Drill with variable depth adjustment and method for adjusting the depth of drilling

Abstract

The application discloses a furrowing device capable of adjusting furrowing depth through deformation and a furrowing depth adjusting method thereof, and belongs to the field of agricultural machinery. The furrowing device comprises a chassis capable of being bent and deformed, wherein the bent part of the chassis can be lifted longitudinally in the process of deformation from a flat state to a bent state; a furrowing tool is installed at the bottom of the chassis and located at the front side of the bent part of the chassis, so that the furrowing tool can swing forward and backward along an arc track in the process of deformation of the chassis, and the depth of insertion into the soil layer is deepened in the process of forward swinging and reduced in the process of backward swinging. The application can dynamically adjust the furrowing depth through deformation of the frame in the process of furrowing according to the distribution of land nutrients.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of agricultural ditching technology, and in particular to a ditching device and method for adjusting ditching depth by means of deformation. Background Technology

[0002] Soil nutrients are usually concentrated in the surface layer, but long-term cultivation or uneven fertilization may lead to uneven distribution of nutrients in the vertical or horizontal direction. Although trenching is beneficial for promoting crop roots to absorb nutrients from deeper soil layers, if the trenching depth is kept constant, soil nutrients may not be fully utilized, and some crops may suffer from malnutrition due to insufficient nutrient absorption. Usually, when deep soil nutrients are scarce, shallow trenches can be used in conjunction with fertilization to solve the problem. If the surface layer nutrients are severely lacking, deep trenches are needed to guide the roots to grow deeper. However, this trenching method is relatively complex, and the height adjustment of commonly used trenching devices is not sensitive enough to meet the complex dynamic adjustment needs during the trenching process, especially when dealing with uneven and variable distribution of soil nutrients. Summary of the Invention

[0003] Purpose of the invention: In order to overcome the shortcomings of the existing technology, the present invention provides a trenching device and a trenching depth adjustment method that can dynamically adjust the trenching depth by deforming the vehicle frame during the trenching process according to the distribution of soil nutrients.

[0004] Technical solution: To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a trenching device and trenching depth adjustment method for adjusting trenching depth, including a chassis that can be bent and deformed. During the process of the chassis deforming from a straight state to a bent state, the bent part can be longitudinally lifted.

[0005] A trenching tool is installed at the bottom of the chassis, and the trenching tool is located in front of the chassis bend, so that the trenching tool can swing back and forth along an arc trajectory during the chassis deformation process. When swinging forward, the depth of insertion into the soil layer increases, and when swinging backward, the depth of insertion into the soil layer decreases.

[0006] Furthermore, when the chassis bends and deforms, it can expand or reduce the distance between the front and rear wheels, and both the front and rear wheels can drive the chassis to move; the chassis is equipped with a center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism, which can apply the center of gravity of the chassis to the front or rear wheels.

[0007] Furthermore, the chassis is capable of deforming during driving, and during deformation, the chassis is driven by the wheel on the side of the load-bearing center of gravity, so that the wheel on the side of the load-bearing center of gravity maintains a constant speed, while the wheel on the other side accelerates and rolls closer to or away from the chassis as it deforms.

[0008] Furthermore, the chassis includes a front frame and a rear frame, the front frame and the rear frame are hinged together, the front drive wheel is installed at the front end of the front frame, and the rear drive wheel is installed at the rear end of the rear frame.

[0009] Furthermore, the front end of the rear frame is hinged to the bottom middle of the front frame, so that when the chassis is in a flat state, the rear part of the front frame can fit against the upper end of the rear frame.

[0010] Furthermore, a support member is hinged to the rear frame, and the support member has a sliding groove. A sliding member is slidably fitted in the sliding groove. The sliding member is installed relative to the front frame, so that the sliding member can slide in the sliding groove when the chassis deforms. A matching locking structure is provided between the sliding member and the sliding groove, so that a mutual limiting force can be formed when the two slide to any relative position.

