PERFORMANCE EVALUATION AND SELECTION THE PROPER SYSTEM OF HARVESTING OF SOME CROPS IN SMALL HOLDINGS

Abstract

Due to the actual problems of manual harvesting, the use of mechanical mowers for crop harvest could be suitable. Many types of mowers are used extensively in many countries of the world. In Egypt, they are used to harvest forage gorage and cereal crops and are widley used nowadays in cleaning the farm of crop residues. The field experiments showed that the selected (suitable) forward operating speeds for cutting cotton stalks, sweet sorghum stalks, mowing clover and harvesting wheat, it gave the highest values of cutting efficiency. It is preferable using the self-propelled reciprocating mower in harvesting wheat, cutting sweet sorghum stalks and cutting cotton stalks. It is not preferable using the self-propelled reciprocating mower in mowing clover, whereas the least of actual field capacity, the highest required energy, the highest costs per unit area and the least cutting efficiency. It is preferable using the tractor-mounted reciprocating mower in small farms and in harvesting wheat, cutting sweet sorghum stalks, cutting cotton stalks and mowing clover. And, it is preferable using the tractor-mounted disc mower in cutting sweet sorghum stalks, cotton stalks and mowing clover, it is not preferable using the tractor-mounted disc mower in harvesting wheat, owing to the cutting efficiency was increased (70.48%), beside the highest both of required energy and costs per unit area, the harvesting losses was increased (29.52%).