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Slideshow: Precision Planting launched the latest version of 20/20 SeedSense and the new SmartFirmer for 2018. What new information is at your fingertips? And more importantly, what can you do with all that data?
Every new planting season is a clean slate.
“You only get 40 or 50 chances to do this,” says Green Valley, Ill., farmer Mark Schleder. “And you try to do it right those 40 or 50 times.”
How does Schleder stay on point? He uses every piece of information available, including a real-time look at soil temperature, furrow moisture, planter ride, organic matter, furrow cleanliness, population, downforce, starter fertilizer consistency, singulation and ground contact — down to the row — with Precision Planting’s SmartFirmer and 20/20 SeedSense monitor. For the inaugural season, on his 24-row planter, Schleder installed SmartFirmers on rows 4, 11, 14 and 21 for a furrow-deep look every 15 feet; he kept Keeton Seed Firmers on the remaining row units.
So far, Schleder says the peace of mind alone has made the investment worthwhile.
“Everyone keeps talking about soil temperature,” he says. “I can tell you exactly what the soil temperature is — in the furrow.” Schleder waited for soil temperatures to reach at least 50 degrees F under 2-inch bare soils for 12 hours a day before pulling the planting trigger. After five days of fieldwork, from April 27 to May 1, SmartFirmer soil readings went from 46 degrees to 56 degrees.
What about SmartFirmer’s accuracy? “It’s right on the money,” Schleder says, noting the air temperature matches SmartFirmer’s temperature readings when the sensors are aboveground.
With every pass, Schleder keeps an eye on soil temperature, moisture, clean furrow, good ride and ground contact indicators. He is confident his 41st season is off to a strong start.
“It’s knowing you’re doing your job right,” Schleder says. “It’s an amazing feeling to know something right is going on, and it’s not one of those things you’re worried about.”
Want a close-up view from Schleder’s tractor seat? Check out this slideshow for a look at various data points and how he plans to use them.
BRING ON THE DATA
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Mark Schleder’s yield data for his Green Valley, Ill., farm dates back to 1978. “I’m one of those guys that loves data,” he says, adding that he writes his own prescriptions for variable-rate planting populations, nitrogen applications and irrigation.
20/20 VIEW
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The new 20/20 SeedSense (Gen 3) monitor gives a real-time look at population, singulation, downforce, vacuum pressure, liquid application and skips — down to the row. SmartFirmer’s sensors pull organic matter, soil temperatures, furrow moisture and residue readings. The green background color means all systems are go, while yellow or red indicates an issue, such as planting too fast and impacting singulation.
ZOOM IN
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What’s going on with Row 6? The new Gen 3’s larger screen allows for more information and controls in one spot, including metrics from the SmartFirmer sensors.
WHAT’S UP BELOW?
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Schleder installed SmartFirmers on rows 4, 11, 14 and 21. Depending on the selected monitor view, farmers can focus on SmartFirmer details including real-time furrow moisture; clean furrow, or how much residue is in the seed trench; and soil temperature. “I watch that screen a lot because it’s new and provides a lot of information,” Schleder says. “I really like the clean furrow and the uniform furrow options. It gives me an opportunity to see inside that furrow that I couldn’t see before.” Schleder says the clean furrow and seed contact indicators are a good way to gauge tillage practices. He leaves some residue behind in his sandy soils to help boost organic matter, but he can “clean it up” if the SmartFirmers signal uniformity or clean furrow issues.
TARGET ZONE
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The SmartFirmer sensors track soil moisture and temperature variation across the field without having to stop and hand-check seeding depth. Schleder says soil moisture and temperatures were fairly consistent at a 2-inch planting depth, but the organic matter dropped from 2.7% to 2.4% on sandier hills.
FIELD REPORT
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The new 20/20 has a field counter that shows acres planted, units used and start/stop times. You can add details such as average organic matter to the view.
HOLD UP
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Population counts dropped on rows 3 and 24, indicating a problem. Schleder says a quick “jiggle” usually does the trick when the planter vacuums clog. The 20/20 flags other issues, including downforce, skips, doubles, speed, singulation and spacing. “The idea is to keep the screen completely green,” he says. A slight move from 5 mph to 7 mph dropped singulation and good ride readings from green to yellow, indicating it was time to slow down.
EVERY DETAIL
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Schleder keeps an eye on starter fertilizer rates by the row. He bands liquid fertilizer, 6-24-6 with a pint of zinc, below the seed and runs 2-by-2-by-2 placement of UAN 28% behind the planter. For corn on corn, Schleder adds Capture insecticide to the 6-24-6 mix.
UPGRADE
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The new Gen 3 20/20 maps details such as downforce, singulation and population, while previous versions mapped field coverage only.
ALL TRICKED OUT
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Schleder’s cab looks more like mission control, complete with 20/20 SeedSense, Field View, Clean Sweep, FARMserver and Ag Leader Integra monitors. Schleder writes his own variable-rate prescriptions for planting populations, nitrogen applications and irrigation based on yield, organic matter, cation exchange capacity (CEC) and soil conductivity (EC) mapped by Veris machines. “I’m one of those guys that loves data,” he says. “I’ve been in software since the mid-’80s. I can tell you yield for every field all the way back to 1978.” Implementing Precision Planting tools and prescriptions have boosted Schleder’s returns by 5% to 8% per year.
SCANNING ON THE GO
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Schleder plans to layer in SmartFirmer’s data and fine-tune his variable-rate prescriptions if there is correlation between SmartFirmer’s data and the Veris machine data. Veris pulls data at 6 inches while SmartFirmer runs at planting depth, or 2 inches deep in Schleder’s fields. “The organic matter may not match up because of the depth difference,” he says. “But it’s another tool in the toolbox that we can map someday once we verify the correlation.”
GRAB DATA AND HIT SAVE
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What is Schleder’s advice for farmers who want to start writing their own prescriptions? Start slow and collect as much data as you can. “Know your data and feel confident with those numbers before you make a decision,” he says, adding that the prescription parameters — like yield, CEC or organic matter — may change based on the field. An irrigated, sandy-soil field with a CEC of 5 that produces 200 bushels of corn per acre may top out at a population of 32,000 plants per acre. “You can’t put a 37,000 population on that when it can only handle 32,000,” Schleder says. “You have to use a little judgement, a little a common sense and a lot of data.”