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ontario | I've never done this before so here's my question how do I set the seeding rate on a seed drill? Do I just have to move the slide thing with the numbers on it to what the chart says? Do I have to change any gears? its a Massey Ferguson 33 drill.
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Ripley, Ontario Canada | The chart will be just a guide, but yes you move the slide thing and guess. Actually if you find a manual there may be a listing based on drill width and spacing of how many turns a certain shaft needs to make an acre and you can jack the drill up, turn by hand and weigh the seed from a couple runs, do some math and get pretty close. |
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Pilot Grove, Missouri | The chart is just a starting point. Yes you move the lever to change seeding rate. I like to take one seed tube off (Usually an end row and start on the edge of the field as not to have a skip), and attach a bag to catch the seed. Drive a certain distance or percentage of an acre at the speed that you plan to run (Speed will make a difference on the amount of seed per acre) most of the time. Weigh the seed in the bag and calculate the seeding rate. Adjust the lever setting accordingly and retest. Really sounds more complicated than it is. Will take a few extra minutes when beginning, but well worth it to have the correct seeding rate. Patrick |
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ontario | thanks, what speed do you guys recommend for soybeans? |
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NW Washington | Check out one of the sites the web on how to set an calibrate a grain drill. Here is one from Penn State and there are others. http://extension.psu.edu/plants/crops/grains/small/production/calib...
Keep in mind that the seeding rates of grain drills are not very accurate, at least not like a corn planter. |
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Royal City, WA | I don't know about a Massey drill, but on the older John Deere fluted feed, you had to be careful which row unit you used to calibrate with. With the seeding rate set to zero, you could look to see which rows were indeed zero--there would be some that would still have some of the flute sticking out. On the John Deere, one could loosen the seed cups and move them over to set the fluted feed to zero. Some drills will have one half of the drill that seeds more than the other half, due to the "zero" being set differently. The other thing is when calibrating the drill, always go past the intended setting on the scale and then come back to the desired setting. There is usually some slop in the linkage of the slide mechanism and this helps to be consistent in setting it.
Prior to filling the hopper with seed, be sure that the adjusting mechanism moves easily by moving it through its full range a few times. This will ensure easier movement when the hopper has seed in it. I always catch a row on each side of the drill to ensure that both sides are planting evenly. If you don't want to have a skip in the field, just overlap a bit to cover where you did your calibration. If you don't have a convenient size bag, you can use a sock to catch the seed. Keep a record of your drill settings for each crop, noting the seed size (seeds/lb.) and it will help you in succeeding years when it comes time to calibrate. Just like row crops, the object is to get a certain seed spacing, and just because you catch the same weight of seed each year doesn't ensure that you will have the same spacing because the number of seeds per pound can vary quite a bit.
You ask about changing gears--you might have to depending on what you are planting and the rate. Some drills have different gear combinations for high vs. low rate planting. You can look at your chart and pick out your intended planting rate, and it will tell you what the gear arrangement needs to be. Also, some drills have little gates on each row that have to be moved to compensate for small seed (wheat) or large seed (soybeans, peas, etc.) Usually the chart will tell you what this setting should be. It would be really helpful if you had an operators manual for your drill.
Edited by Seed Grower 2/3/2014 00:00
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Setting seed drill rate
