Secondary tillage implements include disc harrows, spike tooth harrows, spring harrows, and blade harrows. These implements perform lighter soil operations than primary tillage to create proper tilth for seeding. Disc harrows use rotating steel discs to pulverize soil while spike tooth and spring harrows have pointed steel teeth or elliptical tynes that penetrate the soil. Blade harrows are commonly used in India and move soil to cover seeds without inverting it. Secondary tillage implements prepare soil for planting with less power required than primary tillage.

1. Secondary Tillage Implements

2.  Tillage operations following primary tillage
are……
 Performed to create proper soil tilth for
seeding and planting.
 These are lighter and finer operations,
performed on the soil after primary tillage
operations.
 These operations consume less power
per unit area.
 Secondary tillage implements may be
tractor drawn or bullock drawn
implements.

3. Harrowing
 Secondary tillage operation.
 Which pulverizes, smoothens and
packs the soil in seed bed preparation
and/or to control weeds.

4. Harrows- A secondary tillage implement
 Intended to cuts the soil to a shallow depth for
smoothening and pulverizing the soil as well as
to cut the weeds and to mix the materials with
the soil.
 Harrow is used
 To break the clods after ploughing,
 To collect trash from the ploughed land,
 To level the seed bed.
 Types of harrow used in India:
Disc harrow,
Blade harrow,
Drag harrow: Two types
1. Spike tooth harrow
2.Spring harrow

6. Disc harrow
 Performs the harrowing operations by set
(or a number of sets) of rotating steel
discs.
 Each set being mounted on a common
shaft.
 Disc harrows are of two types depending
upon the sources of power:
1. Tractor drawn
2. Animal drawn.

7.  Tractor drawn disc harrow:
 Suitable for hard ground with stalks and
grasses.
 Cuts the lumps of soil, clods and roots.
 Discs are mounted on one, two or more
axles may be set at a variable angle to
the line of motion.
 As the harrow is pulled ahead, the discs
rotate on the ground.
 Depending upon the disc arrangements,
disc harrows are divided into two classes
 (i) single action, and

8. Single action disc harrow
 A harrow with two gangs placed end to
end, which throw the soil in opposite
directions.
 The discs are arranged in such a way that
Right side gang throws the soil towards
right, and Left side gang throws the soil
towards left.

9. Double action disc harrow :
 A disc harrow consisting of two or more
gangs,
 In which a set of one or two gangs follow
behind the set of the other one or two,
arranged in such a way that the front and
back gangs throw the soil in opposite
directions.
 The entire field is worked twice in each
trip.
 It may be of two types:
(i) Tandem, and

10. Tandem disc harrow
 A disc harrow comprising of four gangs in
which each gang can be angled in opposite
direction.
 Off-set disc harrow
 A disc harrow with two gangs in tandem,
capable of being off-set to either side of the
centre line of pull.
 Two gangs are fitted one behind the other.
 The soil is thrown in both directions because
discs of both gangs face in opposite directions.
 Very useful for orchards and gardens.
 It travels left or right of the tractor. The line ofAn orchard is an area of land on which fruit trees are grown.

11. Components of disc harrow
 A disc harrow consists
of:
 Disc,
 Gang,
 Gang bolt,
 Gang angle,
 Gang control lever,
 Spools or spacer,
 Bearings,
 Transport wheels,
 Scraper and
 Weight box.

12. 1.Disc is a circular, concave revolving steel plate
used for cutting and inverting the soil.
 Disc is made of high grade heat treated
hardened steel. Tractor drawn disc harrows have
concave discs of size varying from 35 to 70 cm
diameter.
 Concavity of the disc affects penetration and
pulverization of soil.
 Usually two types of disc are used in disc
harrows:
(a) Plain disc
(b) Cut-away disc.

