In the Beginning

The evolution of residue management started decades ago as demonstrated by the Yetter Disc Jointer Coulter circa 1949. The Disc Jointer utilized a concave disc for two primary functions: (1) to completely cut the residue and (2) to use the disc concavity to act as a mini-moldboard to throw the top three inches of soil and residue into the bottom of the furrow. This resulted in the residue being completely buried and prevented the plugging of the plow shear. Planting in this time period was done in completely residue free conditions with extensive soil tillage. Most planters of the day were not capable of planting in soils that were not residue free. Please pay particular attention to how the concave disc was used and its angle of operation relative to the soil surface, as it will play an important role in the evolution of planter residue management attachments.

The First Try

As better planters were developed in the late 1970s to early 1980s, a trend towards reduced tillage created a demand for some type of device to remove residue left over by the reduction in preplant tillage. Very few choices were available, and most farmers chose to use what was commonly referred to as a “furrow opener,” which consisted of two concave discs opposing each other and mounted at similar angles as the blade of the disc jointer coulter. The Yetter model was named Trashmaster. The sole purpose of the furrow opener was by definition to open a furrow ahead of the planter opener. There was a drawback to using a tool like this. The sharp cutting edge of the discs did their job by cutting and plowing residue out from in the front of the planter, but it was extremely sensitive to depth control and could easily become too aggressive. This resulted in the furrow opener acting as a plow and removing too much soil ahead of the planter unit depth gauge wheel or wheels. At this point, the planter unit was significantly impacted by residue management tools used ahead of it. Both smooth and notched blades were used, but the results were the same. Regardless of type, the concave discs performed like the disc jointer and threw out the soil. In the early 1980s, Yetter devised a method to invert the blades so a sharp cutting edge was still available to sever residue, but the angle of the blade prevented it from being overly aggressive. At this time, however, the term “smearing the soil surface” was becoming popular, and the fear existed that the inverted blade would do just that and create emergence problems. There had to be something better for all conditions and cropping practices.
 

Enter the Trash Brush

At the close of the 1980s, Yetter worked with a central Illinois farmer who had developed a method using small 12” brush wheels from a street sweeper to move residue. The brushes were mounted in the same fashion as the furrow opener blades but with one distinct difference: the brush wheels were vertical to the soil surface for more brush-to-soil contact and less soil movement. While this product was short lived mainly due to lack of brush stiffness and wear life, a better understanding of what was needed to successfully move residue was
developed. A key point was learned: it is not necessary to move soil to move residue. Progress was made, but again, there had to be a better way.

The Age of the Fingered Residue Manager Wheel

A better way was discovered using a residue management device with steel-fingered wheels. Yetter was approached in 1990 by John Deere to take over development of a fingered row cleaner that they were in the process of developing. The original prototypes had several design and functional issues that needed to be ironed out. After follow-up with farmers who had participated in the original John Deere test program, it became quite obvious what changes were needed. The wheel diameter was downsized, and wheel thickness was reduced based on test participant feedback. Like the Trashbrush, the fingered wheels operate in a mostly vertical position to the soil for improved finger-to-residue contact. This operating position provided a means to obtain residue removal goals while minimizing soil disruption. For this reason, the name Residue Manager was used by Yetter as a descriptive explanation of the product’s function. The first row of the revised design was installed on an April day in 1991, and the participating test farmer made one round and wanted 11 more. From there, demand for this type of product kept growing. This initial development process has spurned numerous offshoots, such as the Residue Manager in Coulter Combination, Narrow Row Residue Manager, Single Wheel Residue Manager, and the Titan™ Floating Residue Manager, but the best is yet to come.

The New Era in Residue Management

Shark Tooth®, the next generation of the residue manager wheel, is as close to perfection as you can get. With over 50 years of experience, our knowledge of residue management for seedbeds is unsurpassed. We have drawn from this experience and knowledge and created a revolutionary new wheel design that is the perfect match for the tough residue conditions faced into today’s production agriculture. Like a shark’s teeth, backward-sloped teeth with sharp-cutting edges grab and completely sever residue for easier removal. Operated in the same vertical position as its fingered wheel counterpart, the Shark Tooth® constantly has a cutting edge in contact with the soil surface to cleanly cut residue with minimal soil disturbance. This design incorporates the sharp cutting edge of the furrow opener disc but eliminates the undesirable plowing action of the concave blade. Tough enough to take on the BT corn hybrids; other bio-tech corn hybrids, such as rootworm resistant corn; and the growing corn on corn acreage, the Shark Tooth® is the perfect match to tackle the toughest conditions.

Five Key Points You Should Remember About Planter Residue Management

1. Depth Control – Depth control is a key component of successful residue management, as it influences the amount of residue that can be moved without undesirable soil disruption.
    
2. Vertical Wheel Positioning – Residue management wheels operated in a mostly vertical position provide the best opportunity to achieve desirable residue removal with the least chance of soil engagement.
    
3. Soil Disruption – To obtain the desired percentage of residue removal, excessive soil disruption is not necessary. The selection of the right residue management tool is crucial for this result. To move 100% of the residue requires moving soil.
    
4. Sharp Cutting Edge – For complete severing of certain types of residue, a sharp cutting edge may be required.
    
5. Concave Discs – Concave discs, especially those with sharp cutting edges engaging the soil ahead of the planter unit gauge wheels, will plow out soil regardless of whether the blade edge is solid, notched, or any other configuration.