Menu

All articles about Root crop equipment

Potatoes, carrots, sugar beet and other root and vegetable crops play an important role in farm crop rotation, so our machinery pages cover latest developments in hoeing, weeding, seeding, planting and harvesting, highlighting latest techniques to save costs and improve efficiency.

Advice and tips

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Tips for buying a second-hand self-propelled beet harvester

Although the second-hand self-propelled beet harvester market has suffered as the sugar beet area and price slumped, there’s still a steady demand from budget conscious buyers. While machines are still…

See all

Case studies

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

How potato growers are saving costs with combi planters

The combination potato planter market is hotting up, with four manufacturers now jostling for share as UK growers look to cut spend on crop establishment and reduce their reliance on…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

New potato facility reduces costs and allows longer storage

After a store-ravaging fire destroyed his older buildings and boxes in 2016, specialist potato producer Philip Smith invested in a new super-efficient facility that is cheaper to run and maintains…

ROOT CROP HARVESTERS

Sugar beet chaser beats sticky ground for Suffolk contractor

Wretched winter weather hasn’t got in the way of sugar beet lifting for Suffolk-based arable, pig and contracting outfit PH Hammond, thanks to a canny investment in a converted harvester.…

ROOT CROP HARVESTERS

Driver’s view: Holmer T4.30 self-propelled beet harvester

When British Sugar shut its West Midlands factories in the mid 2000s, the area’s beet growers and lifting contractors were left severely in the lurch. With no outlet for the…

See all

Insights

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

How alternative potato desiccation systems performed in 2022

Two alternative means of desiccating potato crops were trialled during the 2022 season and both machines offer potential, although more work is planned to optimise use in British conditions. The…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Buyer's guide: Camera-guided sugar beet hoes

Mechanical methods formed the backbone of in-crop weed control in sugar beet before herbicides arrived, and some farms have continued with both approaches to this day. However, with rising input…

ROOT CROP HARVESTERS

How to decide between trailed or propelled spud harvesters

As the potato harvest rumbles on, the efficiency and reliability of the kit being used to get the spuds out of the ground is undoubtedly being scrutinised. With a shortage…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Haulage logistics considered after bumper sugar beet crop

This year looks like a bumper crop for British Sugar, with an estimated total yield of 1.4m tonnes of sugar. This is up 0.5m tonnes on last year thanks to…

See all

News

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Grimme Prios 440 now plants into separated beds

Grimme has revealed a new version of its Prios 440 cup planter, which can place seed into prepared beds. The firm launched the trailed four-row machine two years ago, designed…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Better stone protection for beefed-up Grimme bed formers

Grimme has revamped its range of bed formers, toughening up their framework and adding the option of hydraulic reset stone protection. The three models in each of the BF and…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

AVR upgrades its crop handling conveyor offering

AVR has launched a new conveyor that offers potato and other root-crop growers a more flexible, user-friendly and higher-capacity option that its predecessor, the CTK. The Mamba comes in two…

ROOT CROP HARVESTERS

Swish new cab for six-row Grimme Rexor 6300 beet harvester

Grimme’s latest six-row Rexor 6300 sugar beet harvester has a new X11 cab reckoned to be the quietest on the market. As well as better sound insulation, operators have been…

See all

Test and reviews

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Potato haulm toppers: What are the options?

The loss of broad-spectrum contact herbicide diquat didn’t come as a surprise, but the months of speculation finally ended when its scheduled withdrawal was announced late last year. While a…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Four-row planter and rotavator combo speeds up spud planting

A gang of six companies led by root crop specialist Niagri has co-operated to produce one of the most impressive potato planting rigs in the UK. The combination of a…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Root-crop chasers take the headache out of harvest haulage

One company making a root-crop chaser bin is interesting, two could be a coincidence, but when five begin building them it can safely be considered a trend. The reason for…

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

High-spec root crop loader speeds veg harvesting

Farmers aren’t being deterred by the huge asking prices for high-spec cleaning and haulage equipment for veg and root crops Grimme’s latest field loader, which costs £250,000, demonstrates that technology…

See all

Video

ROOT CROP EQUIPMENT

Two mechanical weed pullers to save on hand rogueing

Hand rogueing is the established but tedious means of cleaning sugar beet crops of tall weeds that have survived inter-row cultivation or a herbicide programme. So it will come as…

See all