Harrowing essential after aerial seeding

Some growers are looking at seeding by plane or helicopter just to get the crop in. You will find pilots that can do it, but the risks are very high for a crop seeded into a field too wet even for a floater.

If it’s too wet for a floater, it will be too wet for harrows and sprayers. After broadcast seeding, including aerial seeding, fields must be harrowed to loosen the soil surface and provide seed to soil contact. Canola seed is very light and does not embed into the soil, even if dropped from an airplane at high speed.

This is especially true for seed broadcast onto stubble. Crop residue can be a barrier preventing seed to soil contact. Seed applied by airplane or helicopter will not push through this layer.