RTK GPS and Automatic Steeringfor Peanut Digging

Abstract. Peanut harvesting is a two-stage process. In the first stage, a digger-shaker-inverter implement is used to plow peanut from the ground. In the second stage, a combine is used to thresh peanut pods from the vines. Yield loss can be significant, especially during the digging stage where the implement may not be properly aligned over the rows of peanut. In this study, RTK-based automatic steering was compared to manual steering to determine the potential for reduced yield losses. In addition, peanut response to the plant growth regulator prohexadione calcium was compared to a non-treated peanut to determine if reduced yield losses were obtainable. Prohexadione calcium regulator did not improve yield significantly. However, use of RTK based automatic steering was significant, increasing harvested yield by 510 kg/ha or 11%.