The preservation of soil fertility is the priority

Agricultural yield targets are constantly rising. Priorities are a maximum yield /acre and the highest quality. And to do that justice, more and more heavy tractors and trailers are being used. This in turn leads to greater working widths, higher tire pressure and inappropriate tillage approaches. In addition, we are facing extreme weather situations more often. All these factors eventually affect soil compaction and soil sealing.

Measures that counteract these developments therefore have to become top priorities. In the case of compaction or structural weaknesses of soil, it is necessary to remediate these problems long-term and to avoid new ones in the future.

Soil compaction disturbs yield potential

10 to 20% of our soils are so condensed that the original, fertile state of the soil structure cannot be restored.

Soil compaction causes a reduction in water and air storage capacity, which in turn has a negative impact on crop development. The consequences are lower growth due to reduced rooting, plant stressful during drought periods due to lack of capillary water supply and thus also less yield. Likewise, the climate is negatively affected by soil compaction, as the restricted gas exchange causes a high level of methane gas formation. Therefore, the early recognition of soil compaction is very important.

Topsoil mapper as a tool against soil compaction

The Topsoil Mapper is the ideal solution to guarantee an optimal tillage strategy and an ideal soil structure. The sensor technology measures soil parameters at different depths in real time and detects vertical changes in conductivity within the topsoil, which typically indicate compaction. The system then converts this information into control signals via ISOBUS for the tillage device. The soil maps created provide a valuable source of information for further operations.

Site-specific soil management

Individually distinct tilling with the Topsoil Mapper

The concept of the TSM: Electromagnetic sensors detect compaction in the ground in a contactless way during each pass. The signals are transfered via ISOBUS to the tractor terminal and on to the implement. This enables precise soil mapping and an individual depth control of the tillage implement in real time. This allows you to apply deep or shallow tilling depending on the specfifc requirements within one field.

Variable Depth Tillage -Variable soil processing

By using Geoprospectors’s Topsoil Mapper, the soil is only tilled as deeply as necessary. This not only increases the work rate, but also protects the machinery and reduces fuel consumption. With the TSM control function, you can chose three fifferent tillage strategies:

  • Shallow Cultivation – Flat Soil Processing

    For flat cultivation in clay soils or reducing erosion by leaving crop residue on the soil surface.

  • Sub Soiling - deep soil processing

    For deep cultivation in sandy soils and to break up all low-lying, compacted zones.

  • Depth Contour - deep-guided soil processing

    Layered soil tillage to avoid breaking up compacted soil layers or mixing topsoil with subsoil.