Seeders No-tlll drill vs other attachments for seeding

[jeff9366]

However, I am not big into tilling. Is there a method for minimun tillage? What sort of equipment would do the least amount of soil damage?

What do people use these disc attachments I see all over for?

Disc Harrows are one form of soil mixing tiller. A PTO powered roto-tiller is a second form of soil mixing tiller. Both equipments can be adjusted for shallow soil penetration but general soil mixing occurs across width of implements.

LINK: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...ing-three-point-hitch-mounted.html?highlight=

The main conservation plows is the Chisel plow or its lighter brother, the Field Cultivator. Tines are pulled through the soil, leaving some vegetation on top to prevent top soil from blowing away. You can pull a four tine Field Cultivator with an L3901, possibly, not definitely, a five tine Field Cultivator } $900. Many would opine aeration provided by a Chisel or Field Cultivator improves soil productivity.

VIDEO: How to Use a Ripper / Field Cultivator - Gardening Series - YouTube

If your tractor could handle a heavy drill you are back to the optimal no till combination: very low cut with a Rotary Cutter, then a drill for seeding. BUT....do not let the perfect become the enemy of the good. You have had a ton of GOOD, DIVERSE, options suggested in this thread.

Photo #1 Chisel plow, Photo #2, #3, #4 Field Cultivator, AKA: All Purpose Plow

 

[/pine]

Maybe something like this?:
Food Plot Seeder

 

[Dadnatron]

The local University (UK) is advising me on seeding 80ac of soybean/corn tillage into pasture. This is her response about till/no till and what she recommends.



"Great question. It does take time for the lines to fill in after drilling. We generally recommend that pastures are seeded in 2 or sometimes even 3 different directions for this reason exactly. This drilling pattern does allow the seedlings to fill in bare areas faster than just in single rows although it does take more time to seed.

As far as no-till vs. tillage: A prepared seedbed, tilled and packed, is considered the gold standard in establishment, but many farms do not have the equipment and experience to do this properly. If tilling, Brillion seeders do work well. In your case, the significant advantage of no-till is moisture reserves. By leaving killed cover on a field for several weeks, whatever rainfall occurs will be stockpiled in the soil and can be utilized by the seedlings. Some seasons this would make no real difference while others it would be the difference between success and failure. But we don稚 know how it will be until it is too late.

All that being said, either method would be fine, but I would suggest going with the no-till drill and planning to seed in 2-3 directions to speed up filling in. Also, some fall nitrogen will help the seeding process.

Please let me know how else I can help."

 

[Clay45]

I guess I'm cheap. Went with one of these to sling fescue seed & fertilizer. I set it in back of my UTV and drive around as slow as I can to get a good covering and so far its worked fine.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200343065_200343065

 

[C4Ranch]

The local University (UK) is advising me on seeding 80ac of soybean/corn tillage into pasture. This is her response about till/no till and what she recommends.



"Great question. It does take time for the lines to fill in after drilling. We generally recommend that pastures are seeded in 2 or sometimes even 3 different directions for this reason exactly. This drilling pattern does allow the seedlings to fill in bare areas faster than just in single rows although it does take more time to seed.

As far as no-till vs. tillage: A prepared seedbed, tilled and packed, is considered the gold standard in establishment, but many farms do not have the equipment and experience to do this properly. If tilling, Brillion seeders do work well. In your case, the significant advantage of no-till is moisture reserves. By leaving killed cover on a field for several weeks, whatever rainfall occurs will be stockpiled in the soil and can be utilized by the seedlings. Some seasons this would make no real difference while others it would be the difference between success and failure. But we don稚 know how it will be until it is too late.

All that being said, either method would be fine, but I would suggest going with the no-till drill and planning to seed in 2-3 directions to speed up filling in. Also, some fall nitrogen will help the seeding process.

Please let me know how else I can help."

I was gonna say, no till is really beneficial to maintain moisture in your soil along with erosion ... This is a BIG deal here in TX and the big farms here have learned this after the dust bowl days and use sweeps rather than discs anymore.

Do you have these issues in KY?

 

[DJ54]

Here is a picture of my Olathe, now TORO slit seeder I incorporated Timothy seed in to my existing hay field. The original owner was a local high school that used it to reseed their football field. They installed astro turf, so the seeder set for years until it sold at a surplus auction. It was bought by a fellow who never used it. He put it up for sale on Craigslist, and I bought it for $100. It needed some TLC, new roller drive chains, and a couple of bearings. I still have less than $200.00 in it.

I did a Fall seeding, after making the last cutting. You can see how much it disturbs the soil.

A local dealer has a similar Land Pride unit that can be rented for $175.00 per day. Recommended speed for these units is 5-7 mph, so if you stay with it, you can cover a lot of ground in a day, even though they are only a 48" seeder.

 

[jenkinsph]

Hello all

This is my first post here.

I recently purchased a Kubota L3901. I am seeking advice on an attachment I could use for seeding. I would like to sow a mix consisting of clover, grasses, and some pasture vegetables (daikon, turnips, herbs, etc). I would like to do this on some of my 12.5 acres. I am leaning towards a no-till drill. Currently, I have a stand of old foxtail straw, chickweeds, and other pasture weeds.

Is there a drill that my tractor could handle? If not, could you offer some suggestions of how I could go about this with no or minimal tillage/plowing?

Thanks!

Going back to your first post, you seem to have the idea that tilling is bad for the soil. That is not the case if the tilling is not over done. On farms with repeated plowing methods of the past no till can be beneficial. If the land has not been worked in years some tilling to loosen the soil and mix in amendments can be a real improvement. I find that most people using a rototiller over till, they completely pulverize the soil and beat it to submission. If you instead drive these tillers at a faster pace leaving the small clumps you can still loosen up the ground enough to plant the new seeds without destroying the soil structure. A little moderation and common sense goes a long ways. Same is true for running discs and cultivators, stop when you have it broken up enough and call it good.

Right now you have a crop of weeds and want to plant other varieties. You can till shallow and get it done, it isn't necessary to use deep tillage for most grasses. An economy priced tiller such as a King Kutter II in a 6 ft width can till 3 to 4 inches deep with the skid shoes set correctly. This would provide you with enough loose dirt to cover the seed and work with to get good germination. A cultipacker preferably or roller to firm the seed bed prior to planting can help keep the seed from being buried too deep. After broadcasting the seed a light raking with a spike tooth harrow or a pine straw rake is what I use to cover the seed. Follow up with the cultipacker or roller to press the seed into firm contact with the soil for better germination.

I would not make the assumption that tilling is bad for the soil. It depends on many things and the circumstances at hand. Some crops need more depth than others and some soil needs more attention than others depending on a lot of variables such as drainage, hard pan and moisture.

 

[jenkinsph]

I was gonna say, no till is really beneficial to maintain moisture in your soil along with erosion ... This is a BIG deal here in TX and the big farms here have learned this after the dust bowl days and use sweeps rather than discs anymore.

Do you have these issues in KY?

I live in New Mexico and can identify with the need to conserve soil moisture. KY gets more rain than we do.