Harvesting Tips for Light Crops

Getting the maximum amount of grain into the harvester bin will be a hard task for many farmers this year.  The big dry that has hit much of the State will produce a lot of stressed cereal grain in the form of small and pinched grain, and white heads, that will be difficult to reap and clean.

But growers can do plenty to ensure they maximise their yields, by ensuring their combines are in top working order and are set up to handle the adverse reaping conditions.

Starting at the heading table, it is important the cutter bar setting is correct and its timing is right. To avoid pulling shallow, rooted plants out of the ground that may cause matting or shattering, the cutter blades (knives) must be sharp and in good condition to operate smoothly, in concert with the ledger plates.

In the separation department the condition and operation of the thresher (rasp bars) and concave will also be critical in light crop conditions.   The concave must be level and the thresher bars must be uniform (across their full width) in condition.  Because small and pinched grain is difficult to thresh, the pinch point of the concave becomes a critical setting.

Some harvesters may be fitted with an interception bar to increase the aggressiveness of the thresher - this may or may not be necessary in extremely light conditions, and its need or usefulness will only be determined once in the paddock.

To fully maximise threshing in light crop conditions, consideration may have to be given to blanking off a portion of the concave.

One thing to remember when closing or tightening the thresher and concave settings is that the drive power requirement will be increased.

But with the light crops and the desire to get as much material into the harvester as possible, growers may be tempted to operate combines at much higher speeds than normal - even in road gear. The danger here is the hydrostatic pressure. Continually operating at maximum or near-maximum speeds will cause a build up in hydrostatic pressure that will result in bearing and seal failures - and a hefty repair bill.

In the case of quality versus capacity, ground speed is not always the key.

Finally, read the operator manual thoroughly before making any adjustments, and if in doubt contact the supplying dealer for expert advice.