“My old Kverneland i-drill seeder had been a good bit of kit, and it was just time to update,” explains Andy. “The Kverneland i-drill was an ex-demo model bought in 2011, and had done us really well.”
“I was keeping an eye out for a good used replacement, but had no luck finding anything,” he says. “These are a popular combination, so my best option was to buy new, with a two-year warranty. And when Netherton Tractors, a local full-line dealer, took on Kverneland machines earlier this year, the deal was done. They do know their stuff, and the support we’ve had has been great.”
With a mix of spring barley, oats, and rye, plus some contracting for neighbouring farms, Andy drills about 300 acres/year and chose to remain with a 3m outfit for the convenience of easy road transport around his base at Brunty Farm.
With his latest combination, he opted for a grain-only outfit from Netherton Tractors, having previously used his Kverneland i-drill seeder with a Kverneland DF1 front tank for fertiliser.
“I’ve ditched the front tank option this time around, having bought a Kverneland Exacta TL GEOSPREAD fertiliser spreader to update my fertiliser spreading on 27m tramlines,” he says. “The Kverneland spreader is fantastic. It’s so accurate and so productive that it is now much quicker and easier to drill without fertiliser. My forward speed is easily 8kph with my 6155R tractor.”
Andy has high praise for the Kverneland drill’s ELDOS electric seed metering unit.
“It’s very easy to change rollers, simple to calibrate and also very convenient to reach, being under the left-hand side of the hopper,” he says. “And with ISOBUS, it’s plug-and-play, with an extended terminal in my tractor cab keeping an eye on the drill.”
With most of Andy’s drilling on ploughed land, he operates with a front press.
“Seed depth and germination have been great,” he says. “Plough, power harrow and drill is a proven process with crop establishment. And with this latest combination, I now have the potential for variable rate seeding.”
