| 93 Spencer says swedes are by far the majority of the work nowadays and in most cases, his clients are enjoying at least a 50% increase in yield. RURAL SERVICES » Precision Direct Drilling “Farmers can shy off because of the price of expensive pelletised seed and the expensive drill to drill it in. It can seem like a lot up front but the returns make it money well spent, and cheaper than throwing it on with a bulky.” of precision planting for swedes but weren’t keen to go back to cultivation, he decided to have a crack at modifying his planter for direct drilling, which he did with promising results. The following season a local strip tilling business had their strip tiller blow up and no parts were reaadily available to fix it. Customers had bought pelletised swede seeds, which the seed companies wouldn’t take back, so enter Spencer with his modified ‘precision direct drill’ to their rescue. After that he started looking at different row widths and he modified his drill again to allow for 375mm rows, instead of 500mm. “That allowed us to increase the plant population, whilst giving them more space and a quick canopy closure to maximise sun and moisture exposure. This came with some down side though, the machine was only 2.25m wide and worked around 6kph. Precision Direct Drilling got busier, Spencer took on a staff member, Hamish Golden, and between them, they worked 24 hours a day for three weeks to keep up. By 2019, Precision Direct Drilling needed an additional, bigger machine so Spencer started picking brains and collecting equipment and parts and built a 12-row machine 4.5m wide, on 375mm rows. This was a major turning point, equipped with the latest technology from AgLeader, Precision Planting, and Harvest International. Utilising hydraulic downforce and electric drives, this new planter left a tidier stand at 10kph. 2022 was another big step forward. With workload increasing, Hamish came back on side. This time operating his own planter, an 8 row, with the latest Kinze and Agleader equipment, with a top speed in a smooth paddock of up to 15kph. Hydraulically adjustable between 375mm and 500mm rows, this drill is capable of direct drilling as well as conventional precision planting to satisfy any customers’ demands. Spencer designed and sold this drill to Hamish, who continues to subcontract to Precision Direct Drilling while also growing his own business as Golden Ag. Spencer says swedes are by far the majority of the work nowadays and in most cases, his clients are enjoying at least a 50% increase in yield, with many doubling their yield. “The key driver here is the cost per kg of dry matter is very low. Farmers can shy off because of the price of expensive pelletised seed and the expensive drill to drill it in. It can seem like a lot up front but the returns make it money well spent, and cheaper than throwing it on with a bulky.” Proud to be part of Precision Direct Drilling’s business. Proudly supporting Precision Direct Drilling At McCulloch + Partners we are a local business run by local people. We pride ourselves on being friendly, accessible and experienced accounting specialists no matter the industry you’re in. Mark Jordan, Partner p: 03 218 6179 e: Mark.jordan@mcp.co.nz w: www.mcp.co.nz
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