EARLIER this year WA farmer, Jamie Bynon, took delivery of his second Ausplow DBS precision seeder linked to the company’s Multistream three bin 14,000 litre air seeder.
The DBS is measured precisely by 54 hydraulically-activated tine assemblies spaced at 25cm (10in) spacings for a working width of 13.6m (45ft).
Mr Bynon of Konnongorring traded a similar bar on the new rig in a move to upgrade his seeding equipment.
“I bought my first DBS seven or eight years ago to handle our rocky conditions,” he said. “We have everything from sheet rock to gravel to duplex sand and red clay over gravel.
“What we quickly saw with the first DBS was the frequent variations in tine pressures,” he said.
“But the big difference was that you didn’t get the snap-back you got with spring tines.
“Restrictors on the hydraulic rams meant tines returned (to working position) slower without the seed boot shaking and moving seed placement.
“On our rocky ground we just back off on the pressures and the press wheel handles it well to keep the seed boot where it should be.
“When it’s wet we still pull up rocks but it’s not a major problem and there are plenty of benefits in being able to achieve under-seed cultivation.”
“We filled in the old creek lines and seed over them and we’ve got rid of the contour banks because we don’t need them because they’re not holding water,” Mr Bynon said.
“With the press wheel creating the furrows and the under-seed cultivation, the water is staying where it falls.
“The shape of the furrows also is handy for water harvesting small rain events which can concentrate moisture in the row.
“We’ve got a 3200ha program and I prefer to get the canola in dry, particularly the GM varieties, because we get a better germination,” he said.
“If you’ve got some moisture underneath, the DBS allows us to either sit the seed on the moisture or keep it dry depending on soil conditions where you want to avoid a wet-dry scenario.”
Another plus for Mr Bynon is the under-seed cultivation also has promoted more soil structure and he says his soils are getting softer.
“But the soil’s not moving and it’s amazing to see a summer storm not shift dirt,” he said.
Pictured above: Boekeman Machinery service manager James Gulliver (left), salesman Steve Darrah and Konnongorring farmer Jamie Bynon got together for a post-seeding check of the new seeding rig Mr Bynon bought earlier this year – a new Case IH Steiger Quadtrac, an Ausplow Multistream air seeder and an Ausplow DBS precision seeding bar.