Spring Tillage & Fertilizer Application Advancements

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Brad Baker is Vice President - Sales, Marketing and Product Management for Salford Group.

Brad started as a mechanical engineering technologist and In 2014 Brad became Salford’s first official Product Manager, taking an overarching view of the needs in the market place, and coordinating engineering, production and sales to meet the needs of farmers. In 2019 Brad stepped into the role of Vice President, a natural progression for his career path at Salford.Brad enjoys spending time, and travelling, with his wife and two children. He has passion for high performance machinery that once took him to France to see the world class Le Mans endurance race.  He also enjoys riding snowmobile when the winters in Southern Canada cooperate.

David Webster’s

• Tillage Segment (Salford)---What’s new and available for producers to get excited about this Spring?
• At Salford Group, we are committed to improving the economics of farming with the best available solutions in tillage and application.  When producers invest in a Salford Group product, they know they’re getting durability, versatility, and precision to take their operations to next-level performance.
• Salford Group is a global leader in the manufacturing of tillage and precision application equipment, with facilities in Iowa, Georgia, Ontario, Manitoba, and Russia. The company dedicates its ongoing innovation efforts to precision, durability and versatility in the field, while improving the economics of farming for producers worldwide
• What are some of the latest advancements in tillage equipment for seed bed preparation?

We launched a new series of high-speed tillage tools over the last two years and seed bed preparation was key in our design focus from the beginning.  For example, we optimized the blade angle and spacing between the rows of coulters on the HALO HSD (our compact disk variant of the HALO) to optimize soil flow for more even distribution.  We also worked hard to eliminate a common problem seen with compact disks, which is “porpoising”.  This is a phenomenon that occurs in tougher soil conditions where the front coulters begin to lift out of the ground at higher speed and them re-engage, causing the tool to oscillate similar to how a porpoise swims in the water.  Obviously, this leaves an undesirable condition for seeding, so it was important for use to resolve it.  Without revealing our secrets too much, we paid close attention to the manner in which we applied down pressure.  It took a lot of testing, but we are confident we have one of the best high-speed disks on the market for sed bed preparation.

We also introduced a new finishing system for the HALO series this past year, which is a double rolling basket system.  We really like to leveling job this system does.  It’s a pair of 14” diameter rolling baskets with opposing helixes on a walking axle.  The down pressure can be adjusted from the cab of the tractor.  We were surprise at just how versatile this setup is in a lot of different soil types and conditions.  It is optimal for seed bed preparation.

We also have the new HALO VRT.  This is our most advanced tillage tool to date and really is the year-round tillage solution many of our customers have been seeking.  In terms of seed bed preparation it can do it all.  You can adjust the angle of the rows of independently mount coulters on the fly.  Therefore it running a minimum tillage past ahead of the planter and want to level out some ruts from last fall, you can adjust the coulter angles on the fly to a more aggressive position to level ruts in the same pass.  It brings a new level of precision to tillage and we’re very excited about it.

Finally, our Independent Series line of tools continue to be great options, especially with dealing with high levels of residue and moist conditions because of the greater area around each individual coulter.  We’ve had customers run tools like the I-1200 or I-2200 (true vertical tillage models) in the fall and not need a tillage pass in the spring.  The independent coulters work much better than a traditional gang in maintaining tillage depth across the tillage swath.  The I-4200, a hybrid tillage model that mixes concave coulters with wavy VT coulters to provide a little more lateral soil movement to provide more leveling action.  This product has been a go-to for seedbed preparation for many of our customers.

Vertical Tillage – “Independent Series”

• High Speed Tillage – “Halo + Enforcer”
• Adjustable High Speed Tillage – HALO VRT
• Technology in tillage equipment
• Adjustments on the go?
• Prescriptions?

It is becoming more likely that tillage will join the precision space as we learn to leverage the field data we’re collecting.  The application of tillage plays such an integral role in cop production that it seems absurd that it isn’t managed in the same way as nutrient application or crop protection.  Like both of these operations, tillage – when over applied, can have a detrimental effect, so it will be important long-term to find ways to apply it on an as need basis within the field.  We have been preparing for this for years by building several system with on-the-fly capability, whether it be our hydraulic engaging tillage shanks on our Independent series, hydraulically adjustable finishing systems, and now, the fully adjustable HALO VRT.

• Accuracy
• Benefits of added technology?

Like with prescription application, there are benefits to not over applying tillage in the field.  For one thing if you only require more aggressive tillage in some sections of your field due to ruts or compactions zones, you can reduce fuel consumption by adjusting to a lighter setting on the fly.  This of course saves time as you don’t have to stop and manual set the machine to accomplish this.  The high speed also increases the acres per hour on the tool, which can not only increase the productivity of the tool itself, but also avoids creating a bottle neck that can slow down the seeding operation in the spring.

What is harder to measure is the benefits brought to the stewardship of the land.  By now, it is clear that good management of the soil structure and ecosystem is crucial to the long term production capacity of the land.  We’ve all seen how overapplication of tillage can result in soil erosion and depletion.  It can also offset the benefit of prescription nutrient application by mobilizing and type of controlled release nutrient.  Therefore, it needs to be integrated into how he execute precision agriculture in order for us to see its full benefit.

• Alright, maybe we can’t go out and buy new.  What should we be thinking about to get our tillage tools ready for Spring?
• Bearings, sweeps, common wear points?

