SelectShot: set it, forget it, and save on fertilizer while seeding

31-01 | Updated on 26-03 |Crop solutions | Fertilizing | Article

SelectShot delivers a precision dose-per-seed application. - Photos: CapstanAG

CapstanAG’s SelectShot allows farmers to place a shot of fertilizer precisely before, on, or after seeds, as they are planted in the soil. On 30-inch corn rows, growers are cutting their standard dribble rates by around 50% with this technology.

SelectShot delivers a precision dose-per-seed application. It places the prescribed dose of product-per-seed based on a farmer’s planting system inputs, such as speed, desired rate, and population. The fertilizer shot is triggered by a seed sensor. SelectShot’s controls know the timing to open the valve to release the shot, based on the inputs. The shot can be placed at a defined distance before, on, or after the seed.

According to Marketing Specialist Andrew Boyd of CapstanAG, SelectShot can save 30% to 75% on fertilizer, depending on configurations. “However, many of our customers on 30-inch corn rows are cutting their standard dribble rates by around 50%”, he says. “And still get the same concentration of fertilizer at the seed. This is because we are cutting out the section of the dribble application not utilised between the seeds.”

“Situations where there is narrower spacing – such as 15 inch – or crops with low populations and big seed spacing like squash, could see upwards of 75% Savings. CapstanAG has a SelectShot calculator that allows farmers to put in different parameters and see what kind of savings that would mean for their operations.”
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The shot can be placed at a defined distance before, on, or after the seed.

Real-time row-by-row diagnostics

The technology can also offer benefits with regard to yield. “SelectShot application cuts inputs, with same or better output yields”, Boyd emphasises. “Most all of our customers see a yield bump even when cutting their rates. This can be attributed to optimal placement in relation to the seed for a given product, and the concentration that is applied.”

SelectShot integrates directly through ISOBUS VT/UT display to provide operator-focused information for application. Operators can use this screen to set up all the application parameters. After that, the home screen just shows the target and actual rate, target and actual pressure, and any diagnostic feedback the system reports. “The system is fairly ‘set it and forget it’, which most operators seem to appreciate”, Boyd says.

SelectShot offers real-time row-by-row diagnostics and system feedback. Boyd: “The SelectShot system is constantly checking itself in the background to make sure that the system is functioning to the parameters you entered. It will give you a host of different pieces of information, such as if a row is plugged, if you are on or off rate, if your pressure is on or off pressure, etcetera.”

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SelectShot integrates directly through ISOBUS VT/UT display to provide operator-focused information for application.

See what kind of savings you could get

SelectShot is high-speed compatible and fits most planter makes and models. The maximum speed an hour is dependent on the speed, rate, and population combination. “We need enough time for the valve to open and close the between shots to apply the proper amount in the proper place”, Boyd explains.

“However, we have many growers doing 9 mph (14.5 kms) at 2.5 gallons per acre (GPA) – the 5 GPA dribble equivalent – on 30 inch corn. We usually refer folks to our calculator, which allows you to put in desired rates, speeds, populations and see what kind of savings you could get and if it is functionally possible within the system.”

SelectShot is predominantly used on corn

SelectShot is predominantly used on corn, Boyd says. “However, we have folks running them on squash, pumpkins, maze, all sorts of different crops. Also, we can run in open mode, which is a constant dribble for high population crops such as soybeans and other small grains. Even in open mode, the operator still retains the benefit of individual row application shut off, as it is still triggered by the seed sensor.”

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Jacob Wade: “I can use a cut rate of product or a full rate of product, and do more with the product because of the concentration of it.”

‘SelectShot gives me control over what I do with the liquid’

Fifth-generation farmer Jacob Wade of Wade Farms from McLean, Illinois has been doing quite a bit of trial work with SelectShot.
“I got interested in SelectShot when I saw it at one of the conferences I went to”, Wade explains. “I saw some pretty interesting results of what it could do. I could potentially make more use of my inputs.”

Narrow row corn
Wade Farms had recently switched to narrow row corn, when it started using SelectShot. “In this process, with our seeds being 12 inches apart in 15-inch rows, and using in-furrow products, we needed a switch to an application that could apply a concentrated band over the seed. There’s only a couple of options in the industry, and after our research we knew that SelectShot had been there the longest, had the best reputation, and was going to be the best for our operation.”

