"Mole plough" redirects here. For the device used in cable laying, see Pipe-and-cable-laying plough.
Howse brand modular subsoiler mounted to a tractorModular subsoiler unit, unmounted with accessories
A subsoiler or flat lifter is a tractor-mounted farm implement used for deep tillage, loosening and breaking up soil at depths below the levels worked by moldboard ploughs, disc harrows, or rototillers. Most such tools will break up and turn over surface soil to a depth of 15–20 cm (6–8 in), whereas a subsoiler will break up and loosen soil to twice those depths.
The subsoiler is a tillage tool which will improve growth in all crops where soil compaction is a problem. In agriculture angled wings are used to lift and shatter the hardpan that builds up due to compaction. The design provides deep tillage, loosening soil deeper than a tiller or plough is capable of reaching. Agricultural subsoilers, according to the Unverferth Company, can disrupt hardpan ground down to 60 cm (24 in) depths.[1][2]
The subsoiler consists of three or more heavy vertical shanks (standards) mounted on a toolbar or frame with shear bolts. They can be operated at depths of 45–75 cm (18–30 in) or more. A ripper normally runs 35–45 cm (14–18 in) deep. Shanks are curved and have replaceable tips. Each shank is fitted with a replaceable point or foot, similar to a chisel plough, to break through the impervious layer, shattering the sub-soil to a depth of 45–75 cm (18–30 in). Subsoiling is a slow operation and requires high power input: 60 to 100 horsepower (45 to 75 kW) to pull a single subsoil point through a hard soil. Typically, a subsoiler mounted on a compact utility tractor will reach depths of about 30 cm (12 in) and have only one thin blade with a sharpened tip. The shanks should be inclined to the vertical at an angle greater than 25-30 degrees, preferably 45 degrees, and it is advisable that the height be adjustable. The points of the shanks are normally about 30 cm (12 in) wide and should be easy to replace. The condition of the points is very important: often the subsoiler fails to give good results due to the condition of its points. Points can be fitted with horizontal wings, about 30 cm (12 in) wide, which considerably increases the width of soil below ploughing depth loosened by the subsoiler. These plows are sometimes equipped with a torpedo-shaped attachment for making subsurface drainage channels. The subsoilers are raised and lowered hydraulically. Some models feature power-take-off (PTO)-driven vibrating devices. The typical spacing is 76–100 cm (30–39 in) between shanks. Shanks should be able to reach 2.5–5 cm (1–2 in) below the deepest compacted layer. Shank spacing and height should be adjustable in the field. Towed subsoilers should have gauge wheels to control the shank's depth.
Shanks usually are from 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) thick. Thinner shanks are suited for agricultural use. Thicker shanks hold up better in rocky conditions, but require larger, more powerful equipment to pull them and disturb the surface more.
Various manufacturers' brochures claim[citation needed] that crops perform well during hot and dry seasons because roots penetrate soil layers deeper to reach moisture and nutrients. Brochures further claim that in wet conditions, the water passes more easily through the shattered areas, reducing the possibility of crops drowning.
Agricultural subsoiler implements will have multiple deeper-reaching blades; each blade is called a scarifier or shank. Purdue University's Department of Agriculture indicates that common subsoilers for agricultural use are available with three, five or seven shanks. Subsoilers can be up to 15 feet (4.6 m) wide; some models are towed behind tractors while others are mounted to the three-point hitch.[3]
One type of subsoiler has a torpedo-shaped tip and is called a mole plough because the tip describes a path much like the burrow that a mole creates. Mole ploughs are used to create tile drainage, with or without tiles or tile line added. A form of this implement (with a single blade), a pipe-and-cable-laying plough, is used to lay buried cables or pipes, without the need to dig a deep trench and re-fill it.
^Brent Tremor Agricultural Subsoilers Archived 2006-11-10 at the Wayback Machine
^"Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-13. Retrieved 2015-04-09.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^Purdue Ag Equipment Sizes & Storage Archived 2007-04-19 at the Wayback Machine
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engineering, and more intensive biophysical manipulations including ripping of subsoil, agrichemical applications of herbicides or insecticides, laying of mulch...
the ownership of the crown lands within those provinces, as well as the subsoil rights; these in particular would become increasingly important, as petroleum...
front trenches were on a forward slope, lined by white chalk from the subsoil and easily seen by ground observers. The defences were crowded towards...
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covers land and territorial sea, including the airspace above it and the subsoil below it, territory outside the sovereignty of any state, res nullius which...
under a system of royal licensing, since the crown held the rights to subsoil wealth. Mining entrepreneurs assumed all the risk of the enterprise, while...
various kinds of broken and weathered rock material, such as soil and subsoil, that may overlie the bedrock are known as regolith. The surface of the...
excessively drained. Others have shallow rooting zones and poor drainage due to subsoil cementation. A low pH further compounds issues, along with phosphate deficiencies...
Sawnee are all home to some of the area's broadcast stations. The area's subsoil is a dense clay soil, colored rusty by the iron oxide present in it. It...
35 trillion cubic metres (1.2 quadrillion cubic feet). Gold reserves in Russia's subsoil, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, were 5,500 tonnes (5,400 long...
the upper layers, increasing the life and wear of the surface courses. Subsoil Track bed http://www.highwaysmaintenance.com/drainage.htm The Idiots' Guide...
Lázaro Cárdenas used Article 27 of the Constitution of 1917, which gave subsoil rights to the Mexican government to expropriate foreign oil companies....
to help decide the method of excavation. Features dug into the natural subsoil are normally excavated in portions to produce a visible archaeological...
Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association Medal "For the Tapping of the Subsoil and Expansion of the Petrochemical Complex of Western Siberia" Petrochemical...
brush hog), a mid- or rear-mount finish mower, a broadcast seeder, a subsoiler and the rototiller (rotary tiller). In northern climates, a rear-mounted...
and other animals, the groundhog aids in soil improvement by bringing subsoil to the surface. The groundhog is also a valuable game animal and is considered...
to the formation of hardpan. Typically, farmers break that up with a subsoiler, which acts as a long, sharp knife slicing through the hardened layer...
ground, to incorporate residue into the soil in preparation for a ripper / subsoiler, and to break up a compacted soil in order to increase soil aeration and...
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