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The Tractor the Keystone of Farm Power

26th June 1936, Page 76
26th June 1936
Page 76
Page 77
Page 76, 26th June 1936 — The Tractor the Keystone of Farm Power
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Points to Consider in Selecting an Agrimotor to Gain Maximum Output at Minimum Cost. Some of the Conditions Encountered and How They Can Be

Met to the Best Advantage

By Our Agricultural Correspondent FARMERS no longer need convincing of the value of the agricultural tractor, for keeping abreast of the times demands the use of up-to-date equipment. Agriculturists know that the best can be had from the land only by good tillage. The exigencies of the times require every available ounce of produce.

The adaptability and flexibility of the modern tractor have brought it much into favour. There is scarcely a n y farm work which the modern tractor cannot do — a n d cheaply. Power is transforming all operations.

The tractor is the most important source of farm power, and its serious introduction has coincided with a keener demand for the best quality in every class of produce. Efficiency in production is the first aid to quality.

Better pulverization of the soil is secured, which gives the roots a chance to do their best for the plant in a soil rendered more fertile by good cultivation. This also provides for better percolation of water, thus conserving moisture in a dry time and assisting drainage in wet weather.

In making a decision as to the choice of a tractor, the agriculturist will be influenced largely by past experience, in the light of present conditions and needs. The wheeled type is highly suitable for the general mixed farm, and, with proper wheel equipment, it can carry out a diversity of tasks, including haulage. This type is low in initial capital outlay and in costa of upkeep.

On the .other liand, the track-laying pattern has laCeri so greatly. im proved during recent years that it has become extremely popular with those who use it. The cost of keeping the tracks in repair was the bogy of the early models. By improvements in mechanical design, this difficulty has been overcome. Undoubtedly, the track-laying machine is most efficient for hard work and on unusually heavy soils.

A further step in the development of the tractor is the production of the oil-engined type, which' is light in running costs, but is more expensive in Capital outlay. It is a powerful. machine, fast coming into favour for heavy work.

The next stage will be the practical application of rotary , tillage, thus cutting out many, if not all, of the operations intervening between ploughing and sowing. So far experiments have been encouraging. Rotary tillage is, however, not confined to the huge machines, such as the Fowler, which cultivate to a depth of.12-20 ins. There are smaller rotary implements which can be operated by tractors. • • Rotary tillage has, for many years, been practised in market gardens, machines of a smaller type being , used for this purpose. They have done good work and most users are satisfied. The best pattern for the smaller or mixed farmer is the ordinary wheeled or the track-laying • model.

Even with the ordinary tractor, to which we are more accustomed, there are several tasks for which further adaptability is needed; Oh some farms, green-crop growing is important, and the possibility of using a plant-setting machine should be considered.

• Another matter for consideration is how far the tractor could be made useful in cultivating growing crops, as a substitute for hand and horse hoeing. There are row-crop machines and tools to fit them, and appliances capable of adjustment for row-crop work.

The utility of the tractor in the hay and corn harvest is well known, and -this aspect of mechanized agriculture is dealt with elsewhere in this issue.

The farm run on ordinarylines (mechanization is not in mind here) needs sufficient power to give the most profitable turnover. A tractor should be equal to its job in the matter of power. Overloading is a mistake. On the other hand, an over

powered tractor is a source of waste.

There are few overhead charges for a tractor to carry beyond depreciation. This item should be calculated according to the work performed, that is, at a figure per acre. The best results, in this respect, are obtained by having a machine of such power that it can be kept as near as possible to full load during its working time.

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