Precision Planting ??

Been driving past multiple fields that are run on PP format. Why is it that there's 16-24 rows of corn planted 2-3 rows deep into the end rows  and on the "turn-around" rows are 2-3 rows INTO the field before planting  ??? These are 90* rows, no weird angles that mess up the row clutches (in fact, I've seen several fields that actually impressed me with the way the rows shut off on an angle ). Anyone of you have issues with your set-ups this planting season ?

Well, I take by the term ‘precision planting’ you are referring to GPS guided equipment? If so, how do you know those farmers have that type of equipment? Not everyone does.

Some planters have individual row control done automatically by gps. On these systems the planter knows where it has planted already and will shut itself off when it gets there. Some have sections that are turned off and on manually by the operator. Go back in time even further and the planter shut itself off when it was raised out of the ground. If it is not perfect it is probably not gps controlled.

Sounds like you guys have a drinking problem up there and someone put the distance from the receiver to the planter units in the gps wrong by about 3 ft.  It's always best to not be drunk when programming your section control.

Lars(wi) wrote: The last corn planter I operated(JD 7000), the planter shut off when raised at the end of the rows.

FREEDGUY wrote: Lars(wi) wrote: The last corn planter I operated(JD 7000), the planter shut off when raised at the end of the rows. Thats EXACTLY what's wrong with this PP scenario, it's ALL a 4inchx4inch screen that determines WHAT you're putting in the ground  !! You BTO are really at the mercy of "whoever" is in charge of satellites, hopefully you guys still have markers on your planters

Then I guess that kick in the teeth would be the BTO’s problem.

But does that extra cost get recouped in higher yields/ less inputs costs over the useful life of the planter?
If it were me, just recouping costs wouldn’t be enough for me. Say if the electronics costs an additional $50,000, over the lifetime of that planter, it better earn(or save)three times that amount.

Sadly, after further glimpses of multiple fields, not only is there an "end-to-end" snafu, it's a "side-to-side" issue also, 2 rows interplanted one direction, 2 rows "skipped" the other 

Does the technology provide a return on investment is a question i'm not sure I can answer. This is kind of a guestimate on my part but if you just consider the seed that is saved i would say no. But if it would save a guy from having to replant a field once in awhile, and also produce a couple of bushels per acre more yield maybe that would change things. Also, farming is more and more about getting more done faster and all that tech might help with that too. A person might not have to spend as much time stopping to check seed depth and adjust trash whippers and dinking around. Just go to the field and start planting. That said, a neighbor had 5 guys out all working on his planter for 2 days this spring because it wasn't working and it was so sophisticated it took that much brain power to get it going. That is the downside to all that stuff. Myself, I'm not an early adopter of technology.

Our neighbor is big on the GPS stuff. I swear some days his son thinks I'm nuts for not putting a GPS on all our tractors, much less none of them (Though a WD narrow front with a GPS on it would be kinda funny to watch as a joke). He loves it on everything though, and most of his tillage tractors have one. So, he upgraded planters a couple years ago. He picked up a 12 row 3 point John Deere and has had more trouble with it than anything. I planted with it one year for him, and my father helped him plant with his backup planter- a set of #71 John Deere cans on a toolbar. I remember more times where the neighbor and I were fighting with the planter or the GPS unit, or who knows what? Meanwhile at the other end of the field, my father on the #71 cans in a 2WD tractor with the "Firestone GPS" (Put the darned Firestone in the row and make sure it stays there!) is running round after round. And I swear, you couldn't tell the difference in who planted what. I'm sure that you can get a modern planter to out-do an old setup easily, but as for our farm, I think we'll stick with our Deere 7000. It's simple, gets the job done, and it's paid for. That's how we like it!

My seed guy runs a very large farm operation.  He was hesitant to go with GPS for a long time, just cost of it etc., and thought hey, I've been driving a tractor a long time, I'm good at it!  He bought a used tractor that was all set up for it, so he thought he'd give it a go.  Started with tillage.  Now, I don't know any details, like cost, how many acres he used it, etc., but he said it would pay for itself in less than 2 years on fuel alone using it for tillage.  Wasn't long, and he set up his planter to use it.  I rode with him once, planting a very odd shaped field, and it was pretty "neat"!  Did a great job.  The planter he was using that day was a 12 row 30 inch Deere planter.  I think it only shut off groups of 6 rather than each row.  But you could easily program if you wanted no overlap at the ends, or 1/2 overlap, or whatever, and it came out perfect.  Sounds like the guy the OP is talking about had a measurement error or data entry error or something, with regard to where the seed starts/stops dropping compared to the GPS receiver.