STRIP-TILL TECHNOLOGY: DESIGN AND APPLICATION FEATURES OF THE EQUIPMENT OF LEADING GLOBAL MANUFACTURERS
Worldwide application of conservation tillage practices and the trends of their development and improvement are discussed. The features of Strip-Till technology and the equipment application are reviewed. The functional tasks of the design units of the combined Strip-Till implements are discusses, including soil cutting, row cleaning, soil loosening, tillage tools penetration, soil disintegration and rolling. The specifications of the base implement are presented. The main trends in the development and improvement of the implements design are revealed. The operational principles of Strip-Till implements and the tasks of individual tools are described. Three types of implement configurations available in the market are classified according to five groups of tools and tools’ functions. The design of soil cutting and loosening tools and their location and mounting on the frame depending on implement types and groups are described. The need for experimental verification of the implements’ design, the study of tillage intensity and fertilizer application rates depending on the regional conditions is emphasized. The related activity is implemented in the framework of the international research project “Kulunda” in the Altai Region. A long-term permanent field experiment on sunflower cultivation is conducted in the Kulundinskaya steppe.