[0011] Furthermore, the locking structure includes a meshing gear and a rack, the rack being parallel to one side of the slide groove and fixedly connected to the support member; the gear can rotate relative to the sliding member, so that when the sliding member slides in the slide groove, the gear can mesh with the rack and roll; the gear can be fixed relative to the front frame by circumferential limiting, and when fixed, the gear and the rack form a mutual limiting force, so that the support member forms a supporting force on the front frame, which is used to lock the structure after the chassis is deformed.

[0012] Furthermore, the gear is fixedly mounted on the shaft of the drive motor, which is fixedly installed at the rear of the front frame. The shaft of the drive motor is rotatably engaged with the sliding member through a bearing. When the drive motor is working, it can drive the gear to mesh with the rack and roll, thereby causing the sliding member to slide in the groove, which is used to actively drive the deformation of the chassis. When the drive motor stops working, its shaft can form a circumferential limiting force on the gear, which is used to actively lock the deformed structure of the chassis.

[0013] Furthermore, the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism includes a counterweight block, which is slidably mounted on the front frame.

[0014] Furthermore, it includes the following steps:

[0015] S1. Preset the trenching trajectory and, based on the distribution of soil nutrients in the vertical and horizontal directions along the trenching trajectory, preset a dynamic adjustment scheme for the trenching depth along the trenching trajectory.

[0016] S2. Perform trenching tasks. During the trenching process, the trenching depth is dynamically adjusted by the deformation of the chassis.

[0017] When there is a need to deepen the trench, the center of gravity of the chassis is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the rear wheels. The rear wheels drive the chassis forward, while the chassis is deformed and opened. This pushes the trenching tool away from the rear wheels and inserts it into the deeper soil layer along the arc trajectory, forming a digging action. This digs up the soil deep in the path, turns it to the surface, and places it at the bottom of the trench.

[0018] Conversely, when there is a need to reduce the trenching depth, the center of gravity of the chassis is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the front wheels. The front wheels drive the chassis forward, while controlling the chassis deformation and retraction. This allows the trenching tool to be lifted and pulled along an arc trajectory with the front wheels as the fulcrum to a shallower soil layer. During the lifting process, a scraping action is formed, scraping the soil at the bottom of the relatively deep trench to the bottom of the relatively shallow trench.

[0019] When trenching in a nutrient-poor area in the horizontal direction, the trenching depth is determined by the distribution of nutrients in the vertical direction, and the trenching depth is always located above the soil layer in the nutrient depth area.

[0020] When trenching in nutrient-rich areas, the deepest trenches are used to promote nutrient diffusion.

[0021] When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the digging action can turn uncomposted organic matter to the surface, accelerating decomposition and transformation. When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the scraping action can carry some high-nutrient soil to nutrient-poor areas.

[0022] Beneficial effects: The trenching device and its method for adjusting trenching depth according to deformation of the present invention can adjust the height of the trenching tool by deforming the chassis structure, thereby adjusting the trenching depth; and can make stepless adjustment of the depth according to the actual situation during the trenching process. Since the depth adjustment of the trenching tool is oscillating, it is easier to dig into deep soil layers. It can also break the soil structure at the bottom of the trench through the digging action, increase the soil porosity, improve aeration and permeability, which is conducive to the downward growth of roots and the absorption of deep nutrients. When dealing with nutrient-rich areas, it can first break the soil layer to diffuse nutrients, and then use the scraping action to bring some high-nutrient soil to non-rich areas, promoting the uniform distribution of nutrients, ensuring that seeds can be quickly absorbed after sowing and rooting, and making full use of the soil nutrients in the area, thereby improving the utilization rate of soil nutrients according to local conditions. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of one embodiment of the trenching device of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 2A schematic diagram of one embodiment of the support member and its locking structure;

[0025] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of the trenching tool and the swinging motion of its scraping and digging actions. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The invention will now be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0027] As attached Figure 1-3 The aforementioned trenching device and method for adjusting trenching depth by deformation includes a chassis 1 capable of bending and deforming. During the deformation of the chassis 1 from a straight state to a bent state, the bent portion can be longitudinally raised. A trenching tool 2 is installed at the bottom of the chassis 1, and the trenching tool 2 is located in front of the bent portion of the chassis 1. This allows the trenching tool 2 to swing back and forth along an arc trajectory during the deformation of the chassis. During forward swinging, the depth of insertion into the soil layer increases, and during backward swinging, the depth of insertion decreases. Firstly, the chassis 1 can drive the swinging of its bottom trenching tool through a bending and deforming action similar to opening or closing. The basic function of adjusting the trenching depth can be achieved by utilizing the change in the height of the trenching tool during swinging.

