Your soil is your main asset when it comes to obtaining good yields year after year. But maintaining this level of production requires special care, in particular by avoiding soil compaction during harvesting periods.
Throughout the year you try to optimise tyre pressure when working on different agricultural campaigns. But when it comes to harvest time, you bring out the combine-harvesters that weigh between 25 and 40 tonnes, with a high tyre inflation pressure, which creates a significant impact on the structure of your soil.
The passage of very heavy harvesting machines is responsible for 50 to 85% of soil compaction, depending on the type of soil and the moisture content. This compaction, accentuated by the repeated toing and froing, reduces soil permeability, thus seriously affecting its capacity to accommodate water, air, nutrients and the plant treatments necessary for good crop growth.
Losses in yield due to soil compaction may reach 20 to 40%, which is a major problem that can be managed with good practices and suitable equipment.
In this article, we explain how VF agricultural tyres can play a role in soil preservation after the harvest.
We will look at how to look ahead and prepare your soil for future sowing while minimising compaction. From the use of good tyres to optimal pressure management, discover how to restore the structure of your soil after the harvest to guarantee better, long-lasting yields.
Harvesting, the last step in a long production cycle, is a severe challenge for the structure of your soil. The toing and froing of heavy machinery such as combine-harvesters and trailers can effectively cause serious compaction, with negative consequences on soil health and future productivity.
The combined weight of the agricultural machines, often over several tens of tonnes, exerts considerable pressure on the ground.
This pressure is concentrated beneath the tyres, leading to compaction of the topsoil and the deeper layers of soil. The higher the pressure, the greater the soil compaction.
The negative effects of soil compaction are not immediately obvious but occur over time.
Compacted soil leads to a decrease in porosity, reducing its capacity to store water, air and nutrients. These elements, essential for the growth of the seedlings, become less accessible. This weakens the root system and limits crop development capacity.
The preservation of the soil structure ensures the health and perennity of your crops.
By avoiding compaction, you create an environment that is conducive to growth. Your seedlings will have access to the water and nutrients they need to develop vigorously and produce abundant, quality harvests.
These optimal conditions result in:
Harvesting equipment is generally heavier than other agricultural machines as part of the harvest is stored while the work is carried out, requiring a higher inflation pressure to cope with the extra load without crushing the tyres.
However, this increase in pressure accentuates the soil compaction phenomenon.
When an agricultural vehicle drives over the ground, the tyres exert pressure to the soil surface.
If you consider the soil as a spongey structure, the greater the pressure applied to this structure, the more compressed the pores become and the more the structure caves in. Agricultural vehicle tyres have the same effect on the soil.
Deep compaction of the topsoil
During harvesting, you must be very careful with your tyre inflation pressure, especially in wet conditions. Water effectively reduces the soil’s bearing capacity, which increases the risk of compaction with the same tyre inflation pressure.
During wet periods, whether for wheat or corn harvesting in October, you must adopt agricultural practices which protect the structure of your soil.
Here is some advice to avoid excess soil compaction and protect the fertility of your land:
There are several solutions for restoring soil and preserving its fertility.
The choice of decompaction technique depends on the depth of the compaction:
In addition to the mechanical techniques, you must stimulate the biological life within the soil to facilitate its natural regeneration. This can be done by:
To avoid further compaction during soil recovery work, it is highly recommended that you use VF technology low-pressure tyres.
These tyres spread the weight of the machine over a longer, larger surface area, thus reducing the impact to the ground.
Bridgestone’s VF VT-TRACTOR tyre is an efficient way to preserve the structure of your soil and limit compaction. It contributes towards maintaining the fertility of your land and optimising your yields on a long-term basis.
The VF VT-TRACTOR tyre is designed to work at very low pressure, between 0.6 and 0.8 bar, i.e. a pressure of up to 40% less than standard agricultural tyres.
This feature leads to a better distribution of the machine’s weight to the ground and limits compaction.
Working at low pressure allows you to respect the ground’s load bearing capacity better.
With its soil footprint that is longer and larger than standard tyres, the VF VT-TRACTOR tyre offers a better load distribution when working at low pressure, which contributes to limiting soil compaction and preserving the structure of the soil.
The casing of the VF VT-TRACTOR tyre is designed using innovative materials and an innovative structure which give it an exceptional flexion capacity. This flexibility allows the tyre to change its shape beneath the load, thus spreading the weight over an even larger area and further reducing soil compaction.
The VF VT-TRACTOR’s optimised tread profile guarantees excellent traction and limits slip, an important factor in soil preservation.
Manufactured using quality materials, this high-tech tyre is designed to withstand the extreme strain of agricultural labours. Its wear life is longer than standard agricultural tyres, which helps you save money in the long run.
The Bridgestone-agriculture.eu blog is written and administered by tractor tyre experts who are available to provide you with the advice you need on the subject of your agricultural tyres. They allow you to maximise your productivity with information on all subjects linked to tyres: Cheap tractor tyres — Technical data for agricultural tyres — Air pressure advice — Solutions to avoid soil compaction — Sprayer tyre pressure — Why and how to ballast your tractor tyres — When to use dual wheels — The mechanical causes of abnormal wear — Cheap agricultural tyres – etc.
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