LAMMA 16: Row width change at the flick of a switch

There’s a school of thought that says OSR performs better when sown at 660mm row widths (centre to centre), and cereals at 330mm. One of the higher profile advocates of such different-row thinking is Worcs-based drill manufacturer Mzuri, which launched its Select range of Pro-Til strip-till drills at LAMMA. Key attribute of Select is that it enables the drill operator to switch between 330mm and 660mm row spacing at the flick of a switch on the seed tank or, at extra cost, in the tractor cab. “The benefits of only drilling with a wide spacing are that you can drill into immense amounts of surface residue, providing an optimum environment that allows oilseed rape plants to grow to their full potential. It encourages more branching and more pod set,” says Mr Lole. “The light interception enables the plant to produce up to an extra tonne per hectare.” Taking a 3m wide Pro-Til 3T Select as an example, when the operator flicks the switch, to go to wide spacing, four of the nine tillage legs and seed coulters are raised clear of the ground, and seed and fertiliser are only sent to the remaining five coulters in work. Conversely, at the narrower spacing all nine coulters are called into action. In terms of cost, specifying the Select system adds around £5,000 to the price of a 3m Pro-Til drill.