Precision Planting launches seed orientation system

TREMONT, Ill. — A planting system that places the seed in the optimum position to promote even germination and emergence was revealed at the annual Precision Planting winter conference.

Precision Planting’s new ArrowTube is a seed delivery system the provides accurate spacing at high speed, while controlling all aspects of seed placement.

When corn seeds are planted tip down, with the embryo facing the adjacent row, the radicle root and coleoptile can naturally grow up toward the soil surface and down into the soil, along with a strong correlation of leaves growing across the row rather than with the row.

ArrowTube uses seed acceleration and strategic friction to orient seeds as they move through a path from the seed meter to the furrow; a knife cuts a narrow sub-furrow into which the seeds land and are held in the proper orientation in the ground.

The result is increased yield potential, faster canopy closure and appropriate spacing at high speeds, along with the most uniform emergence possible.

“Seed planted with a different orientation — for example, tip to the side, embryo down — is forced to spend extra energy and time correcting its growing path,” said Jeremy Hodel, PTx product manager.

“Tip-down, embryo-out seeds are more likely to emerge with leaves going across the row rather than with the row. This allows the leaves to compete less with their neighbors and maximize sunlight interception, particularly early in the corn plant’s life.”

“The latest innovation for Precision Planting, ArrowTube, is the first of its kind seed delivery device that not only positions seed in optimum orientation to maximize sunlight capture and improve emergence, but it also allows you to do it with high speed and with the best singulation, thanks to vSet 2 seed meters,” added Ryan Baker, PTx mechanical engineer.

Compatibility

“If you are a current vSet 2 customer, the only new part you’ll need to buy to adapt to ArrowTube is an ArrowTube seed cover. Along with that, it’s also fully compatible with all of the rear attachments on the planter. FurrowJet, SmartFirmer, firmers and FurrowForce are all fully compatible with ArrowTube,” Baker continued.

The new planter innovation will be available commercially for the 2027 growing season.

Hodel said ArrowTube is the culmination of four years of agronomic research.

“We wanted us to have to prove that seed orientation has real economic value, not just in a hypothetical situation or an idealized situation, but on your farm, in the real world and at scale,” he said.

About 3,000 acres of agronomic trials were conducted using split planters with half of the planter with ArrowTube and the remaining half with other seed delivery systems for side-by-side comparisons.

“We’ve done it in four different states trying to capture a wide variety of different weather conditions, soil types, and then, speaking of soil conditions, we cover the gamut as far as tillage goes and even some previous crop residues, trying to mix in all of these different variables to make sure that ArrowTube is actually capable of performing well across all of these conditions,” Hodel said.

“We studied somewhere around 75 different seed hybrids, including a lot of different brands, and seed shapes and sizes. Again, trying to make sure we adapt to all of these different seed variables.

“One of the key ways we assessed the performance of the ArrowTube system was actually on a plant-by-plant basis. After it had grown, we went back, dug up the seed to determine, what was the seed oriented in the ground? How deep was it? And then we tied that to things like, when did it come out of the ground at emergence, and how were the leaves oriented? That really helped us connect all of those dots.”

Field trials were conducted at the Precision Technology Institute Farm in Pontiac in central Illinois in 2025, comparing the ArrowTube with the JD ExactEmerge.

“Over 52 replications over seven locations, ArrowTube had an 87% win rate in those trials with an average yield advantage of 6.5 bushels per acre for an average economic advantage of $26.43 per acre,” Hodel said.