[0028] In one embodiment, the deformable chassis is mounted as part of a fixed four-wheeled frame, which is equipped with a drive module to enable mobility. The rear end of the deformable chassis 1 is hinged to the four-wheeled frame, while its front end is slidably mounted on the frame. This sliding motion is driven by a motor, allowing control of the chassis deformation and thus the trenching depth by controlling the sliding of the front end. When the trenching depth remains constant, the driving force for trenching originates from the bottom of the four-wheeled frame. When it is necessary to deepen the trench, in addition to the driving force of the four-wheel frame, the deformation of the chassis 1 will also cause the trenching tool 2 to form a downward cutting force on the soil in front, making it easier for the trenching tool to break through deeper soil layers. When combined with the hoe-shaped trenching tool, it can also form a digging action, which not only allows the trenching tool to dig deeper to form a deeper trench, but also breaks the soil structure at the bottom of the trench through the digging, increases the soil porosity, improves aeration and permeability, and is conducive to the downward growth of roots and the absorption of deep nutrients.

[0029] Furthermore, it was found that during the dynamic transition from deeper to shallower trenches, because the swing direction of the trenching tool is opposite to its walking direction, the tool can briefly separate from the soil during lifting, then contact the soil layer at a shallower depth to form a shallower trench. This reduces the resistance of the soil to the lifting of the trenching tool as the trenching depth decreases. However, apart from this, there are no other significant advantages. Therefore, to further enhance its significant effect on improving the full utilization of soil nutrients by dynamically adjusting the trenching depth, the following embodiments are preferred.

[0030] In a preferred embodiment, when the chassis 1 bends and deforms, it can increase or decrease the distance between the front and rear wheels 3 and 4, both of which can drive the chassis 1. The chassis 1 is equipped with a center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism, which can apply the center of gravity of the chassis 1 to either the front or rear wheels 4. The chassis 1 can deform during driving, and during deformation, the chassis 1 is driven by the wheel on the side bearing the center of gravity, so that the wheel on the side bearing the center of gravity maintains a constant speed, while the wheel on the other side accelerates and rolls closer to or away from the chassis as it deforms. By shifting the center of gravity, the traction of the driving wheels is improved, allowing them to maintain a relatively stable operating speed. The force generated by the active deformation of the chassis allows the lighter-weighted wheels to be pushed or pulled forward, accelerating them. This ensures that even when digging deeper trenches, the trenching still achieves the effect of digging deeper and breaking through the bottom. Furthermore, when transitioning to shallower soil layers, unlike the previous embodiment, the chassis on the side where the trenching tool is located can be lifted upwards using the front driving wheel 3 as a fulcrum during deformation, while the front driving wheel maintains a stable, uniform forward speed. In addition to the driving force provided by the wheels, the raised trenching tool also generates a scraping force on the soil in front. First, compared with the straight up and down lifting adjustment, this embodiment can reduce the resistance of some soil to the trenching tool during lifting adjustment. On the other hand, the new scraping force generated can reduce the difficulty of breaking the soil layer in front, and can scrape some of the deep high-nutrient soil along the formed slope to a shallower trench after breaking the bottom of the deep trench to loosen it, so as to achieve a balanced distribution of soil nutrients in the vertical direction in the local area. In particular, when encountering nutrient-rich areas, the return of organic fertilizer or straw to the field may lead to localized nutrient enrichment. The trenching device in this solution, upon encountering such areas, can break up the soil layer containing the enriched nutrients by digging deep trenches, thereby enhancing soil aeration and permeability, and promoting nutrient diffusion. Furthermore, by scraping, some nutrient-rich soil is directly transported to non-enriched areas, achieving a more balanced horizontal distribution of soil nutrients in localized areas. Of course, the digging action during deep trenching also breaks up the soil surface, bringing uncomposted organic matter from deeper layers to the surface, accelerating decomposition and transformation, and improving soil nutrient availability.

