No till seed drill

#The present invention is related to seed drills and more particularly to such seed drills for planting seeds in a field of stubble without requiring a previous tillage operation.

#"No till" farming has recently gained in popularity among conservationists and economically minded farmers as a solution to erosion, fuel consumption, irrigation, and fertilizer runoff. The "no till" concept simply removes the step of tilling the stubble from a previous crop prior to planting the next successive crop. Instead, the next crop is planted directly in the stubble. The stubble is very effective in holding moisture within the soil regardless of terrain conditions. This moisture-holding characteristic also serves to hold beneficial fertilizer in place rather than allowing it to run off with excess water to pollute nearby water sources. Stubble slows wind movement adjacent to the ground surface and therefore reduces evaporation and insulates the ground against chill. Seed placed evenly at an optimum depth on firm soil and covered by a loose high humus soil requires less moisture to start growth. Further, the insulation quality of the stubble is conductive to early plant emergence and adds protection against winter damage.

#The "no till" farming method is further beneficial in that labor is saved through fewer required operations. Fuel is also saved. The "no till" operation can be effectively introduced once a field has been cleaned of undesirable weeds. This may be done with an appropriate herbicide. The herbicide is utilized to a prescribed soil depth with the new seeds being planted below that level.

#FIG. 1 is a rear elevation view of a seed drill incorporating my invention;

#FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of my seed drill;

#FIG. 3 is a detailed fragmentary view of a single pair of discs incorporated with my invention taken substantially along line 3--3 in FIG. 1;

#A "no till" seed drill of a preferred form of my invention is illustrated generally in the accompanying drawings and is designated therein by reference character 10. Seed drill 10 is designed specifically to operate in "no till" farming operations wherein seed is planted directly into soil that has not been previously tilled after a prior harvesting operation. FIG. 5 illustrates the operating elements of the present drill in association with such a soil condition wherein seeds 9 are planted directly into the earth 7 beneath the surface stubble and chaff 8.

#The seed drill 10 includes a supporting framework 11 that is, by design, of a very heavy nature (preferably 15,000 to 25,000 lbs. when loaded). The frame 11 is adapted to be connected to a draft vehicle (FIG. 2) for movement in a forward direction as indicated in FIG. 2 by arrow 13. A seed hopper 14 and a fertilizer hopper 14a are mounted to framework 11 to receive seeds and fertilizer in bulk quantity. A conventional metered discharge 17 is provided on hopper 14 to receive and distribute measured amounts of seeds from hopper 14 and to deliver the seeds through discharge tubes 15 to a plurality of seed planter assemblies 20. Likewise, a plurality of fertilizer discharge tubes 15a are provided extending from the fertilizer hopper 14a to a discharge point within the seed planter assemblies 20 rearward of the openings of the seed discharge tubes 15.

#Seed planter assemblies 20 and elements associated therewith comprise the essential features of the present invention. Looking more particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, it will be seen that each seed planter assembly is comprised of a pair of discs 21 rotatably mounted to a clevis member 22. Each pair of discs 21 includes a forward coulter disc 24 and a rearward furrow opening disc 25. The disc pairs 21 are rotatably held within journal bearings 23 provided on clevis 22.