Double shoot disc drill technology aims to increase productivity

“There’s about an inch and a quarter to an inch and a half spread between the seed and fertilizer,” Warrener said. “You can go into a true no till environment, into heavy residue, with the reliability that you’re going to have really good seed to soil contact and seed placement.”

The double shoot disc drill is very similar to the single shoot disc, although the double puts fertilizer down behind the disc and slices a new groove into the ground where the seed goes.

Warrener said the double shoot process expects to make units travel quicker while not disturbing the soil.

“You can go through a tremendous amount of trash, even if it’s a little wetter,” he said. “You can start your seeding operation a little earlier in the spring. A hoe-type drill that’s pulling through the soil will always shatter the soil a little more than a disc drill will.

“We’re really happy with the placement and field finish because it’s truly a no till which really conserves your moisture in the spring, so you’ve got a moisture available to the plant later in the growing season.”

Getting more production out of the seeds means the double shoot disc drill is built to spread out fewer seeds than normal. Warren said it also allows for the total field of crops to come up more evenly.

“That is really critical in today’s big farm environment where farmers want to be able to go into a field when it’s all maturing at the same time,” he said. “It’s not having different stages of growth at the harvest time.”

Warrener didn’t give a specific lifespan on how long the P2082 Double Shoot Disc Drill will last. He mentioned the design is intended to work efficiently over various soil zones and last for the timeframe crop farmers tend to update their seeding technology, which is typically once every three or four years.

The cost of the double shoot technology depends on the footage used.

This 650-horsepower tractor attached a 50 ft unit with P2082 Double Shoot Disc Drills would cost over $1 million. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

“This particular one that we have on display here today is a 50-foot double shoot unit with a 650-horsepower tractor with tracks on it, so it’s a pretty loaded out unit,” Warrener said. “That type of unit at a retail price is going to run you over a million dollars, probably $1.2 or $1.3 million. You can’t just look at the initial investment or initial cost; you’ve got to look at it as an investment and what that productivity can provide for you.

“They can cover every bit as much ground with a 50 or 60-foot unit as they would with an 80-foot because they can go in earlier, faster, and anywhere from five and a half to eight mile an hour with this unit. We’re trying to look at things that can increase productivity while keeping the cost as minimal as possible.”

Warrener said the P2082 Double Shoot Disc Drill will mostly be used for dryland and graining operations, but can also be used to seed and fertilize grass for pasture farmers.

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow

by Aaron Schulze

Double shoot disc drill technology aims to increase productivity

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