Fields not Round?
Obstacles Don’t Limit Michigan Valley Irrigation!
You have probably seen green circles while flying over parts of the central and western United States. Large open, flat fields in Nebraska and surrounding states where the center pivot industry began. Using an elevated pipeline that travels around the field continues to be an efficient way to irrigate larger parcels of farmland. The simple fact that a circle takes less iron to cover more acres continues to be a cost-effective strategy. In Michigan and the Great Lakes area, while we may not have as many wide-open spaces, we have two key factors not present where center pivot irrigation was born. We have the most abundant fresh water supply in the world. Due to our climate, we also have diverse growing conditions for many crops and a demand for several kinds of livestock. With an increasing demand for food to feed our growing population, whether directly or through livestock, options exist to grow higher value crops.
These higher value crops, whether they are all or part of your crop rotation, provide additional income that make innovative options affordable. While lakes, streams, trees and other obstacles add a minor challenge, don’t forget we have available water. Valley has responded with three key innovations to improve coverage of our smaller, mis-shaped fields. Corner arms, benders and drop spans are three equipment options to cover more acres from a single pivot point.
Corner Arms
Corner arms have been around for decades and have continued to improve. A corner arm on the end of the “straight” machine adds a steerable drive unit that can extend and retract the last span and overhang, picking up additional acres. Early models had a buried wire that guided the steerable drive unit, providing a specific path to cover the corners that were being missed by the base unit. Valley now has a precision corner option that is guided by a GPS signal improving accuracy. It also has a more precise path and can be easily adjusted if field parameters change. It also eliminates buried wire which can be damaged by tillage or other practices. The more recent addition of EnCompass technology improves water application uniformity, adjusting application rates as the corner arm is moving throughout the field. This prevents under and overwatering, improving yield and preserving water.
Benders
A bender is a flex point at a selected tower that stops at a specified point and allows the remaining spans to continue their path, watering more acres. Valley has two options here: the Bender 30 and the Bender 160. When designing your pivot, the Bender 30 is used on any machine that needs to “bend” up to 30 degrees, while the Bender 160 can continue up to 160 degrees beyond the tower that must stop due to an obstacle. These two options can be easily and inexpensively added to either an existing or a new center pivot irrigation system. They are also designed to bend in either direction, should multiple barriers exist.
Drop Spans
A drop span option is like the opposite of a bender solution. An inner length of the pivot can continue inside of a barrier that “blocks” the outer portion of the pivot to travel. A stop is established at a selected tower, the machine stops and in less than 15 minutes without tools, the farmer can separate one or more of the outer spans from the base machine allowing the “shortened version” of the pivot to continue watering on it’s path. An optional end gun can be added to the last tower that continues. When the pivot comes back in reverse, it stops, and the end tower or towers are reconnected.
If you have rectangular or L-shaped fields, limiting barriers or corners that are not within reach of an end gun with the standard center pivot configuration one of these three options can often provide a solution to watering your fields with a Valley Center Pivot, the leader in precision irrigation.
At Michigan Valley Irrigation we literally draw thousands of maps every year to provide design options maximizing coverage for fields that may not work in Nebraska. Don’t hesitate to bring us a field map. Our sales and design staff are always looking for a new challenge!
Give us a call at 989-762-5028.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pete is the marketing manager for Michigan Valley Irrigation, having joined the company in 2016. He was raised on a dairy farm in western New York and graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in agricultural economics. His entire working career of over 37 years has been involved in agriculture. A farmer helping farmers. When away from Michigan Valley he operates, Joyful Noise Farm, a small livestock and produce farm and spends time with his family.
