Seed choice is part of the picture when it comes to spring emergence, but farmers know that it’s just as much, if not more, about how neatly that seed gets tucked in the ground
That may play into why Precision Planting’s CornerStone row unit was awarded one of several first prizes at Manitoba Ag Days’s Innovation Showcase awards in January.
WHY IT MATTERS: With today’s expensive seed and inputs, farmers want to maximize the chance the seed they put in the ground will emerge and yield.
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The CornerStone is a fully customizable row unit that can be retrofit on any planter of a standard height which uses a seven-by-seven-inch planter bar.
“We’ve taken all the different benefits to each row unit on an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) platform and kind of tweaked it and added it into this one,” said Andrew Kippen, managing director with North Valley Precision Planting, a Manitoba-based provider of the piece of equipment.
Several of Precision Planting’s selling features come standard on the CornerStone row unit. The list the company hopes will entice farmers includes double-banded fertilizer placement, a two-stage closing system, plus a DuraWear gauge wheel arm and parallel arm pivot bushing systems.
Nitrogen placement can be applied in either a single or double band beside the seed row.
When it comes to seed management, the CornerStone uses Precision Planting’s electric vDrive motor and vSet seed metering system, which can be connected to an ISOBUS display.
On depth settings, Kippen said that farmers “can fine-tune the adjustment to the point of adjusting everything exactly the same across the planter.”
A quick attach bracket on the CornerStone allows for additional components to be added such as the company’s SeedFirmer, FurrowJet or Keeton Seed Firmers.
Customers can also choose to customize a planter to their specifications.
“We brought all the best into one row unit,” Kippen said.
Easy for farmers
Patrick Crampton, managing partner with North Valley Precision Planting, indicated there is a large retrofit market in Western Canada for growers who may be hesitant to shell out the cash for an entirely new planter.
The CornerStone is one option on that upgrade path.
“A lot of guys are figuring out, how do I make better use of my capital?” said Crampton.
The CornerStone also markets itself on user friendliness, including the ability to easily remove parts.
The company points to its hopper design as an example. Each hopper is attached by a hinge. This allows the hopper to move out of the way of work or maintenance or to remove remaining seed. It’s available in three sizes: mini, 1.6-bushel and three-bushel.
“At the end of the day, if you had seed left over, it tips over centre,” said Kippen. “so we can actually pour it out and empty it very easily.”
“We want to have a row unit that, when there’s a problem, a customer can diagnose it easily and fix it themselves without relying on a dealership to have to come out,” he added.
