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Abstract
A ‘slot opener’ was modified and tested under controlled laboratory conditions. Initial physical tests in the field of both the 100 mm and 50 mm groove widths of the modified slot opener were observed to give satisfactory performance. The laboratory tests in which wheat and red clover were sown in either initially moist or relatively dry soils showed that both versions of the modified opener gave seedling emergence not significantly different from that of the inverted T-shaped chisel opener used as a control. In the initially dry soil, where seedling emergence had occurred only after irrigation one week following sowing, the slot openers gave lower emergence counts than-the chisel opener. This somewhat limited study, however, shows that the uneven soil surfaces created by the 100 mm groove width of the slot opener would cause practical field limitations. However, the slot opener with 50 mm groove width appeared to be sufficiently promising to warrant its further field testing.