thinking..!!!!

 

[Richard III]

I always envy people farming on hills, the water must just run off the side of their fields and become someone else's problem.

Or into the hollow in the middle of the field, and we have plenty of them here. The hollows definitely flood less now the plough is in the nettles though.

 

[Jim Bullock]

Or into the hollow in the middle of the field, and we have plenty of them here. The hollows definitely flood less now the plough is in the nettles though.

So true! Although I am concerned at how wet some of land is, it will travel much better having been left alone and not cultivated earlier in the season. If the (weather) forecast for the Spring is true we may well be very pleased we did not loose too much moisture through unnecessary cultivations.

 

[Shutesy]

Just a few photos of our Fuego Spring Beans drilled @300kg/ha using a Sumo DTS into some failed OSR ground.

Post drilling and rolling


Taken today (17/4/15) now emerged.


Looking good so far @Johndeere.
Already looks better than the OSR ever did last Autumn!