The suitability of the seedlings determines the outcome of mechanical planting

 When we start discussions with a new customer, we ask for information about the plants to be used. This is so that we can ensure the technical functioning of the planting machine. 

We usually ask to go to the nursery to examine the seedlings and carry out a drop test. This test is very simple - we drop the seedling from a height of 1.5 m and if the substrate remains in the pot then the seedling is of good quality. 

On the other hand, it is important to check the shape of the roots, if the roots are twisted or they branch outwards the trees will grow slower. Air roots and "prickly" roots are a source of interference to the machine's operation.

The shape of the stem is also crucial, a twisted or curved stem is not suitable for mechanical planting.

We may sound demanding, but the machine performs many functions at the same time. Even a single disturbance slows down the operation and the simplest way is to put poor-quality seedlings in the ground manually.

Forest builders for the good of the community

These two forest builders were headed to the same customer in the Far East. Many areas have varied terrain and different types of soil.

Since the purpose is to secure the vitality of natural seedlings' growth on the slope, the customer chose our SKB type with different tools such as a 3-fork ripper, tilt and mounding bucket. (the picture shows a U-bucket. The U- bucket is chosen especially in some flat areas with a hard pan that can be used to break it).

ASP works commercial planting in flat areas, below 25 degrees. There are difficulties in transporting different machines to the fields for cleaning, tilling, applying herbicides and fertilizing, so the choice of equipment was clear, just one machine.
The most common reason for purchasing our equipment is a lack of labour. However, at the same time, we can raise the standard of living of the workforce we use by providing training around the infrastructure of machinery.
Here are clear reasons to invest in mechanization, trees' vitality, and people's vitality.

Weed mechanical control

 In my previous post, I talked about the importance of a properly done field establishment for weed control.

When done correctly - cultivation, the right kind of seedlings, and other actions are a good foundation for the future growth of the stand.

But grass and bushes grow and compete for light and nutrients with the target crop.

In a plantation environment with straight lines and row spacings designed for extraction, it’s easy to control grass mechanically. But we shouldn’t discount cutting in northern conditions - where efficiencies can be gained with a small combi- or compact excavator.

It’s wise to cut the grass and bushes with an efficient method before the final cut. This is because the quantity and quality of the cut wood improve, while the final cut is quick and inexpensive, which is critical for controlling cost when operating with an expensive harvester.

Weed control in early stage plantation

Weed control is one of the most challenging things in forest management. Especially when planting, it is important to use pre-emergence herbicide, but if it is not allowed to use herbicide? We can control the weed in two ways: tilling the soil and using large seedlings.
Surprisingly, the best time to plant in very fertile soils is winter, when the grass is not growing. The planted seedling is ready to wake up with the sun and gets a few weeks ahead of the grass. This can be decisive. With mechanical planting, the seedling pot can be made deep enough. thus it is safe from the ravages of winter. The development and growth of the seedlings can also be accelerated in various ways, such as slowly releasing fertilizers and bioaccelerators. 

 

Subsoiling machnery is one of our branches

 

Although we are profiled as a manufacturer of forest builders (planters) and digital systems, we are also a manufacturer of other soil preparation equipment. The pitting tool PT-6 has been a success in forestry. The device subsoil fertilizes and digitally marks the location and working time tracking. Combined with mechanical planting, where water gel is added with a light planting machine, we have reached steep slopes with good work speed. Two PT-6 devices and one PM-120 are great team, especially for slope work or slash areas.

According to our customer's research, the system gives at best a 30 per cent growth rate compared to manual planting and bucket tillage!
The picture shows a device built by our licensed
manufacturer, this also shows our willingness to cooperate in sales, maintenance and license manufacturing. We are at your service for all questions!

The ASTA system is the key to productivity

 Many countries already use our digital system for documenting the location of seedlings, called ASTA.

This system provides a wide range of information such as area, speed of site formation, number of sites and density. Several different types of work points can be added to the system such as pit, tree, and seeding points and generate different types of data and API interface data.

You should contact us to hear more, data is key to processes that contribute to work for the forest and the land.

Looking for a trainer!

 

We want to provide our customers with continuity and certainty in the operation. Now we are looking for a trainer who is involved in the installation and commissioning of the device and stays for a while to train the customer's drivers in operation, maintenance and work methods. The training takes place in the customers' forests, so the living situation must allow long periods of absence. Between the training periods, the workplace is at the premises of Risutec Oy, where the trainer also installs machines and produces material for the training. This is how we maintain the trainer's professionalism in product management. The prerequisite is good English language skills, good driving skills of an excavator and, of course, willingness to travel.

