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Pruning residues, which occur every year in orchards and have many different utilization potentials, are an important issue for fruit producers. The shredding process is indispensable and critical for the utilization of these residues. The performance of the shredding process is affected by the operating parameters of the shredding machine as well as the moisture content of the residues to be shredded. In this study, olive pruning residues with three different moisture contents were shredded at three different rotor speeds in the developed shredding system. We determined how the power requirement of the shredder changed under different conditions, and empirical models were developed. The experiments showed that the average power requirement of the shredder ranged from 7.32 to 10.81 kW, and it was found that residues with low moisture content decreased the power values, while higher rotor speeds increased the power requirement. The developed final model has a mean absolute error (MAE) of 0.376, a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.441, and a correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.859. The model serves as a reliable tool for estimating power requirements in the shredding of olive pruning residues, enabling the selection of the optimal rotor speed based on moisture content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of the no-till seeder is one of the most important factors that affect the success of the no-tillage. Striking the right balance between furrow opener design and residue cover is essential for optimizing seeding conditions and ensuring sustainable agricultural practices that promote both soil conservation and high-yield crop production. This study investigates the impact of residue cover on no-tillage maize seeding after wheat harvest, focusing on plant spacing, seeding depth, mean emergence time, and percent emergence. Trials with hoe-type and double-disc-type furrow openers, accompanied by plain- or ripple-disc-type coulters, were conducted in Antalya, Turkey. The results indicate that residue cover had no significant effect on mean plant spacing, but a higher residue cover increased spacing variation. The seeding depth in hoe-type furrow opener trials remained consistent, while double-disc-type furrow openers showed lower depths with 80% and 90% residue covers. The percentage of plant emergence and mean emergence time decreased as the residue cover increased in double-disc-type furrow opener trials. At 90% residue cover, PE decreased to 60%. The impact of disc coulters on hoe-type furrow openers was limited, but they increased seeding depth and MET in double-disc-type furrow openers. These findings can help optimize residue management for improved efficiency in no-till farming systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous efforts are being made to improve fertilizer efficiency by improving fertilizer technology, quality, and application rates. Granular organic fertilizers are more difficult to achieve uniform application because their physical–mechanical properties differ significantly from mineral fertilizers. The properties of granular organic fertilizers can best be determined experimentally. However, these studies are often quite complex. Modern engineering modeling software makes it possible to model the properties of granular fertilizers and their dispersion. This study deals with the theoretical and experimental verification of the physical–mechanical properties of organic bone meal granular fertilizer. For the verification of selected properties of bone meal granules, the following studies were carried out on the granules: determination of poured bulk density, static and dynamic angles of repose, static and dynamic friction coefficients of granule surface, etc. The results showed that for modeling fertilizer properties, it is sufficient to carry out a static compression test to determine the modulus of elasticity and a friction test between granules and the contacting surface to determine the static and dynamic friction coefficients. The remaining properties of the granules can be modeled and calibrated with the DEM software Altair EDEM 2023. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open-field farming involves successive major processes such as preparation of soil, planting the seed, adding pesticides and fertilizers, irrigation, cultivation, and harvest. The main aim of all processes is to achieve maximum yield out of the available agricultural landscape. It is necessary to collect geo-referenced descriptive data on soil characteristics, such as soil penetration resistance and electrical conductivity before starting all these processes. In this context, agricultural robots offer highly promising technologies providing valuable soil data, lower production costs, reduced manual labour, and maximum crop efficiency. The aim of this study is to design and develop a combined sensor platform and a GPS-guided 4WD agricultural autonomous robot to provide rapid measurement and mapping of the soil penetration resistance and the electrical conductivity for precision farming applications. The agricultural robot is a nonholonomic mobile robot, which has a differential steering mechanism and can be forwarded to stable-target points. The combined sensor platform, which is a y-axis shifter driven by a DC motor with reducer, consists of the Wenner array probes and load cell-based penetration rod. AutoCAD software was used for designing and drawing of the robot and measurement platform. All software was coded in Microsoft Visual Basic.NET programming language. Field studies were conducted to measure the soil penetration resistance, electrical conductivity, and determine the correlation between soil penetration resistance and electrical conductivity. As a result, the ranges of the soil measurement were observed between 1.13 MPa-2.14 MPa for penetration resistance and 0.14-0.33 dS/m for electrical conductivity. Results showed that there is a fairly strong negative relationship between the soil penetration resistance and the electrical conductivity (R2 = -0.78). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of COMU Journal of Agriculture Faculty / ÇOMÜ Ziraat Fakültesi Dergisi is the property of Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Mediterranean Agricultural Sciences is the property of Akdeniz Universitesi Ziraat Fakultesi and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Chopping is a critical process in recycling of the pruning residues at different forms. Choosing the right blades in machines used for this purpose will positively contribute to obtaining suitable particles and reducing the operation costs. The effects of the three different blade types on the performance values of a on the go machine, which is used in the orchards among intrarows to chop the pruning residues were investigated in this study. The hammer, universal and Y type blades were used in trials for chopping the pruning residues of the pomegranate and orange. In this study, power and energy requirements and average geometric diameters of the chopped residues were determined. Based on the research results, the effect of the blade types used on power consumption of the machine and the particle size was found statistically significant. The maximum power consumption and the smallest particles were identified in the hammer blade for both pruning residues. These values were 22.28 kW - 11.63 mm for pomegranate and 19.29 kW 13.03 mm for orange, respectively. The lowest values, however, were determined in the Y type blade as these values were 13.44 kW - 14.15 mm for pomegranate and 10.44 kW - 17.11 mm for orange. The values obtained from all applications for energy requirement were calculated as 4.24 - 7.07 kWh t-1 for pomegranate and 4.64 - 8.57 kWh t-1 for orange. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No-tillage seeding applications that conserve natural resources such as soil and water and decrease the cost of inputs for agricultural production have become an increasingly applied method to conventional tillage systems including ploughing. Traditional tillage systems in the subtropics and tropic regions and with intensive tillage applications will lead to soil degradation and a decrease in crop production efficiency. This will also lead to poverty and emigration of farmers from rural areas. If we want to give the farmers a chance to continue farming and if sustainable agricultural production is to be ensured, then land use and management methods should be revised and improved, and new or modern cultivation systems should be applied. No tillage is the practice of never soil tilling before seeding operation. The essence of no-tillage is providing the soil surface covered with stubble residue. No-tillage systems have remarkable impacts on crop production and environment: __ they reduce erosion (wind and water), thereby reducing environmental pollution and, most importantly, protecting water resources; __ they reduce carbon emissions; __ they contribute to increasing biodiversity in the soil; __ they provide agricultural production using less energy than conventional tillage, and essentially the conservation tillage or conservation agriculture practices contribute to sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]