www.crossslot.com1

Cross Slot No-Tillage Seeding Drill

Cross Slot Opener – Simple but Effective

1. Product or TechnologyThe Cross Slot No-Tillage machine is a fully integrated seeding system specifically designed to successfully perform true NO-TILL seeding for virtually all soil and field conditions. The key innovation is the Cross Slot seed opener researched, designed, and marketed by Dr. John Baker of Baker No Tillage Ltd, New Zealand.

This innovative seed opener, a single, vertical disk fitted with side blades, provides precise seed placement in untilled soils and precise fertilizer banding adjacent to the seed row with amazing results of maximum and uniform emergence, crop growth and production in a wide variety of crops, soils and field conditions.

Cross Slot excels in sod, sod renovation, CRP Takeout, heavy residue and Cover Crops.

The Cross Slot No-Tillage seeding drill is a fully integrated seeding machine based firstly on the innovative Cross Slot seed opener for placement of the seed and fertilizer of each seed row and mounted on a robust frame to accommodate untilled fields.

Seed and fertilizer are metered and delivered to each opener by typical air seeder technology.

The opener hydraulic down pressures provided to all openers from the tractor by a gas cushioned manifold are dynamically controlled in the cab by an integrated electronic monitor to continuously account for variable soil penetration requirements.

Having combined the unique seeding capability of the Cross Slot opener with many other mechanical and electrical features makes the Cross Slot No-Tillage Seeding machine the ultimate, state of the art, unique and truly NO-TILL, one-pass low disturbance seeding machine.

2. What is innovative about the product that makes it stand out from the competitors?The benefits of No-Tillage farming have been well documented for most farming situations for the past 20+ years. Omitting the tillage requirement has been a significant benefit to farm economics, environments, labor and production.

The lack of tillage has left the one major field operation, seeding and fertilizing, in a whirl of attempts to develop an adequate machine. The requirements were clear – no soil tillage to maintain seed zone moisture and soil quality; maintain all residues for erosion control and seedling protection; obtain optimum emergence and plant growth for maximum production.

A bevy of existing and modified machines have been tried with the expected range of success and failures because most did not come close to meeting one or more of these requirements. Cross Slot does this.

Through years of research and development a unique understanding was developed of seeding and early plant growth requirements, nutrient needs, plant and soil reactions and machine techniques which could provide an effective planting opener in a wide range of untilled soil conditions.

The resulting Cross Slot opener, and now the complete integrated Cross Slot seeding machine, have satisfied virtually all of the no-tillage seeding requirements. Many of these seeding obstacles were the reasons no-tillage farming has been slow to be adopted. An increased and ready participation occurs once the risk of crop establishment and productive stands is removed by the Cross Slot Seeding Technology.

Cross Slot Openers mounted on a 45 foot toolbar

www.crossslot.com2

3. Special features / advantages What is left in the soil is a vertical slot by the coulter and two horizontal slots either side made by the blades, one for the seed placement at the controlled depth and another two inches away for fertilizer, thus a Cross Slot.

The low level of soil and residue disturbance of seeded fields make it difficult to verify that the field has actually been seeded and fertilized, but the uniform, full emergence and high yields from one pass farming soon becomes convincing.

The benefits can briefly be summarized below:

• True low disturbance one‑pass seeding system.

• Cross Slot is a true one‑pass seeding system. The Cross Slot System allows a farmer to seed and fertilize directly into the residue of last year’s crop without any prior field preparation.

• This means that farmers will reduce their fuel bills, their labor costs, and wear and tear on their equipment. We have examples of fuel savings of between $20‑30 per acre, spread over a 1,000 acre property this can result in fuel savings of $20,000‑30,000 per annum.

• Lower costs means more money in the bank.

• Less time on the tractor can also mean less health related issues, from bad backs etc – from time spent bouncing around fields, and allowing more time for the family.

