ASABE Technical Library - Abstract

Abstract. A work on the analysis of deflection characteristics of selected cultivation hoes used in mechanized tillage within West Africa is presented. Three (3) predominant cultivation hoes with origins in Nigeria: Abakaliki, Keffi, and Zaki Biam hoes were selected and adapted for mechanized tillage. They were coupled to a tractor using the three point linkage system. The deflection of the hoes from their usual shapes as they encountered resistance in a sandy loam soil under two (2) different tillage depths and four different widths (15, 20, 25, 30cm) was used to characterize their strength within a soil moisture content range of 6.3% to 18% wet basis. At depth 1 (10cm), the Abakaliki hoe had deflections ranging from 4mm to 41mm, Zaki biam hoe from 5mm to 33mm and Keffi hoe from 13mm to 48mm. At depth 2 (15cm), Abakaliki hoe had deflections ranging from 12mm to 43mm, Zaki Biam hoe from 15mm to 48mm while Keffi hoe had deflections ranging from 27mm to 68mm. The hoe varieties and widths had significant effects on the deflections at 5% level. The results show that the Abakaliki hoe had the least deflection followed by the Zaki Biam hoe and the keffi hoe had the highest. The results also show that the deflection increases with depth which implies that the strength decreases with depth.