Interested? Contact: jussi.aikala@risutec.fi 

How to plant trees in wasteland?

Nowadays, the world share one crucial mission that is to fight against climate change. Meanwhile, many hectares of land are neglected without adequate agriculture or forestry. It would be a waste of nature if we did not take action and take care of our land. All land can be planted no matter how wet or dry or full of weeds it is. We just need to choose the right method.

Cocoon is a good example of a planting method that is herbicide-free and still keeps the weeds away. It is a biodegradable paper donut which can store almost 20 liters of water inside and release the moisture for long enough for the plant to become stronger and bigger.

The cocoon has a lid, which prevents other species from growing near the planted tree. A vertical tube covers outside the tree and hides it from animals such as elks and deer. It also has mini climate that stabilizes the moisture and protects the tree from the overheating of the sun.

The birch in the picture below was planted with Risutec planting machine. The machine dug a hole and planted the seedling effortlessly. After the cocoon was placed in the right position, the machine added the water and covered the cocoon with soil. Manual labor was required only to place the cocoon, its lid and the tube.

Compared with the open-field plants, this birch has many more green leaves and its stem is stronger. In a few weeks, without any caring and effort, it might be difficult to find the little birch in the picture above among all the vegetation on the field.

Operating planting machine

And this is how it works with TASK- guidance system. All in one: planting, irrigation, herbiciding, fertilizing, GPS- points and the best quality soil preparation!

Fully mechanical planting head Risutec PM60E for eucalyptus and pine

Fully mechanical planting head Risutec PM60E for eucalyptus and pine Risutec has made a new model for eucalyptus plantations. This model is based on our PM60 moulding model, but with several modifications. 

Risutec PM60E includes a plate for preparing the soil up till 40 cm depth. The plate will make a hole, which guarantees optimal conditions for fast growth. Unit also optionally has a fertilize supplier, which gives adjusted amounts of fertilizer on pit surface. 

This unit can be used also for soil inverting. 
Unit has a 60 seedling capacity, with maximum seedling height 30 cm. Risutec PM60E weights 650 kg, making it suitable for excavators starting from 8 tons. This model will be presented 15-17 June in FOREXPO in France and 30 June – 2 July in Galiforest in Spain. 

New kind of planter for eucalyptus

In short time Risutec Ltd. is delivering a new type of eucalyptus planting head, type Risutec SKB-180. This special type is designed for deep soil preparation and can be used in slopes.

SKB-180 is designed for excavator 15-18 tons, operational weight is 1200/1500 kg.The seedling cassette includes 180/360 seedlings and it can have a lot of optional devices: fertilizer applicator for granule, water or water gel irrigation, herbicide system, ASTA- documentation system, TASK for precise guiding for seedling placement. Other devices can be automatic lubricator, camera and special trays for loading. With this machine (and all other Risutec models too) can be used telemetric control for adjusting.

This particular machine can be delivered also different kind of subsoilers, It can have a cultivator or rake, whatever your need is.

For additional information, please contact to Risutec!

Steep slopes for eucalyptus production- vital, no choices

In a long term, our growing population needs more food. Climate change will destroy in large scale farming land. Drought, a lack of water means that we have to get more fields from cattle grass land to seeded. Soy bean, maize, grain etc. needs flat ground and fruitful soil to grow.

At the same time, paper consumption is going down bit by bit. Cardboard, new kind of wood fiber, plywood and even a timber will keep the needs of pulp and wood material in same level as it has been in recent years. In this angle, we need long fiber pulp more and more to cover to satisfy the demand of markets.  Electric power is still needed in future, this global depression will heal in some years. And it means that we have to do electricity with sustainable way: sun, wind and- wood chips.

This will lead us situation where have to consider more and more effective ways to grow wood. Now flat grounds are coming more mechanized and it shows benefit of mechanization. But how to get more land for wood grow, if there is a competition with farmers about the land?  


Simple answer is to intensive cultivation of wood in slopes. Many problems are still there , but harvesting in slopes is already solved. Now the bigger issue is how to do silvicultural work with less manpower? Terrace roads are one solution. Those can be used also with fertilizing, weeding (a big problem) and harvesting. But the cost are high, making those roads needs a lot of hours. More simple way to do planting is just drive up and down with feller buncher carrier or powerful excavator.

Risutec Ltd. has develop a solution for slopes. Deep sub soiling and bedding for seedling, fertilizing, water gel, herbicide and in future also TASK- system for accurate placing. We are ready to release our solution in few months. Take contact to us and take advance of  cost reduction!

