Phillip, Michelle & Sam Bell’s view on the FarmChief Rollmot 630 Roller
Phillip, Michelle and Sam Bell farm 900 hectares, running sheep, beef cattle and deer on medium to rolling hill country in North Loburn, Canterbury. Phillip says the mostly-clay base soils can get very wet and, when there’s an opportunity to cultivate, it needs to be seized-upon.
The Bell family’s focus has been on replacing native grasses with more modern varieties, with the end goal of increasing productivity. “So, spraying out and re-planting is most of what we’re doing.”
Phillip says their previous cultivators (traditional Cambridge rollers) left noticeable hummocks and caused challenges travelling between blocks. A change was needed.
Phillip has been working with Grant and the team at FarmChief for over 15 years and says they were his first port of call. “You always get good advice.”
He trialed a Rollmot which, in addition to being easy to transport took him from a 3 metre pass to 6 metres, increasing efficiency. The paddles, and advanced design also helped provide the level seed bed, that Phillip was looking for. Doing all their own cultivation, Phillip says he’s like to think that they’d have the same system 10-15 years from now. “The cost of new gear always hurts, but It’s been well worthwhile.”
Learn More about the FarmChief Rollers here.
