FarmTech releases folding Aervator

Wodonga-based machinery distributor and manufacturer, FarmTech said its latest 5m Aervator was designed to cater to market needs for an easily transportable and manoeuvrable aerator unit.

FarmTech has been making the Aervator range for over 20 years and in 2018 released the centrefold model which folds to 3m to fit through narrow spaces with ease.

“This is a new design on an old concept,” said FarmTech Machinery production manager, Charlie Burder.

“There was a requirement in the marketplace to build a machine that when folded is narrow so it fits through gateways, and this is the idea that we came up with.

“It's very much based on European designs of similar machines such as speed discs and plows using the centrefold principle, but adapted to our manufacturing processes and the available components and skills we have here.”

FarmTech’s aerator units are tractor-towed implements that punch holes in the ground to allow existing plants and pasture in the ground easier access to water and nutrients.

“So we're not digging over the ground, we're just improving the existing structure that's there and allowing those plants to access more air, water and nutrients,” Burder said.

“We have some hydraulic functions to fold the machine and to lift it up and down out of the ground but it's unpowered, so it's literally just rolling along the ground. It's a very simple machine.”

Burder said the Aervator is suited for grass farming and will typically be used about twice a year – in autumn and spring.

“The first time you’d use it is after your first autumn rain when the ground is softened up after the hard summer pan,” Burder said.

“And you will use it again at the end of winter to open up the soil and promoting new spring growth.”

Due to the modular design of the Aervator and Farmtech’s range of other implements, users can opt to add fertiliser or seeding units on to the Aervator to increase productivity.

“So while we're aerating, we can scatter grass seeds to improve the pasture or to add a different variety of grass into your pasture,” Burder said.

“We can also tow rollers behind them…we've got a number of different accessories to go with this machine to improve its effectiveness and also to reduce the number of passes you need to do as you’re effectively doing two or three jobs in one go.”

The folding Aervators currently range from four to 6m in width, and FarmTech plans to build units up to 8m in width.

The Aervator can be adjusted to provide as much or as little soil aeration as one likes, and it could even provide some cultivation if required.

“This is where we see this machine competing really effectively with a multi disc,” Burder said.

“It takes less horsepower to pull, it's a cheaper machine to buy, and there's vastly less maintenance on this because you're not wearing out expensive discs and bearings. And it's actually doing a better job because it's not destroying your soil structure.”

The 5m folding Aervator costs retails from $38,000.