[hillcrest]

hey everyone, looking for some input on row spacings.
I currently sow wheat, canola and lupins at 7.5"
A few farmers are switching to 12" or ribbon sowing 12" with the seed sown 3" wide. I've been looking at a John Deere 1870 ConservaPak 12"
I am sowing 100ha of lupins next year at 15" as a trial.

Also, instead of widening canola spacings, I have been told by my agronomist to stay with 7.5" and drop the seeding rate even further to 1.2kg/ha.

What row spacings do you run on wheat, canola and lupins?
The 12" crops always seem to look better, but yield difference Im unsure of.
Any positives/negatives please.

I farm on steep undulating rocky red loam.

cheers.

 

[doorknob]

I am literally half the world away from you, but 6"-7.5" is the "norm" here on most crops.

I have gone to 15" spacing, ribbon seeding and love it. I am however spreading the seed up to 8" wide under the seeding sweep. I use it spring and fall.

I do also use a deere 1590 no-till disk drill from time to time, but have changed it up to 4" twin row on 15" centers.
Just a fwiw from my little spot.

 

[nig71]

I would have thought in Northampton that 12" would be the norm. Been 12" since the early nineties . Go as wide as it takes to get through the trash. Less erosion from grazing on 12 was our first observation . I may go back to 7.5 if I had discs. Our rule of thumb was if you are rainfall limited go wide. If you are light limited then stay narrow.

Ps have sown hybrid canola at 1kg/ha on 12 (300mm)

 

[hillcrest]

cheers doorknob, nig71.

Yeah, alot on sandplain are at 12" and sow canola at 24" as trials. Most of the farmers on the red dirt are 7.5-10 inch. saw a dbs sow at 12" and the crops this year held up very well throughout the hot/dry august (37 degrees in august), but unsure on yield. Weed control is the biggest issue we find, but RR canola has cleaned up our paddocks extremely well.

How are the crops down Esperance this year? you had a massive season last year we heard, pretty poor up here, wheat averaging 1.6t/ha, yet you go 20kms south of me and yields are 4t/ha. **** happens ay haha

 

[nig71]

Been a pretty tough year in Esperance , GSR 230mm. Canola only went 1.2 wheat doing around 3 all hard though. Not bad considering. Last year for most of Esperance was blindingly good but for me it was blindingly bad. Too wet by far. Previous year was excellent though.