13.  Plain discs have plain edges-used
for normal works.
 Most of the harrows are fitted with plain
discs only.
 Cut-away discs have serrated
edges
Cut stalks, grasses and other vegetative
matter better than plain discs.
Cut-away discs are not very effective for
pulverization of soil
Very useful for pudding the field

14. 1.Disc is a circular, concave revolving steel plate used
for cutting and inverting the soil.
2.Gang: It is an assembly of concave discs mounted on a
common shaft with spools in between.
3. Gang axle: A shaft on which a set of discs are mounted.
The spacing between the discs on the gang bolt ranges
from 15cm to 23cm for light duty harrows and 25 to 30 cm
for heavy duty harrows.
4. Gang angle: The angle between the axis of the gang and
the line perpendicular to the direction of travel.
5.Gang control lever: A lever which operates the angling
mechanism of disc harrow.
6.Spool or Spacer: The flanged tube, mounted on the gang
axle between every two discs to retain them at fixed
position laterally on the shaft is called spool or spacer(a
device for keeping the discs at equal spacing on the axle).

15. 7. Bearing: is essential to counteract the end thrust
of the gangs due to soil thrust. Disc harrow bearings
are subjected to heavy radial and thrust loads.
(Chilled cast iron bearings, ball bearings or tapered
roller bearings may be used on disc harrows).
 Oil soaked wooden bearings are very common for
disc harrows.. Chilled cast iron bearings are also
used due to their durability.
8. Transport wheel: In trailing type discs harrows,
transport wheels are provided for transport work on
roads and for preventing the damage of the roads
and helps in protecting the edges of the discs.
9. Scraper: Prevents the discs from clogging. It
removes the soil that may stick to the concave side
of the disc.
10.Weight box: A box like frame is provided on the

16. Animal drawn disc harrow:
It consists of:
 Disc,
 Gang frame,
 Beam,
 Gang angle
mechanism,
 Scraper,
 Spacer(spool),
 Clevis,
 Axle,
 Middle tyne,
 Bearings

17. Drag harrows
 Used since ancient times; early farmers used to cut
branches from the trees for use in leveling the soil.
 Drag harrows are used to…..
 break the clods,
 stir the soil,
 uproot the early weeds,
 level the ground,
 break the soil crust and
 cover the seeds.
 There are two principal kinds of drag harrows,
namely……
(1) spike tooth
(2) spring type harrow.

18. Peg tooth or triangular harrow

19.  Spike tooth harrows are either rigid or flexible. The
flexible type tractor drawn can be rolled up for
transporting.
 Animal drawn harrows are always of rigid frame type.
 Basic frame of the harrow may be triangle. It has
pointed steel pegs (teeth) with their pointed ends
towards ground.
 The peg point is tilted backward vertically so that soil
is not accumulated in the front. The pegs of the rigid
harrows are fixed slightly tilted so that no
arrangement is needed to change the angle.
 The harrow is dragged over the surface by means of
a chain or rope tied to the yoke.
 Animal drawn harrows cover almost 1 to 1.2 m
width and are used to stir the soil to a depth of 5
cm.

20.  Spring tyne tractor drawn harrows have looping,
elliptical or spring like tynes.
 But the animal drawn unit is only provided with
elliptical tynes.
 Used extensively to prepare ploughed land before
planting.
 They penetrate much deeper than spike tooth
harrows and are generally used in the soil where
obstructions like stones, roots and weeds are hidden
a few centimeters below the surface.
 Basic frame of the harrow is mostly rectangular.
 Spike tooth and spring tyne harrows do not require
lubrication. Teeth may also be removed for
sharpening.

21. Blade harrows (bakhar)
 The most common type of harrow used by Indian
farmers.
 Generally used in clay soils for preparing
seedbeds.
 Used for covering the seed in Kharif sowing.
 The action of blade harrow is like that of sweep,
moving into the top surface of the soil without
inverting it.
 It is used to chisel out the uncut portion left after
ploughing by an indigenous plough.
 Primary function: To Pulverize & create soil
mulch.
 The blade is made of steel. Shisham or Babool
wood is used for making the body and the beam.
The width cut by the harrow varies from 38 to 105

22. Blade harrow

23. Classification and selection of tractors
Tractors can be classified into three classes on the basis of
structural design:
(i) Wheel tractor
(ii) Crawler tractor (track type or chain type) and
(iii) Walking tractor (power tiller).
Wheel tractor: Tractors, having three of four pneumatic wheels.
Four wheel tractors are most popular every where.
Crawler tractor( Track type tractor or Chain type tractor). There
is endless chain or track in place of pneumatic wheels.
Power tiller: Power tiller is a walking type tractor usually fitted
with two wheels only.
The direction of travel and its control for field operation is
performed by the operator, walking behind the tractor.

