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Drying grass fodder in Europe’s Alpine countries is becoming increasingly important due to positive effects on the fatty acid composition of milk. A proper approach and technology of fodder drying can raise its quality to the level of grass silage. In principle, drying fodder means extracting water from fodder by means of ventilation – the air, the key to the speed of drying. Besides low relative air humidity, its flow rate through the fodder is also important. In the literature, the lower- and upper-bound limits of air flow rates can be found, with a difference of 85 % between the two. The article describes a test, measuring energy consumption and the efficiency of drying at a low air flow, often used in practice, and a high air flow. It was found that a high air flow results in 38 % higher energy consumption per kilogramme of extracted water, compared to a low air flow. The executed test has proved that drying at a higher air flow will not have a proportionally greater effect.

Due to the confirmed positive effects on the fatty acid composition of milk, drying grass fodder is becoming increasingly important in Alpine areas. Using new technological solutions, such as condensation dryers, makes drying possible also in extreme conditions, such as drying completely fresh fodder in bales. The possibility of such extreme drying of completely fresh bales of lucerne has been confirmed by tests on three modern drying systems in two Alpine countries, in Slovenia and Austria. The drying process was identical in all the dryers, with new technological solutions used in the equipment of the condensation dryer for the second test. The results showed that drying lucerne on a sophisticated condensation dryer is possible with properly executed drying procedures and adequate technological equipment. Such drying completely preserves the energy value of fresh lucerne. The use of new technological solutions for the condensation dryer reduces costs by a further 30 – 33 %.

The optimum use of natural resources is even more vital in areas with limited possibilities for agricultural production. A better use of those resources yields improved production; however, improved production requires fertilization. Optimum coverage with stable manure on sloping terrain can be achieved by spreading in the direction perpendicular to the direction of travel of the spreader. A mathematical model and simulations were devised in order to serve as a basis for recognizing the key parameters of spreading. The rotor's rotational speed, the loading area for manure pieces onto the rotor, and the outlet area emerged as the most important parameters for this side-delivery spreader. A special spreading device was designed on the basis of the acquired data. It features greatly improved spreading properties and quality of spreading, together with considerably safer handling. The prototype was tested according to European Standard EN 13080.

The process of manure spreading is an important step in cultivating land for agricultural production. For this reason, the technical process of manure spreading was studied using various methods of scientific research and analysis. The focus was primarily on improving the working principles of manure spreading, using so-called wide-angle manure spreaders. Results of the analysis of material transport along the rotor revealed the most relevant parameters of manure spreading. It was found that friction is not the most important parameter. The initial position of pieces of manure and the rotational frequency of the rotor are far more important. The coefficient of friction between the rotor and pieces of manure has a minimum influence on the tangential speed of a piece on the rotor, which in turn also means a minimum influence on the range of spreading. The initial position of the piece on the rotor has an influence on the tangential speed and travel of the piece on the rotor. The tangential speed of the piece as it departs from the rotor is influenced by the size of rotor and the rotational frequency of the rotor. Included are recommendations regarding the process of constructing a new spreading device or improving existing methods of spreading manure.