Tire Inflation Pressure

Some of you are faced with harvest activities on very damp to muddy soils. Check your tire pressures! This is a zero cost way to A) reduce compaction

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Plant Roots

The first plant part to emerge from a germinating seed is a root, called the radicle (not radical) in both dicots (‘broadleaf’ plants) and monocots (grasses).

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Liberate the Roots!

Many of you are fighting to get your corn crop planted in the mud across the central & eastern corn-growing areas of the US/Canada.

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First Things First! —Planter Function

I know a number of you think you’ve got this nailed, but the fact is that I see 90% of the planters out there still running nose-down. Part of the problem is that the tongue angle is a big distraction (and the parallel links).

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Biology of Soil Compaction

We highly recommend this article, The Biology of Soil Compaction (pdf), revised and updated from an Ohio State* publication, and consider it to be absolutely essential

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Seeding in Hard, Dry, or Dusty Conditions

Planting conditions have become very dry across much of the USA & Canada, hence a few tips: On planters and drills of all makes & models, we cannot emphasize enough the importance of having enough frame weight.

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Derek Tjaden

Derek is Kansas native who grew up in a 100% no-till farming operation. From an early age the benefits of no-till were made known to Derek by his father and by attending no-till conferences. From there he furthered his passion for soils while at Kansas State University getting his agronomy degree. He has had the experience of working in various roles and sectors of agriculture from sales and consulting, to management, which have all been within production agriculture. Derek has also worked in specialty ag markets such as turf and ornamentals.

Bob Pagel

Sales & Service Representative

Prior to joining Exapta, Bob Pagel was an Agricultural Territory Sales Manager for Ritchie Brothers, serving parts of MN, WI and IA. He continues to support his family farm in SE Minnesota.

Jon Zeller

Current Product Engineer

Jonathan Zeller joined Exapta excited to return to working with no-till planting equipment. He supported research of no-till planting and other ag related projects for 7 years with Kansas State University’s Agricultural Engineering Department after getting his engineering degree. He later worked 3 years for Landoll Company, LLC. where he gained experience in a design engineering role. Jonathan grew up on a small family farm in NE Kansas working with row crops, hay and cattle. Jonathan enjoys solving engineering problems and improving or creating products to be robust and easy to install and service.