Frequently Asked Questions
Why investing in a quality liquid banding system pays!
Apart from the availability of nutrients to the plant, ease of storage and handling and general convenience, one of the main reasons for making the switch to the banding of liquid fertilisers is to participate in prescription farming. This is an area in which large financial gains are possible due to the adoption of contemporary farming techniques and associated equipment offering greater efficiency with inputs and improved yields.
A properly designed and commissioned liquid banding system provides the operator with unprecedented control over the application of fertiliser, trace elements and fungicides during the seeding operation.
If contemplating the introduction of trace elements, fungicides etc. to a clear liquid or the use of commercially available suspension fertilisers, serious consideration should be made to tank agitation. Without adequate agitation it is simply impossible to successfully band many of these mixes.
It appears in general however that little consideration has been paid to how these objectives are achievable in a system and I believe that part of the problem is that the industry tends to look to the U.S.A. and Canada for guidance on how systems should be set up.
Obviously the systems are acceptable over there, however there are massive differences in system requirements between these countries and Australia.
The easy accessibility, low price and the huge application rates of liquid fertilisers used in these northern hemisphere countries determine the design of delivery systems and apparatus, which has changed little over the years and still remains in general, very agricultural.
It was interesting to note, at the recent Australian Fluid Fertiliser Conference in Adelaide that scant regard was given by international researchers to liquid delivery systems --- I believe the words from one speaker were 'It's only up to your imagination'!
A question which I have regularly heard posed to industry researchers is --- 'How much does a system cost'? The usual reply is: 'It depends on how much you want to spend'! I think that often this answer is taken literally by the enquirer and they believe that all things are equal apart from the price!
It is sheer folly to believe that you can build cheap, accurate systems with components purchased at the local hardware store, however time after time this is exactly what is attempted. In my experience it is impossible to build a highly accurate system unless you utilise quality pumps, valves, fittings, restrictors, terminal jets, agitators and rate monitoring or rate control.
I know of locally made systems operating in Australia which are so unbalanced that a percentage of the terminals do not even function while applying product. This is simply crazy; it does nothing to help the farmer and it brings the liquid fertiliser industry into disrepute.
Imagine the financial waste of applying product unevenly at say 15% above the target rate, possibly picking up this discrepancy in the first day or so of seeding and realising that inherently the system is just incapable of accurate delivery!
A rate monitor at the very least, should be a pre-requisite on any system so that the operator has a handle on what is actually going on!
A well designed, quality banding system should meter product at the precise rate evenly across the entire bar!
The requirements of the Australian farmer for low application rates, precise placement of product, corrosiveness of the liquids etc. are special and a great deal of attention to product design is necessary to ensure that these requirements can be met.
At Liquid Systems (SA) we have invested heavily in a comprehensive test facility which enables us to examine and monitor all aspects of a system under load. This facility is really a Field Simulator and it replicates what happens on the farm. Many of the components used in our systems are unique to us and are the result of our own product development programme. The test facility has been instrumental in the development of these products.
Trust Australian ingenuity and invest in a system which is designed to do the job properly - it will pay for itself over and over!
Peter Burgess.
CEO
Liquid Systems (SA)
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