WOODS seeders/products

B

buckhunter10

Well-Known Member
Does anyone have the FPS models? I am interested in feedback on these. Seem like some great reviews, allows a lot of diversity in planting, is well built, can act as a "no-till" without the accuracy of perfect rows but are good for cutting thatch and dropping seed/packing.

Feedback is appreciated! Thank you all.
 
They seemed like solid units when I looked at them, but no they're not no-till. Discs mean tillage. I'd compare them to a Plot master, Firminator, RTP Groundbuster, etc...
 
RGrizzzz said:
They seemed like solid units when I looked at them, but no they're not no-till. Discs mean tillage. I'd compare them to a Plot master, Firminator, RTP Groundbuster, etc...
Click to expand...

I’ve watched several videos of them “cutting” and they cut less than a no till coulter and/or no till planter with trash cleaners and heavy duty coulters. I was amazed as guys using them into grass and it was just cutting a slit. However if you run them discs aggressive, they will tear it up.

They are however not technically a no-till but I could see where they could work far better than a light unit like some of the other “no till” out there without adequate weight to cut wheel.

I could see benefit of this as discing in fall - in specific settings -for setting fire breaks or for natural forb population could be useful.

All in one tool - was my thought.
 
They were touting them as "min-till", which I can believe. No matter what you buy, you get what you pay for. Cheap equipment is asking for headaches.
 
RGrizzzz said:
They were touting them as "min-till", which I can believe. No matter what you buy, you get what you pay for. Cheap equipment is asking for headaches.
Click to expand...

Yes sir! That is why I am doing so much research lol!!

I see VERY mixed information on the Genisis - which is upsetting.
GP - seems to be 100% positive feedback but 15K isn't cheap
TAR RIVER - reviews are good but buying something from China, at that price..... seems as it will break to me - also it is light.
Buying a 2-4 row planter with no-till coulters and row cleaners is also appealing but then I would be row planting, then broadcasting between rows to add diversity for plots.

I am having great success now, growing around 10 acres with broadcast methods.....so I question how much of this is simply a WANT vs. a NEED but gosh it would be nice to have a one pass type machine. I would also be able to do more acreage, which is even more fun!!
 
I have an FPS 84. No, it is not a no till drill. It does do some things a no till can not do - but it can not plant into existing vegetation with the ease or success of a no till drill. I plant somewhere around forty acres with mine each year. They are a heavy, tough piece of machinery. Have not had the first breakdown with it (knock on wood) in the five years I have owned it.
 
Like SwampCat I also have the FPS 84 and absolutely love it, my only complaint is that I didn’t buy one 10 years earlier! I love being able to plant my large seed deep and small seed shallow in one pass, it is a huge time saver and I have not used my spring tooth plow or harrow in the 3 years I’ve had it. I plant quite a bit into existing plots and have learned that if you come in and plant right after a good rain I can plant into almost anything with good success but don’t try to plant into a dry hard plot as it isn’t heavy enough for that. To me it is the perfect planter for a food plotter, I’ve been planting 40-50 acs a year with it and like I said, I wish I had bought one 10 years ago!
 
Thank you for the take @SwampCat and @davidhelmly -

If/when you all run it through standing vegetation (say rye grain and vetch) - are you bush hoggin or rolling the crop then after? Have you found the machine lays the rye down?

I know that even some NO tills (6 ft models) struggle to plant through the layed over thatch so guys are planting into standing thatch then mowing or roller crimping/spraying in AG world.

Also - have you all tried planting diverse mixes and do you need to separate the seed or could you just use one box, calibrate it to the lbs per acre and go from there? Example my fall mix (rye, oats, wheat, kale, clovers, radish, turnips, vetch, peas).

Thank you all for the honest and fair feedback!

AT
 
I plant wheat into existing clover every fall. I set the disk gang to disturb about half the soil - the disk blades go maybe an inch deep. It seems to invigorate the clover, also. If it is pretty much a pure clover stand, I dont do anything after planting. If it is pretty weedy, I will bush hog after planting.

A number of times I have planted Tecomate LabLab plus. That mix contains Lablab which is a huge seed, down to milo which is bb sized and that all feeds well together. If I was wanting to add really small seed to that mix, I would run the small seeds through the second seed box so they were not planted so deep. I plant wheat and clover as a mix every year - and run them through separate seed boxes so they are planted at different depths at the same time.

