FINESSING FORAGE
Rob Wrenall, Farmer, Lancashire
“It has improved and sped up the process immeasurably. I can control everything using the tractor’s ISOBUS and, whilst the mower is heavy, it is very easy to operate with all the controls, including the merger belts, on one screen.
STRIP TILL CUTS COSTS
Chris Platt, Farmer, Yorkshire
''I can easily alter the row spacings from 750mm to 500mm. I have found this increases yield because the crop is competing for space, but still dies off in time for harvest. In the season to come we are going to use 12 rows rather than 8. This will make it slower, but we will still do more in the same time. 12 outlets will make it easier to regulate the slurry too because we will have more outlets to apply into.”
PERFORMER PERFECT FOR MIN-TILL FARM
Matt Harrison, Farmer, North Yorkshire
““It is so much better built than others we have had here. At around seven tonnes it is built like a tank, and nothing will get in its way. It is the perfect fit for the farm and a pleasure to operate,” he concludes.
FEEDING FOCUS KEY TO HERD PERFORMANCE
Scott Kingston, Farmer, Gloucestershire
“The mixing capability is important for all rations, but particularly for the transition diet where we’re including a significant amount of straw,” adds Scott. “We don’t use a separate straw-grinder but instead use the Profile to chop and mix the straw into the transition diet. ''
NEW SPRAYER IS LONG TERM INVESTMENT
Rob Holmes, Farmer, Derbyshire
“Other key requirements were aluminium booms and a steering axle, and I wanted auto shut-off, automatic boom height adjustment and auto wash-out. The Metris was the only trailed 24-metre sprayer available at that time that offered all these options.''
FC 3115 D Vertical Fold Mower
Richard and Will Venables, Farmers / Contractors, Cheshire
For farmer / contractor Richard Venables, maneuverability was essential when looking for a new mower. Here's what he has to say on the FC 3115 D vertical fold mower.
MAKING THE PERFECT HAY BALE
David Wilkes, Farmer, Staffordshire
“The key difference with this newer model is the Headland Lift Control feature, which ensures all the rotors are lifted fully out of the crop at the headlands, thereby ensuring these areas remain evenly spread and are not over tedded. It is easy to pre-set the rotor height and speed, so operating at the headlands is effectively automated and the whole operation is a lot easier. The tedder is also very quick to fold into its transport position and is very compact when folded, and that’s important as we do need to move between fields quite a lot.”
PRECISION DRILLING GIVING MAIZE THE BEST POSSIBLE START
Martin Evans, John Roberts & Sons and Steven Edwards , Contractors, Shropshire
“The section control is another major benefit, not only saving seed but also eliminating the problems caused for the harvester by overlapping rows. Row-finding technology that we have on our forager works much better where fields have been drilled with section control.”
PLOUGHING KEY TO EFFECTIVE ARABLE ROTATION
Stewart Cavers, Farmer, Crosshall
“We cannot work the cover cropped ground until after the 1st January, but such is the improvement in the soil structure that it really is a doddle to plough once we do get on,” adds Stewart. “We have used the min till drill after cover crops, if they’ve been grazed, but generally speaking I’d say that having cover crops in the rotation is another good reason for having the option to plough.”
MOON LANDING MAIZE MAZE SHOWCASES PRECISION FARMING CAPABILITIES
Michael Tomlinson, Farmer, Staffordshire
“In previous years we've drilled the field twice, in two directions, at 75cm row widths, and then the pattern has been marked out using GPS and a lot of canes, with the paths being hoed out manually,” he explains. “For this special year, we took the design and had software written that would enable the drill to create the pattern. We set the drill at 37.5cm row widths and used approximately double the normal seed rate. With autosteer, precise electronic section control on the drill, and RTK satellite guidance accurate to within 1cm, we achieved an incredible level of accuracy and a spectacular result.”
DRILLING FLEXIBILITY UNDERPINS PROGRESS TOWARDS GREENER FARMING
Julian and Scott Hopwood, Farmers, Vale of York
“We have a Kuhn Venta 4030 pneumatic drill mounted on a Kuhn HR power harrow and this combination has been a real game-changer when it comes to establishment flexibility,” he adds. “With the disc coulter system on the drill, we can operate in a wide range of conditions, from minimum tilled to ploughed ground, with great control of seeding depth from the tractor cab. The quality of the establishment is very visible, with crop covers being complete and very even.
OUTPUT, PATTERN AND SPREAD IS INCREDIBLY ACCURATE
James Morton, Farmers, Helpston
“It is a very easy machine to use and one of its best features, is the auto on/off section control coming in and out of the gores. I am very pleased that I went for the Kuhn Spreader and I can’t wait to see the difference as the crops grow''
MEETING THE NEED FOR QUALITY FORAGE
John Trefor Owen, Contractor, Anglesey
“Having the option to bind bales with the film, as an alternative to net, is a game-changer for our customers,” says John. “Once they have experienced film binding with this machine, they are reluctant to go back to any other kind of system.”
