In agricultural management, plows are an important tool for a farmer and the general public to have and understand. The plow is a modern agricultural tools for early tillage before planting rice or other crops.
The plow can be connected to a cow, buffalo, or tractor as towing power. One type of plow that is popular in agriculture is the furrow plow. This plow is a type of plow that is quite old but is still a favorite for most farmers.
The plow functions include cutting, dismantling, turning the soil, and burying the remains of the previous plant. The furrow plow is designed in several forms tailored to the purpose of plowing.
Although there are several forms, the furrow plow generally has the same components. The following is a picture of the plow and its components.
In general, there are 3 main components of furrow plow, which are share, moldboard, and landside. But other components are no less important. To know more about the components of the plow, let’s take a look at the following explanations.
1. Share
This component is one of the main components of the furrow plow which works to cut the soil or shovel the soil and then direct it to the moldboard to be turned over. Everything works almost similar to a shovel. The difference with a plow is that the energy load is obtained from the weight and pull of the tractor engine.
Based on the picture, share has two other sub-components so that it is sufficient to discuss them in this section, too. These sub-components are the wing of share and point of share.
Wing of share can be defined as the wing of the share component which works as an extension of the share itself. Meanwhile, the point of share is the blade of the share which works to cut the ground.
2. Moldboard
Moldboard is the second main component which works to receive the soil slab from the share then turn it over and break it into smaller pieces.
The function of this moldboard is supported by its curved shape like a leaf. This moldbard arch has different degrees of curvature which can be adjusted to the conditions and types of soil as well as the needs of plowing.
3. Landside
Landside is the third main component that works to withstand the side pressure of the soil plate on the moldboard and to maintain the stability of the plow while in the plowing process. This component also works as ballast so the additional weight from the landside helps the share cut deeper into the ground.
On the landside, there is the back end which is called the heel. This is the component that is often in contact with the ground so that it is likely to experience wear due to friction with the ground. To prevent this, this component is made of wear-resistant and hard materials.
4. Beam
According to the picture, the beam component is located at the very top of the plow. This component works as a liaison between the plow and the tractor or other traction so it is also called the coupler. This component usually has connecting components such as bolts, iron joints, or clamps.
This component can also be called the tow bar because it will pull the plow away when the tractor starts moving. In an analogy, this beam is the support of the plow. Without this component, the plow cannot be used.
5. Frog
The frog, also known as the unifying component, serves to unite the parts that have been mentioned above. This component collects the share, moldboard, and landside and connects them to the beam.
In this component, there are many connectors such as bolts and connecting iron to connect the plow components.
6. Cutting Blade
In addition to the five components above, a plow is sometimes equipped with a tool called a cutting blade. This component is placed right in front of or behind the moldboard.
This cutting blade serves to cut soil or plant debris or rubbish that is on the ground before the share cuts the ground. Of course, this will help and ease the work of the share. In addition, the turn-over of the land will be better and the hoarding of plant debris and waste will be maximized.
How the Furrow Plow Works
These components work together so that they can fulfill the function of the plow as it should be. In order to better understand this synergy, this article will also discuss how the furrow plow works. Here’s the explanation.
- – When the plow starts to move forward, the share’s blade will cut through the ground and direct the slab of earth that was cut to the moldboard.
– The moldboard that receives the soil slab will carry out its function of turning over the soil slab and breaking it down until it falls back to the surface.
– In this process, the pressure of the soil plate is held by the landside, and the stability of the plow is also borne by the landside.
– The three components are connected to the frog and the beam. The role of the beam is to connect the plow circuit with the tractor so that the plow can move forward according to the movement of the tractor.
Please note that the components of the plow above are the general components that should be owned by a plow.
However, with the times, there are additional components that make plowing easier. Of course, this addition is adjusted to the needs of plowing and to make the work of farmers easier.