The disk gang can be set as aggressive as you want. I have hogs - a lot of hogs. A no till drill is pretty much useless in areas where hogs have been. The woods seeder will smooth the food plot and plant into that uneven ground where the coulters on a no till wouldnt even touch the ground.

Would I use a no till - yes. Would I get rid of my Woods if I had a no till - definitely not. The woods seeder also works great at trail repair, erosion repair, hog root - things a no till cant even begin to do.
 
buckhunter10 said:
Yes sir! That is why I am doing so much research lol!!

I see VERY mixed information on the Genisis - which is upsetting.
GP - seems to be 100% positive feedback but 15K isn't cheap
TAR RIVER - reviews are good but buying something from China, at that price..... seems as it will break to me - also it is light.
Buying a 2-4 row planter with no-till coulters and row cleaners is also appealing but then I would be row planting, then broadcasting between rows to add diversity for plots.

I am having great success now, growing around 10 acres with broadcast methods.....so I question how much of this is simply a WANT vs. a NEED but gosh it would be nice to have a one pass type machine. I would also be able to do more acreage, which is even more fun!!
Click to expand...
Our camp owns a Genesis 3, and we've had good luck so far. I created a Genesis owners group on Facebook, a few years back. We're up to about 600 members now, and the feedback has been great. There's only been one problem member who has had issues with his unit. RTP has gone WAY out of their way to help him learn to use the unit, but it just isn't happening. I wouldn't be afraid of the Genesis. RTP's support seems GREAT. Some places rent them, if you can find a local dealer. That might be a good way to trial a unit before you spend the money. If you're going with a CAT 1 hitch mounted unit, make sure your 3 pt has enough lift for the size of the unit you want. (Many overlook this)
 
RGrizzzz said:
Our camp owns a Genesis 3, and we've had good luck so far. I created a Genesis owners group on Facebook, a few years back. We're up to about 600 members now, and the feedback has been great. There's only been one problem member who has had issues with his unit. RTP has gone WAY out of their way to help him learn to use the unit, but it just isn't happening. I wouldn't be afraid of the Genesis. RTP's support seems GREAT. Some places rent them, if you can find a local dealer. That might be a good way to trial a unit before you spend the money. If you're going with a CAT 1 hitch mounted unit, make sure your 3 pt has enough lift for the size of the unit you want. (Many overlook this)
Click to expand...

I follow that group!! Thank you for creating it. Yes, I know of the gentleman who has had the issues.

My tractor currently is a 40hp, so the 5 would be stressing it, and in the foothills of Appalachia- not sure I would want to risk it. I do plan to upgrade the tractor to a 70hp someday in near future.

On the 3, do you find it take a while to plant an acre? That is my biggest issue, with a smaller unit.

Thank you for the feedback,buddy!
 
SwampCat said:
I plant wheat into existing clover every fall. I set the disk gang to disturb about half the soil - the disk blades go maybe an inch deep. It seems to invigorate the clover, also. If it is pretty much a pure clover stand, I dont do anything after planting. If it is pretty weedy, I will bush hog after planting.

A number of times I have planted Tecomate LabLab plus. That mix contains Lablab which is a huge seed, down to milo which is bb sized and that all feeds well together. If I was wanting to add really small seed to that mix, I would run the small seeds through the second seed box so they were not planted so deep. I plant wheat and clover as a mix every year - and run them through separate seed boxes so they are planted at different depths at the same time.

The disk gang can be set as aggressive as you want. I have hogs - a lot of hogs. A no till drill is pretty much useless in areas where hogs have been. The woods seeder will smooth the food plot and plant into that uneven ground where the coulters on a no till wouldnt even touch the ground.

Would I use a no till - yes. Would I get rid of my Woods if I had a no till - definitely not. The woods seeder also works great at trail repair, erosion repair, hog root - things a no till cant even begin to do.
Click to expand...

Great feedback. I get my seed mixed at the local seed mill, and I could ask them to put all the smaller seeds in one set of bags and mark rate/acre- then follow up with the larger set. Example in spring sunflowers, peas, beans, spring oats in one mix and clovers in separate mix for smaller box.

My gears are turning - pun intended! haha
 
Also on the Woods - remember most of the weight is way back from the end of the lift arms. I have a 65 hp JD 5065e with loader, and that fps84 is all I would want on the back of that tractor
 
SwampCat said:
Also on the Woods - remember most of the weight is way back from the end of the lift arms. I have a 65 hp JD 5065e with loader, and that fps84 is all I would want on the back of that tractor
Click to expand...