Many current "no-till" drills have had reasonable success to move towards a reduced tillage style of farming in specific conditions, some aided by reside management or light tillage machines enough to qualify as "conservation tillage”.

These combined attempts have certainly achieved many of the benefits of conservation and those growers are to be commended.

The Cross Slot no-tillage drill capability now adds a significant enhancement to those who have tried these systems. They will find the going just got simpler, easier and less riskier.

The Cross Slot machine can readily be used for a wide variety of no-tillage seeding requirements from pasture sod renovation, harvested cereal fields, row crops, sands and loams with all residue remaining on the surface for their full benefit.

The machine, with its unique Cross Slot openers, can be moved from field to field seeding needs with no major adjustments or concerns.

The requirements and benefits of truly No-Tillage farming are fully achieved with Cross Slot no tillage.

What is important are the additional benefits achieved by use of this technology compared to that of other systems being applied.

The most prominent benefits achieved by the Cross Slot system compared to more commonly used machines can be summarized as follows:

3.1 TRUE "NO-TILLAGE"The single disk opener running straight ahead just does not do any soil disturbance.

The two side blades running next to the coulter (disk), on opposite sides, slightly lift a small tab of soil to seeding depth.

This soil is set back in its original position by the associated depth / press wheel lightly pressing it back in place, including the surface residue to protect the seedling, and conserve seed zone moisture.

Following seeding, it is often difficult to readily see where the opener has tracked —almost NO visible disturbance.

This keeps the soil biology happy and productive for organic decomposition, nutrient cycling and soil health.

www.crossslot.com3

3.2 CROP RESIDUE MANAGEMENT

Standing or flat, heavy or light, sod or bare, green or dead, etc – NO PROBLEM. The large, notched coulter takes on whatever residue occurs, cuts through it, the side blades are below it, and no blockage.

Having the residue remaining over the seeded row is often of high benefit for maintaining moisture for germination and emergence.

And this residue is the environmental benefit for runoff and erosion control.

Light corn stubble residue directly drilled into by Cross Slot

Sod residue directly drilled into, by Cross Slot. NB – Minimal Disturbance

The following You Tube link shows Cross Slot dealing with a heavy residue load: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqmQZuNqBsQ

Residue management and retention

• Residue retention is the most important objective of no‑tillage. Residue cover keeps moisture in the ground, it feeds the micro organisms and earthworms, it maintains soil organic carbon.

• Residue retention leads to the need for less fertilizer and increased yields over time.

• All disc openers including Cross Slot will tuck or hairpin residues. The benefit with Cross Slot is that the seed is placed off to the side in the horizontal slot thus avoiding any seed burn when the residue breaks down.

• Cross Slot is capable of handling large residue loads – it is not uncommon to handle residues from 4.85 tons (178 bushels) per acre to 5.67 tons (208 bushels) per acre wheat residues.

• Tined openers do not manage residues well. But many are capable of banding fertilizer better than disc openers and they are easier to adjust.

• Tines are therefore often seen as a less risky no‑tillage option than discs. But as crop yields inevitably increase under no‑tillage, discs become the only viable long‑term option if conservation objectives are to be realised.

www.crossslot.com4

3.3 DEPTH CONTROL PRECISIONEach opener has two depth/press wheels immediately following the coulter with adjustable support brackets to determine seed depth.

Each opener is independently hydraulically pressured downward and sensors on the brackets maintain the pressure settings to assure that the press wheels are constantly in solid soil contact and maintaining the seeding depth regardless of soil hardness.

Spring adjusted systems do not give the same depth control as does the Cross Slot electronically controlled hydraulic system.

A spring adjusted opener stretches when it goes over a dip in the ground thus placing the seed shallower than the desired depth for consistent and even emergence.

When a spring adjusted opener goes over a rise, the spring is compressed and forces the seed deeper than the desired outcome.

Uneven seeding depth, results in uneven emergence as earlier emerging plants crowd out late emerging plants taking up light, water and nutrients resulting in yield loss to farmers.

