Seed drill brings air to the mix

With a frame made from 150 x 150mm section steel, the unit weighs about seven tonnes so shouldn’t have problems penetrating in tough conditions. 

Connection to the tractor is by a heavy-duty cross shaft connecting to the lower links and incorporating an over-dimensioned swivel joint. 

Power requirement is 160-220hp depending on operating conditions and terrain.

A secondary frame above the drawbar area carries twin 1300L seed and fertiliser hoppers. Ahead of this sits the hydraulically driven air fan and oil cooler package. 

The twin tank layout also offers the ability to use the drill in a seed-only configuration, achieved easily by running the metering system at a half rate setting. That metering system is powered electrically and uses hardware from Amazone, with interchangeable metering cartridges to achieve seed/fertiliser rates from 0.8 to 300kgs/ha. 

Calibration is done by fitting seed trays beneath the metering units, weighing the contents and inputting the results to an Artemis RDS controller that adjusts automatically to achieve the target seed rate. 

From the metering units, material is transported by air via large diameter piping to twin distribution heads mounted high on the rear frame to ensure pipe runs to the seeding element are straight, so eliminating the risk of blockages. Machine control can also be done with an optional ISOBUS control system if required.

The drilling module of the new Enviro sees a 406mm diameter wavy-edged ‘turbo’ disc up front. 

This is followed by twin 400mm diameter discs that form a neat, V-shaped slot into which the seed is deposited. The double disc system is suspended in a parallelogram linkage with individual adjustment giving up to 120kg downward pressure. 

Seeding discs are followed by an adjustable rubber press wheel that pushes the seed to the bottom of the cut to ensure good soil-to-seed contact and promote even germination.

The twin hopper layout is accessed by ladder to a loading /inspection platform that can be optionally extended to access the third and fourth hopper areas. These secondary hoppers sit rearwards of the main tanks and can broadcast small seeds or slug baits during the main drilling operation. The upper frame is also configured to accept an optional hydraulic crane for bulk filling.

The Enviro ATD is available in a 3m working width, with the option of 115mm (27 runs) or 125mm (25 runs) metre row spacing and the option of 150mm in the future. Larger machines of 4.5 and 6.0m working width will be added to the range soon.