Direct drilling sugar beet

Dan Powell

Member
Location
Shropshire
I'm hoping to build a micro subsoiler to fit between the tractor and the beet drill. A small subsoiler leg will run in front of each drill unit. Will clear path, loosen and create a small amount of tilth. Not sure which. Would be best leg. Will need to go through the catalogues.
I don't think this will work very well. To create tilth, you need speed. Speed is the enemy of a beet drill. It needs to be two passes a la strip tillage which costs £££££££££££££ & RTK.

But I might have a go too...! Still have a 6 row beet drill. Now have RTK. Just need a home-fangled strip tiller to use with it.
 
I don't think this will work very well. To create tilth, you need speed. Speed is the enemy of a beet drill. It needs to be two passes a la strip tillage which costs £££££££££££££ & RTK.

But I might have a go too...! Still have a 6 row beet drill. Now have RTK. Just need a home-fangled strip tiller to use with it.

Hey i thought you were leaving the cult?
 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
I don't think this will work very well. To create tilth, you need speed. Speed is the enemy of a beet drill. It needs to be two passes a la strip tillage which costs £££££££££££££ & RTK.

But I might have a go too...! Still have a 6 row beet drill. Now have RTK. Just need a home-fangled strip tiller to use with it.

5 mph not enough to create tilth? Maybe not? Speed limit because of metering unit limitations and / or drill bounce. Use a metering unit capable of more speed, ditch the beet drill and drop the seed behind the leg. We have always found beet to be more tolerant of variable drilling depth than once thought.

If the strip till leaves a visible mark then surely RTK wouldn't be essential?

Another thought was something like a rotovator with each rotor spaced 20" apart, working a 2" strip, maybe behind each loosening leg. Would need individual hoods to keep the soil falling back into the strip or they would just dig a trench. Not exactly no till but at least not working the whole field.

Many possibilities that I'll never get round to building. Now it's getting too wet on the clay to plough it without smearing it and the sand will blow. The same old dilemmas. Chisel plough, power Harrow and drill?
 

Dan Powell

Member
Location
Shropshire
5 mph not enough to create tilth? Maybe not? Speed limit because of metering unit limitations and / or drill bounce. Use a metering unit capable of more speed, ditch the beet drill and drop the seed behind the leg. We have always found beet to be more tolerant of variable drilling depth than once thought.

If the strip till leaves a visible mark then surely RTK wouldn't be essential?

Another thought was something like a rotovator with each rotor spaced 20" apart, working a 2" strip, maybe behind each loosening leg. Would need individual hoods to keep the soil falling back into the strip or they would just dig a trench. Not exactly no till but at least not working the whole field.

Many possibilities that I'll never get round to building. Now it's getting too wet on the clay to plough it without smearing it and the sand will blow. The same old dilemmas. Chisel plough, power Harrow and drill?
It's all been tried before... the research is online if you look hard enough. Sometimes it works, sometimes not from what I can see. Best on blowing sand, worst on clay.
 

Richard III

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
CW5 Cheshire
Another thought was something like a rotovator with each rotor spaced 20" apart, working a 2" strip, maybe behind each loosening leg. Would need individual hoods to keep the soil falling back into the strip or they would just dig a trench. Not exactly no till but at least not working the whole field.

Bit like this?

 

DrWazzock

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Lincolnshire
Yes, something like that. As said it would prevent a sand blow and work on sand.

Clay is difficult. Ploughing in the autumn to get a frost mold and to help it dry more quickly in the spring seems the only feasible option for me for beet. If it isn't ploughed, it lies wet and solid until too late in the spring.
 

Ruston3w

Member
Location
south suffolk
Yes, something like that. As said it would prevent a sand blow and work on sand.

Clay is difficult. Ploughing in the autumn to get a frost mold and to help it dry more quickly in the spring seems the only feasible option for me for beet. If it isn't ploughed, it lies wet and solid until too late in the spring.