24. • On the basis of purpose, wheeled tractor is classified into
three groups:
(a)General purpose (b) Row crop (c) Special purpose.
(a)General purpose tractor: Used for major farm operations
(ploughing, harrowing, sowing, harvesting and transporting work).
Those tractors have (i) low ground clearance (ii) increased engine
power (iii) good adhesion and (iv) wide tyres.
(b)Row crop tractors: Designed to work in rows like planting,
inter-culture etc.
Tractor is provided with replaceable driving wheels of different
thread widths with high ground clearance to save damage of crops.
Wide wheel track can be adjusted to suit inter row distance.
Ground clearance: The space or distance from the lowest
point of vehicle to the level surface below it.

25. (c) Orchard tractors: These are special type of tractors mainly
used in orchards.
Have less weight, less width and no projected parts.
(d) Special purpose tractor: Used for definite jobs like cotton
fields, marshy land, hill sides, garden etc.

26. Secondary tillage(ST): operations performed to crease proper
soil tilth for seeding and planting.
These are lighter and finer operations, performed on the soil after
primary tillage operations.
Consists of conditioning the soil to meet the different tillage
objectives of the farm.
Ex: Harrow, Cultivators, Levelers, Crushers .
Secondary tillage operations do not cause much soil inversion
and shifting of soil from one place to other.
These operations consume less power per unit area.
Secondary tillage implements may be tractor drawn or bullock
drawn implements.
Bullock drawn implements: harrows, cultivators, hoes etc.

27.  Harrow: An implement consisting of a heavy frame set with
teeth or tines
 Harrow is dragged over ploughed land to break up clods,
remove weeds, and cover seed.
Harrowing is secondary tillage operation.
which pulverizes, smoothens and packs the soil in seed bed
preparation and/or to control weeds.
Harrow(an implement) cuts the soil to a shallow depth for
smoothening and pulverizing the soil as well as to cut the
weeds and to mix materials with soil.
Used to break the clods after ploughing, to collect trash from the
ploughed land and to level the seed bed.

28.  Seed drill is a sowing device that precisely positions seeds
in the soil and then covers them.
 Before the introduction of the seed drill, the common practice
was to plant seeds by hand.
 Besides being wasteful, planting was very imprecise and led to
a poor distribution of seeds, leading to low productivity.

29. Leveller
 In irrigated areas, land leveling is an essential
operation for farming.
 Level fields receive uniform penetration of irrigation
water with high efficiency.
 Water logging and soil erosion is reduced.
 Land leveling is usually done in the slack season
when the field is free from crops.
 Common type of field levelers used by farmers.
Wooden logs or planks.
 Operated in ploughed land to collect loose soil from
high spots and dump it into depressions.
 Improved type of land leveller: Used on the large farms, is
called the leveling karaha (scoop) or scraper.

30. Bund former
 Used for making bunds or ridges by
collecting the soil.
 Bunds are required to hold water
in the soil to conserve moisture
and prevent run-off.
 The size of the bund former is
determined by measuring the
maximum horizontal distance
between the two rear ends of the
farming boards.
 Bund former consists of forming
board, beam and handle
Bund Former

31. Bund Former

32. Ridger (Ridging plough / Double mould board plough)
 An implement used to form ridges required for sowing row
crop seeds and plants in well-tilled soil.
 Used for forming field or channels, earthing up and similar
other operations.
 The ridger generally has ’V’ shaped or wedge shaped share
fitted to the frog.
 The nose or tip of share penetrates into the soil and breaks the
earth.
 The mould boards lift, invert and cast aside the soil, forming
deep channels and ridges of the required size.
 Ridger consists of beam, clevis, frog, handle, mould boards,
share and sliding share.

