The Benefits of Cross Slot no-tillage

Compared with tillage and minimum-tillage:-

• Yield depressions are rare - even in the first year
• Yield increases are very likely - as new management skills are mastered
• Reduces fuel use - by 50-75% (25-50% compared with minimum tillage)
• Reduces labour - by up to 60%
• Reduces time in the tractor seat – by up to 50%
• Reduces costs - by up to 50%
• More hectares can be farmed with the same resources (= more profit)
• Alternatively, more time is available for management or leisure
• Machinery replacement and maintenance are less frequent
• Reduces soil erosion – wind and water
• Stones are not brought to the surface – they are progressively buried
• Equipment breakages in stony soils are rare – during tillage they are frequent
• Reduces soil moisture loss - each tillage operation can loose 12-25 mm of water
• Reduces irrigation frequency
• Capital cost is similar to tillage – but operating costs are much less
• Builds soil organic matter – tillage depletes organic matter
• Reduces CO² emissions into the atmosphere by several fold
• Reduces soil compaction
• Increases soil trafficability – machinery and stock
• Enables earlier grazing of new pastures – from reduced treading and pulling damage

Compared with other no-tillage options:-

• Features several world-first functions that are simply not available elsewhere
• Is recognized as state-of-the-art by international authorities
• Creates horizontal slots – only no-tillage opener to do so – most others are vertical
• Creates true low-disturbance no-tillage by replacing residues over the slot
• Harnesses both liquid and vapour soil water to almost guarantee seedling emergence
• Self-adjusts downforce to match soil hardness, thus maintaining seeding depth & cover
• Is virtually unblockable in most residues, even by the heaviest yielding crops
• Eliminates almost all hairpinning problems
• Greatly reduces risks - biological, mechanical and financial
• Bands fertilizer close to the seed – with virtually no risk of seed burn
• Outstanding crop & pasture yield responses – up to 50%
• Needs only a 1 - 4% yield response to justify its cost compared with cheaper options
• NZ owners consistently report 95%+ success rates with crops and pastures
• Is the result of 30 years of internationally-published scientific research
• Is designed in NZ, which has some of the most varied farming conditions in the world
• Was designed by identifying and eliminating the failings of other no-tillage machines
• Leaves stones buried – not all no-tillage drills do this
• Most functions are self-adjusting – reducing dependency on skilled operators
• Is deliberately robust – to handle rough and steep surfaces without breakage
• Operates well on slopes up to 45º
• Has a minimum 10,000 hour (10 year) design life (similar to tractors)

There are no short cuts to reducing risk - lower prices usually mean higher risks