[0031] Preferably, the chassis 1 includes a front frame 11 and a rear frame 12, the front frame 11 and the rear frame 12 are hinged together, the front drive wheel 3 is installed at the front end of the front frame 11, and the rear drive wheel 4 is installed at the rear end of the rear frame 12. This allows the chassis 1 to fold and deform while simultaneously moving the front and rear wheels closer together and further apart.

[0032] The front end of the rear frame 12 is hinged to the bottom center of the front frame 11, so that when the chassis 1 is in a flat state, the rear part of the front frame 11 can fit against the upper end of the rear frame 12. In a horizontal state, the trenching tool 2 is at its lowest limit position, i.e., the maximum trenching depth. At this point, the trenching tool experiences the greatest resistance. The upper and lower fit of the front and rear frames creates a mutual constraint force, ensuring that the hinge point of the chassis will not be lower than this position, and the self-weight of the front frame is used to maintain the stability of the chassis structure.

[0033] A support member 5 is hinged to the rear frame 12. The support member 5 has a sliding groove 51, within which a sliding member 6 is slidably fitted. The sliding member 6 is installed relative to the front frame 11, allowing it to slide within the sliding groove 51 when the chassis 1 deforms. A matching locking structure is provided between the sliding member 6 and the sliding groove 51, creating a mutual limiting force regardless of their relative positions. This allows the chassis 1 to be locked in any deformed shape, satisfying the requirement for infinitely adjustable trenching depth while also enabling stable continuous trenching operations at a fixed depth.

[0034] Preferably, the locking structure includes a meshing gear 7 and a rack 8. The rack 8 is parallel to one side of the slide groove 51 and fixedly connected to the support member 5. The gear 7 can rotate relative to the sliding member 6, so that when the sliding member 6 slides in the slide groove 51, the gear 7 can mesh with the rack 8 and roll. The gear 7 can be fixed relative to the front frame 11 by circumferential limiting, and when fixed, the gear 7 and the rack 8 form a mutual limiting force, so that the support member 5 forms a supporting force on the front frame 11, which is used to lock the deformed structure of the chassis 1. The cooperation of the gear and rack can meet the infinite deformation requirements of the chassis, and by limiting the rotation of the gear, the cooperation of the two can form a locking force, thereby stabilizing the chassis structure.

[0035] Based on this, the gear 7 is fixedly mounted on the shaft of the drive motor 9, which is fixedly installed at the rear of the front frame 11. The shaft of the drive motor 9 is rotatably engaged with the sliding member 6 via a bearing. When the drive motor 9 is working, it can drive the gear 7 to mesh with the rack 8 and roll, thereby causing the sliding member 6 to slide within the groove 51, which is used to actively drive the deformation of the chassis 1. When the drive motor 9 stops working, its shaft can form a circumferential limiting force on the gear 7, which is used to actively lock the deformed structure of the chassis 1. The direction and degree of deformation of the chassis can be directly controlled by the drive motor, thereby precisely controlling the trenching depth. The start and stop of the drive motor can control the chassis structure to switch between the deformation and locking states.

[0036] Preferably, the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism includes a counterweight 10, which is slidably mounted on the front frame 11. The counterweight has threaded holes extending through it, and a lead screw is rotatably mounted on the front frame. The lead screw engages with the threaded holes to drive the counterweight's forward and backward movement. This forward and backward movement of the counterweight allows for the shifting of the chassis's center of gravity. Due to the hinged connection between the front and rear frames, the front frame resembles a lever structure with the hinge point as the fulcrum. When the counterweight 10 moves to the rear end of the front frame, it applies downward pressure to the lever end, causing the end with the trenching tool to tend to lift. Combined with the chassis's deformation tendency, this enables the trenching tool to perform a digging action during the deepening of the trench.

