Click does trick

Three seasons ago Rod Petersen and his sons Scott and Wayne bought a 24-row Kinze precision planter and imported it for use on their 1520-hectare cropping enterprise at Killarney on the southern Darling Downs.

Mr Petersen said they had reached the stage where their existing 12-row planter was not coping with the workload and they were working very long hours to get the crop in.

"We had to either make a decision to set up a second 12-row planter and run two, or go to a 24-row planter," he said.

"We decided to give this a go and it has worked out okay.

"We couldn't buy anything like this in Australia.

"We did a fair bit of research. It has been an interesting exercise. There is some risk attached to it but we would do it again."

The Petersens engaged an agent in the US to dismantle and clean the machine, and pack it into a container for shipment to Brisbane.

The 24-row vacuum precision planter came with a central seed-delivery system where the seed was placed in a central box.

But since taking delivery of it, the Petersens have modified it to handle seed, two liquids and a solid fertiliser.

"That gives us versatility," Mr Petersen said.

"The rates of all the products are computer controlled. It automatically switches off every three rows as you come to a point row."

They have also fitted the trailing machine with its own GPS-guided steering system that operates independently of the tractor's autosteer.

"So not only does the tractor steer on line - the planter steers on the precise line to account for any corrections on curves or side drift, so it is very precise," he said.

This summer the giant planter, which is pulled by a Case Magnum 290 tractor, has been used to plant 320ha of soybeans, 600ha of sorghum and 600ha of corn on the Killarney farm.