Camera-guided hoeing is here to stay

Until about four years ago, it was mainly organic arable farmers who invested in a hoeing machine. But it’s not just organic farmers searching for the best mechanical methods to combat weeds; conventional arable farmers, livestock farmers, nursery growers, fruit growers, and horticulturists are also jumping on board.

Initially, conventional farmers and growers invested in GPS-guided hoes. However, these are increasingly being replaced by camera-guided hoes, which can tackle weeds both between and within rows. It’s certain that if you’re aiming for hoeing precision, a camera-guided machine is the right option.

Hoeing better with cameras than with GPS

At the onset of camera technology, it was still uncertain whether hoeing could be done better with it than with GPS. Practice has since proven that it can. The automatic steering systems and cameras (from Claas, Lemken, Carré Kipline, and Tillert & Hack) on the hoes work well. Weeds can be recognized at an early growth stage. Even with a high weed pressure, you can hoe effectively in row crops such as onions, beets, carrots, corn, cabbage, leeks, broccoli, and chicory with a camera-guided hoe. Both between and within the rows.

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Two cameras

Suppliers such as Lemken, Carré, and Einböck offer the option to mount two cameras on wider hoes (from 4 meters working width). These work together intelligently.

A second camera can be combined with the main camera to detect crop rows in sloping fields and headlands. If a row segment is missing due to a malfunction of a seeding element during planting, the tractor can still be controlled based on the other camera.

Better crop growth

Farmers and horticulturists experience additional benefits from hoeing. The hoeing tool loosens the soil, allowing air into the ground. More oxygen and moisture reach the plant roots. This promotes growth. Better growth is also a tangible advantage compared to full-field spraying; after such treatment, plant growth often stops for several days.

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Substantial investment and proper timing

A camera-guided hoe also has disadvantages. For example, an extensive camera-guided hoe is quite expensive (around €40,000). Also, the working speed of such a machine is not very high. Additionally, you need to know how to adjust the camera and the hoeing machine properly. Companies with experienced employees have this knowledge. But younger employees sometimes lack it. Moreover, you have to be on time; hoeing must be done regardless of plant size, growth stages, and weather conditions. In other words, you just have to drive at a certain moment. And that is precisely the challenge.

An arable farmer who previously had one seeding machine and one field sprayer now combats weeds with sometimes three different hoeing machines. Due to camera control, this becomes a significant investment. Plus, there’s the time involved in hoeing accurately.

Read also: A selection of start-ups with precision weeders

There’s still competition from sprayers. After all, in a year when spraying is successful, a field sprayer is often cheaper to use. You can achieve a lot of capacity in a short time.

Despite the disadvantages, conventional arable farmers see hoeing gaining a firm place within their activities. Good (dry) hoeing weather is essential. You need a few days of nice weather to work on all fields. Because in dry weather, the hoed weeds dry out and die.

Stable frame needed

The weight of a hoeing machine is often a topic of discussion. Many users are returning from a light hoeing machine. A too light implement would develop play more quickly at the pivot points in the frame and at the hoeing elements. This leads to a loss of precision. So, if you want to hoe accurately, achieve sufficient speed, and still have some working width, you definitely need weight and above all a stable frame. After all, the hoe must also be able to achieve capacity and speed in hard clay soils. If the hoe hangs too far back, you need to add front weight. Then the combination becomes too heavy.