[0037] Preferably, the trenching tool includes a blade portion 21 at the front end, with scrapers 22 symmetrically arranged on both sides of the rear end of the blade portion 21. The bottom end of the blade has a downward-pointing tip. A shovel-shaped structure 23 is fixedly connected to the bottom end of the blade portion 21 and the scrapers 22, forming semi-open chambers on both sides of the entire trenching tool, capable of receiving a portion of the soil. The blade portion can break through the soil, and the scrapers on both sides can push the broken soil to both sides, thereby widening the trench. The shovel-shaped structure at the bottom can shovel into the soil layer below, realizing the function of breaking and turning the soil when transitioning to a deeper trench, and scraping the soil when transitioning to a shallower trench.

[0038] Includes the following steps:

[0039] S1. Preset the trenching trajectory and, based on the distribution of soil nutrients in the vertical and horizontal directions along the trenching trajectory, preset a dynamic adjustment scheme for the trenching depth along the trenching trajectory.

[0040] S2. Perform trenching tasks. During the trenching process, the trenching depth is dynamically adjusted by the deformation of the chassis.

[0041] When there is a need to deepen the trench, the center of gravity of the chassis 1 is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the rear walking wheel 4. The rear walking wheel 4 drives the chassis 1 forward. At the same time, the chassis 1 is controlled to deform and open, so that the trenching tool 2 is pushed relatively away from the rear walking wheel 4 and inserted into the deeper soil layer along the arc trajectory, forming a digging action, digging up the soil deep in the path and turning it to the surface and the bottom of the trench.

[0042] Conversely, when there is a need to reduce the trenching depth, the center of gravity of the chassis 1 is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the front traveling wheel 3. The front traveling wheel 3 drives the chassis 1 forward, while controlling the chassis 1 to deform and retract. This allows the trenching tool 2 to be lifted to a shallower soil layer along an arc trajectory with the front traveling wheel 3 as the fulcrum. During the lifting process, a scraping action is formed, scraping the soil at the bottom of the relatively deep trench to the bottom of the relatively shallow trench.

[0043] When trenching in the horizontal direction in areas where nutrients are not concentrated, the trench depth is determined by the distribution of nutrients in the vertical direction, and the trench depth is always located above the soil layer in the nutrient-rich area. This ensures that the soil layer containing nutrients is not completely broken up, thus preventing nutrient loss. After the crop roots grow, they can extend downward into the soil layer containing nutrients and absorb nutrients quickly, so that the soil nutrients are fully utilized.

[0044] When trenching in nutrient-rich areas, the deepest trenches are used to directly break through the nutrient-rich soil layer, promoting nutrient diffusion.

[0045] When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the digging action can turn uncomposted organic matter to the surface, accelerating decomposition and transformation. When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the scraping action can carry some high-nutrient soil to nutrient-poor areas.

[0046] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, several improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the above principles of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications are also considered to be within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A trenching device for adjusting trenching depth by deformation, characterized in that: Including the chassis (1), which can be bent and deformed, the chassis (1) can be lifted longitudinally at the bending point during the process of deforming from a straight state to a bent state; A trenching tool (2) is installed at the bottom of the chassis (1), and the trenching tool (2) is located on the front side of the bend of the chassis (1), so that during the deformation of the chassis, the trenching tool (2) can swing back and forth along the arc trajectory, and during the forward swing, the depth of insertion into the soil layer increases, and during the backward swing, the depth of insertion into the soil layer decreases. When the chassis (1) is bent and deformed, it can expand or reduce the front-to-back distance between the front-to-back wheels (3) and the rear-to-back wheels (4). Both the front-to-back wheels (3) and the rear-to-back wheels (4) can drive the chassis (1) to travel. The chassis (1) is provided with a center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism, which can apply the center of gravity of the chassis (1) to the front-to-back wheels (3) or the rear-to-back wheels (4). The chassis (1) includes a front frame (11) and a rear frame (12). The front frame (11) and the rear frame (12) are hinged together. The front wheel (3) is installed at the front end of the front frame (11), and the rear wheel (4) is installed at the rear end of the rear frame (12). The center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism includes a counterweight (10), which is slidably mounted on the front frame (11).

