Slurry spreader with metering valves

In an apparatus of the type which has a wheeled slurry tank adapted to be moved over a field, a feed conduit communicating with the interior of the tank, a transverse manifold to receive slurry from said feed conduit, several slurry injector pipes which are spaced along said conduit and have open ends through which slurry is discharged onto the field, and means for moving slurry from said tank under pressure for discharge through the feed conduit, the manifold, and the injector pipes, the improvement comprising:

• a flow controlling and equalizing element in each slurry injector pipe between the manifold and the open end of the pipe, each of said elements having an orifice and being formed of elastomeric material which can flex to facilitate passing solid debris through said orifice, said orifices being small enough to produce a positive pressure head in the manifold, and all of said elements being effectively identical so as to maintain substantially the same pressure drop across each one of said injector pipes, whereby all said pipes deliver substantially equal quantities of slurry per unit time under varying conditions of operation.