33. Puddler
 An implement used for churning the soil with
water to prepare paddy fields with standing
water (of 5-10 cm depth) after initial ploughing
with country plough. It breaks up the clods and
churns the soil.
Purpose: To reduce leaching of water or decrease
percolation of water, to kill weeds by
decomposition and to facilitate transplantation of
paddy seedlings by making the soil softer.
 A common puddler has puddling units each
having four straight blades or paddles or fan
type blades or squirrel type blade mounted
on an axle.
 Puddler consists of a frame, puddling unit, axle,

34. Leveller
 Land leveling :Expected to bring permanent
improvement in the value of land.
 To modify the existing contours of land for efficient
agricultural production system.
with the following objectives…..
(i) Efficient application of irrigation water,
(ii) Improved surface drainage,
(iii) Minimum soil erosion
(iv) Increased conservation of rain water (specially on
dry lands) .
(v) Provision of an adequate field size and even
topography for efficient mechanization.

35. CULTIVATORS
 An implement for inter cultivation with laterally adjustable
tines or discs to work between crop rows.
 Cultivator stirs the soil, and breaks the clods. The tines
fitted on the frame of the cultivator comb the soil deeply in
the field.
 Perform functions intermediate between plough and the
harrow.
 Primary function of a cultivator is destruction of weeds.
1. Inter culture the fields.
2. Destroy the weeds in the field.
3. Aerate the soil for proper growth of crops.
4. Conserve moisture by preparing mulch on the
surface.
5. To sow seeds when it is provided with sowing
attachments.

36. Types of cultivators
1) Disc cultivator,
2) Rotary cultivator,
3) Tine cultivator.
Disc cultivator : A cultivator fitted with discs.
Rotary cultivator : fitted with tines or blades
mounted on a power driven horizontal
shaft.
Tine cultivator : fitted with tines having
shovels.

37. Tractor Drawn Cultivator
Trailed type cultivator
 Consists of a main frame which carries a number
of cross members fitted with tines.
 At the forward end of the cultivator, there is a
hitch arrangement for hitching purpose.
 A pair of wheels are provided in the cultivator.
 The height of the hitch is adjusted- main frame
remains horizontal over a range of depth setting.
 The tines in each row are spaced widely to allow
free passage of the soil and trash around them.
 The tines in subsequent rows are staggered so
that the implement can cover the entire width
nicely.

38. Mounted Cultivator
 Tractors fitted with hydraulic lift operate the
mounted type cultivators.
 A rectangular frame of angle iron is mounted on
three point hydraulic linkage of the tractor.
 Depending upon the type of soil and crop,
shovels are chosen for use on the cultivators.
 Tractor drawn cultivators are of two types,
depending upon the flexibility and rigidity of tines
(i) Cultivator with spring loaded tines
(ii) Cultivator with rigid tynes.

39. Cultivator with spring loaded tines
 Spring loaded tine :A tine hinged to the frame and
loaded with a spring(Swings back when an obstacle is
encountered).
 Recommended particularly for soils embedded with
stones or stumps.
Tractor drawn cultivator

40. Cultivator with rigid tines
 Fitted with rigid tines. Not deflect during work in the
field.
 The tynes are bolted between angle braces,
fastened to the main bars by sturdy clamps and
bolts .
 Spacing of the tines is changed simply by
slackening the bolts and sliding the braces to the
desired position.
 A pair of gauge wheel is used for controlling the
depth of operation

