Plough

A plow is an agricultural implement for loosening and turning ( plowing) of arable land in the field of processing horizon.

• 6.1 Structure
• 6.2 hitch types
• 6.3 plow type
• 6.4 plow special forms

Ploughing is the loosening and turning the topsoil with the help of a plow. By plowing the soil structure is broken. This results in a larger, rough surface. Due to increased oxygen supply, weather effects and decomposition of organic matter a loose, water-retaining structure is achieved.

Plowing serves the following purposes:

• Aeration of the soil with funded by biochemical decomposition older plant material ( tilth ) to humus
• Uniform covering and incorporation of crop residues or applied to the field of organic matter (eg manure, liquid manure, chopped straw )
• Mechanical weed control
• Controlling animal pests, in particular field mice by destroying the situated below the soil surface transitions and nesting chambers
• Mechanical loosening of the soil, especially of densified
• Preparation of the field as a seedbed

As a rule, square plowed by the inverse plow or plow, with a sufficiently broad Rain ( field edge ) and strip-like, then what is referred to as contour plowing (american contour plowing ). The arrangement of the furrows is parallel to the slope to prevent erosion ( Hangabspülung ) particularly in the Great Plains; often in connection with the mounting strip.

The success of plowing is the right time, depending on the soil depth and appropriate work of the weather. If this is ignored, the plow soil structure can inflict significant damage. Normally is plowed in the fall. Large clods can then decompose over the winter by frost shattering. Because of soil organisms and the humus layer should not be plowed too deep. For seedbed preparation fields are then smoothed with the harrow ( " harrowed ").

History of the plow

Even in prehistoric times, the plow broke in many places from hacking or spade and grave, furrow and planting sticks for field work. The earliest method to loosen up the soil, was by plow -like, drawn by human devices ( furrows floor, drawing floor, drawing patrons ) still used today in many parts of the world, who had a certain degree of leverage result and could be used for drawing flat Saatrillen. The loosening of the soil with a hoe or adze was carried out on small areas.

Ritz plow device

The invention of the plow was made in the recent phase of the Neolithic period. It is a light, equipped with symmetrical and tapered wood, and later bronze or iron plow coulter Ritz (either moldboard or wheels). Since he top soil only slightly aufritzte during a single operation, you went over to bepflügen the field in two directions. This type of cross- plowing was carried out since the Neolithic period and has in places, especially in the Mediterranean, held until modern times.

The earliest discovery of a grave stick or hook flight in Europe comes from " Egolzwil 3" Canton of Lucerne and dated in the middle of the 5th millennium BC Ancient furrows tracks were on the burial ground of Flintbek, Rendsburg- Eckernförde, Northern Germany and under megalithic and found in settlements in the Netherlands and Denmark. This region was settled around 4300 BC by the Funnel Beaker Culture ( TBK ). This Hakenpflüge, which consisted of a grave floor, have a Pflugshaupt, pierced upturned and setting, are in the rumps of the tree and were pulled by oxen.

The oldest found in Germany wooden plow crumbs of Walle in Ostfriesland is about 4000 years old. It is characteristic of the Crumb or arc plow that crooked tree (even Crumbs ), sole and band are made of one piece of wood; added only the rumps, which is in the backward projecting end of the sole tucked behind the crooked tree and solidified with wooden wedges. Such Hakenpflüge held in Central Europe until the late Middle Ages, when the ARTIST BESTSELLERS BY CATEGORY " Arl " or " Erling " Ritz- crumbs plow ' from the Slavic borrowed. Jens Lüning assumes that the line already Linear Pottery used the plow. There are, however, no evidence. Most authors assume that the plow was in use with the cart in the Funnel Beaker Culture / Baden culture in Central and Northern Europe. From the time of the Corded Ware are more plow tracks.

First oxen moved later cattle, so cows to plow. Very much later included donkeys, camels, mules, ultimately took over this in Central Europe usually the more powerful horses.

Mesopotamia and Egypt (and later India) are presumed independent mother landscapes of the plow. The transition from hack to Pflugbau in Egypt like there early as the Naqada II period have (3700/3600-3200 BC) occurred. Two types can be distinguished, the animal -covered break plow ( apin Sumerian, Akk. Harbu, Egypt. Hb.w ) to loosen the arable soil, and the Mesopotamian Saatpflug ( Sumerian Numun - cooked, Akk. Epinnu ) with seed funnel, with the uniform seed has been achieved. After 3000 BC altsumerische plows were typically shod with bronze droves; with iron flock to 2300 BC in Assyria and Egypt. At the beginning of the 20th century. was the Pflugbau in Kleineurasien largely in this simple way.

Floor Applicable plow device

In the 70s of the 1st century. AD describes Pliny the Elder in his Natural History 18.172 the wheels plow with wide band for turning the soil as a new invention of the Rhaetian Gauls: " Not long ago you made the invention in the Rhaetian Gaul, to be attached to such a ploughshare two small wheels; called plaumoratum this way. The tip has the shape of a spade. The width of the ... ploughshare turns the lawn around " ( translation Roderich König).