2. The trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to claim 1, characterized in that: The chassis (1) is capable of deformation during driving. When deformed, the chassis (1) is driven by the traveling wheel on the side of the bearing center of gravity, so that the traveling wheel on the side of the bearing center of gravity maintains a constant speed, while the traveling wheel on the other side accelerates and rolls closer or further away as the chassis deforms.

3. The trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to claim 2, characterized in that: The front end of the rear frame (12) is hinged to the bottom middle of the front frame (11), so that when the chassis (1) is in a flat state, the rear part of the front frame (11) can fit against the upper end of the rear frame (12).

4. The trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to claim 3, characterized in that: A support member (5) is hinged to the rear frame (12). The support member (5) has a groove (51). A sliding member (6) is slidably fitted in the groove (51). The sliding member (6) is installed relative to the front frame (11). When the chassis (1) is deformed, the sliding member (6) can slide in the groove (51). A matching locking structure is provided between the sliding member (6) and the groove (51) so that mutual limiting force can be formed when the two slide to any relative position.

5. The trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to claim 4, characterized in that: The locking structure includes a gear (7) and a rack (8) that mesh with each other. The rack (8) is located parallel to one side of the slide groove (51) and is fixedly connected to the support member (5). The gear (7) can rotate relative to the sliding member (6), so that when the sliding member (6) slides in the slide groove (51), the gear (7) can mesh with the rack (8) and roll. The gear (7) can be fixed relative to the front frame (11) by circumferential limiting. When fixed, the gear (7) and the rack (8) form a mutual limiting force, so that the support member (5) forms a supporting force on the front frame (11) to lock the structure of the chassis (1) after deformation.

6. The trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to claim 5, characterized in that: The gear (7) is fixedly mounted on the shaft of the drive motor (9), which is fixedly installed at the rear of the front frame (11). The shaft of the drive motor (9) is rotatably engaged with the sliding member (6) through a bearing. When the drive motor (9) is working, it can drive the gear (7) to mesh with the rack (8) and roll, thereby driving the sliding member (6) to slide in the groove (51) to actively drive the deformation of the chassis (1). When the drive motor (9) stops working, its shaft can form a circumferential limiting force on the gear (7) to actively lock the deformed structure of the chassis (1).

7. The trenching depth adjustment method of the trenching device for adjusting trenching depth according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1. Preset the trenching trajectory and, based on the distribution of soil nutrients in the vertical and horizontal directions along the trenching trajectory, preset a dynamic adjustment scheme for the trenching depth along the trenching trajectory. S2. Perform trenching tasks. During the trenching process, the trenching depth is dynamically adjusted by the deformation of the chassis. When there is a need to deepen the trench, the center of gravity of the chassis (1) is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the rear walking wheel (4). The rear walking wheel (4) drives the chassis (1) forward. At the same time, the chassis (1) is controlled to deform and open, so that the trenching tool (2) is pushed relatively away from the rear walking wheel (4) and inserted into the deeper soil layer along the arc trajectory, forming a digging action, digging up the soil deep in the path and turning it to the surface and the bottom of the trench. Conversely, when there is a need to reduce the trenching depth, the center of gravity of the chassis (1) is adjusted by the center of gravity offset adjustment mechanism and applied to the front walking wheel (3). The front walking wheel (3) drives the chassis (1) forward, while controlling the chassis (1) to deform and retract. This allows the trenching tool (2) to be lifted to a shallower soil layer along an arc trajectory with the front walking wheel (3) as the fulcrum. During the lifting process, a scraping action is formed, scraping the soil at the bottom of the relatively deep trench to the bottom of the relatively shallow trench. When trenching in a nutrient-poor area in the horizontal direction, the trenching depth is determined by the distribution of nutrients in the vertical direction, and the trenching depth is always located above the soil layer in the nutrient depth area. When trenching in nutrient-rich areas, the deepest trenches are used to promote nutrient diffusion. When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the digging action can turn uncomposted organic matter to the surface, accelerating decomposition and transformation. When digging trenches to transition from nutrient-poor areas to nutrient-poor areas, the scraping action can carry some high-nutrient soil to nutrient-poor areas.

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