41. Secondary tillage
 Surface configuration for seeding and planting are called
secondary tillage operations. These are lighter and finer
tillage operations performed in the soil after primary
tillage to create proper soil tilth. Secondary tillage
operations are generally done on the surface soil.
 Cause less soil inversion and not involved in soil shifting.
 Consume less power per unit area.
Main objectives of secondary tillage:
♦ To break the big clods and make the soil surface uniform
and leveled for seed bed prepararation.
♦ To destroy grasses and weeds in the field.
♦ To cut crop residues and mix them with top soil.
 The implements used for secondary tillage operations
are called secondary tillage implements (Ex. harrow,
cultivators, sweeps, clod crushers, levellers, bund
formers, ridge ploughs etc.)
 22-8-2016

42. Tillage systems
 Consists of sequences of operations to manipulate the
soil in order to produce a crop.
 The operations include tilling, planting, fertilization,
pesticide application, harvesting, and residue
chopping or shredding.
 These operations affect the physical and chemical
properties of the soil, which in turn affect plant growth.
 There are two types of tillage systems.
 a) Conservation tillage system including no-till, ridge
till and mulch till systems.
 b) Other than conservation tillage systems:
 a) Reduced tillage system and b) Conventional tillage
system

43. Conservation tillage (30 % or more crop residue left after
planting)
 Any tillage and planting system that covers 30% or
more of the soil surface with crop residue, after
planting, to reduce soil erosion by water.
 Conversion tillage systems are further classified as
a) No-till,
b) Ridge-till,
c) Mulch-till.

44. 1. No- till: A system in which the soil is left undisturbed from
harvest to planting except for nutrient injection. Planting
or drilling is accomplished in a narrow seedbed or slot
( created by coulters, row cleaners, disk openers, in-row
chisels, or rototillers).
Weed control is accomplished primarily with herbicides.
2. Ridge-till: Soil is also left undisturbed from harvest to
planting except for nutrient injection. Planting is
completed in a seedbed prepared on ridges (with
sweeps, disk openers, coulters, or row cleaners). Residue
is left on the surface between ridges. Weed control is
accomplished with herbicides and/or cultivation. Ridges
are rebuilt during cultivation.
3. Mulch-till: The soil is disturbed before planting. Tillage
tools-chisels, field cultivators, disks, sweeps or blades are
used. Weed control is accomplished with herbicides
and/or cultivation.
Mulch-till is a category that includes all conservation tillage
practices other than no-till and ridge-till.

45.  Other tillage systems (less than 30% crop residue
left after planting)
 Tillage systems that leave less than 30% crop residue
after planting are not classified as conservation tillage.
These systems may meet erosion control goals with or
without other supporting conservation practices, such
as strip cropping, contouring, terracing, etc.
1)Reduced-till: Reduced-till systems leave 15-30%
residue cover after planting or (560 to 1,120 kilograms
per hectare of small grain residue equivalent
throughout the critical wind erosion period).
2)Conventional-till: Conventional-till systems leave less
than 15% residue cover after planting, or (less than
560 kilograms per hectare of small grain residue
equivalent throughout the critical wind erosion period).
These systems involve plowing or some other form of
intensive tillage.

46. Another classification of tillage systems
 There are two types of tillage namely
a. Conventional tillage or clean tillage and
b. Conservation tillage
1. Conventional tillage or clean tillage: Ploughing
the entire field several times to prepare a seed bed.
2. Conservation tillage: Ploughing the field with lesser
number of passes over the entire land or ploughing
only in the required space of the land and then
sowing.

47.  Types of conservation tillage are….
a. Minimum Tillage -Minimum soil manipulation
necessary to meet tillage requirements.
c. Mulch Tillage: Tillage operations in which nearly 30
% of crop residue or other mulching materials are left
on or near the soil surface.
d. Rotary Tillage: Loosening & inverting of soil to a
depth of 20–25 cm. The soil is broken into pieces by
blades or teeth attached to the disks of a rotating
drum.
b. Strip Tillage - In strip tillage system only isolated
bands of soil are tilled (Tillage operations employing
rotary action of the tool to cut, break and mix the soil
is called rotary tillage).
e. Combined Tillage – Tillage operations utilizing
simultaneously two or more different types of tillage
tools or implements to simplify, control or reduce the

48. Nursery raising machinery
 Potato planter: A farm implement for sowing seed potatoes.
 A manual planter is called a bell planter, It has
two farm hands sitting on the back to collect
potatoes from a hopper.
 The length between potatoes is tolled by a bell, at
the sound of which potatoes are thrown down
tubes.
 An automatic planter is hitched behind a farm
tractor with a three-point linkage and towed.
 Cups lift seed potatoes from a hopper and drop
them in tubes, planting up to eight drills at a time.