“SelectShot gives me control over what I do with the liquid. I can set a two-inch band or four-inch band, or use a constant stream for – for instance – soy beans. I can use a cut rate of product or a full rate of product, and do more with the product because of the concentration of it.”

Use of microbial nitrogen
When Wade Farms added CapstanAG SelectShot to the farm, Jacob Wade had a number of products he wanted to test with it, in a number of different manners. One of the products that Wade applied, was Pivot Bio, a microbial nitrogen. He did this with a 2-inch band, a 4-inch band and in a constant stream. “The more concentrated we got with all these living organisms, the better results we got”, he says.

In other trials, Wade Farms trialled a reduction plot and a concentration plot. “In the reduction plot we took a 5-gallon-per-acre starter in a constant stream and moved it to 2.5 gallon in a 2-inch band. And we were able to get the same results while using less product.”

Wade says SelectShot proved to be more user-friendly than he expected it to be. “It is very easy to use. It runs through ISOBUS. The system runs extremely well. It is just like any system in the industry, you’re going to have problems. What mattered was that CapstanAG went above and beyond, and fixed it quickly. The downtime was minimal.”

SelectShot is predominantly used on corn. However, farmers use the technology on squash, pumpkins, maze, all sorts of different crops.

Costs and installation

Growers can complete more acres using SelectShot before needing to stop and refill with someone on a tending truck. According to Boyd, this is a huge benefit to growers. “If you are cutting your application rate in half by not applying where it’s not needed, you only need to fill half as many times per day. This keeps the operator planting and applying, not parked waiting on tendering operations.”

Depending on the configuration, SelectShot will cost around $ 1500 USD per row on average. Installation can be done by growers but the system is usually installed by a dealer or by a CapstanAG field representative. SelectShot is available globally. CapstanAG currently has units in USA, New Zealand, Bulgaria, Canada, Germany and Romania.

The feedback of farmers has been positive. “Many of our US farmers have bought additional units with the savings from the first unit”, Boyd points out. “In many situations, the system can be fully paid for in around 1500 Acres.”

SelectShot and ExactShot: how do they compare?

CapstanAG SelectShot and John Deere ExactShot both offer a new concept of precision fertilizer placing as seeds are planted in the soil. They replace the common practise, where farmers are applying a continuous flow of fertilizer to the entire row of seeds. How do these technologies compare?
SelectShot was introduced in the US, in 2017. But in the last three years, the technology has really picked up steam, also in other countries, Marketing Specialist Andrew Boyd of CapstanAG says. “We pride ourselves as a company on the fact that we come up with disruptive technology. We now have quite a bit of interest in SelectShot in the UK, and there are farmers that use SelectShot in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany and Bulgaria.”

Limited release
The John Deere ExactShot technology was revealed in January 2022. ExactShot is available on a limited release basis for the 2024 planting season. Moving forward, availability will become more widespread in the US. Currently, ExactShot is only available in the US. John Deere will continue to explore how it meets the needs of other farmers around the world.
SelectShot fits most planter makes and models, as a kit. For the limited release, the ExactShot system was only offered as a precision upgrade kit (retrofit kit). One of the main requirements for this system, is that the planter must have the John Deere ExactEmerge brush belt technology.

Triggered by seed sensor
With SelectShot, the fertilizer shot is triggered by a seed sensor. Controls know the timing to open the valve to release the shot based on inputs. The shot can be placed at a defined distance before, on, or after the seed.
The ExactShot technology also uses a sensor to register when each individual seed is in the process of going into the soil. As this occurs, ExactShot will spray only the amount of fertilizer needed directly onto the seed.
CapstanAG says growers could see 30% to 75% savings on fertilizer, using SelectShot, depending on configurations. John Deere says its technology will save 60% on fertilizer, based on an average farm in the Midwest of the US, using a 10-34-O fertilizer.
SelectShot is high-speed compatible, and the maximum speed an hour is dependent on the speed, rate, and population combination. ExactShot allows farmers to place fertilizer with speeds up to ten miles (16.1 kms) an hour. SelectShot will cost around $ 1500 USD per row on average. John Deere has not released its pricing of ExactShot yet.