More versatile strip tillage cultivator

• Grange Machinery has extended the versatility of the Strip-Till Preparator with wider working widths and a range of options to tailor the operation to suit conditions and crop requirements

The Strip-Till Preparator was designed with the help of customer feedback to improve soil preparation for the establishment of maize, sugar beet and oilseed rape while preserving soil moisture and working a wider range of conditions.

Extensive testing of prototypes on-farm over two seasons led to a range of modifications and the Strip-Till Preparator went into full production in 2023.

This painstaking development process has produced a machine with a highly effective cultivation layout.

Grange Machinery’s Managing Director Rhun Jones explains: “Three independent rows of 450mm diameter cultivation discs can be hydraulically adjusted whilst working in harmony with our low disturbance tine and point, which creates a perfectly cultivated row that is ready to plant into. The seedbed is then finished with a zonal Guttler prism roller ring which breaks down any clods that have flowed through the system as well as consolidating the row in readiness for a planter.”

A true one-pass cultivation system, the Strip-Till Preparator can be used immediately before planting or at the convenience of the operator, with no need to ‘freshen up’ ahead of the planter.

“The Strip-Till Preparator provides an intensive cultivation in the row, which preserves soil moisture and facilitates drilling into the perfect environment for successful establishment,” comments Mr Jones. “The discs are uniquely adjustable from the cab for varying soil types and conditions.”

Options include the application of granular or liquid fertiliser down the low disturbance tine, offering valuable starter nutrition.

To adapt to different crops and conditions, the Strip-Till Preparator can now be specified in 0.45m, 0.5m, 0.6m, 0.75m and 0.8m row spacing and with either shear bolt or hydraulic autoreset leg protection.

For the establishment of larger acreages and to work with more powerful tractors, a 6m version of the Strip-Till Preparator has been added alongside 3m, 4m and 4.5m models.

A 6m Strip-Till Preparator will be unveiled at the LAMMA Show, to be held at the NEC Birmingham from 17-18th January.

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