49. Multi crop planter (Tractor Drawn)
 Is drawn by tractor with an arrangement of
boxes to store the seeds separately. Capacity of
seed box is 3kg.
Characteristics
 Used for sowing of groundnut, sunflower, safflower,
soybean, jowar, maize, wheat, red gram, etc.
 Fertilizer can also be applied with seeds (25 to 700
kg/hectare) according to crop recommendation.
 Spacing between rows according to crop 22.5 cm. 30
cm. or 45 cm. can be maintained.
 Spacing between plants can be maintained with the help
of plastic plates for different crops which is
supplemented with the planter.
 3-3.5 hectare can be sown within 8 hours with
palnters.
 Arrangement of changing the depth of fertilizer
application and seeds sowing as per the need.

50. Planter
 Planter is normally used for -Seeds which are larger in size
and can not be used by usual seed drills.
 A planter consists of: hopper, feed metering device, knock
out arrangement, cut-off mechanism, furrow opener and
other accessories.
 A planter has seed hopper for each row.
 Seed metering device: A planter consist of a rotating plate
at the bottom of seed hoppers(horizontal seed plate).
 The horizontal seed plates have got suitable notches or
holes called cell.
 Depending upon the type of notches on the plates, it is of three
types. (i) Edge drop (ii) Flat drop (iii) Hill drop.
 Edge drop carries the seed on edge in the cell of the plate.
 Flat drop carries the seed on a flat in the cell of the plate.
 Hill drop, the cells round the edge of the plate are large
enough to admit several seeds at a time.
 Use: Seeds required to be sown at equal intervals between
plant to plant.

51. Manual Rice Planter
 Used for transplanting of paddy seedlings.
 The unit consists of skid frame, movable tray and
seed picking fingers.
 Mat type seedlings are placed on the inclined
trays.
 When the fingers are pushed downward they pick
up the seedlings and place them on puddled soil.
 Seedlings are left on the ground during return stroke.
 Plant to plant spacing can be controlled by the
opener.
 It may be 5-6 rows with comb type finger.
 Its working capacity may be 0.2 – 0.25 ha/8 hrs.

52.  Rice Transplanter
 It consists of (i) Air cooled gasoline engine (ii) Main clutch (iii) Running
clutch (iv) Planting clutch (v) Seeding table (vi) Float (vii) Star wheel
(viii) Accelerator lever (ix) Ground wheel (x) Handle (xi) Four bar linkage
mechanism
 Seedlings: Seedlings are grown in special seedling trays(mat
seedling). Mat seedlings are grown by some standard procedure in
controlled environment in a nursery.
 Operation: The mat seedlings are placed on the seeding table
of the transplanter in slanting position. When the engine is
started, the running clutch and planting clutch are operated. Four
bar linkage mechanism facilitate to catch 3 or 4 seedlings at a
time and to separate them from the mat and fix in the puddled
soil. A float is helpful to support the machine on the water while
working in the field. Two ground wheels facilitate the movement
of the transplanter. A marker demarcates the transplanting width
while in operation. Power from the engine goes to the main
clutch from where it is divided into two routes, one goes to
planting clutch and the other goes to running clutch. Unless
planting clutch is operated, the four bar linkage mechanism does
not work.
 The engine is of about 1.2 to 1.8 HP.
 Machine maintains row to row spacing of 28-30 cm & plant