Cross Slot avoids this.

Automatic Down Force ("ADF")

• The patented Cross Slot ADF system is a key management tool for farmers. The ADF system has the ability to measure soil hardness providing the farmer with the ability to adjust depth control automatically at any seeding speed in soft or hard ground.

• The sensors read soil hardness 10 times a second and can allow pressure to be increased or decreased 3 times a second.

• This means farmers can maintain constant depth control whether in hard or soft soil conditions.

• Independent research (University of Nebraska – Jasa) shows that constant emergence is more important than uniform seed spacing and that uneven emergence lowers yields.

Hydraulics

• Depth control by Cross Slot is managed through the ADF system and the hydraulics on each individual opener.

• The hydraulics on each opener can apply up to an additional 1,000 lbs down force pressure.

• This means that Cross Slot openers can penetrate very hard ground allowing farmers to sow seeds in very dry conditions when other openers will not penetrate.

• The openers can move up and down around 18 inches without losing depth control. The parallel linkage system of the opener design means that dips and humps in the ground are covered by the opener at the designated depth.

www.crossslot.com5

Graphic showing in ground placement of seed and fertilizer

Banded Fertilizer Placement: Banding fertilizer adjacent and parallel to the seed row is a must for almost all crops to assure efficient use and optimum plant response.

Using the side blade opposite the seeding blade for fertilizer placement results in a continuous band of fertilizer (dry, liquid, gas, or combination) some 1-2 inches from the seed either at the same depth or 1-2 inches below.

A full-season fertilizer component can be placed with no effect of germination but readily available for early seedling growth, thus an efficient fertilizer placement in one machine pass.

The unique Cross Slot seeding opener performs each of these four functions in a very controlled, precise manner such that the soil, residue, seed and fertilizer are all managed in a precise manner to create an unequalled and productive conservation tillage farming system.

No-tillage seeding with the Cross Slot Seeding system will achieve all of the known benefits of no-tillage seeding, BUT it will make this desirable farming method

far more reliable, risk free, and economical. The ability to place seed and fertilizer in the ground with one-pass of the tractor has several benefits, as explained below.

Fertilizer Banding: Lowers costs – Increases yields

• Cross Slot is the world’s only technology that places seeds in a horizontal slot at the same time as banding the fertilizer side‑by‑side.

• All other disk opener systems place the seed and fertilizer in vertical or "V‑shaped" grooves. The horizontal slot provides a better environment for optimizing germination and makes more efficient use of in ground moisture.

• Scientific research shows that if your fertilizer is more than two inches from the seed then the farmer is losing the benefits of the fertilizer.

• Broadcasting fertilizer can mean up to a 50% increased cost to the farmer due to run‑off and or unused fertilizer.

• Vertical and "V‑shaped" slots can result in seed burn reducing plant emergence, thereby costing the farmer lost yield. "V‑shaped" openers can also result in lost moisture.

• Cross Slot can cope with up to 500 lbs per acre of fertilizer without any seed burn.

25 Foot Cross Slot Drill in the Palouse, WA

www.crossslot.com

Emergence

• Consistent and even emergence is important to maintaining and increasing yields.

• Cross Slot through field trials has shown that it can maintain consistently very high emergence rates. Farmers consistently report 95%+ success rates with crops and pastures.

• Inferior seeding systems do not achieve such high emergence rates for a number of reasons. Consequently farmers tend to over seed.

• We often see farmers who have planted wheat at a rate of 120/125 lbs per acre when 75‑85 lbs per acre would have done the job had they been using Cross Slot.

• The high emergence achieved by Cross Slot allows farmers to cut back on their seeding rates thereby reducing their seeding costs.

For more information and a free DVD contact:

Consistent and Even Emergence ND May 2011

Gavin Porter – CEO

Baker No-Tillage USA Limited

Toll Free – 1 888 663 7773porter@crossslot.com