Influence of Design of the Disk Furrow Opener of No-Till Sowing Machines on the Seedbed Quality

In the context of modern agriculture knowledge of soil properties becomes essential for the optimization of crop production. An increasing interest can be observed in last few years for conservative soil management practices such as no-tillage, that promise many long-term benefits for soil health. Aim of this research was to investigate the soil preparation mode for three models of disks (one flat and two corrugated) across different sowing speeds (3, 8 and 11 km/h) in order to identify ways to optimize no-tillage technology for crops with higher row spacing. Results have shown that soil cone index is a useful indicator for characterization of the general effect of sowing equipment on seedbed quality and consequently on root growth and plant development. More attention should be given in the future to possibilities to develop furrow openers and machines adapted to particular soil conditions as well as with real-time adjustment, in order to increase precision and feasibility of no-till sowing.