Sorry but I have to disagree.....obviously I can only speak for my land. I agree sand is easier but as for ploughing....just not so. We are lifting beet today on some funny old sticky stuff, not all flat, best plant I ever had on that field, nice beet.
The heavy bits are full of cracks and it is still lifting ok-just. We need a rain but if it starts will it dry up after?
The only problem we have is that it is solid underneath and the tops make it slippery, 6 wheel Vervat will not go up the steep bits but down hill the beet won't go into harvester.....same problem different year
Only cults were very shallow scratch then ld subsoil. We have found it difficult to get even sowing depth without the shallow pass, that said we have achieved better seedbeds for less and hope to treat field a little kinder without ploughing.
The Kliene drill may be a bit left behind now but have run two over the last 20yrs and had a lot of interesting times playing with mintill beet ideas.
Agree also with those that say winter strip tilling very difficult, either leave it too open and not lever for drill in spring or too flat and sets like concrete....
No panic about forward speed anyway with strip-till, too fast and have problems with voids below chitted seed, also difficult to form tidy run for drill, heaps and holes.....3.5-4mph plenty. Also gave up with drill on cultivator for same reason, we prefer to let it settle for a week or so before drilling. Not saying it.s right for others but have made plenty of costly mistakes , more to come no doubt!
 

Exfarmer

Member
Location
Bury St Edmunds
I know Alan Southgate at Attleborough did this for several years. I saw some of his and it looked very good.
This was on blowing sand and it was done to use the stubble to stop the blow.
The biggest downsides at the time were
A, Salt is used as a fertiliser but Beet does not like germinating in it.
B, the sprays at the time were often neutralised by organic matter so weed control was compromised. Same problem the fenland boys used to get.

I believe Alan gave it up a fair while ago, but I may be wrong
 

Zan

Member
Did you do it . We have ld subsoiler set up and mulch drill . Doing another 40 acre this time
Honestly......no, never found anyone, and didn’t put any beet in last year (I didn’t really have the right land available and didn’t see it worth growing on sh!t land) nor will I be doing this year. To me the way the job has gone I saw it as too high risk for very little potential big returns. And when my new contract manager turned round and told me that “if I don’t grow this year I wouldn’t be allowed to grow again next year” it made me think well rubbish then ram your contract up your arse!
maybe I’m wrong but I can’t see beet at £28 a tonne (where i personally think it should be) ever.
Shame though as I think it would work on zero till land with the right structure, just the damage you do when lifting
 

Dan Powell

Member
Location
Shropshire
If anyone is interested in going down this route, I have a Kleine Unicorn 6 row beet drill on double disc coulters which I have never used. Bought it second hand to try DD beet, but never got around to it and now it's sat in the back of my workshop doing nothing.

Wouldn't be expensive either ;)
 

ih1455xl

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
northampton
If anyone is interested in going down this route, I have a Kleine Unicorn 6 row beet drill on double disc coulters which I have never used. Bought it second hand to try DD beet, but never got around to it and now it's sat in the back of my workshop doing nothing.

Wouldn't be expensive either ;)
I've pm'd you
 

Bax

Member
Has anyone ever drilled Sugar Beet with a JD 750 or similar. Will it bunch it too much? Wanting to drill into failed Oilseed Rape without further cultivation.
 

alomy75

Member
If anyone is interested in going down this route, I have a Kleine Unicorn 6 row beet drill on double disc coulters which I have never used. Bought it second hand to try DD beet, but never got around to it and now it's sat in the back of my workshop doing nothing.

Wouldn't be expensive either ;)
Did you ever sell your beet drill? Anyone had any more developments with DD Beet? I’m trying to think of ways to carry on growing as I do love beet but if all else is equal this will be my last year growing
 

EddieB

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Staffs
We drilled some with great success in 2019 using a Varderstad Tempo. Of course the autumn was one of the wettest on record so any benefits from DD were undone at harvest.
 

Ruston3w

Member
Location
south suffolk
Just in case anyone here still has enough enthusiasm to think about reduced tillage beet I thought I'd post a couple of pics of my last go with Kverneland culti-strip/kleine strip-tilled beet. We'll have a bit of a break and if miss them that badly we can always have another go......or not.
 

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SFI - What % were you taking out of production?

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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