Thursto Manufacturing Company
(800)658-3127 www.thurstonmfgco.com
for Sugarbeets
For more than 40 years, Thurston Manufacturing, producer of Blu-Jet Fertilizer Application and Conservation Tillage Equipment, has been a proud industry leader in design innovation for both product categories.
Blu-Jet's newest strip-till implement, the Blu-Jet Galaxy, has further enhanced the company's award-winning strip-till product line by offering a variety of narrow and wide row spacings, including 22 inches for sugarbeet producers.
The Blu-Jet Galaxy was designed to be flexible in row configurations, allowing for operation in a variety of conditions. Swath widths are available from 12 to 45 feet. Models with wider working widths feature a five-section fold and narrow transport width of 15 feet 8 inches. Narrower spacings are staggered for better residue flow.
The three-point mounted toolbar has a 7x7-inch mainframe for ultimate tracking and durability and, because of common components, can be reconfigured as the needs of the farmer change. Like all Blu-Jet strip-till implements, each row component functions independently from the next for superior soil and residue management and a more flexible, efficient strip-till experience.
Liquid, dry, NH3 or dual-placement fertilizer solutions can be injected while creating the strip using the Blu-Jet Galaxy implement. This multi-tasking further reduces the number of field passes, man-hours and fuel cost necessary to raise a crop.
Spring is on its way and coming faster than you think. Every step of your operation requires careful planning and research in order to get the best results out of your seed and fertilizer and to protect and nurture your investment. Take some time to attend the grower meetings and conferences to get the latest scoop on new equipment and better management practices. The staff at Sugar Producer collected information on manufacturers of tillage equipment to help with your purchase decisions. Check it out.
Kuhn Krause, Inc.
(800)957-2873 www.kuhnkrause.com
The Gladiator makes strip-till easy! The St-Pro Row Units are easy to adjust for in-field settings, saving you time, so you can cover more acres. The large 25-inch coulter cuts residue and the 16-inch notched disc row cleaner blades remove the residue to allow a clean strip for planting. Both the coulter and row cleaner automatically adjust through spring pressure or their own weight. The shank offers an easily replaceable wear bar and point combination and serves as the mounting for the Drop Zone fertilizer system. This adjustable fertilizer system allows you to place the fertilizer at depths independent of the shank operating depth. Closing blades are adjustable by hand and provide convenient angle and down pressure settings for changing residue conditions, while capturing soil to seal fertilizer and create the berm. The Strik'r Soil Conditioner chain reel assembly finishes the seed bed and produces a consistent planting surface which warms earlier in the spring. The Gladiator is available in a variety of configurations including three-point and pull-type; 30-, 36-, 38-, and 40-inch row spacing; 6- to 24-row sizes; liquid, dry, NH3 application; or any combination of two types of fertilizer.
Northside Welding, Inc.
(208)438-5222 www.northsideweldinginc.com
The NSW Strip-till employs many features to accommodate the harsh farming conditions found in the Intermountain West. The cleaners and shank are cut from impact-resistant T1 steel to withstand impact from rock or other hidden objects. The 4x6-inch lead bar is made from one-half-inch-thick material for additional strength and durability. Tested for 20 years, the 1x3 lead shank is mounted in a hydraulic reset clamp to extend the life of the shank. A shear pin clamp is also available for those fortunate enough to farm without rocks. The individual parallel linkage allows for uniform tillage on uneven ground. A six-inch winged "sunflower" point lifts the soil to eliminate compaction, angled coulter discs seal the shank mark, while four 12x16 packers firm the bed.
Each unit is fully adjustable to compensate for different soil conditions as well as crop residue. All components are standardized for easy replacement with minimal downtime. Customized to your specific needs, the NSW Strip-till is available to fit various row spacing and widths, including 6-row-22-inch, 12-row-22-inch and 30-inch, even up to 24-row-22-inch. Other sizes built to order. Optional spring-loaded coulters can be mounted on the lead bar for heavier residue management.
Orthman Manufacturing, Inc.
(308)324-4654 www.orthman.com
Strip-till methods conserve significant soil moisture when compared to conventional tilling practices. A 1tRIPr strip-tilling machine only disturbs one-third of a field, so evaporation from the soil is reduced. Additionally, crop debris on the surface helps hold snow in place over the winter, setting up a better moisture profile in the spring.
The 1tRIPr prepares a seedbed that encourages root development and allows precision application of fertilizer at different depths, delivering nutrients at key times during plant development. Research demonstrates that precision tillage leads to stronger, deeper roots that reach farther to draw in soil moisture and nutrients.
Precision tillage systems such as the 1tRIPr can lower costs in several ways. Fewer passes through a field means reduced fuel costs. Less fertilizer is needed because precision application places nutrients directly in the root zone. Research shows that strip-tilled fields allow deeper water infiltration than conventional tilled fields, reducing water use on irrigated fields.
www.schlagel.net
The "Series 2" row unit was reworked on some areas of the unit with the best Schlagel has to offer. They are tougher and easily adjustable to get the job done the way growers want. The unit's down-pressure is adjusted by moving one rod, the front flat coulter depth is adjusted with one bolt, and the wavy coulters and rear packer are adjusted by moving a pin. The row unit starts with a flat coulter to cut the trash ahead of the one-inch-thick parabolic automatic-reset trip shank. The unit can be adjusted so the shank tills from 6 to 16 inches deep. When the shank trips, simply raise the machine up, and the shank will reset itself. The parabolic shank and point are designed to prevent soil from slabbing up in big chunks. Following the shanks are two wavy coulters to lift and pinch the soil together. This closes the void left by the shank, removing any air pockets in the seed bed. The final key component of the row unit is its dual-wheel packer. This packer acts as a "depth gauge wheel" for the whole-row unit. This firms up the soil to lessen moisture evaporation and also breaks up any dirt clods that can impede seed placement and seed-to-soil contact. n
Unverferth Manufacturing Co., Inc.
www.unverferth.com
The Zone-Stripper advantage is tillage only where it's needed with consistent tillage performance.
First, the lead coulter with six-bolt hub and 20-inch, rippled blade helps cut through the heaviest corn stalk residue for maximum flow. Coulters feature six-bolt hubs and 1,500 lbs. of down-pressure for cutting through the heaviest residue. Next, the low-disturbance, auto-reset shanks till from 8 to 12 inches deep to alleviate compaction and break the soil. Then the dual, offset notched concave blades on each side of the shank help mix and till the soil to create a strip.
The Rolling Harrow attachment, with the choice of straight or concave mounding blades, helps smooth and level the soil. Options include the combination liquid/dry fertilizer shank attachment for precise placement. The front coulter-mounted dual wheeled row cleaner is also optional for providing additional residue clearing.
The row markers are designed to leave a highly visible line for precise strip placement and the lighting package for enhance transport visibility and safety.