Mekaaninen! Istutuskone PM60

Ei letkuja, ei sähköjohtoja. Vain kiinnitys kaivinkoneen puomiin, täyttö ja istutustyön aloitus. Ajatuksena yksinkertainen, mutta vaati paljon testejä ja muutostöitä.

Risutec PM60 on noin 550 kg painava istutuskone. Taimimäärä on nimen mukaan 60 kappaletta kuusen tai männyn taimea. Periaatteessa koivunkin istutus onnistuu, jos taimi on alle 20 cm korkea. Tämä istutuskone on rakennettu kaivinkoneen omistajille, jotka haluavat tehdä työtä omissa metsissään tai urakoida pieniä alueita. Koneessa on kaksi säädettävää kohdetta, muuten työtahti- ja tapahtuma on kuljettajasta kiinni. Laite on saatavana myös erilaisilla kiinnityksillä

Mättään tekeminen tapahtuu normaalia totutusta kauempana. Jos halutaan istuttaa  menetelmällä mätäs- istutus, pitää kone kääntää suoraan joka kerta mättään tekemisen jälkeen. Nopeampi keino tottuneelle istuttajalle onkin mätäs-mätäs 5-6 kertaa, sitten istutus-istutus. Tällä menetelmällä konekin on vamiina oikeassa asennossa, jossa kuljettaja näkee telat ja etenemissuunnan. Koneella on myös tehty erittäin kivistä kohdetta, mutta kivisyys aiheuttaa  työn hidastumista. Koneen hinta on määritetty ostajaystävälliseksi, laitteen voi hankkia Risutec Oy:stä tai AF- Parts . Koneen rakenne on suojattu oikeudellisesti, kuten muutkin Risutec Oy:n tuotteet.

Mechanical planting and ripping

In some conditions, there is better to do separate ripping and planting. These conditions can be available machinery- many bulldozers and experienced operators, soil conditions meaning hard soil difficult to go through or possibility to put together herbiciding or fertilizing.
We have got experience to do simultaneously planting and watering. Planting speed can be near 400 pcs/ hour included refills. Ripper can do in good conditions four hectare in a day. If planting head can do near two hectare a day one ripper can feed two heads.

Why to use mechanical planting head and not manual planting? I have been writing this over and over...not easy to get labor any more. And the planting quality is much better, machine does every planting with same accuracy. Water or gel can be carried with basic machine, also seedlings.
Cost efficiency is more problematic. If you have troubles with to get employees then it will reflect also costs. Basically, this can be main reason to do it mechanically way. Ripper costs are always the same with manual or mechanical system, so only cost effect comes planting. If it is only head with doing planting and watering, planting head is much more low-priced. But you need a carrier, an operator and the head.
Still, the cost can be more lower with mechanical planting combined ripping than manual planting. The quality of planted seedling have to come first, then the easy supply chain from nursery to planting site and the most important is the percentage of living seedlings after one month.

After all, if you can combine ripping,fertilizing, herbiciding, watering and planting you need only one operator, not 5-6 employees.

Why mechanize forest plantations?

Two different world: Northern countries like Finland and Southern countries like South Africa or Indonesia.

Lets speak about Finland. Our problems are quite usual: high costs of employees, the lack of labor and some suspicious minds. Why we have to change our good methods of forestry? We don't. But should! In our forest development goes backwards- one quarter of our forests are without any care since last 30 years. It won´t be enough that we put seedlings on the ground and then forget. In any cases, our planting areas are usually late, so there is grass and junk trees all over. How to get a good quality wood if we don´t care in time our planting areas?
I suggest- best way to safe our plantations and young forest, is to raise the amount of seedlings/ hectare +20%. There will be good seedlings in future, micro propagation; clones. It will lower costs of seedlings, or create more powerful seedlings.Main thing is that if later nursing is not in right time it will forgive failures and give choices for final products- biomass or timber.

Southern countries mechanization level is low and usually the lack of employees is a quite a problem. But short circuit of final cutting and planting gives powerful need to develop the efficiency. Most important is, that every pulp mill has need to do something to cover the costs. If costs of final cut are under magnifier, next move is to study the planting costs.
Many countries have a strong environmental care of forestry. Much more stronger than we northern people believe, they understand political effect between commercial forestry and good relations with Eco-conscious people= clients. Problems are same, but economic is more growing, they need more and more effective production to cover needs hand in hand with environment.

We are strongly doing the work, which is covering the needs of forestry in all sides of world.

 Join us, we can rise your productivity!