"Subsurfer" Spreader Buries Chicken Litter
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USDA researchers are adding value to chicken litter by injecting it underground. The Subsurfer, developed by Dan Pote, grinds litter up before injecting it in trenches that are 2 in. wide by 3 in. deep. It's a second generation machine developed previously by ag engineer Tom Way (Vol. 33, No. 2). While that design required the litter be ground before loading into the applicator, the Subsurfer is self-contained.
"Normally farmers apply twice as much chicken litter as they need, expecting to lose half of it through volatilization of the nitrogen and field runoff," says Pote. "With the Subsurfer, they can fertilize twice as many acres and not worry about polluting streams and farm ponds."
With trenches set every 12 in., the Subsurfer can apply up to 4 tons of litter per acre. A next generation Subsurfer will fill trenches every 9 1/2 in. for even heavier applications.
The Subsurfer consists of a wagon that holds about 5 tons of chicken litter. The front end of the wagon rests on a White, no-till planter bar. It tills, opens, fills and closes the trenches.
A row of coulters slices the soil as a double disk opener creates the trench. A system of parallel augers in the wagon grinds the chicken litter into small pieces to drop through tubes into the trenches. Once the litter has nearly filled the trench, a closing wheel fills and packs it with dirt.
"We built this for pasture application, but it also works with no-till row crops," says Pote. "We ran a test trial in Kentucky applying chicken litter ahead of a planter, and it produced good yields."
The USDA has licensed the patented design to Barron and Brothers International. Pote says that while a price has not been established, the company is already looking at adding features. A control unit is planned that will tell the operator the rate of application. The rate will vary by changing the auger and tractor speeds.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Daniel H. Pote, USDA-ARS Dale Bumpers Small Farms Research Center, 6883 S. State Hwy. 23, Booneville, Ark. 72927 (ph 479 675-3834, ext. 344; dan.pote@ars.usda.gov).
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Subsurfer Spreader Buries Chicken Litter MANURE HANDLING Equipment USDA researchers are adding value to chicken litter by injecting it underground The Subsurfer developed by Dan Pote grinds litter up before injecting it in trenches that are 2 in wide by 3 in deep It s a second generation machine developed previously by ag engineer Tom Way Vol 33 No 2 While that design required the litter be ground before loading into the applicator the Subsurfer is self-contained Normally farmers apply twice as much chicken litter as they need expecting to lose half of it through volatilization of the nitrogen and field runoff says Pote With the Subsurfer they can fertilize twice as many acres and not worry about polluting streams and farm ponds With trenches set every 12 in the Subsurfer can apply up to 4 tons of litter per acre A next generation Subsurfer will fill trenches every 9 1/2 in for even heavier applications The Subsurfer consists of a wagon that holds about 5 tons of chicken litter The front end of the wagon rests on a White no-till planter bar It tills opens fills and closes the trenches A row of coulters slices the soil as a double disk opener creates the trench A system of parallel augers in the wagon grinds the chicken litter into small pieces to drop through tubes into the trenches Once the litter has nearly filled the trench a closing wheel fills and packs it with dirt We built this for pasture application but it also works with no-till row crops says Pote We ran a test trial in Kentucky applying chicken litter ahead of a planter and it produced good yields The USDA has licensed the patented design to Barron and Brothers International Pote says that while a price has not been established the company is already looking at adding features A control unit is planned that will tell the operator the rate of application The rate will vary by changing the auger and tractor speeds Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Daniel H Pote USDA-ARS Dale Bumpers Small Farms Research Center 6883 S State Hwy 23 Booneville Ark 72927 ph 479 675-3834 ext 344; dan pote@ars usda gov
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