Strip Seeder Protects Emerging Crop From Wind

Strip seeder protects emerging crop from wind AIR SEEDERS Air Seeders (42B) 13-6-29 "Our custom-made strip seeder does a great job of protecting emerging crops from wind erosion," says Bob Klosterman, Mooreton, N. Dak., who pulls the air-powered "strip seeder" behind a 12-row Lilliston rolling cultivator. Klosterman explains that in the Recl River Valley area where he farms, high spring winds often cause substantial damage to crops, forcing farmers to replant. "We use the strip seeder in the fall to seed 20-in. wide strips of an oats-rye mixture, leaving 10-in. wide bare strips between," says Kloster-man. "In the spring we plant 30-in. rows of beets right down the center of the bare strips. By that time the oats-rye is 4 to 6 in. high-. tall enough to protect the emerging plants from wind erosion damage. Just before the crop emerges, we spray the rye with Roundup to kill it. We wait until the middle of J une before cultivating out the dead rye at which time the crop is big enough to stand on its own. Even after we cultivate there's enough rye residue left to hold the soil in place and break up the wind." The 50 bu. capacity "strip seeder" was built for Klosterman by Wil-Rich Mfg., Wahpeton, N. Dak. A hydraulic-driven fan delivers metered seed through tubes to the front of a Lilliston rolling cultivator where it's broadcast in 20-in. wide strips and the cultivator mixes seed with soil. The metering device is ground-driven by a small tire. Klosterman can also use the cultivator to incorporate herbicides into the 10-in. wide bare strips by removing the grain tank from the caddy and replacing it with a 400-gal. water tank pulled behind the cultivator. He then slides the cultivator gangs over to match the 10-in. bare strips and adds a 10-in. rolling basket to incorporate the herbicide. "The oats-rye strips practically eliminate wind erosion. We like the oats for its quick fall growth, and the rye for its spring growth. This air seeder uses Wil-Rich's original blower and metering device. Everything else was custom-built. The air seeder's caddy is equipped with single rib tires which can be adjusted to fit any row width." The single rib tires are part of a guidance system that Klosterman uses for all field operations - planting, cultivating, and spraying. He never has to manually steer the tractor. "The cultivator is equipped with a pair of shanks and steel guidance wheels which make grooves in the soil," explains Klosterman. "The single rib tires on the air seeder follow these grooves and pack them firmly so we can follow them with single rib tires on our tractor when we plant in the spring. We use the same guidance marks for cultivating and spraying. It virtually eliminates cultivator blight. The air seeder can be pulled behind any cultivator regardless of row spacing up to 24 rows." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bob Klosterman, Box A, Mooreton, N. Dak. 58061 (ph 701274-8241) or Wit-Rich Mfg., Highway 13 West, Wahpeton, N. Dak. 58075 (ph 701642-2621).

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