The choice of precision drills available to farmers has just been added to with the launch by Sky Agriculture of its Sonic drill.
Over the last few years, the company has taken a long hard look at its business and the future of farming and has applied itself to developing techniques for less input-dependable cropping.
The new drill reflects this renewed ethos and is the result of several years’ development, being hailed as the optimal alliance of technology, agronomy, and adaptability.
Precise placement
Sky Agriculture highlights the precision of the drill as being its major feature and quotes a figure of 99% placement accuracy even at speeds exceeding 12kph.
This, we are told, is due to a finely tuned vacuum system that guarantees optimal seed positioning without bounce or projection, no matter what the crop.
The retractable press wheel has been designed to offer additional operational flexibility.
It can produce a hydraulic downforce of up to 350kg per row unit, ensuring stability and penetration across a whole range of difficult conditions.
In addition, there is an optional load transfer system which utilises the weight of the tractor to further enhance efficiency across all soil types.
Choice of row widths
The implement is fitted with what Sky Agriculture calls RowMotion technology, which enables row spacing to be changed in the field rather than it being a laborious task back in the workshop.
It is this flexibility the company believes paves the way for tailored cropping strategies and diverse rotations, supporting more resilient farming systems.
Another innovation is the reduced angle of the double discs – 9° compared to the usual 12°. This is said to minimise soil disturbance and so reduce weed emergence and preserve spring soil moisture.
Premium drill from Sky
The Sonic comes with a high level of standard equipment, which includes floating rotary residue managers on parallelogram discs for direct seeding along with dual-distribution micro-granulators intended for companion cropping.
Full ISOBUS compatibility is included with section control, variable rate sowing, and joystick command, along with a choice of six types of closing wheel.
It is available in telescopic versions (6 to 9 rows) and folding versions (8 to 12 rows) with selected row units capable of being hydraulically lifted, allowing planting with only a partial number of rows.
As with all manufacturers, Sky Agriculture is intent on presenting its latest product as a great step forward, and in this case the company does appear to be focussing on a form of farming that embraces a much wider variety of crops in a bid to improve soil health.
