One of the greatest challenges in wheat sowing is to ensure the seed spacing uniformity, which directly impacts in the crop field income.
For this reason, using a good regulated seeder avoids input waste and improves the product usage. The purpose is to ensure that each seed can become a productive plant.
Therefore, it’s crucial to understand the factors that affect the sowing and necessary cautions during the agricultural machine operations to boost the technologies usage.
In this article, you are going to read technical hints to avoid losses in the winter crops, from the soil preparation to the technical care required to ensure operating efficiency in wheat planting.
Seven hints to avoid wheat sowing losses
The sowing success relies on plenty of factors that directly impact on the establishment of the plants. For this reason, to avoid losses in the wheat crop, check out some recommendations:
1. Proper preparation of the soil
Correct the acidity and compaction. A soil that is poorly prepared, with big clods, makes seed penetration in the soil difficult, and so it does to the root development. The soil should have proper moisture to favor germination. Moisture excess makes the seeder performance harder and impair the seed emergence.
Additionally, pests and diseases in the soil or in the seeds may cause damage to the plants and reduce yield.
2. Use high-quality seeds and phytosanitary treatment
Low quality seeds, with poor germination or impurities, may result in sowing fails and lower plant density.
Using certified seeds and with high germination rate ensures uniform and vigorous seeds.
3. Adjust the seeder according to the soil characteristics
The sowing depth and the fertilizer rate should be adjusted according to the technical recommendations. Sowing too close to the soil surface exposes the seeds to adverse conditions while a deep sowing can delay the seed emergence.
In addition, correct adjustments in the seed meter and spacing ensures seed placement uniformity.
4. Operate the seeder at proper speeds
Operating with the wrong speed may impair the seed placement and affect yield, causing more soil disturbance and furrows in different sizes. The experts recommend to keep the agricultural speed within 3 and 10 km/h.
5. Monitor the weather conditions
Monitor the weather forecast and adjust the sowing. Heavy rain, strong wind or frost may jeopardize sowing and the first development stage of the plants.
6. Take the seeder to have preventive maintenance service
To prevent the agricultural implement from stopping in the field in the planting season or an urgent part replacement, plan the preventive maintenance of the seeder in advance. Check the discs, gears and sowing components before planting avoids fails during operations.
7. Invest in agricultural technology
Precision Agricultural Pieces of Equipment help to maximize the agricultural implement usage and reduce input costs, such as fertilizers and seeds.
Thanks to the on-board technology on seeders, you can sow wheat in a shorter time, increasing the operating efficiency.
However, so that it is possible, it’s required that the implement has an agricultural controller in constant evolution, such as Stara Topper, which is able to help the farmer in the machine cab at any circumstance.
The agronomist engineer Thomas Liska, Stara Product Marketing Coordinator, technically explains that:
“The best way to reduce the sowing losses in the winter is having a well-regulated seeder in the seed depth and row unit pressure to avoid the seeds from being placed in the soil surface. The section shutdown applied to areas that have already been planted and provided by Topper is a great ally in seed savings.” Thomas Liska, Stara Product Marketing Coordinator
Essential care with the agricultural seeder
To reduce losses and ensure an efficient planting, some cautions should be taken with the seeders:
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Proper lubrication
Keep the roller bearings and mobile components well lubricated reduces the wear and improves the agricultural implement performance.
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Correct adjustment of the pressure
The pressure of the discs and furrow openers should be adjusted according to the soil conditions to make sure of a uniform seed placement.
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Frequent cleaning
Residue build-up can impair the seed placement. For this reason, cleaning the seeder is essential for the proper operation of the agricultural implement. Removing residues of seeds, fertilizer, and land from the seeder after using prevents clogging and the premature wear of the components.
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Inspecting the row marker
Being sure the row markers are adjusted correctly avoids overlap or planting fails.
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Correct storage
Store the seeder in a dry place and protected from moisture and corrosion, prolonging the lifespan.
What agricultural technologies can boost the seeder usage?
Modern agricultural seeders ease the winter crop operations. Some more relevant technologies include:
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Electronic meter units
They allow the automatic adjustment of the sowing rate, ensuring higher precision and better wheat seeds usage.
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Agricultural GPS
The GPS increases the agricultural implement efficiency by avoiding the row unit overlap and improve the planting alignment, among other advantages.
To avoid losses and the unnecessary usage of the products in the wheat field, use this and other technologies that the agricultural controller can provide.
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Soil sensors
They help to adjust the depth and planting pressure according to the soil variation.
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Remote monitoring
It enables you to follow the seeder performance in real time, allowing immediate adjustments to optimize the planting process.
How’s a seeder performance?
A wheat seeder performance depends on several factors, such machine model, adjustments, soil conditions, and operation speed. In general, a well calibrate seeder can provide:
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Higher germination rate
After ensuring a uniform seed placement, the seeder improves the emergence rate of the plants.
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Getting the most out of grown area
The correct placement of the seeds favors a more uniform stand, boosting the yield per hectare.
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Operating efficiency
Using the seeders with on-board technology allows to cover large areas in a shorter time, reducing the operating cost and increasing yield.
Stara seeders: how to choose the ideal one for wheat?
Stara is a reference in Latin America when it comes to manufacture agricultural machines with the company’s own technology, providing different planting needs.
Among the most recommended seeders for wheat sowing, we highlight Guapa Supra Winter and Guapita, especially developed for winter crops such as wheat, oats and barley.
To choose the ideal equipment for your farm, consider the following:
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Sowing uniformity
The Guapa Supra Winter seeders ensure uniformity even when travelling on slopes as there are pneumatic springs interconnected for better terrain copy.
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High storage capacity
The Guapa Supra Winter hopper can reach to 5.150 liters in the seeds only configuration, speeding up the supplying and increasing the planting efficiency.
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State-of-the-art agricultural technology
Models equipped with Telemetria Stara, Syncro and the Topper agricultural controller enable the remote monitoring, efficient planning, and precise adjustments in the sowing rate.
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Lower soil compaction
The high-pressure flotation wheels allow the entrance in moisture terrains without impairing the planting quality.
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Easy to be transported
The exclusive transport systems reduce the implement width to ease the travelling on narrow roadways and gates
Conclusion
The efficient usage of the seeder in wheat planting is crucial to reduce losses and ensure a productive crop field. Choosing the proper equipment, the correct adjustment and the usage of agricultural technologies are determinant factors for the sowing success. Stara, with its innovative DNA, provides solutions to boost the sowing performance and boost the results in the field. Invest in technology and best practice to get a higher efficient and profitable wheat harvest.
Did you like the hints and want to find out the agricultural machine that best suits your crop field?
Stop by a Stara Dealer and find the most suitable equipment to boost your crop production.