53. Compost (Key ingredient in organic farming. )
 An organic matter rich in nutrients,
decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and used for soil
amendment.
 The process of composting requires wetted organic matter
(green waste-leaves, food waste) made to break down
into humus.
 Composting is a multi-step process closely monitored with
measured inputs of water, air, carbon and nitrogen-rich
materials.
 The decomposition process is aided by shredding the plant
matter, adding water and ensuring proper aeration by regularly
turning the mixture.
 Worms and fungi further break up the material. Bacteria
requiring oxygen to function and fungi manage the chemical
process by converting the inputs into heat, carbon
dioxide and ammonium.
 Used in gardens, landscaping, horticulture,

54.  Composting organisms require four equally
important ingredients to work effectively:
Carbon: for energy; the microbial oxidation of carbon
produces the heat. High carbon materials tend to be
brown and dry.
Nitrogen: to grow and reproduce more organisms to
oxidize the carbon. High nitrogen materials tend to be
green.
Oxygen: for oxidizing the carbon, in the
decomposition process.
Water: To maintain activity without causing anaerobic
conditions(right amounts).
 Efficient composting occurs with an optimal carbon:
nitrogen ratio of about 10:1 to 20:1.

55. Plant Replacer
The plant replacer is a manually operated
hand tool for up rooting of saplings with the
lump of mother soil along with root system
for grafting or planting.
It consists of an outer cylinder (auger shaped at
the bottom), which is driven into the soil by
weight and force applied by the operator, press
plate with notch for holding the stem of the
sapling and a handle.
Components are fabricated from mild steel
sheets and tubes of 14 SWG.
For operation, the outer cylinder is driven into
the soil up to the root zone of the sapling and
the topsoil around the sapling is compacted
with the press plate having a notch for holding
the sapling. After compaction a jerk is given to
the cylinder and it is pulled out. The press plate

56. Manual oilseed drill
 The machine consists of a seed box attached to the
main frame of a hand wheel hoe.
 A fluted roller assembly is provided at the bottom of
the seed box. Fluted roller is rotated with the help of
chain and sprockets from the ground wheel.
 The seed rate can be adjusted with the help of a
lever provided on the seed box. The fluted roller
used for sowing rape seed and mustard.
 Each flute is 3 mm wide and 2 mm deep. The
diameter of the fluted roller is 50 mm and its length,
32mm.
 For operation, the machine is pulled by rope
attached to the hook of machine by one man and
other persons steer the machine by holding it by

57. Manual seed and fertilizer drill
 A small manually operated single row seed cum
fertilizer drill in which fluted roller metering
mechanism is provided.
 A ground wheel is provided to drive the metering
rollers.
 Seed and fertilizer are stored in a small hopper
and a long beam is provided by which the
implement could be pulled by one operator and
another worker guides the machine.
 Fluted rollers suited for drilling soybean, maize,
pigeon pea, sorghum, green gram, Bengal
gram, wheat etc.
 Shoe type furrow openers are provided for easy
operation.

59. Manual garlic planter: Multi-crop planter
 A hand wheel hoe, used for inter-culture
operation on which planting mechanism is
mounted.
 It consists of a vertical plate with spoons,
and receives drive motion from the ground
wheel through chain and sprockets. Upon
pulling the planter forward, ground wheel
starts rotating transmitting motion to the
vertical plate fitted with spoons in the
hopper.
 The hopper is filled with seeds or garlic
cloves. As the vertical plate rotates, the
spoons pick up the bulb/seed, which is
discharged, in the small hopper connected
to the furrow opener through a tube. The
seed is then dropped in the furrow created
by the furrow opener.
 Markers facilitate row-to-row spacing.
Varying the number of spoons on vertical
Used for
sowing of
garlic, maize,
moong, peas,
groundnut etc.
Garlic planter is
Labor saving
equipment and
require 90
man-hours to
plant one
hectare.

