Stubble rake

[Adeptandy]

Keep getting the urge to get a stubble rake, slugs have hit with a vengeance this year and one of the reasons for going DD 2 & 1/2 years ago was to help with BG.
Been looking and they’re not cheap enough unless they’re really worth having.
Current drill Weaving GD, do still have 6m short discs & p Harrow on farm.
Your thoughts please

 

[redsloe]

Dunno. I spent ages with the same 'urge' after buying a strip till drill. I was offered one 2nd hand but just couldn't take the plunge. A stubble rake is just so one dimensional for the money in my mind. I eventually bought a short disc for getting a chit but it's not ideal. I also use it for creating a seedbed for grass seeds. Used it lightly in front of SB this year too, that's looking ok atm.

 

[alomy75]

Keep getting the urge to get a stubble rake, slugs have hit with a vengeance this year and one of the reasons for going DD 2 & 1/2 years ago was to help with BG.
Been looking and they’re not cheap enough unless they’re really worth having.
Current drill Weaving GD, do still have 6m short discs & p Harrow on farm.
Your thoughts please

Check out brown and co timed auction; there’s a 6m rake and roll but workshop made/converted. It has a bizarre drawbar setup but will be cheap enough. Peterborough I believe so not too far if you’re PE15

 

[Pan mixer]

@Against_the_grain did some trials I think.

 

[JD6920s]

They can make a difference in the right conditions. If going through chopped straw it needs to be bone dry to be effective and not plug up leaving lumps or blocking completely, it does a really good job of spreading the straw from combine stops or uneven spread due to a crosswind.
If you’re aiming to primarily creat a chit, it’s not going to work if the soil is as hard as concrete, it needs to have a bit of loose friable material to work with.
We always use ours on rape stubble two even three times, with good results on slugs and eggs and it smashes the haulm and stalks up. We use it on wheat and oat stubbles too, but generally run an xpress over for the first pass very lightly to create some tilth to work with then as many passes as required before spraying off and drilling with a Claydon. You can cover a lot of ground very quickly with not much fuel.
The rakes with a front row of discs like the mzuri look a good idea, but I’m not sure how effective they are.

 

[Pan mixer]

I worry that mine rakes blackgrass seeds down the soil cracks to pollute the profile

 

[Flatlander]

I have a stubble rake or known here as a heavy harrow. Getting a good spread from the combine with a 40ft cut can be challenging with the winds we can get and straw although chopped can get windowed in a thick layer. I tend to harrow at 45 degrees if possible and it’s best on a hot dry low humidity day. It’s surprising his much the straw will break up and will make the soil underneath loose enough fir seeds to chit. Also use the same harrow to incorporate fertilizer and level after cultivation. Overall a very versatile tool that would be hard to live without

 

[Flintstone]

I agree with @Flatlander I’ve used mine for seven years. Great for distributing chopped straw, but pick a dry day, or you’ll be cursing the thing. After that first pass, if done at an angle to combine, you’re buying yourself hassle free direct drilling whenever you choose to drill.

if you want a BG chit, you need to go more aggressively, and it does a surprisingly good job of moving 2-4mm of soil.

I wouldn’t be without mine.

 

[Pan mixer]

I am not using mine this year - no use raking half the blackgrass seeds down the cracks.

 

[average farmer]

I think if i could rake all the black grass seeds down the cracks this year would be the year to do it, some must be 2 feet deep. in fact if I could rig some kind of blower up on the back to make sure they go all the way to be bottom...............

 

[principal skinner]

Wouldn’t be without mine, rake all stubbles at least once, makes direct drilling easier, spreads straw, makes a little tilth, kills a few slugs, cheap and quick to do. Also use it on occasion after drilling to cover seed if conditions arnt perfect. Will go this week as dry and hot is perfect for it.

 

[E_B]

Always thought the mzuri looked the best build.

 

[Brisel]

I got one when I bought a Claydon drill a few years ago. It seemed like a luxury at the time but I’m glad I did. Each pass with it did about 1/2” of soil movement, so good for slug egg desiccation and a basic chit of weeds/volunteers. The best bit, as the name suggests, is evening out the straw if done in hot dry weather if you have a badly set up combine chopper or lazy baler driver.

 

[willyorkshire]

Keep getting the urge to get a stubble rake, slugs have hit with a vengeance this year and one of the reasons for going DD 2 & 1/2 years ago was to help with BG.
Been looking and they’re not cheap enough unless they’re really worth having.
Current drill Weaving GD, do still have 6m short discs & p Harrow on farm.
Your thoughts please

IMO a rake is a sure way to stop you actually cultivating. For strip till, the last thing you want is to mix straw with the topsoil. Drill under it for best seed soil contact. A tilth on top makes it harder to get seed depth correct and you'll probably lose moisture, particularly this year! Raking is also very fast and cheap.

 

[Hesstondriver]

Always thought the mzuri looked the best build.

View attachment 1054837

and just like that , im interested in becoming an arable farmer again

 

[alomy75]

IMO a rake is a sure way to stop you actually cultivating. For strip till, the last thing you want is to mix straw with the topsoil. Drill under it for best seed soil contact. A tilth on top makes it harder to get seed depth correct and you'll probably lose moisture, particularly this year! Raking is also very fast and cheap.

That’s down to setup though surely; if you set it too deep/aggressive it’s going to cultivate rather than just rake the straw