planteroo™
The inception and subsequent development of this product was to fill a need as many growers that use plastic mulch are seeking a simple, easy to operate and cost effective mechanical alternative to traditional “hand” planting
In most developed countries, labour for traditional “hand” planting is becoming increasing expensive, unreliable or sometimes just difficult to get “Hand” planting can sometimes result in wide variations on the crop’s establishment and subsequent yield. Planteroo helps reduce these variations as every seedling is planted the same distance apart at exactly the same depth – much, much faster
features and benefits
- Saves money – by reducing total labour cost for planting
- Versatile – can be used in a wide range of planting situations including plastic mulch covered or bare earth beds
- Flexible – a number of units can be combined to plant multiple rows of seedlings on a bed or even multiple beds at once
- Adjustable – planting depth and how far apart the seedlings are along the row
- Sturdy, robust construction – less maintanence, repairs and a longer working life
- Available parts – most are usually available from local suppliers and no specialist technician is required for repairs
- Simple – easy and uncomplicated to operate with no specialist operator knowledge or training required
- Consistent – seedlings are planted exactly the same at all times creating better seedling establishment and a more even crop maturity
operation
Planteroo is a cup planter. It is normally pulled by a tractor via a tool bar connected to the 3 point linkage (usually this tool bar is “floating” to give flexibility on height control above the bed and the seedling planting depth). A plant plug or an Adaplug converted seedling is inserted by an operator into a revolving carousel mechanism. The seedling then drops into a cup below
The cups pivot on pins attached to two sides and are suspended between 2 parallel moving chains. These chains move around a series of sprockets and bearings in a circular motion. The cups pierce the plastic near the front of the unit, making a small hole through the plastic and creating a depression in the soil below. The shape and design of the cup, as well as the staggered insertion process, eliminates tearing or rips in the plastic. The cup is a 2 piece mechanism and is designed to open. The cup remains buried in the depression while the unit passes above (think of the way tank tracks work) and opens near the rear of the unit. The open cup then lifts out of the soil, leaving the seedling in the depression. Packer wheels which are attached to the rear of the unit, compact the soil around the seedling ensuring it is planted upright and at the correct angle. The number of cups (and subsequent number of plants per metre along the row) can be easily altered with distances of 9″, 12″, 15″, 18″, 24″, 30″ & 36″ apart possible. The unit’s speed of operation is matched to the tractor speed via a 12 volt electric motor with gear box via an encoder in the bed furrow or by a hydraulic drive unit attached to the rear drive shaft
specifications
The unit is robust. The frame is *Minitech (a light weight, very strong aluminium tube section made in Germany) and the internal parts are mainly stainless steel increasing longevity
The operational speed of the unit is determined by the tractor driver but generally a good operating speed is 1 plant/second (when the unit is operational). The number of seedlings/metre determines the tractor speed with a high seedling population dictating a slower ground speed