Making the cut - FC 3115
Elgan Bowen, Contractor, South Wales
“A new mower conditioner, due for launch at Grassland & Muck 2020, has already proven its worth as a prototype for one busy south Wales contractor, reports Luke James."
Neil Dallyn : Contractor of the Year 2019
Neil Dallyn, Contractor, West Sussex
“Kuhn machines are built well and tend to be long-lasting,” he says, “and they hold their value when its time to trade them in.”
ACHIEVING THE OPTIMUM WILT
Nick Keyser, Contractor, Gloucestershire
“I wanted a mounted machine with a good working width,” he says, “and this machine offers that as well as being relatively light and compact for transport.”
TAKING PRECISION MAIZE DRILLING TO A NEW LEVEL
S. C. Marsh Ltd, Contractor, Dorset
“We were extremely pleased with the seed placement achieved by the drill and this has followed through in terms of crop performance.”
TIMING CRUCIAL FOR GRASSLAND WEED CONTROL
Chris Paddock, Farmer, Shropshire
“We have a modern machine that is quick to attach and simple to operate, and has the right level of technology for our situation to ensure we are doing the job efficiently and accurately.”
BREATH EASIER WITH CLEAN AIR
Dan Humphries, Vet
Modern methods save time and labour, and may use less straw, but the downside is the risk of airborne particles – something that can impact on the health of cattle and anyone working in that environment.
LUCERNE ADDING VALUE IN ORGANIC SYSTEM
Dick Roper, Farm Manager
Dick attributes some of the success the farm has had with silaging the lucerne to a mower conditioner bought with his legume crops in mind. The Kuhn FC 3160 TCR is a trailed centre pivot machine fitted with a rubber roller conditioner.
MAKING FULL USE OF STRAW
Matt Cleland, Farmer, Herefordshire
“We use wheat straw for feeding and aim to chop it down to around three inches,” says Matt. “It takes about 20 minutes to mix a load that will feed 180 – 200 cows. There’s usually enough time to do the bedding down whilst a load is mixing, so the whole operation is pretty efficient.”
HARDENED PLOUGH POINTS HELP EASE BUSY WORKSHOP'S SEASONAL WORKLOAD
Matthew Tong, Machinery and Workshop Manager, Shrewsbury
“With the 7-furrow plough capable of working 35-40 acres per day, and the 5-furrow machine able to turn 25 acres, we were changing points every couple of days,” Matthew continues. “And with each set of points taking up to an hour and a half to change, each plough was incurring a lot of downtime at one of the busiest times of the year when there’s a lot of other machinery coming in and out of the workshop.”
SOIL HEALTH BONUS FROM COST CUTTING SOLUTION
Chirs Marchment, Farmer, Hampshire
“We’ve now reduced the cost of wearing metal down to around £5/ha and our diesel use for cultivations is in the region of £5 - £7/ha,” he says. “These cost reductions are vital, but its been just as beneficial to see the improvement in the overall workability of the land.”
MOWING REGIME KEY TO SAFETY OF AIR TRAVEL
Roy Cowie, Contractor, Abeerdeenshire
“We offer truly localised services, with everything carried out by our own staff and with our own equipment,”
SILAGE MAKING SWITCH HELPS BOOST MILK FROM FORAGE
David and Robert Veitch, Farmers, Cumnock
“We offer truly localised services, with everything carried out by our own staff and with our own equipment,”
DRILL UPGRADE HELPS TIMELY ESTABLISHMENT IN WET AUTUMN
John and James Dakin, Farmers, Cheshire
“Cheshire-based farmers, John and James Dakin, have increased drilling productivity across their 800 acres of arable land by upgrading to a wider combination drill which is equipped with a front seed hopper for improved weight distribution and reduced soil compaction.
FILM BINDING AIDS FORAGE QUALITY
Mike Hughes, Farmer, Haverfordwest
For farmer and contractor Mike Hughes, having a baler-wrapper combination with film-binding capability is as much about forage quality as any of the other advantages that this technology offers.
MIXER BOOSTS BEEF FINISHING EFFICIENCY
James Moody, Farmer, Hampshire
“The hardened steel knives have made all the difference,” adds James, “as the mixing performance is significantly better and I’ve not had to touch them in 12 months. To be able to mix the ration quickly and feed it out at the optimum composition is vital to maintaining operational efficiency and the performance of the cattle.”
INVESTMENT IN TECHNOLOGY BRINGS CONTROL AND EFFICIENCY
Rob John, Farmer, Cardiff
“Now, with the FBP baler-wrapper combination, we have full control of the process and can work quickly and efficiently to ensure we maximise the quality of the forage, whether that’s haylage for the horses or silage for the cattle.
NEW DRILL CENTRAL TO SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS
Martin Lines, Farmer, Cambridgeshire
“The Aurock ticked every box on my list, and others I hadn’t considered,” said Martin. “No other drill I know can be had with an integral crimp roller. One thing I’d been seeking was a drill that could cope with cover crop destruction, pulverising it to create ‘soil armour’ but without moving soil, stopping both rain impact on soil and evaporation from it, while also suppressing weeds. On the Aurock it can be put in/out of work as required, with hydraulic downforce for greater effect.
