Folding Plate Pasture Meter
The Meter Man now stocks the Filips Folding Plate Pasture Meter.
L: Meter in use. R: With the optional electronic meter
Images courtesy Jenquip
The folding plate pasture meter is used for measuring the amount of pasture in your paddocks.
The rising plate principle allows the meter to measure the average height of the pasture, allowing for any variations in pasture density.
Readings can then be converted to an amount of Dry Matter (DM), ready for use in feed budgeting.
How the folding plate pasture meter works
The meter's plate is calibrated for weight and area. During use the plate is supported by the pasture. The taller and denser the pasture is, the further off the ground the plate sits. The shaft of the meter drops through the pasture to rest on the ground.
The bottom counter records the position of the plate relative to the shaft, totalling the readings as each sample is taken. A sample counter at the top of the meter is used to record the number of samples taken in each paddock. The sample counter can be zeroed.
Usually 30 to 50 samples are taken in each paddock, and a simple formula converts the average reading into an assessment of dry matter per hectare (or acre).
Contact the Meter Man, David von Pein, about this innovative, time-saving pasture meter.