By Ahmed Lamkadem, Najoua Zizi, Abdellah Aboudrare, Hassan Bourarach, and Kamal Alahiane
Faced with the need for more resilient and sustainable solutions, the conversion of existing conventional seed drills into direct seeding drills seems to be an economical and pragmatic solution. This innovative approach makes direct seeding accessible to a greater number of farmers and makes the most of equipment already available in the field.
Conservation agriculture and direct seeding without tillage are practices that can maintain soil structure and fertility, and improve crop productivity (Bourarach, 1989; Labbaci et al., 2015; Laghrour et al., 2019). The no-till system reduces soil erosion, conserves water, improves soil quality and produces stable, higher yields (Mrabet et al., 2011; Kassam et al., 2018 and 2022). Since the 2008/2009 agricultural season, areas under conservation agriculture have expanded worldwide at an annual rate of more than 10 M ha yr-1 (Kassam et al., 2022). In the 2018/2019 agricultural season, the total cultivated land area was 205.4 M ha, corresponding to 14.7% of the world’s cultivated land area (Kassam et al., 2022). Furthermore, direct seeding is increasingly becoming an essential farming practice in the face of the challenges posed by climate change. By avoiding tillage, this technique promotes soil conservation, reduces erosion and improves water retention, while lowering production costs (Kassam et al., 2018 and 2022). However, the acquisition of a direct seeding drill represents a considerable investment for smallholder Moroccan farmers, which limits the adoption of this sustainable practice. Indeed, the conventional double-disc drill available in the region is not suitable for direct seeding due to the nature and condition of the soil—stony or silty soil that becomes cohesive when dry—making disc penetration difficult.

This article presents a detailed approach to this adaptation within the framework of Al Moutmir’s Sustainable Agriculture Mechanization (SAM) initiative, which focuses on the design, manufacture and testing of this conversion as well as the results in terms of cost of modifications, and final grain yield. Ultimately, the SAM initiative works to propose viable solutions that contribute to the adoption of resilient and sustainable practices in Morocco.
Adapting a conventional seeder into a no tillage seeder
The price of a no-till drill is high (USD15,000 to 20,000 including a 50% State subsidy with a ceiling of USD10,000 for a seeder more than 3 m wide) in relation to the capacities of small Moroccan farmers (MAPMDREF, 2024). Therefore, it was recommended that a conventional seeder be adapted to a direct seeder to optimize the on-farm operation while reducing costs. Indeed, in the context of climate change adaptation, farmers are practicing no-till as a resilient farming system, with a view to reduce production costs and improve yields and soil fertility. To achieve this, a conventional seed drill’s tines (Fig. 1A) were remanufactured locally by a farmer as inverted T-shaped shares (Fig. 1B). The innovation lies in i) the integration of the tines in front of the conventional seeder’s discs to adapt the latter to direct seeding, and ii) the reinforcement of the covering elements.

Design and manufacturing
The adoption of the integrated plowshares opens the soil furrow in front of the discs, making it easier for them to penetrate and plant the seeds and fertilizer at the desired depth. The covering tines located behind the discs then cover the furrow to bury the seeds.
Referring to Fig. 1C, the device comprises tines with inverted-T-shaped shares (1) placed in front and discs (2) positioned behind in the same vertical plane. The covering tines (3) are positioned behind the discs. The innovation in this adaptation lies in the fact that by simply mounting and dismounting the tines in front of the discs of a conventional seeder, it is possible to carry out both direct seeding (mounting the tines) and conventional seeding (dismounting the tines), as well as consolidating the covering tines by using metal from out-of-use pistons (Patent reference N°: 67575 at the Office Marocain de la Propriété Industrielle et Commerciale “OMPIC”). The plowshares were manufactured locally by the farmer.
Field testing
The designed implement was tested in the province of Khouribga (intermediate, semi-arid bioclimatic stage with average annual rainfall of around 350 mm, with 240 mm to the south, not far from the test site) during the 2020-2021 crop year by measuring the resulting emergence. The region is characterized by cool winters (lows between 3 to 5°C) and relatively hot summers (highs between 35 to 42°C).
Table 1 presents the results of a package of agronomic inputs that combines the adoption of the direct seeding system with rational fertilization based on soil analysis. The approach led to improvements in several parameters, particularly crop emergence (Fig. 2), subsequent growth, and grain yield.
The seeder improvement was carried out in a rudimentary mechanical workshop on the farm (i.e., welding station, drill, grinding wheel, and toolbox). The total cost of the retrofit was between USD350 to USD500.
Table 1. Descriptive data for seeder adapted for direct seeding.


Conclusion
The practice of direct seeding, as the main pillar of conservation agriculture, is essential in the context of climate change. To this end, Morocco has set an ambitious target of 1 M ha of direct seeding by 2030. The transition to this resilient and sustainable production systems requires long-term, local support for farmers, particularly in terms of the availability of no-till seeders, which is one of the major constraints to extending this practice. However, this constraint represents an opportunity for some farmers to innovate and adapt to the new context. It is in this sense that the present innovation is based and consists of adapting a conventional disc drill into a direct seeding drill. This involves simply mounting and dismounting locally designed and manufactured tines in front of the conventional seeder’s discs, as well as consolidating the covering elements. This means that the same basic seeder can be used, at low cost, for both direct seeding (tine mounting) and conventional seeding (tine dismounting). This innovation, successfully tested by the farmer, could open promising prospects for the design and manufacture of a low-cost direct seeding drill adapted to the growing conditions of each region.
A. Lamkadem is with the Al Moutmir Business Unit, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), Benguérir, Morocco, N. Zizi is with Al Moutmir, UM6P, A. Aboudrare is with Al Moutmir, UM6P and Meknes National School of Agriculture, Morocco. H. Bourarach is with Al Moutmir, UM6P and African Conservation Tillage Network, Kenya. K. Alahiane is with Al Moutmir, UM6P.
Acknowledgement
On behalf of the entire Al Moutmir team, we would like to thank Mr. ESSAID Zaid for his efforts in successfully adapting the conventional seed drill to direct seeding. ESSAID Zaid is a seed multiplier farmer in the commune of Ouled Fennane in the province of Khouribga. He has been supported by the Al Moutmir program from 2019 to the present day. During this period of support, Zaid has shown himself to be an active and ambitious farmer, ready to innovate in the agricultural sector. This adaptation will certainly have a positive impact at the regional and national level, especially with the ambition to reach 1 M ha of direct seeding by 2030 as part of Green Generation.
Cite this article
Lamkadem, A., Zizi, N., Aboudrare, A., Bourarach, H., Alahiane, K. 2024. Adaptation of a Conventional Seeder to a No-tillage seeder: A Case Study of Al Moutmir-UM6P Sustainable Agriculture Mechanization initiative, Growing Africa 3(2):25-27. https://doi.org/10.55693/ga32.YBQP6272
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