RUNNING a successful business on one of northeast Scotland’s bigger arable farms depends not only on a loyal team of staff but also on a reliable fleet of tractors and machinery.
And that’s exactly why Mike Shand, the farm manager at Old Cullen Farms, has just taken delivery of a new John Deere 6R 215 tractor loaded with the latest technology.
READ MORE: Transforming Morayshire's business at Old Cullen Farms
This new tractor just joined Old Cullen Farms last week and already has been put through its paces pulling one of the farm's reversible ploughs making land ready for seeding again.
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With a number of tractor brands competing for sales in the region, farmers must look closely at what each one can offer in terms of the latest technology, operator satisfaction and value for money.
On this farm, the green and yellow colours of John Deere have been working the land since 2016 and have pleased Mike and his team of drivers ever since.
“We operate five John Deere tractors here and normally upgrade them after every five years of service,” Mike said. “One of our older 2018 John Deere 6215R tractors was due to be changed, therefore based on the reliability of the brand and that model, in our own experience, we opted for another John Deere 6R 215 tractor.”
The John Deere 6R 215 is powered by a six-cylinder 6.8 litre engine with a maximum power output of 237hp (174kW). It weighs in at 8.8 tonnes and sits on a 2.8m wheelbase.
Transmission choices include AutoQuad, DirectDrive or AutoPowr. These John Deere models normally have higher resale values due to the demand for second-hand tractors in this horsepower sector.
Old Cullen Farms extends to 5,450 acres of which 4,520 are used for combinable crops, the rest are allocated to fallow land and grass areas which are rented out for livestock use.
Mike has worked at Old Cullen Farms for the past 12 years, the last seven of which were as farm manager. He oversees four full-time staff and another three part-time casual staff when they are required.
Mike said: “This year we grew 2,700 acres of spring barley, 600 acres of oil seed rape, 600 acres of winter barley and 600 acres of wheat.
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“We also rent out over 200 acres for potatoes and carrots. There are 320 acres of fallow and 420 acres of grass which includes wet areas and steep fields that we rent out annually for livestock to other farmers.
“All our cereals are sold on forward contracts. The barley we sell to local maltings in Buckie, and the wheat goes to Invergordon. Our harvest turned out better than expected this year with yields and prices respectable.
“We had some concerns early on in the season with secondary growth in the spring barley but as the harvest went on it improved,” he said.
Each of the four full-time staff has their own dedicated tractor to use on the farm and their own specific job sheet. The new John Deere 6R 215 is currently on a plough but will also carry out spraying and grain haulage duties throughout the year.
Mike said: “We now run two John Deere 6R 215s, two John Deere 6R 250s and one 7R 330. The biggest tractor mostly pulls a seven-furrow reversible plough and a six-metre Lemken Solitaire one-pass drill.
“The new 6R 215 tractor will use GPS via the John Deere Greenstar for spraying with one of our two Chafer Sentry 5,000 litre trailed sprayers.
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“We use both five and six-furrow Kverneland reversible ploughs here, therefore we need plenty of power in the tractors to handle the bigger machinery in the fields,” he said.
It has been a few years since Old Cullen Farms switched its tractor brand to John Deere, which has been a good move according to Mike.
“We have found the John Deere tractors to be very comfortable both on the roads and in the fields, as well as being more operator-friendly,” he said. “I normally choose the Michelin tyres on any new tractors we purchase and these have performed well on the John Deeres.
“We are very happy with the product. The 6R 215 is a very comfortable tractor and the drivers like it but more importantly the backup service from the dealer is always good, and they are quite close. Netherton Tractors looks after all the servicing of our tractors and their depot is only around half an hour away.
“The latest model we purchased comes equipped with Autosteer, JD Link, and other tech that is beneficial to our farming system. This technology allows me to keep in touch with all the tractors via the John Deere Operations Centre, a vital tool for multi-tractor management on this arable farm.”
When a new John Deere tractor arrives on the farm the staff at Netherton Tractors usually spend some time with the farm’s drivers to familiarise them with all the controls and functions.
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Mike said: “That’s another example of good customer service and a benefit of having the dealer located close to the farm. Although, once you run one of these John Deeres for a while you get very used to them yourself.”
When asked if there was something he would change on the new John Deere 6R 215, Mike said: “That’s a good question. I would probably ask for more lift capacity just to give us a bit more lifting power for the sowers and big ploughs. That’s about the only thing I would like to change on them.”
The man responsible for the sale of the new John Deere tractor has had plenty of experience with the brand in that particular region and knows most of the farmers very well.
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Richard Moir, the sales rep at Netherton Tractors in Turriff, said: “We were very happy to supply Mike and the team at Old Cullen Farms with the new John Deere.
“Mike’s new 6R 215 replaced the similar but older model 2018 John Deere 6215 R. The new model has the Autopowr Command Pro joystick which is basically a stepless transmission.
“Most of the tractors at Old Cullen Farms are equipped with this technology now, which makes them all very user-friendly. We have already received good feedback from the driver of the new model which is always nice to hear,” he said.
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