Degelman: The Pro-Till Advantage

The Carter family is continuing into their third generation of growing corn and soybeans in Athens, IL. They are mainly a conventionally-tilled farm with some no-till and strip till acres and understand the importance of an efficient tillage system to maximize the productivity of their operation.

Several years ago, their farm was two-thirds corn and one-third soybeans, so several acres were corn on corn. They chiseled corn ground going back into corn to help aid in breaking down residue and to alleviate any other issues the field may have. Now they are half corn and half soybeans and are not chiseling nearly the acres they used to, but recently began having issues dealing with more residue from improved genetics and higher yields.

“Since we only have a short window to get our crops planted, everything needs to be as perfect as it can be,” says Scot Carter. “From monitors being set correctly, to getting just enough down force to close the seed trench, everything needs to run smoothly.”

Around that time, vertical tillage was becoming more popular and seemed like the right move to make. They decided to run a couple of vertical tillage tools before eventually hearing that Degelman was coming to the US market with their high-speed disc. They were skeptical at first, given that it was a newly designed tool that they had never seen before, but hoped the Degelman would be the answer to their residue issue. 

They decided to talk to Steve and Michael Schmidt at Central Illinois Ag before making their decision. After seeing the machine in person, they were instantly impressed with its weight and strength. “Usually, every machine has a weak point somewhere, but the Pro-Till didn’t have a weak point anywhere that we could see,” says Scot. “I don’t think you could damage the machine by how well it is built.”

“When we took the Degelman to the field and made the first round, we knew it was the piece we were looking for,” says Scot. It brought up a lot of dirt, ripped through the residue, and left the field level. They were amazed that only two rows of discs and a rolling basket could create such an excellent, finished result. 

Another feature they like on the Pro-Till is the rubber suspension on each disc arm. If a disc encounters a rock or an object, the rubber will allow the disc arm flex rearward then return back.

Scot says they have found that doing more tillage in the fall helps them to start with a dryer spring. In the past, they noticed the soybean stubble would keep the ground cool and damp. However, last fall they ran the Degelman over all of their acres to bring up dirt and help dry the soil for next spring.  

In corn stalks they like to run it two to three inches deep to pull up dirt and help make it flow easier through the field cultivator that next spring, and in soybean stubble they run an inch deep to move residue. On their more rolling ground, they set the Degelman to mix residue but not disturb much soil. 

“It is so versatile that it can either bury a lot of residue or lightly disc to keep residue at the surface,” says Scot. “It all goes back to getting set up for a smooth spring, if mother nature allows that.”

“The Degelman is such a simple tool to run, you set your depth with cylinder stops, lower it down and go. There aren’t any sensors or software that need to be used; it just couldn’t be any easier,” says Scot. “I would highly recommend it to anyone who does any kind of tillage.