Older/conventional plows take approximately 1/3 to 1/2 less power to operate than the newer high speed bottom plows, according to our tests in 2014.

 

Our first test took place at Cephas Yoders in Arthur, IL on April 12th 2014, and our second test took place at Daniel Hostettlers in Holmes County, OH on July 3rd 2014. Photo galleries for both events can be seen at the bottom of this page.

 

We attempted to identify as many of the variables involved with the soil and plowing, this list is a starting point, feel free to contact us with more categories we should add so we can have a greater understanding and share with others.

 

We identified:

1.  Soil type

2.  Soil temperature

3.  Soil moisture

4.  We used a soil penetrometer (from the local soil conservation office) to measure soil compaction before and after plowing.

5.  Trash management was the most important for us.

6.  We used a hydraulic load cell with a digital gauge between the plows and the tractor to measure draft. (All of our plows were trailer and walking plows. We used a tractor to get a more even/steady pull for reading the scales.)

7.  Soil pulverization.

8.  Confirmation of the furrow/plow.

9.  Any other observation of each plows performance.

10. We did not weigh our plows. This would help to identify draft relationship and maybe more.