To conclude our insights into soil preparation, today we would like to take a closer look at the work carried out at Luisenhof (Linden & Kelleners farming cooperative) in Germany. The farm works exclusively with animal traction.
Slightly north-east sloping land of about 1000 squaremetres was selected for the "A Year On The Field" project. The field is located about 350m above sea level and the soil there can be described as loamy-clayey. Locally it is a rather harsh, cool mid mountain climate with an average rainfall of 650mm.
In the previous year, the area was used for potato cultivation. Since potatoes were the previous crop, stubble breaking with a cultivator or disc harrowing was not necessary in the fall of 2021. Instead, the area could be plowed immediately at a favorable time (Oct 24th) with a 1-furrow Eberhard reversible plow. After plowing, the area was prepared crosswise with the Cambridge roller.
Plowing the same field in a previous year (same plough)
For plowing, the farm used the two Ardennes geldings Ron (10)900kg and Carlos (13) 980kg. The Cambridge roller with 2.20mtr working width was driven by a single-horse.
A total of 3 Ardennes geldings are currently used on the farm and one Brabant coldblood. For the lighter maintenance work, such as mounding the potatoes and hoeing between the rows, the use of the farm's own Iceland ponies has proven to be very effective.
