Strip-till drills are all the rage these days and Yorkshire maker Sumo is the latest to come up with a new take on the concept.

The Deep Tillage Seeder (DTS) is a one-pass cultivator drill that can be put to work directly in the residue of the previous crop.

It’s a concept the firm has been working on for some time and a prototype machine – based on an adapted pneumatic seeder – was first put to work in 2007.

Now there’s a full-production machine that is built entirely by Sumo at its workshops in Melbourne, Yorkshire. With the flagship model measuring 12m, the firm says it’s the biggest of its kind.

At the business end, the seeder units on the DTS are positioned 333mm apart so that the drill only works the strip of ground where the seed is planted. That means fewer horses are needed to pull it and the operator can cover more acres in a day.

Sumo also says establishment costs should be significantly lower than an equivalent machine that works the whole field. Power needed to pull it effectively should be about 50 to 60hp/metre.

As we’ve come to expect with Sumo kit the DTS has plenty of metal in it and looks like it’s been built to last.

How it works

Each of the cultivating seeder units are individually mounted so that they neatly follow contours and a constant pressure hydraulic system makes sure they stay in contact with the ground.

At the front of each assembly there’s a disc that slices the initial slot, which is followed by an auto-reset loosening tine which can work to a depth of 350mm. A Dutch Industries seeder boot comes next and places the seed in a band about 15cm wide. Handily, this can be swapped for a narrower one when drilling beans.

A simple set of covering discs then flick soil on the top of the seed and a pair of angled rubber press wheels tamp it down.

The smallest 3m mounted drill comes with nine rows/seeder units while the biggest 12m drill has a whopping 36. Metering and seed distribution on all models is handled by an RDS Artemis system that’s GPS compatible and capable of variable-rate seeding.

The DTS will be available for the 2013 autumn drilling campaign. Prices will start at about £30,500 for the 3m machine and the mid-range 8m will be about £81,500.

Sumo has also launched a new heavy-duty straw rake that aggressively scratches the soil surface as well as leveling out trash.

The Strake has inherited Sumo’s big-boned build and has been designed to give a greater degree of soil disturbance than some other straw harrows. Sumo says this helps encourage weed seeds to chit and is great for battering slugs.

Hanging from the chunky steel frame are a set of heavy-duty spring tines that have ultra-hard carbide tips. These have been staggered over five rows and spaced 75cm apart to prevent them clogging up with debris.

Sumo says the tines will create a shallow tilth for seed germination, even in dry conditions. Tine angle can also be adjusted hydraulically to give a greater or lesser degree of disturbance.

The harrow has been designed to travel at high speeds and the firm says it will happily thunder along at speeds of up to 25kph.

The Strake comes in 6m or 8m mounted form and there’s a 12m, trailed version, too. Prices start at £13,293 for the 6m machine, the 8m is £16,993 and the 12m one will set you back £28,123.

The firm’s Quatro cultivator has also been revived and given a substantial overhaul for next season.

There are now two rows of discs on the front instead of one and all of the components can be raised or lowered hydraulically. This makes it much more flexible that the previous machine, says Sumo.

Prices start at £54,523 for the 4m machine.