Wide-working, shallow-operating, high-speed, and with a low power requirement – not words usually associated with a plough. Yet speak to the small number of companies who have developed specific shallow-working designs, and they’ll point to a number of reasons why these are all characteristics of their implements and thus why they’re suited to minimum tillage, particularly on thin soils.
Kverneland was a pioneer in the sector, introducing its Ecomat shallow plough in 2001 following development during the 1990s. Initial uptake, however, was steady rather than spectacular, says the company’s plough specialist, Adam Burt.
“If you’re growing combinable crops on shallow soils, ploughing down at 200-250mm/8-10in may be unnecessary if the soil structure is good,” he suggests.
“There are farmers on thin ground in particular who may be finding that min-till cultivators aren’t burying weed seeds sufficiently, and who want to return to inversion but without the full depth of a traditional plough and its bodies,” says Adam.
In addition, he says shallow ploughing also suits some farms with vegetable crops in the rotation who want a quick turnaround after harvest. “Topping and mulching material ahead of an Ecomat pass can provide good incorporation of post-harvest vegetable matter into the top few inches where it can break down more rapidly.
“In many post-cereal cases, a depth of 125-150mm/5-6in is perfectly sufficient for inversion and burial of weed seeds. So for a number of years we worked on a plough and body design that would make this easy and initially launched the Ecomat as a six- to eight-furrow model designed for operating at 15-18cm/6-7in, with the tractor running in the furrow,” he explains.
“But tyre technology was evolving rapidly at that time, and while we sold a handful of these in-furrow units, as tractors and tyres got bigger it was a struggle for the latter to fit into the furrow bottom.”
In early 2023, the company addressed the issue with the launch of an on-land version of the Ecomat, making tyre size not just less of an issue, but also a distinct advantage in that the furrow bottom isn’t compacted.
Operating on-land, compaction can be managed by using tractors with much wider tyres using lower pressures than those typically used in-furrow. Like the in-furrow version, it’s a fully-mounted unit despite its eight- or ten-furrow configuration, made possible by the smaller, closer-spaced mouldboards with 65cm point-to-point clearance.
For on-road travel, Kverneland incorporates its Trailer Transport Solution, a design whereby the top link is detached for transport and the plough then pivots behind the headstock to allow the plough, supported at the rear by the depth/transport wheel, to be trailed and to track true behind the tractor.
“The principle remains the same,” says Adam. “The design is a blend of plough and cultivator, turning over the soil surface without working as deeply as a traditional plough. With shallow bodies pulled at high speed – up to 10km/hr – the Ecomat inverts the top few cm of soil to provide effective mechanical weed control. The faster you travel, the better the results tend to be,” he explains.
Because the bodies are smaller and shallow-working, Adam says there’s less pressure on the bodies and the Ecomat requires less power per furrow to pull than a traditional plough, with the sort of 250hp tractor common today on many mid-large arable units being sufficient for a 10-furrow model.
“While that model weighs only 2400kg, tractor lift capacity has to be at least 7600kg because of the length of the plough – it uses the same 7m beam and frame as our 7f mounted LO reversible. That’s well within the capabilities of most 250hp tractors, though.
“And with a lighter plough working at a shallower depth, it’s possible to operate at around 10km/hr. Covering 4.1m in every pass, this means the 10-furrow model can turn over as much as 4ha/hr depending on factors such as field size and condition,” says Adam.
“The latest version can work down to 18cm where required, but as shallowly as 6cm with similar standards of inversion. And shallow, high speed, low draft operation means high workrates per hour and per litre of diesel. Correctly adjusted for the conditions, it’s possible to achieve 95% inversion at a depth of 9cm, achieving far better results than a one-pass cultivator.”
Shallow ploughing works particularly well on thin and light soils, suggests Adam, and short plastic bodies make ideal fitments in such conditions, he says.
“They also contribute further to the low weight of the Ecomat in relation to the width it can cover with each pass. With furrow width mechanically adjustable from 30-50cm/12-20in, working widths from 3-5m are possible depending on the number of plough bodies and the furrow width selected.”
The latest Ecomat updates have been designed to improve the implement’s ability to handle higher levels of trash, says Adam. Where point-to-point clearance was previously 55cm, this has been extended to 65cm to improve performance in trashy conditions.
“Underbeam clearance has been extended from 70cm to 80cm for the same reason. The bodies fitted remain unchanged though, being the short, twisted Ecomat type that ensures full inversion of the furrow slice with no requirement for skimmers. They can be supplied either in steel or, for sticky soils, plastic.”
The company has also reintroduced an Ecomat model for in-furrow use. Available in six-, seven- and eight-furrow versions, like other Ecomat ploughs it’s equipped with hydraulic vari-width, allowing furrow widths to be adjusted from 25-45cm/10-18in. Auto-reset leg protection is provide by six springs, with the option of an HD spring pack for tougher conditions. Further options include Kverneland’s integral Packomat press and the TTS trailer transport solution.
“This isn’t a big market yet, with Ecomat sales of around 20-30 units annually in the UK in recent years,” says Adam.
“But increasing numbers of farmers who’ve been min-tilling for a while and are facing grassweed issues are considering the concept – even among those who are no fans of ploughing. That’s the key, though – the Ecomat is more a full-inversion shallow-working cultivator than a plough,” he comments.
The original article was written by Martin Rickatson for Crop Production Magazine and can be found here: Ploughing min-till: Shallow approach - Crop Production Magazine (cpm-magazine.co.uk)
Email Adam Burt, Kverneland soil specialist: info-uksales@kvernelandgroup.com