In the 4th century. AD came on the wheels plow, this concentrates the tractive power of the animal more on the breaking up of the soil instead of pulling the right heavy equipment. The use of horses for plowing was particularly effective with the invention of a collar, because until the 8th century. used neck and waist belt affected the respiration of the Zugtieres and then the common strand dishes were not much more effective.

A significant improvement was the iron band. The mode of action of the plow improved by attaching a string board ( manufactured since plows made ​​of steel, called mouldboard ), and the knife coulter enormous: By cutting tools share and coulter of the mud flaps is cut out and turned the mouldboard. The fouling, even unintentional Beikraut (so-called weeds ), is thus buried and there is only clean soil on the surface. In some designs, you can find so called spurs or Coulter.

Iron plowshares (Chinese guan ) with a sharp peak, followed by a central bar and in order to reduce friction slightly upwardly inclined side wings for scraping the earth existed in China since the 3rd century. BC Already at that time - before the Christian era - existed in China four types of stringed boards that fit ( ie without friction) passed into the plowshare and the soil used different and posed. Furthermore, it could be set at the design, the depth at which they wanted to plow the earth. Knowledge of the construction was widespread in ancient China from the official side.

The 15th century. developed reversible plow had a practicable moldboard and a symmetric band. This made it possible to plow to the right and to the left. Thus, the plow could be turned at the end of the furrow and plowed in the opposite direction.

In Europe, String boards were (initially made ​​of wood ) was introduced only in the late Middle Ages and thereafter until the 18th century. still built very primitive, so you had any major problems and needed more draft animals for the same work. Only in the 18th century. began with the Rotherham Plough a serious rethinking, probably inspired by the brought by the Dutch from China plows. A pioneer in the area was James Small ( to 1730-1793 ), whose plows in England and Scotland (but not in Germany ) penetrated for 150 years.

In 1809 the Fernitzer plow was made in Styria from the village blacksmith Pangraz fox in Wagersbach. The specially cultivated Sech was an innovation at the time any region as plowing. New was the type of Fortification at Grindelwald. The name Fernitzer plow he got because Wagersbach then belonged to the parish Fernitz. At the behest of Archduke Johann, this plow soon spread across the Danube monarchy.

Between 1824 and 1827 the brothers ( 1799-1849 ) from Rybitví constructed František ( 1796-1849 ) and Václav Veverka the first steep applied for Sturzpflüge ( Ruchaldo ) whose mouldboard has a cylindrical, oblique shape, which bends the plowed strip of ground about its transverse axis and so breaks and crumbles.

The American blacksmith John Deere 1837 invented the first self- scouring steel plow, and thus laid the foundation for his business Deere & Company, which is the largest agricultural machinery manufacturers in the world today.

Construction of the plow

The plow body in its entirety consists of:

• Crowd: the soil horizontally cutting knife, sometimes subdivided into vorschneidenden chisel ( Vorschar ) and the nachschneidende actual main flock. Twin coulters (double band ) to return plows were very common in the earlier Zugtieranspannung.
• Mouldboard: which can be further subdivided into Riester and moldboard. The moldboard has a helical or cylindrical in shape and used the cut of the band bottom to the side. Often accompanied by a strike rail for safe turning of the soil.
• Sole: scenic called layout or master, is a flat steel strip that supports the produced by mouldboard and coulter pressure side to the unploughed land, which indicate important prerequisite for the plow control.
• Gries Column: also brisket or Grieser; am Gries column is above the Grindelwald, forward the mouldboard and coulter and fixed laterally the sole. The Gries column holding the bodies together.
• Grindelwald: also tree or context, is the connection of the plow body to pull point.
• Sterzen: is called the control handles in Zugtierpflügen; on older swing plows are also armed rumps to find.

If the plow a helical moldboard, one speaks of screw members, otherwise of cylinder internal bodies. The helical body uses about 110 to 115 degrees, the cylinder body to about 135 degrees. The transitions are fluid today. The cylindrical body is, the better turns and crumbles the plow, bolt body, however, can be driven faster and are easier to pull. Grassland is turned very clean bodies of screws.

A special form is the strip body. Here, the mouldboard not only one but several strips. Streifenkörper be used on particularly heavy, sticky soil and on peat soils. Compared to undivided mouldboards traction savings are possible there. Through various angles of attack in the longitudinal direction of the strip, a better result can be obtained crumbs.

The main body of a tool or a combination of preparatory work to be preceded by the same often as needed. Support of the ground work tools and improve the work of the plow body:

• Sixteenth: called The knife coulter scenic and Kolter or spurs, cuts the Erdbalken to be turned vertically from the unploughed land. The use of the coulter causes a clean furrow wall (eg grassland ) and preserves and protects the front edge of the moldboard plow body. In addition to the knife coulter attached to the frame, there are also at the bottom (plant) fortified so-called coulter.
• Coulter: This tool also assisted round six- called has the same task as the knife-shaped coulter, but is easier to pull. A round, in the bottom abwälzende, sheet metal disc truncates the Erdbalken to be plowed from the plowed land.
• Skimmers: When skimmers are small bodies which decreases the uppermost layer of soil in half the working width of the main body and side stores the previously flipped Erdbalken. When using skimmers can be plowed very deeply with lower working width, also the accommodation of weeds is improved.
• Skimmers: This is similar to the skimmer, but has a rounded front edge moldboard and a greater difference between the working depth and coulter coulter tip trailing edge. The skimmers used the topsoil with distributed before plowing manure and stores them as the previously flipped Erdbalken from that it is not too deep under worked to prevent charring of the applied manure.

