Effect of Planting Speed on Seeding Rate for Orchardgrass.

Consistent speed is critical for achieving uniform plant population. Orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) planting in 2016 at producer’s farm did not deliver the target rate. Equipment (Truax no-till drill) used was properly calibrated and speed was suspected to be involved in faulty planting. A study was conducted to evaluate the effect of planting equipment speed on seed delivery. Twenty replications of three planting speeds (4, 8, and 16 km hr^-1) were tested for amount of seed collected (g) and seeding rate (kg ha^-1). A wheel rotation calibration equivalent to area of 34.5 m^-2 (1.5 m x 23 m) was used for the test. There were no significant differences in seed amount collected (23 g), or seeding rate (6.36 kg ha^-1) for any of the speeds tested. Under the conditions of this study, the equipment metered consistently accurate results at each speed tested. There appears to be other factors involved in the faulty delivery such as seed type, seed tube size/type.