He Plants Corn Behind His Combine

He Plants Corn Behind His Combine COMBINES Modifications 17-2-35 Prompted by wet weather that kept him from harvesting much of his corn last fall, Michigan farmer Ray Rawson decided to wait until this spring to harvest the crop - and pull his planter behind the combine at the same time. Unexpectedly, the snow melted last winter and he was able to finish harvest by late February. However, this spring he still plans to pull a 6-row Kinze planter equipped with Rawson no-till coulters behind his Deere 7720 6-row, 4-WD combine. "I just want to see if it will work," says Rawson, a conservation tillage pioneer. "I didn't want to compact the fields by going in with my combine in early spring when the soil is still wet. By waiting until May 1 or so, I can let the soil dry off and plant at the same time. I tested the idea a little last fall. The only problem was that corn residue coming out the back of the combine covered the planter and clogged up the drive chains. To solve the problem I mounted directional spreaders on the combine to force chaff sideways instead of backward. "The combine should have plenty of power and hydraulic capacity to do the job. I'll use the hydraulic pump for the combine header to control hydraulic operations on the planter. I mounted a pair of electricover-hydraulic valves in the cab. One valve is used to raise and lower the planter, and the other valve that's normally used to operate the markers will be used to operate the cross auger that fills the planter with dry fertilizer. Otherwise the planter will operate the same as if it was pulled by a tractor." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Ray Rawson, 7413 NorthNottawaRoad,Farwell, Mich. 48622 (ph 517 588-2230).

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