MINIMUM TILLAGE PLANTER

• US 3,797,418 A
• Filed: 02/22/1972
• Issued: 03/19/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Floyd R. Bridger Jr
• Original Assignee: Floyd R. Bridger Jr
• Inventors: Bridger, Floyd R. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pellegrino, Stephen C.
• Application Number:
  US05/227,732
• Time in Patent Office: 756 Days
• Field of Search: 111/85,86,73,59,79,80 172/443,483,699
• US Class Current: 111/186
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 5/06 Machines for making or covering drills or furrows for sowing or planting
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/006 Minimum till seeding
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 40/22 Improving land use; Improving water use or availability; Controlling erosion
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 60/20 Reduction of greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions in agriculture, e.g. CO2
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 111/924 Minimum and no till planter

Abstract

A device used to plant seeds into soil or sod which received no prior breaking or preparation, i. e., plowing, disking, or the like. The apparatus includes a unique, forward-orientated disk coulter, an intermediate-oriented seed opener which allows for uniform depth seed placement, a rearward orientated fertilizer opener for placing fertilizer into the sod opening a distance from each side of the placed seeds and a pair of trailing press drive wheels for driving the seed and fertilizer agitators and for pressing the sod substantially back to its original density, thus assuring positive seed to soil contact.

Claims

1. A minimum tillage planter comprising a supporting frame, attaching means coupled to said supporting frame for attaching said planter to a tractor for travel over the ground, a coulter, means mounting said coulter forwardly and below said frame for making an incision in the ground as said frame travels over the ground, said coulter including an annular disk and a pair of gauge bands mounted on opposite sides of said disk for limiting the depth of penetration of said coulter into the ground, a seed opener share, means mounting said seed opener share from said frame;

said seed opener share including a forwaRd assembly comprising a vertically disposed platelike member having a knifelike leading edge thereto and being spaced behind and in alignment with said annular disk for increasing the depth of the incision in the ground, an inclined concavo-convex member fixedly attached to said vertical member and being directed downwardly and forwardly therefrom towards a pointed terminus thereof for tending to bury itself ever deeper into the ground thus beginning to form a subterranean pocket in the ground and applying a downward pulling force to said planter as it is caused to travel over the ground by the tractor, and a pair of wing-like members respectively being fixedly attached forwardly thereof to said vertical member and being integrally attached to said concavoconvex member, said wing-like portions sloping downwardly and outwardly from said vertical member for completing the forming of said pocket and having rearward extending portions defining a broad horizontally extending slot;

a rearward assembly comprising a pair of laterally spaced platelike vertical members for spreading the ground outwardly along the incision to form an opening in the ground extending upwardly from said pocket, said vertical members having forwardly converging spaced apart margins thereto defining a narrow vertically extending slot for receiving the rearwardmost margin portion of said vertical member of said forward assembly, said broad slot of said forward assembly receiving said vertical members of said rearward assembly, and a wing support member fixedly attached to said vertical members for contiguously engaging the underside of portions of said forward assembly to support said forward assembly, said wing-like members and said wing support member being provided with aligned apertures for receiving attaching means to removably attach said forward assembly to said rearward assembly; and

means for depositing seeds into said pocket through said opening in the ground.

2. The planter of claim 1 in which is included shaper means for final shaping of the bottom portion of said pocket in the ground immediately prior to the seeds being deposited therein, said shaper means including a pair of pointed wedge-shaped platelike members respectively disposed subjacent said converging margin portions of said vertical members of said rearward assembly, said wedge-shaped members being further disposed in an angled abutting relationship one with the other having the pointed portions thereof extending a spaced distance forward of said margin portions and being fixedly attached one to the other and respectively to said converging margin portions of said vertical members of said rearward assembly.

3. The planter of claim 1 in which is included a fertilizer opener means fixedly attached to said seed opener share at the rearward end thereof, and in which is included means for depositing fertilizer through said fertilizer opener means into said pocket in the ground.

4. The planter of claim 3 in which said fertilizer opener means includes fertilizer displacement means for displacing the fertilizer being deposited into said pocket a distance from the seeds being deposited therein.

5. The planter of claim 3 in which is included a pair of side-by side wheel means rotatably mounted from said frame rearwardly of said fertilizer opener means for closing said opening and said pocket in the earth formed by coulter, said seed opener share and said fertilizer opener means.