As agriculture and farming evolve, new technologies and ideas are constantly presented to farmers for their consideration and purchase. In many cases, growers have very few places to turn for sound yet unbiased research information to help them decide which technologies and ideas may have merit for their operation.
That’s why Beck’s Practical Farm Research (PFR)® team goes directly to the farm to ask growers what they want to know that can help them increase ROI on their farm. It is those answers that help form the backbone of our research each and every year to inform and drive our PFR studies. For the 2022 planting season, Beck’s PFR is conducting studies that investigate new technologies and answer age-old questions, all in the name of helping farmers be more profitable.
One of those age-old questions Beck’s PFR team gets a lot from growers is, “Could we see a difference in yield if we ran different tire pressures on our tractor planter during planting?”
Feeling the pressure from farmers throughout the Midwest, Beck’s PFR team designed a multi-location planter tractor tire pressure study on corn and soybeans to find the answer. The goal of this study is simple; to determine if changing tire pressure on the go and increasing the PSI footprint can help spread the load of the tractor over more square inches to improve crop health.
We already know that overinflated tires cause excessive compaction in the field, but did you know that it can cause significant yield loss? Research has shown that soil compaction can reduce yields by up to 15% per year and can also affect the condition of your fields for years, even when tillage is implemented.
This year, five of Beck’s PFR sites are implementing this tire pressure study which tests multiple technologies to see what impact tire pressure can have on soil density and overall yield. By evaluating five different psi (35 psi, 28 psi, 20 psi, 12 psi, and 6 psi), Beck’s is looking to determine if farmers could see a difference in yield by running different tire pressures and tractor speeds in their fields during planting. Beck’s will conduct this study for a minimum of three years across multiple locations to find the PFR Proven™ agronomic recommendation for farmers when it comes to tractor tire pressure.
Check out this video to learn more about this innovative study!
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