60. Manual rice transplanter
 The manual rice transplanter floats
made of marine plywood, seedling tray
that accepts the mat type nursery, a
tray indexing mechanism and pickers for
planting seedlings.
 When the operator pulls the machine
and operates the handle, the picker (six
in number), gathers two or three
seedlings and place them in the puddled
soil.
 The row to row distance can be maintained
at 200 mm.
 It consists of handle, picker assembly,
seedling tray, tray indexing mechanism,
mainframe, base frame, seedling
Transplanting
mat type rice
seedlings in
puddled soil in
six rows

61. Seed drill
 Seed drill is a machine for placing the seeds in a
continuous flow in furrows at uniform rate and at
controlled depth with or without the arrangement of
covering them with soil.
 Function of seed drill:
i) To carry the seeds.
ii) To open furrow (at an uniform depth)
iii) To meter the seeds
iv) To place the seed in furrows (acceptable pattern).
v) To cover the seeds and compact the soil around
the seed.
 Seed cum fertilizer drill
 Seed drills fitted with fertilizer dropping attachment,
distribute the fertilizer uniformly on the ground.
 Seed drill has a large seed box which is divided
lengthwise into two compartments, one for seed and

62. COMPONENTS OF SEED DRILL
 A Seed drill device consists of :(i) Frame (ii) Seed box (iii)
Seed metering mechanism (iv) Furrow openers (iv)
Covering device (vi) Transport wheels.
 Frame: is made of angle iron with suitable braces and
brackets. Strong enough to withstand all types of loads in
working condition.
 Seed box : made of mild steel sheet or galvanized iron with a
suitable cover. A small agitator is also provided to prevent
clogging of seeds.
 Covering device: A device to refill a furrow after the seed has been
placed in it.
 Transport wheel: Two wheels fitted on the main axle. The
wheels have suitable attachments to transmit power to operate
seed dropping mechanism.
SEED METERING MECHANISM
 The mechanism of a seed drill or fertilizer distributor - delivers
seeds or fertilizers from the hopper at selected rates is called
seed metering mechanism.
 Seed metering mechanism may be of several types:
(a) Fluted feed type (b) Internal double run type (c) Cup feed type

63. Trencher
 A trencher is an equipment used to dig trenches,
for laying pipes or cables, for installing drainage, or
in preparation for trench warfare.
 Trenchers may range in size from walk-behind
models, to attachments for a skid loader or tractor,
to very heavy tracked equipment.
 Trenches range in width from 130 mm to 250 mm
and can be dug to a depth of 800 mm (depending
on soil conditions)
 Types: Trenchers come in different sizes and may
use different digging implements, depending on the
required width and depth of the trench and the
hardness of the surface to be cut.

64. Portable Trencher
 Landscapers and lawn
care specialist may use a
portable trencher to install
landscape edging and
irrigation lines.
 Machines are light weight
(around 200 pounds) and
are easily maneuverable.
 The cutting implement
may be a chain or a blade
similar to a rotary lawn
mower blade oriented.
 It rotates in a vertical
plane.

65. Under cutter
 Designed to kill cover crops and leave them on the surface as a
mulch.
 By leaving cover crop residue intact versus mowing them into smaller
pieces, growers can get longer weed suppression from the cover crop
mulches.
 The first tool in the under cutter is coulter that cuts through the
cover crop.
 The second part of the under cutter is the cutting blade. It cuts
the whole width of the raised bed about 2” below the soil surface.
 The last tool on the under cutter is this roller, It just rolls the
cover crop down nice and flat as it moves through the field.
 There are several existing implements in agriculture that can be
modified to do the same job as this, for example,
 A beet lifter : Can work well in lighter soils and with good soil
moisture.
 Weed suppression can last about 6 weeks, it depends on the
thickness of mulch that’s left on the soil surface.

67.  The under cutter digs below the surface with a V-
shaped blade to cut the roots that feed the potato
from the soil. This stops the flow of nutrients and
water to the potato and induces a state of shock that
causes the skin to toughen.
 Undercutting improves storage performance and
translates into value for the grower.
 A sweet potato’s skin is its first line of defense
against organisms that might cause spoilage. If the
skin is damaged, the sweet potato (85% water), is
more prone to lose moisture. Weight loss translates
to lost revenue for sweet potato farmers and reduces
the quality of the sweet potato.
 Sweet potatoes with excessive damage to the skin
Sweet Potato under cutter