After just a few weeks using AGCO’s new Auto-Guide GPS system Tasmanian farmer John McKenna is enthusiastic about the difference it is already making on his property.
John is using Auto-Guide with 2cm RTK (real time kinematics) accuracy level as part of a controlled traffic trial being carried out on his farm in the central north-west coast of Tasmania.

The trial is a government-funded project with Landcare. It assesses the viability of controlled traffic in vegetable farming within an onion paddock. John and his wife Bronwyn, together with John’s parents Max and Carlene, farm 400 acres of crops, primarily potatoes, poppies, onions, and peas.

“We’re trialling Auto-Guide and controlled traffic with the aim of reducing compaction and seeing where we can make a better seed bed for the onion crops without driving all over it in order to look after our soil,” John says.
“It’s a 12-month trial to start with. Next year we want to come back and plant potatoes in the beds where the onions were.”

Controlled traffic farming permanently separates the traffic lanes from the soil in which the crop grows, with all equipment running on the same track width. It is based on the simple logic that crops grow better in soft soil and wheels work better on roads.
While the trial is in its early stages, John says it is already evident that the ground compaction is reduced through the use of the Auto-Guide.

“We have done half the paddock as normal and half in controlled traffic so we can compare. What you can noticeably see is there’s a lot less compaction in the controlled traffic area. We’re hoping the onion root will penetrate deeper through the soil and pick up more water and grow better. There’s also a nice even seed bed there.”
He has previously only used a light-bar GPS system, which he says is not even in the same league as the Auto-Guide. It’s quite simple to use once you’ve been through it a few times. It’s pretty user friendly and can see what it’s going to do for you.”

The McKenna family has used Massey Ferguson tractors on their property for many years, and today they operate a range of Masseys, including an  MF7485 (165hp), an  MF6465 (120hp) and an MF6270 (115hp), all of which are only three or four years old. They also have a range of older irrigation anchor tractors.
For the trial they transfer the Auto-Guide system between the MF 6465 and MF7485.
“The 7400 is used mainly for ground work. We want to get the accuracy for working the ground with rippers and power harrows but to sow the crops we set up the smaller tractor.”
John is happy with the Auto-Guide’s range provided by the base station, which has coped well with the undulating and hilly terrain of the region.

“We’re happy with the signal strength of our farm even though it is undulating. We thought we might have had a problem with power lines as there’s a lot across Tasmania, but it doesn’t seem to be a problem. There’s no interference for the range that we’re working in.”
John says another benefit of using the Auto-Guide is that he feels fresher and less tired at the end of the day.
“What’s that worth to you? It means you can probably do a longer day to get the job done.”

The McKennas are currently looking for a new tractor with wider wheel spacing and are considering the Massey Ferguson 7475 which is rated at 140hp.
“With this controlled traffic we would be interested in having bigger beds, especially for the onions.  This would give you a compaction reduction of about 32 percent. That’s one of the things I’m striving for – to go for a tractor with a wider wheel base fitted with the Auto-Guide system. This combined with controlled traffic can make some significant gains.”
In addition, the McKennas plan to use the Auto-Guide for mapping their farm in order to carry out a range of jobs more accurately, including spraying and planting.
“We want to work out contours for our drainage. That’s another area it could be an advantage for in the future, for putting in contour drains." This is being carried out with GTA300 software provided by AGCO which enables maps to be viewed on your personal computer.

John is also very complimentary towards the team at Tasmania Farm Equipment at Devonport for their support in installing the GPS Auto-Guide.

For information regarding the trial, contact paird@serve.ag.com.au, John.McPhee@dpiw.tas.gov.au or jason.mcneil@dpiw.tas.gov.au