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  • From: pam AT twinoaks.org
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Market-farming] Re: Seeders
  • Date: Fri, 03 Jan 2003 17:39:36 -0500

We have both a walk-behind Earthway seeder
and a walk-behind Planet Junior. Each has its
limitations. We leave our Earthway set for
carrots, and use it only for that, and clover
(same plate). This makes carrot sowing very
quick and easy, and as it's something we do
frequently, speed and ease are important. We
do have to thin the carrots. I believe, though I
have not tested it out, that the more expensive
seeders sow more accurately and involve less
thinning. The only problem we've had with the
Earthway is the belt stretching and slipping, but
as it's immediately obvious, that's not so
serious.
Now, the Planet Junior: it's much more
sturdy and much more expensive. It's much
more complicated. Changing the plates/disks
seems to require three hands and the neck of a
giraffe! You have to engage the gears, the pin
by the hopper and the cam going through the
plate, all at the same time. I confess it reduced
me to tears at first! It can't be used if the soil is
too wet or too fluffy (eg just rototilled). If you do
use it with wet or fluffy soil it clogs up and you
might not find out till your seeds don't emerge!
We added a paint-pen mark on the hopper side
to show the "open" position, because if the pull
lever gets at all bent, it's a bit hard to tell. The
machine is designed to be walked behind, and
using it for inner rows on raised beds requires
either adding a crossbar with bungey cords, or
tilting the machine slightly. Either way, once
started, don't stop. Keep up a moderate pace
so you don't bog down! We use our Planet
Junior mostly for spinach, beets and kale. It
won't do beans or corn or other large seeds. It
is a very durable machine, and Johnny's sells
spare parts, if you should ever need them.
I hope these notes from my experience
help others deciding what to buy.
Pam Dawling, Twin Oaks Community,
Louisa, Virginia




  • [Market-farming] Re: Seeders, pam, 01/03/2003

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