Yes – you should be checking this every season.  We have a very robust bearing in our coulters, both for the independent series and for the HALO.   The HALO’s use greaseless hubs while the Independent Series use greaseable hubs.  Truthfully, a well greases independent series hub will go on for a very long time before needing replacement.  We would have gone this direction with the HALO as well, however, the compact frame design made hub access difficult so we went with the greaseless setup instead.  Its always a good idea each season to check for play in the hubs.

Check your blades as well.  Remember that wavy VT blades lose their effectiveness when worn down to a certain diameter.  We like to tell customers to replace when those blades are about 80-85% of their original diameter to keep the blades effective.

• What does parts availability look like?
• Industry wide

Its no secret there are supply issues out there.  This has almost created a situation similar to the toilet paper panic buying at the beginning of COVID.  The same is going on with parts with many manufacturers hoarding with the intent to have enough parts on hand.  It’s created a challenge

• With Salford

We are definitely carrying more inventory than usual, however we have not needed to be too excessive.  We treat our suppliers well and those relationships have helped us.  While there are some shortages of certain sizes of tires and some electronic components, overall we are very robust.  We don’t intent to leave a customer down in the field this spring.

• What’s next? – What have you seen coming down the pipe?

We’re seeing a major transition in ag as we speak.  Autonomy, electrification, precision.  The trend of producer adoption in the coming years will continue.  We believe we are well positioned for this as it evolves.

As equipment manufacturers, you have to be ready for the big disruptions.  We’re always watching developments in genetics, or chemistry that my give growers a new edge, perhaps one that eliminates the need for a certain operation on the farm.  But if you stay on top of the industry and look out into that 5-10 year window you can pivot and adapt.  Salford has always been very good at this.  It’s said internally that we want to be the ones to obsolete our own products.

• For a culture that is working to award farmers for no-til or minimum tillage operations through carbon credits….what makes it still necessary?

As long as you’re operating machinery in the field, tillage is always going to be needed to some degree.  Ruts, compaction, pivot tracks from irrigation – these can’t be eliminated without some tillage.  As we mentioned, tillage will become a matter of precise application rather than a one-practice-fits-all operation.  Organics and herbicide resistance are also factors.  Crop production requires you to constantly adapt to a new set of variables with every growing season.  Our products will continue to adapt as well.

• Let’s venture away from tillage a bit and into an area of increased focus for 2022 and that is the precise application of very expenses fertilizer.
• What does Salford offer in the realm of fert application? We actually offer on of if not the most complete line of applicators in the industry. Ranging from the BBI Spreader line with capabilities with Lime, fertilizer and litter in - and chassis mount configurations as well as the Valmar Airflo products capable of handling fertilizer, granular herbicide, cover crops, and micro-nutrients, in configurations that range from pull-type to chassis mount and tillage tool to planter and dedicated granular herbicide or cover crop machines. Now this might sounds like a wide range of products, if you are going to serve the North American market you need a product range that will fit the agronomic needs of the different regions across both the United States and Canada.  Could probably expand on one or two products here. 
• Apply right by Salford – Precision technology for serious applicators
• Topper Spreader
• Air Booms
• AirFlo
• Pathfinder
• What technology has changed or evolved in fertilizer application? Both the environment and technology have changed.  From an environmental side are seeing some micro-nutrient availability impacted  - Sulfur as an example was available through emissions from manufacturing facilities, but with emissions from different sources being cleaned up we are needing to supplement the requirement in in a crop nutrition plan. Both macro and micro nutrients are being impacted by nationalization or globalization in some cases of the production cycle….many years ago we would see farming operations that were a mixed farming operation dealing in crop and protein or animal production…..thus you would have the manure, with all its nutrients be applied back to the land.  Now operations tend to be more focused, specialized and larger, whether they are growing crops, livestock, or other forms of protein. We can see feedstock move hundreds to thousands of miles…..and all the nutrients move along with it. This to some degree has created the need for more prescriptive agriculture and more supplemental nutrition, including a number of micro-nutrients for growers to hit their yield goals.  We also have seen movement towards improving sustainability, with increased ability to apply multiple products at variable rate as well as movement in split rate applications in some cases.  We continue to see increasing demand for higher resolution for prescriptive applications as costs rise and pressure for environmental stewardship increase.  We have also seen fertilizer come of the drill or planter in an effort to increase the growing days available by increasing the productivity of the planting operation. This means we have had to increase the productivity of our applicators as well – the 9620, and 6700 are two examples where advancement has increased productivity.  Booms – rate capabilities – capacity – etc. 
• Can these products also be used for seeding or with cover crops? We definitely have a wide range of products in the line up that are capable of seeding cover crop, whether it is a system mounted on a heavy harrow, tillage tool or self-propelled chassis. There are growers and retailers that are sold on the value of cover crops and the ability of the cover crop to improve soil health, hold nutrients and limit erosion.  In areas we see government programs driving some of the interest in cover crop application, but the expectation is that the supplemental support can be backed away as the value of cover crop seeding can be quantified.
• What do you see your top producing or top tier of clients doing? There are a group of customers that are always trying something new….not on a large scale but always experimenting….always looking for an edge to understand what works in their conditions. While many look to educate themselves on the latest trend there are a select few that look to run small trials in their own operation. They look to understand the impact before implementing on a field or full farm basis. 
• Summary
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