Page 200 - Nutrient Management Planning Guide

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Calibrating Manure Application Equipment

Calculating Application Rate

A series of six evenly spaced, 1.5 m 2 tarps, collected a total of 16.2 kg of solid manure. The resulting application rate is:

Total Collection Area (m 2 ) = 1.5 m 2 /tarp × 6 tarps = 9 m 2

Application Rate (kg/m 2 ) = Weight of collected manure (kg) ÷ Total collection area (m 2 ) = 16.2 kg ÷ 9 m 2 = 1.8 kg/m 2

Application Rate (t/ha) = Application rate (kg/m 2 ) × 10 = 1.8 kg/m 2 × 10 = 18 t/ha

Determining Spacing Between Spreader Passes

When using surface application systems, a uniform application can be achieved by adjusting the spacing between adjacent passes with the spreader so that the passes overlap. The spacing between passes that will result in the most uniform application can be determined by graphing the outcome of the first spreader pass.

Using graph paper, plot application rates on a graph where application rate (or discharge) is on the vertical axis and distance of the center of the collection pan, sheet or sheet section from the center of the spreader path is on the horizontal axis (Figure 4.6.3). Connect the data points with a line to develop a uniformity curve.