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  • From: bcluton AT aol.com
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Transplanters
  • Date: Thu, 08 Jan 2009 10:44:50 -0500

Hi Andy,

I just refurbished and started messing around with an old MT unit last season on some plantings.  It's far from perfect in our setting but would probably do much better on your sandy loam and with smaller plugs.  

Never-the-less a few observations likely still apply.  The shoe and the packing wheels work much better on "flowable soils".  On our silt and clay loam the shoe and packing wheels can certainly cause some compaction when the ground is moist.  Conversely if the ground is really dry it doesn't always flow really well...meaning... A) the front shoe rides up and down a bit more than I'd like and B) the soil doesn't flow back into the furrow as well and the packing wheels leave the center of the furrow without soil.  

This said I think with some tweaking and the right situation these transplanters can work really well for some crops.  They certainly have been working really well for a long time.(and parts, etc. are easy to come by)  I think the newer style "merry go round" drop setters look pretty cool and would be worth a look.

My last thought regarding a front coulter is that I'd love to put one on our transplanter to help deal with field trash.

Good luck,

Brian


-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Shoemaker <wshoemak AT illinois.edu>
To: Market Farming <market-farming@li sts.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Thu, 8 Jan 2009 9:35 am
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Transplanters

I've only used the Mechanical Transplanter model 1000 single-row unit, but the 
"drive wheel" out in front of the shoe is very wide and knobby. It's purpose is 
to firm up the soil and not compact it. We have a prairie silt loam soil with 
about 3.5% organic matter. It can crust bad at times but we've never had 
compaction difficulties using the transplanter.

Bill

---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 07 Jan 2009 22:23:31 -0500
>From: Andy Fellenz <fellenz AT fltg.net>  
>Subject: [Market-farming] Transplanters  
>To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
>
>Yet another question on the carousel style transplanters.  In comparing 
>the Mechanical Transplanters to other manufacturers, such as Holland and 
>RJ I see that Holland and RJ include a coulter in front of the planting 
>shoe, while the Mechanical doesn't have the coulter.  I have also been 
>told that the drive wheel on all of these planters can pack the soil and 
>make it difficult for the shoe to cut a good furrow. 
>
>Does anyone have comparative experience with these planters, especially 
>in a prepared sandy loam?
>
>Andy
>______________________________________
_________
>Market-farming mailing list
>Market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
>http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/market-farming
>
William H Shoemaker, UI-NRES
Sr Research Specialist, Food Crops
St Charles Horticulture Research Center
535 Randall Road  St Charles, IL  60174
630-584-7254; FAX-584-4610
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