Since being appointed by Germany-based Düvelsdorf as the manufacturer’s sole importer and distributor of their grassland maintenance equipment range, initially for Ireland in October 2022 and subsequently for the UK in May 2023, we’ve been getting loads of interest in the product line. This has been reflected in a growing order book, both here in the UK and across the Irish Sea on the emerald isle.
The Düvelsdorf range includes rakes, rollers, seeding systems and harrows, as well as silage equipment including silage rollers and maize levellers. Having earned a strong reputation across Europe for clever, practical design, impressive build-quality and excellent value-for-money, Düvelsdorf are well placed to break into the UK and Irish grassland machinery markets by offering farmers a very attractive – and more affordable – alternative to similar machines from some of the bigger, better-known brands.
The importance of effective raking
During wet, cold winters, many grasslands can develop an overhang of dead, mouldy grasses. These can create the perfect environment for disease. In addition, old grass can compromise the quality and palatability of pasture fodder in spring. In order to prevent these side effects, plant residues should be raked out at an early stage.
The best tool to ventilate the turf is a rake with strong tines and small tine spacing. The raking brings light and air to the turf, allows the soil to warm up earlier, and stimulates the vegetation. The rake’s levelling bar ensures soil accumulations on the surface are removed and spray residue is dispersed. In addition, this process is the best preparation for reseeding. If the seed is introduced directly into the tine section when raking, there are further advantages. By sowing and raking the turf simultaneously, seed-to-soil contact is maximised, significantly increasing the germination rate.
Available with both sowing and roller combinations, the Düvelsdorf GREEN.RAKE range offers outstanding flexibility and consistently impressive results. Easily adapted to suit your specific soil conditions with optimum ground contour following, working widths range from 3m to 9m.
Flexible, easy-to-use sowing technology
With a wide range of seeder versions offering a variety of functions and capacities up to 500 litres, there is a Düvelsdorf seeding solution to suit almost every application and requirement.
The choice of control modules includes the Standard range with electrically-driven blower and the more advanced SEED.CON system with either electric or hydraulic blower drive. Standard control modules include the ES 8 Standard Profi and, offering the option of speed-dependant sowing, the ES 8 Turbo Profi. Both are intuitive to operate thanks to their simple and practical controls. This allows the seeder to be easily switched on and off from the cab, the spread rate to be continuously adjusted and a calibration test to be carried out.
The SEED.CON control module works wirelessly and offers a range of features such as speed dependent seed dosage, hectare and hour counters, plus calibration that can store five different settings. All seeding settings can be made either from the cab or directly on the seeder. The user-friendly interface on your own smartphone or tablet makes the control even more practical and simple. Further advantages of the SEED.CON control system are quantity control during operation and the additional option of operation via an ISOBUS terminal.
A wide range of Roller options
Rolling is vital, especially on soils with a high content of organic matter and high air capacity. For these soil types, when there is a frost, the top soil layer freezes, separating the roots from the lower soil layer and the turf. This compromises soil contact. Rolling restores it by pressing on the upper layer, making it easier for water to be taken up by capillary action and allowing the deeper soil layers to warm up more quickly. In addition, rolling helps to press the grass plants down after raking and to press seeds down after sowing.
The Düvelsdorf offers a wide range of rolling options across the TERRA.ROLLER eco and TERRA.ROLLER expert product lines. Working widths are 2.5m, 3.0m and 6.3m for the Eco range, whilst the larger Expert comes in widths of 6.3m, 7.7m, 8.3m and 9.3m.
Both ranges can be equipped with either Cambridge Rings or Toothed Ring elements. The Cambridge rings achieve both fine crumbling and good surface compaction. The large bearing clearance in the serrated ring, which moves irregularly in working mode, produces a self-cleaning effect and thus prevents the roller from sticking when used on heavy soils. The toothed ring elements break up heavy clods due to their higher weight and aggressive structure. This makes the sowing layer quite fine for a depth of 2 to 3 cm and gives the seeds good soil contact. The coarse particles remaining on the surface prevent silting up, evaporation and drifting.
Even weight distribution
The three-section TERRA.ROLLER expert roller features a particularly robust frame. Further strengths are revealed out on the field. The individually suspended roller elements ensure optimum adjustment to the soil surface. The pressure is adjusted mechanically or hydraulically, depending on the equipment version. Pre-tensioned springs transfer the middle roller section’s weight to the two outer surfaces to ensure an even distribution of ground pressure. This, in turn, leads to a uniform working pattern across the full working width.
The TERRA.ROLLER eco and expert rollers are available with a 300 or 500-litre capacity seeder unit with the SEED.CON control interface for operation via your smartphone or tablet. The system is also ISOBUS compatible. A tail wheel, tractor meter cable or radar sensor are available options for speed-dependent sowing. The seeder can be retrofitted with access steps at any time.
