Hi, its my second year in strip till and could the two years get any different!! We’ve got a Mzuri pro till and I was wondering if anyone had any tips or experience of how to use them in wet conditions. I am trying to drill into osr stubble and I am struggle to make ours make a reasonable seed bed, we have some that has been sprayed off and there is no cover and then we have some that we have left the volunteers and it seems no different in either of them. From what I have read everyone says pull the front legs up so you aren’t pulling up snot but that hasn’t worked for us because ours is like snot all the way through, then the re-consolidation wheel just squashes it after it has lifted it and it sticks to it. It then it does the same with the press wheel behind the coulter and then all that is left are some big wet lumps which I’m struggling to get the Harrow to push over the seed. It also creates a heaven for slugs. Any help or tip would be great as I’m beginning to pull my hair out with it.
Tips on how to use a Mzuri in the wet
- Thread starter Tom22890
- Start date
Hesston4860s
Member
- Location
- Nr Lincoln
In a year like this put it back in the shed and go back to basics and get the MF30 out I reckon.
- Location
- Owaka, New Zealand
@CornishTone may have an idea re. setup, as I think they just had a contractor at his place using one
Last edited:
d williams
Member
patience
I’d suggest to you that the grounds not ready yet
- Location
- Worcestershire
Best tip wait till it’s dryer
Devon James
Member
- Location
- Devon
If want to push it, and this suggestion is pointless if the weather isnt with you, run through with a tine to try and force the soil to pitch off. It's not going to dry by being left alone. The drill will then work better after a day or two once the wind has taken the edge off it. Like I said, works if you have the weather.
Cow1
Member
As above. Patience is the key. However a quick pass with a cultivator a day or two ahead with a dry forecast can make all the difference. I’m afraid in a year like this there is a no one size fits all answer. It has to be on an individual field basis.
The other things you can do is drop the tyre pressures but it depends whether it’s trailed or mounted, put maximum coulter pressure on and deepen the coulters so seed is covered up.
Sometimes you may also have to run the coulters behind the tractor wheels deeper to cover the seed.
The good news is that the soil gets better the more years you have been doing less and it becomes less of a problem.
The other things you can do is drop the tyre pressures but it depends whether it’s trailed or mounted, put maximum coulter pressure on and deepen the coulters so seed is covered up.
Sometimes you may also have to run the coulters behind the tractor wheels deeper to cover the seed.
The good news is that the soil gets better the more years you have been doing less and it becomes less of a problem.
- Location
- East Sussex
The trouble with not running the front legs in undisturbered ground, (depending on your soil type) is that it can cause the seeding boot to run on the surface, I found this while trying to finish a field of barley two weeks ago, it’s coming up but I couldn’t spray that half as the seed was near enough on the surface, there are rows in that part but some aren’t complete.
I have 4 seasons with Mzuri and if the soil starts building up on the wheels I would go home.
I finished drilling everything in good conditions this year just before weather break September 25. Since then we had about 120mm in two weeks. The crops look OK now.
I thought about this before and if it's too wet my back up plan would be broadcasting wheat and lightly discing it in good speed just to cover. Especially after osr. Never done this with cash crop like wheat but did it few years with cover crops rye, beans, vech (not so good with peas because it breaks) with good establishment. But it has to be wet.
But then again, different conditions, probably you have issues with slugs, grass weeds on your side.
Good luck anyway.
I finished drilling everything in good conditions this year just before weather break September 25. Since then we had about 120mm in two weeks. The crops look OK now.
I thought about this before and if it's too wet my back up plan would be broadcasting wheat and lightly discing it in good speed just to cover. Especially after osr. Never done this with cash crop like wheat but did it few years with cover crops rye, beans, vech (not so good with peas because it breaks) with good establishment. But it has to be wet.
But then again, different conditions, probably you have issues with slugs, grass weeds on your side.
Good luck anyway.
If it's wet, the only thing you can do is lift the front leg to avoid spinning the tractor tyres, I reduce the coulter pressure actually to avoid the press wheel jamming the seeding zone too tight, and have the rear harrow fairly aggressive. If the coulter press wheels plug up, it's not the end of the world. If the middle wheels plug up, you can either spend ages unblocking it on your hands and knees with a crowbar multiple times (make sure to put the stops in to prevent it lowering down on you), or you can call it a day. I think it takes a lot to stop a mzuri, especially with the new coulters which seem better in the wet, but we are at that point now.
- Tags
- establishment seeding slug slugs