Manual Planting Research Articles

An Evaluation and Comparison of Mechanised and Manual Tree Planting on Afforestation and Reforestation Sites in Ireland

Recent labour shortages and rapid increases in labour costs in Irish forestry have directed attention to mechanised, containerised tree planting systems as an alternative to the traditional manual planting of bare-rooted stock. The objective of this study was to compare mechanised planting with manual operations, on both reforestation and afforestation sites, using Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.) plants in three container types (i.e. hard container, root trainer, fen container). The Bräcke tree planting machine was selected for the study, as it is capable of handling a wide range of site conditions and a variety of plant types and sizes. A qualitative analysis of the collected data showed that, in general, manual planting scored significantly higher than mechanised planting for plant position and planting quality. However, the quality of planting resulting from mechanised operations was well within acceptable operational requirements. On the reforestation site, plant growth after one growing season was investigated. No overall significant differences in height growth and root collar diameter increment were found in the first growing season between mechanised and manual planting operations. Plants grown in ‘fen containers’ had the highest relative increase in height growth and root collar diameter, irrespective of planting method. The results showed that the Bräcke planting machine was capable of planting a range of containerised plants to an acceptable standard on both reforestation and afforestation sites. Further research to optimise the combination of machine, plant size and container type should result in improvements in both the quality and productivity of the planting operations.

Development and performance evaluation of okra planter

A three-row ridger planter was developed for planting soaked okra seed on the ridges. The seed metering mechanism in the planter is of inclined plate type. Power is transmitted from ground wheel to metering system through chain and sprokets. The machine has four ridger bottoms with runner type furrow opener for making ridges. The seed is placed in these ridges at desired depth. The ridge size and depth of placement of seed are adjustable. The implement is operated by a 35 hp tractor. During evaluation the field capacity of the machine was found to be 0.2 ha/h with an average operating speed of2.27 kmph. The field efficiency of the planter was found to be 66.5 per cent. There was a saving of 77 man hours per hectare by planting okra seed with planter as compared to making ridges with tractor drawn ridgers followed by manual planting. The cost of operation was found to be Rs. 810/- per hectare and a saving of 76% over manual planting was recorded. The crop parameters and yield were comparable in case of machine planting and manual planting.

Temporal and spatial characteristics of irrigated rice in JERS-1 L-band SAR data

Multi-temporal JERS-1 SAR (Japanese Earth Resource Satellite 1 Synthetic Aperture Radar) data have been used in this study to investigate the temporal and spatial characteristics of irrigated rice in LHH-band SAR data. The two test sites chosen represent areas that are characterized by manual and mechanical planting practices that turn out to have a significant effect on the L-band backscatter. The results show a clear relationship between L-band backscatter and plant growth in manually planted areas. A dynamic range of about 8dB has been measured with no apparent saturation of the signal. Areas in which mechanical planting is practiced, however, display a more complex relationship where the radar response is strongly dependent on parameters related to the spatial distribution of the plants. The backscatter displays a strong dependency on planting orientation and plant spacing, where fields planted in the radar illumination direction with a certain plant spacing display extreme dynamic ranges of up to more than 20dB due to resonant scattering. Fields planted in other directions generally experience attenuation of the signal and dynamic ranges do not change by more than a few decibels. Despite these artifacts, however, a correlation between plant growth and backscatter has been observed for all fields, independent of plant spacing and field orientation.

第１報 ネギ栽培作業と従事者の健康の実態調査 ネギ皮むき機作業の研究

Survey was conducted with various methods to grasp some problems on the worker's health and the labor involved in the farm work of welsh-onion cultivation. The surveyed area was located in Menuma, Saitama.The result was that the labor requirement for the manual planting operation is too much. But there is a much greater problem on the health management. In addition, as a result of the CMI survey and the audiometry, the hearing problem of workers caused by the use of welsh-onion peeling machine was pointed out as another problem.1. Health ManagementOn the health condition of workers in the survey area, abnormal blood pressure, excess grease in blood, corpulence and hearing problem are remarkable.It is necessary to know and cope with several factors in human life environment, which affect on the variation of blood pressure. The examples are as follows: to avoid spiritual stress; to avoid exposure to coldness; to avoid taking a hot bath; not to eat and drink excessively; not to eat too much salty foods. It is thought that the reason of high blood pressure associated with dietary life in this area is the too much eating of salted salmon at lunch time. This is due to the most serious factor of not having enough time to prepare lunch. Nowadays, a song, ‘IEJI’ in Japanese title, locally called ‘Ichi Ichi San Maru (tone at 11:30am) Campaign’ is broadcasted at 11:30am in the area, and it is gradually becoming effective. Thus, it would be secure to have enough time for preparing lunch.Against corpulence, it is important to diet and exercise, especially to decrease sugariness and grease in dietary life, however, workers in this surveyed area take soft drinks, sweet cakes and cracker at tea break during farm activity. This point should be reconsidered.2. Protection against Hearing ProblemThe protection against hearing problem is to decrease the noise at its source, which is the currently being used machine, the welsh-onion peeling machine. The noise, whose frequency is in high frequency region, is made when the onion is peeled off by compressed air from the machine. Some measurements to decrease this noise would be reported in another report.It is also effective for protection against hearing problem of the workers to use protection devises such as an ear cork and an ear muff. As mentioned before, the frequency of this noise is so high that these two devises, the ear cork and the muff, could be recommended to be used because they cut off the high frequency sound.

A two-row automatic cassava cuttings planter: Development, design and prototype construction

The manual planting of cassava cuttings is an ardous back-breaking operation and constitutes one of the major factors limiting the development of large-scale cassava industries in Nigeria. The two-row cassava planter described in this paper is fully automatic. The planter prototype is trailed, tractor-drawn at speeds up to 10 km per hour. It is designed to plant the cassava cuttings at an inclination of up to 80° to the horizontal, depending on planter speed, and spaced 890 mm on small ridges which are 900 mm apart.

The Status of Container Planting in Western Canada

Canada's western provinces must develop new reforestation techniques if forest management is to be intensified, and if forest renewal is to keep pace with the accelerated rate of harvesting. The challenge can be met if labor productivity is significantly increased through mechanization of planting. Container planting methods can improve manual planting performance and provide the basis for ultimate mechanization.Container planting methods as developed in Canada may be defined as reforestation systems whereby tree seedlings are grown, transported and planted in small containers. Several types, sizes and shapes of containers are being investigated but, for reasons of economy in bulk and weight, all are characterized by a tiny soil capacity usually not exceeding three cubic inches. The small size and uniform shape of container-grown seedlings permits manual planting rates two to three times faster than those possible by mattock planting conventional bare-root nursery stock. The principal biological advantage of container methods is the capability of protecting the seedling and delivering it to the planting site with all of its roots intact and viable.Large-scale container field trials are underway in all four provinces, but few conclusive results are yet available. Deficiencies in containers or techniques that have come to light are being overcome. As biologically acceptable methods emerge, efforts should be channelled toward developing equipment for automating and mechanizing both the nursery and planting phases.