A three-machine system for mechanized production of cassava
1988
Harvey, W.O'N. (West Indies Univ., St. Augustine (Trinidad and Tobago). Fac. of Agric. Dept. of Crop Sci.)
The design requirements for and operations of the stake preparation machine, the planter and the cassava lifter are summarized. Evaluation studies showed the stake preparation machine prepared planting stakes at about 4 times the rate normally achieved manually, and produced higher quality and more uniform stake lengths. The 2-row planter gave near perfect inter-row spacing, and variations in intra-row spacing and planting depths were comparable to those observed with manual planting. Planting rates of 4-6 hectares/day were achieved in experimental and commercial plots. The planter was more suitable for ridged planting. The mechanical harvester was fabricated in 2 versions: a single row version which harvested 1 row of crop at a time and a 2-row version which harvested 2 rows of crop in a single pass. Both harvesters resulted in marked improvement in harvest labour productivity. Higher levels of tuber damage were recorded with the single row machine compared to the double row machine. The use of the single row harvester represents a cost saving of 50-300 % depending on the variety harvested
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