Effect of soil texture on bulk density, PTO torque, pulverization index and soil hardness during tillage with spading machine

A field study was conducted to investigate the effect of texture of two types of soil (S1: sandy loam and S2: silty clay loam) as independent parameters on selected soil physical properties namely, bulk density, soil strength (hardness), pulverization index (weighted mean clod diameter) and PTO torque, using the spading machine (SM) Model 175.50 series. The sandy loam soil texture (S1) registered higher bulk density, lower soil strength, lower pulverization index than the silty clay loam soil texture (S2). The PTO torque was lower in sandy loam soil (S1) than silty clay loam soil (S2). The study has generated data on the effect of soil texture on soil physical conditions during tillage with spading machine. This will help in further improvement or modification of the machine to suit the regional conditions.