Really good point, I would most likely need to go with the 6ft, or just wait until I upgrade to a 70hp tractor wth Cab and get the 84 -

I wish there were more youtube videos on all this stuff to show better visuals of how it works, lol! Big choice on any equipment and without trying it on our own soils, it is always a little gamble, isn't it! Gosh!
 
buckhunter10 said:
I follow that group!! Thank you for creating it. Yes, I know of the gentleman who has had the issues.

My tractor currently is a 40hp, so the 5 would be stressing it, and in the foothills of Appalachia- not sure I would want to risk it. I do plan to upgrade the tractor to a 70hp someday in near future.

On the 3, do you find it take a while to plant an acre? That is my biggest issue, with a smaller unit.

Thank you for the feedback,buddy!
Click to expand...
It depends on your definition of "a while". ;) Compared to plowing if needed, disking, drag harrow if needed, cultipacking, spreading seed and cultipacking again, HECK NO. But a 3 certainly isn't as fast as a 5. Most of plots are kind of square or round. We have a few that are long straight rows. I wish they were all rectangles, so I could just drink beer and drive straight. The specs say a 3 will plant UP TO 2.8acres/hour and a 5 will do 4.5acres/hour. I believe those numbers, if your plots are the optimal shapes/layouts.

A 40 lb tractor could likely pull the 5 on reasonably flat ground, but I'd be worried about moving it around. It's going to be tricky dealing with the heavy weight on the back.
 
My 84” woods seeder will plant an acre in 20 min - as said above - if shape of plots facilitates that. My 84” woods seeder likes 3.8/4 mph. That is three acres per hour with an 84” seeder at nearly 4 mph. Those are real world numbers. The genesis 5 claims you have to travel at 7.5 mph to reach that planting rate. That is hauling ass across a food food plot. I have no doubt my Woods seeder would plant at 7.5 mph - if I could stay in the seat.
 
SwampCat said:
My 84” woods seeder will plant an acre in 20 min - as said above - if shape of plots facilitates that. My 84” woods seeder likes 3.8/4 mph. That is three acres per hour with an 84” seeder at nearly 4 mph. Those are real world numbers. The genesis 5 claims you have to travel at 7.5 mph to reach that planting rate. That is hauling ass across a food food plot. I have no doubt my Woods seeder would plant at 7.5 mph - if I could stay in the seat.
Click to expand...
When planting corn in a tilled field in good soil conditions with a good planter like a JD Maxemerge 7-8 mph works fine, but I have found that driving slower with a no-till planter gives better results due to better depth and coverage consistency. I drive 2 to 4 mph, depending on the crop. Slower for soybeans and faster for grain, and really fast if using a notill for brassica and clover.
 
Mennoniteman said:
When planting corn in a tilled field in good soil conditions with a good planter like a JD Maxemerge 7-8 mph works fine, but I have found that driving slower with a no-till planter gives better results due to better depth and coverage consistency. I drive 2 to 4 mph, depending on the crop. Slower for soybeans and faster for grain, and really fast if using a notill for brassica and clover.
Click to expand...

Good stuff!!

for anyone interested in a video, I found this on youtube. Although not technically a notill, you can see how he is hardly cutting the ground and the end of video shows the seed a week later growing between the already established pasture.

 
buckhunter10 said:
Good stuff!!

for anyone interested in a video, I found this on youtube. Although not technically a notill, you can see how he is hardly cutting the ground and the end of video shows the seed a week later growing between the already established pasture.

Click to expand...
Watched it, interesting stuff. The key is that there's so many different planting conditions, and here conditions are good, therefore they get good results. Notice that it's not a true no-till planting, the pasture looks like it been cut, and maybe disced sometime prior to this planting. There's a lot of dirt showing, with hardly any thatch, and plenty of moisture. Seed to soil contact plus moisture equals germination and established growth.
 
Mennoniteman said:
When planting corn in a tilled field in good soil conditions with a good planter like a JD Maxemerge 7-8 mph works fine, but I have found that driving slower with a no-till planter gives better results due to better depth and coverage consistency. I drive 2 to 4 mph, depending on the crop. Slower for soybeans and faster for grain, and really fast if using a notill for brassica and clover.
Click to expand...

If you have hogs, “really fast” does not work;)
 
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