Self-build your seedling equipment
Among all the farmers interviewed, nine have implemented practices allowing access to specific equipment (self-construction, sharing, rental, service) enabling rapid, early, and satisfactory establishment of cover crops.
Moreover, in this case, the organizational barrier is lifted by high work rates and the reduction in the number of operations needed to establish the cover crop. This simplification of establishment also reduces mechanization costs, notably fuel. Reducing equipment costs was also a motivation for most of them. In this group, four chose to self-construct equipment allowing cover crop seeding.
Common characteristics
More uniform cover crops
All surveyed farmers note a clear improvement in the cover crops produced, especially in terms of uniformity. They explain this phenomenon by an earlier emergence of the cover crop and better water conservation due to the absence of soil tillage.
Improvement from an economic and organizational perspective
Some examples of self-constructed seeders
The self-constructed seeders are based on a chisel and have been modified to suit the farmer's needs while limiting investment. This explains the different technical orientations taken and the choice of shares is a determining factor.Comparison
| Characteristics | Seeder 1 | Seeder 2 | Seeder 3 | Seeder 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Width (m) | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Shares | Type scalper | Flat (40 mm) | Thin type AFC | Thin type AFC |
| Number of shares | 19 | 23 | 29 | 23 |
| Row spacing (cm) | 21 | 17 | 17 | 17 |
| Number of beams | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Clearance (cm) | 63 | 52 | 69 | 70 |
| Lifting | Mounted | Mounted | Mounted | Semi-mounted |
| Distribution | Pneumatic | Pneumatic | Pneumatic | Mechanical |
| Hopper positioning | Rear | Rear | Front | Rear |
| Initial investment (€) | 2,350 | 3,500 | 9,500 | 7,500 |
| Establishment cost (€/ha) | 14 | 14 | 17 | 10 |
| Work rate (ha/h) | 3 | 3 | 3.5 | 3 |
Context: Aube
Advantages
- Weed management especially of perennials
- Tool versatility: stubble cultivation function
Limitations
- May require prior stubble cultivation if soil is too hard
- Water conservation comparable to stubble cultivation
- Mixing soil/residues
- Promotes regrowth emergence
- Difficult penetration in stony soil
Seeding depth control is done by the rear bar roller and two gauge wheels added at the front. The drawbacks of this seeder raised by the farmer are:
- The width (4 m, wide gauge for transport)
- The capacity of its hopper sometimes limiting (500kg) to limit the tool's weight
Context: Aube
Advantages
- Tool versatility: stubble cultivation, incorporation of green manures, seeding of main crops
Limitations
- Mixing soil/residues
- Promotes regrowth emergence
- Difficult penetration in stony soil + premature wear
- No gauge wheel: difficult depth control when lifting
Starting from a widened pig-tail chisel (3.30 m to 4 m), the farmer:
- Mounted an “Accord” hopper (purchase of a seeder) driven by a hydraulic PTO (lack of space for a driveshaft)
- Added teeth (11 initially, now 23 with 17 cm spacing)
- Added a bar roller to control depth with tractor lift
- Changed the shares from 50mm to 40mm wide
- Added new seed tubes (long enough to deliver seeds behind the share).
To improve his tool, he plans to add harrows to properly close the furrow and replace the bar roller with a “Springflex” type roller.
Context: Aisne
Advantages
- Better water conservation thanks to no soil tillage > “The thin share is the key to the seeder’s success.”
- Does not promote regrowth emergence
- Seed placement
- Maintains field bearing capacity
- Autonomy (1500 L)
- High clearance
Limitations
- No weed management
The farmer widened his 4-meter chisel for better work rate. To gain better clearance, a beam was added at the rear of the chisel which currently has 29 teeth arranged in 4 rows. He mounted a distribution column and seed tubes behind each tooth. 4 gauge wheels were installed (2 front and 2 rear) for better seeding depth control. The seeder now has 29 pig-tail teeth of 40mm, each equipped with a thin AFC-type share. The seeding spacing is therefore 17cm. Seed covering is ensured by chains located behind each tooth. The front hopper, also used for strip-till, allows better weight distribution and loading more seed (1500L) than if it were mounted on the seeder.
Context: Somme
Advantages
- Better water conservation thanks to no soil tillage
- Does not promote regrowth emergence
- Seed placement
- Maintains field bearing capacity
- High clearance
Limitations
- No weed management
The farmer had a 3-beam 4 m chisel on which he added a beam to improve clearance and reduce clogging. He then mounted the distribution of a mechanical seeder bought damaged (€1500). Consequently, as the seeder became too heavy to be lifted by the tractor's hitch, a roller axle was mounted at the rear to convert the tool into semi-mounted.
The beam spacing is 60cm. The seeder has 30 pig-tail teeth, with spacing between 17 and 22cm.
Source
Agro-Transfert Resources and Territories (2022). Self-construction of seeders for cover crop establishment, Project "Multifunctionality of cover crops between crops". Available at : https://cultivons-les-couverts.agro-transfert-rt.org/autoconstruction/index.html
