Design, development and evaluation of deep soil volume loosener-cum-fertilizer applicator

Abstract

An equipment was designed and developed for deep soil volume loosening, fertilizer metering with deep placement and clod crushing with minimum disturbance at the level of a field. Deep soil volume loosening unit consisted of a pair of specially designed V-shaped tines mounted on a rectangular frame and positioned exactly behind the tractor rear wheels. The V-shaped tines could deform the soil and place it at almost same location without inversion, thereby maintaining original level of the field after soil loosening. The fertilizer placement unit consisted of two fertilizer boxes, each of 75 kg capacity with independent metering system and a ground drive wheel for power transmission. Metered quantity of fertilizer (250 to 1000 kg.ha-1) could be placed in soil with four inverted-T openers with attachment for fertilizer conveying.Two floating armed spiked roller clod crushing units were positioned behind each V-shaped tine for soil pulverization and consolidation of tilled soil for moisture conservation.Laboratory and field evaluations indicated that the developed equipment performed its intended functions with coefficient of uniformity of more than 94% for fertilizer application rates up to 1,000 kg.ha-1. The equipment was designed for performing general tillage in laser levelled fields, but can be used in row crop cultivation,especially for sugarcane ratoon management, as it could perform all the desired operations in a single pass.