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WC IL | Firstly, you've done an excellent job establishing your goals. In my experience (25 years of strip till) you are looking for two separate toolbars to best achieve your goals. The first machine is to band you dry fertilizer 5-6" deep and the second toolbar is to place your liquid and create your seedbed, preferably very close to planting time (to reduce mother nature's ability to mess up your seedbed). If you do these steps in two separate passes it will simplify your application and it will prevent your equipment from being extremely complicated. Thus it will allow you to achieve your goals while being easier on the operator.
The first toolbar can be something as simple as a mole knife on a toolbar. This will place your fertilizer 5-6" deep and will leave it "trashy" as you requested. However, if you are corn-on-corn that may be difficult to feed through this type of machine. Another option is a high-speed applicator such as Yetter Magnum, John Deere single disc fertilizer openers (although depth may be limited with this unit), or a variety of other low disturbance openers. Those should generally work well in c-o-c but will not perform any amount of tillage (if you feel that is necessary). It will leave all of your surface residue in tact.
The second pass is ideal for the Yetter Strip Freshener just as bbjd680 has shown. This will make a perfect seedbed as you desire. This will also manage your residue but this pass can be operated right ahead of your planter so you will not have a lengthy duration of exposed soil to wash. This will also allow you to place your liquid fertilizer as you wish.
I have had tremendous results with the Strip Freshener making the seedbed, managing residue, and applying N just ahead of the planter. I have been doing this for many years now and have very consistent results regardless of wet year, dry year, early planting, late planting, etc. Instead of having to operate weeks or months ahead of planting we have moved this pass to directly ahead of planter so that we create consistency and don't allow mother nature much time to interfere with our results.
I would be more than happy to discuss any questions you might have. 309-337-7449 | |
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Entry level strip till
