Republic of the Philippines
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Philippine Center for Postharvest
Development and Mechanization
CLSU Compound, Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija

FEATURES

Design and development of the BPRE pneumatic corn planter
by Ofero A. Capariño (February 17, 2006)
Some of the major constraints in corn mechanization are the high cost of imported machinery and the unsuitability of bigger machines to the average farm size in the country. In her study, Dela Cruz (2003) recommended the conduct of research and development on appropriate corn machinery to suit local conditions. Instead of consolidating several small farm areas to one big farm so that big machines can be used, small farm holdings can be mechanized through the introduction of smaller machines that are appropriate for the present farm sizes. Aside from the reduction on investment and lower rental fees, smaller sized machines would have greater flexibility in smaller farm sizes.


This study developed a corn planter that is technically and financially viable to local needs. Specifically, the study: 1)designed and developed a semi-commercial model corn planter; 2) tested and evaluated the field performance of the developed semi-commercial model corn planter; and 3) determined the financial viability of the developed semi -commercial model corn planter.


The developed corn planter was tested in two soil types (e.g. sandy loam and clay loam) at three different forward speed settings. Results of the field performance testing and evaluation showed that the highest planting capacity of 3.3 ha/ day was obtained at a forward speed of 4.0 kph for both types of soil. The highest hill planting efficiency of 86.72% and 93.73% were attained in sandy loam at a forward speed of 4.0 kph and clay loam at a forward speed of 3.5 kph, respectively.


The planting capacity was affected by the forward speed and shape of the field while low planting efficiency can be attributed to the higher percentage of missed hills caused mainly by drive wheel slippage. It is recommended that the machine should be operated at a forward speed of 3.3 3.8 kph to attain the maximum planting efficiency.


The estimated investment cost of the developed corn planter including the tractor and working capital is about P632,950.00. This amount can be recovered in 4.21 years with an IRR of 26.19% and a benefit cost ratio of 1.28.


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1 Renita SM dela Cruz, Evaluation of the Mechanization and Consolidation of Farms among Clustered COAST Projects in Quirino and Isabela, a dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Institute of Graduate Studies, Central Luzon State University, November 2003, Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija