What device (on the tractor) is used to harvest soy beans?

Question

On a mechanized farm what implement is attached to a farm tractor to harvest a field of soy bean or would a farmer use a combine? As a rule of thumb how much tonnage of soy beans could a farmer expect to harvest (assuming a healthy crop) from an acre of soy beans?

Thank you.

Answer 1

a self propelled combine is most likely used but there are tractor pulled combines as well. An average yield of 40-60 bushel/acre can be expected depending on your area, heat units and weather.

Answer 2

Combines are used to harvest soybeans.  The same combine with a different harvesting head is used to also harvest corn.  

Soybean yields average 45 to 60 bushels per acre here in central Illinois, depending of course on rainfall, insects, disease pressure, and other cultural practices.  Since a bushel of soybean weighs 60 lbs., you could expect to harvest 1.35 -1.8 tons per acre.  Soybeans are sold by the bushel, so tonnage is really irrelevant.

Answer 3

They are harvested with a self-propelled combine.  Here is a picture of a one-unit combine:

http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/fieldday/kids/p...

And a video of such:

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=ha...

There is also the type that attaches to a regular tractor, but I could not find a picture for that one.  That is they type of combine that my uncle has on his cash crop farm.

In our part of the Midwest, we get 40 bushels per acre, which is about a metric ton per acre.

Answer 4

A combine is used to harvest soybeans(The same one you would use on wheat). You could make 3 to 4.8 tons of soybeans per acre with a good crop.