Interpreting information.

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TRAY TESTING

• Less than 10% of fertiliser spreaders are professionally tray-tested, so there is plenty of scope for improvement, says a Staffs-based company.

"We have 12 engineers working nationwide," says Rob Foxall of Spreader and Sprayer Testing.

"The AEA estimates that there are 20,000 spreaders out there, but I would guess that only about 1500 are tested in any year. We do about 1000 a year.

"A lot of people have their own trays, but don't know what to do with the information they get from them. It's all about interpreting the results and being able to make the necessary adjustments properly. We are doing that work day in, day out.

"Worn vanes are probably the commonest problem we come up against."

Often farmers with an eye to the expense of replacing the vanes will insist that there is still some wear left in them, but that can be false economy, warns Mr Foxall.

"Something that is 70% worn can't be spreading accurately."

PHOTO (COLOR): Far too few spreaders are tray-tested for accuracy of distribution, Yara's Mark Tucker believes.

PHOTO (COLOR): Vanes as worn as this cannot possibly spread fertiliser uniformly.