Plowing with draft animals

The draft animals ( ox, cow, donkey, mule and horse) drawn plows are divided into:

• Swing plow, no wheel to guide; the plow is controlled and width by the type of hitch and the team leader on the Sterzen regarding working depth.
• Stelzpflug, a wheel or a skid in front of the crowd.
• Plow carts, two-wheeled cart as a guiding element in front of the plow.
• Plow frame, in which the plow bodies are attached to a Grindelstrasse, but on a two to four wheels supported frame.

The plows had lead from the Middle Ages to the rear end two handles ( Sterzen ) to the plow, and to steer limited. The main innovation was the on the wooden frame (Grindelwald ) fortified iron bodies with share and mouldboard. In common parlance, the plow is still referred to as crowd; correctly identified this is only the ground separating part of the plow body.

For the to and fro plowing in one direction Kehrpflüge were developed. Examples are:

• The double hinge reversible plow, also called sub- reversible plow; the same moldboard mounted opposite plowshares ( plowshares twin ) can by turning the plow body about a horizontal axis is brought into working position and so the turn direction can be changed ( once was due to the low cost of construction, a common draft animal - Kehrpflugart ).
• The reversible plow, in which the 180-degree offset mirror image executed bodies are attached to a rotatable Grindelstrasse.
• The Kipppflug, the opposite plow parts are used on the return trip in the same furrow (more expensive construction, but less force required for changing the working direction with larger working depths ).

In large farms with horses strain were also

• More furrow bed or Kehrpflüge with self- control and thus without Sterzen
• Rigolpflüge for subsoiling used. The Wanzleben plow enabled the deep plowing necessary for successful cultivation of sugar beet.

Animal drawn plows are produced to this day in large quantities, for example in India.

Autumn rut with double trailer 1949

Carts plow from the 19th century

Plowing without draft animals: full mechanization of plowing

The age of mechanized plowing began in Europe from about 1850 to the steam plow. 1858 gave the British Royal Agricultural Society (Royal Agricultural Society) the English engineer John Fowler a prize of 500 pounds for the development of the steam plow, which she had advertised for an economic replacing plow or spade. These were traction engines, which were situated at the end of the field to winches on the plow on the field back and move here. The heavy traction engines were unsuitable only on large farms economically viable and for direct pulling the plow. In the second and third decade of the 20th century were lighter tractors with internal combustion engine developed (eg, Fordson, Bulldog or Hanomag WD), which made it possible to pull a plow attached directly over the field.

A variety of different forms arose plow, pulled by tractors of different power classes. The plows of the early tractors had frequently only a plow body, so were " einscharig ". However, there were more furrow plows, ie those with multiple bodies one after the other, already tractor models for the early period. Three -and multi- furrow plows are often with a variable cutting width adjustment equipped ( Vario plow ).

Historical moor Kipppflug for cable ( Museum Cloppenburg )

Attachments - plow for Schlepperzug

Vario plow

Today's versions of plows

Construction

On a steel frame ( plow frame or Grindelwald ), are on the one hand to link up with a tractor, on the other hand plowshares and coulters are screwed. There are both single but predominantly more furrow plows in use. The coulters are arranged in series, according to the respective cutting width diagonally behind each other. The different types are described below.

Hitch types

Plow design

Plow special forms

Manufacturer

Manufacturer horse -drawn plows:

Helwig, Eberhardt, Landsberg, Rud. Bag, Ventzki, Printz, Hildebrand

Current and former manufacturers:

Eberhardt, Eicher, Fortschritt_Landmaschinen, Kuhn, Landsberg, Niemeyer Agricultural Engineering, Rabe Agri, Pöttinger agricultural technology, Vogel & Noot agricultural machinery, Kverneland, Frost, Gassner, Regent, Lemken farm equipment

Heraldry

Also in heraldry, the plow has arrived. Stylized strong he is as a sign of a major agriculture a common figure in the coat of arms. Even just a ploughshare is gladly taken.

Plow competitions

While regional competition plowing with draft animals is documented since 1855, only since the mid-20th century regularly state, federal, European and World Championships are conducted in plowing with tractors. The 58th World Cup was in 2011 in Sweden. Young Farmers compete in different age groups and categories to plow plowing performance against each other. The rules are set internationally and are recognized by all countries participating organizations; the plowman are left on their own, help and advice from other persons are not permitted. By the arbitral tribunal especially the straightness of the furrows, whose constant depth, the uniform appearance of the plowed field and the speedy work to be assessed. At the World Championships in Austria (1964 ), a monument in Haringsee.