YP425, YP625 and YP825

When Great Plains first entered the planter market, it offered 12- and 16-row units, followed by 24-row standard and 24-row twin units. For 2010, the company is introducing four-, six- and eight-row pull-type planters, which are available with liquid or dry fertilizer capability. (Three-point versions are available as an option.)

Tom Evans, vice president of sales and marketing, says there is good demand for these sizes of planters on the East Coast and states like Michigan, Wisconsin and even Iowa. “There are still a lot people planting corn with six-row planters on 1,000-acre farms,” Evans says. “They've got 400 acres of corn, 400 acres of beans and some pasture, and this size planter fits them.”

The planters are available in two row spacings: single 30-in. or 30-in. twin rows. Suggested list price for a six-row planter: $26,000 for 30-in. single row spacings and $38,000 for a six-row twin.

YP3025

Last year Great Plains introduced the YP4025 — a heavy-duty 40-ft. toolbar with 25 series row units. This year the company is filling in with the YP3025, which is a 30-ft. toolbar with 12-row configuration. Both the YP3025 and YP4025 are heavy-duty planters that are capable of carrying 400 gal. of starter fertilizer and pulling 1,000 gal. of high-rate fertilizer behind it all in one package. The heavier frame also can be used for double crop situations where beans are being planted into wheat ground. Suggested list price: $120,000 to $150,000, depending on options.

Air-Pro meter

The new Air-Pro meter is a positive-air-pressure meter. “Before, we used mechanical or finger-pickup meters, so this is our first entry into air,” Evans says. “Instead of going vacuum, we went positive air. So we actually pressurize the seed behind the disc instead of trying to suck it into a hole.” Air is blown into the meter, and as air escapes out of the seed disc, the seed plugs up the hole of the escape.

Hydraulic steering

Full-time hydraulic steering is now available as standard equipment on the Great Plains 3PYP, a semi-mounted, 3-pt., stacked bar, bulk-seed planter available in twin row. A sensor on the front axle of the tractor tells a computer onboard the planter how much to turn, thereby eliminating the need for the rear wheels to castor and adding to the planter's maneuverability and flotation.

Swath Command

This system, which works off of GPS, automatically shuts off row units in areas that have already been planted to eliminate wasted seed. Suggested list price: $9,500 on a 12-row planter.

For more information, visit www.greatplainsmfg.com.

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