You’re comparing planter control systems. One sales rep says his system features “turn compensation.” He makes it sound like the greatest thing since sliced bread. Is it a feature that could return financial benefits?

The best way to make precision farming features come alive is to see them in action. In 2021, Tom Nugent and his son Thomas, Elnora, Ind., hosted a field day after wheat harvest. Working with Rick Applegate of Precision Farming Solutions, Birdseye, Ind., they planted corn demonstration strips into wheat stubble. One demonstration plot featured turn compensation.

Applegate notes that if you go around curves with conventional planting units, seed drop may be higher on inside rows and lower on outside rows. Turn compensation simply means the planter controller adjusts so all rows plant the same population, and seeds are still placed evenly apart.

Corn was at the V3 stage and easy to row. Where turn compensation was enabled, the stand was still in the desired range, even on outside rows. To make sure, farmers used a marking chain to check plant population.

’ Rick Applegate says this demonstration plot was set up so part of it was planted with turn compensation turned on and part with the feature turned off.

Plant population without turn compensation was about 26,000 per acre on outside rows and 42,000 per acre on inside rows. That much difference could reduce ear size on inside rows and impact yield. The Nugents’ planter that planted the turn compensation demonstration plots is equipped with electric row units from Precision Planting.