Cereals 2014: Opico aims to improve OSR accuracy

Improving the precision and uniformity of oilseed rape drilling has been an off-season priority for plenty of UK farmers looking to make the most of pre-em spraying.
Lincolnshire firm Opico was showing one of the simpler solutions to the problem – a double-disc system that mounts to the back of cultivators like the He-Va subsoiler shown in the picture.
The double-disc opener cuts a slot before the seed is dropped and a single press wheel consolidates the ground. Adjustments to pressure and depth can be made manually using arm-draulic winders on the back of the machine.
Opico’s demo machine had two Austrian-made Hatzenbichler hoppers on top, with distribution tubes leading in front of the packer roller for slug pellets and to the rear for rapeseed.
If you’ve already got a subsoiler then you can buy a five-unit bolt-on toolbar for £3,564. If you want to buy the whole shebang including subsoiler then the asking price goes up to £34,236.