Liquid fertiliser is introduced to the Tempo L 8-24

– We have seen a demand from farmers to enable additional fertiliser applications with the Tempo planter. While doing so, we designed a liquid fertiliser system that matches the performance of the Tempo planter. This includes easy setting, full control, and row-by-row precision, says Oskar Karlsson, Director Planter Product Management, at Väderstad.

The new system has a 2 000-litre plastic hopper for liquid fertiliser. The liquid fertiliser can either be applied in the seed row via the row units or beside the seed row via fertiliser coulters. To make it easy for the farmer, the system is designed to enable a wide range of different liquid fertiliser rates without changing nozzles.

– As an example, the machine can handle standard liquid fertilizer doses from 30 all the way up to 200 litres per hectare without changing nozzles on the machine, at a row spacing of 750mm and 15km/h driving speed, says Oskar Karlsson.

To control the liquid fertiliser metering, flow sensors constantly monitor the output rate. Utilizing this real-time feedback of the output, the system automatically maintains the selected output rate.

 The farmer sets the desired liquid fertiliser rate in terms of litres per hectare. By monitoring the flow passing through the system, the machine automatically controls the output rate on the move. Thereby there is no need for calibration, says Oskar Karlsson.

The liquid fertiliser system is fully integrated into the iPad-based control system Väderstad E-Control, where the driver gains full control of the planting operation in the field. Like the seed metering, also the liquid fertiliser applies row-by-row shut off. 

The filling of the liquid fertiliser tank can either be done using an external pump or gravity, alternatively via the on-board pump of the machine. To ensure safe operation, the machine is equipped with a water tank, washing system and compartments for personal protective equipment.

The new liquid fertiliser option will premiere at the international tradeshow Agritechnica in November 2023. It will be available for Tempo L 8-24 from October 2023.