One-pass system with wide ribbon-style seeding, designed to handle any crop production system
DULUTH, Ga. (Oct. 3, 2012) — AGCO (NYSE:AGCO), Your Agriculture Company, a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, introduces the Sunflower® 9700 Series air till drill. New for 2013, the 9700 Series air till drill optimizes small-grain yield potential with its industry-exclusive ribbon-seeded planting style. Designed as a single-pass seeding system, the 9700 Series drill opens the soil, slices out weeds, places seed and fertilizer, and then finishes the job by properly packing the soil to preserve moisture and optimize seed-to-soil contact. It is built to handle any production system, from no-till to conventional. The drill’s 5-inch-wide seedbed is the widest possible that is available from a packed-row drill, encouraging plants to develop stronger stems, superior roots and maximum yields.
“The ribbon-seeding style of the 9700 Series was long ago proven to produce yields that consistently outperform conventional row drills,” says Tom Draper, Sunflower seeding and tillage product marketing manager. “By pairing the SF9730 60-foot model, which is our largest, with a Sunflower 9900 Series commodity cart, farmers will have a unit that will cover many acres quickly and really help optimize their productivity and yields.”
The new 9700 Series drill is available in 40-, 50- and 60-foot seeding widths that deliver one-pass seeding and several convenient fertilizer placement options. With 10-inch-row spacing, the drill places seed in a 5-inch-wide ribbon, with only 5 inches between rows. The heavy frame and wide packing wheels are designed to deliver proper seed packing to help farmers achieve uniform emergence of small-grain crops.
The frame of each 9700 Series drill is built heavy and durable, weighing more than competitive drills to help ensure the row units penetrate even the toughest of soil conditions. To provide uniform seeding depth and minimize depth variation across the width of the machine caused by passing over clods or ridges, the frame and wings rest on walking tandems. The drill also is designed to ensure uniform seedbed packing across the machine’s width regardless of field obstacles, as packing wheels are mounted on walk beams, with every walk beam separately spring-mounted to the drill frame. The wide packing wheels ensure the best possible firming of the seedbed to conserve soil moisture and enhance uniform crop emergence.
Easy depth control, multiple fertilizer options
Setting a uniform seeding depth is easy to do by leveling the frame of the 9700 drill. Depth-control collars on the packer wheel-frame lift cylinders make it easy to see that each cylinder is at the correct depth, and re-phasing lift cylinders ensure that the drill returns to level after raising and lowering.
Depending on the choice of seed openers, fertilizer can be placed with the seed, or split between the seed ribbon and below or to the side of the seed, for maximum fertilizer-placement flexibility. The drill’s 650-pound trip-spring shanks help seed openers stay firmly in place and allow opener assemblies to trip over fixed obstacles without disrupting row alignment.
Optional equipment includes disc levelers for a smooth field finish regardless of field speed; tillage coulters to slice through heavy residue; and wireless seed tube blockage sensors. The machine also may be equipped to apply anhydrous ammonia.
For more information about this new air till drill and the full line of seeding equipment from Sunflower, see your Sunflower dealer or visit www.sunflowermfg.com.
