L4600 2WD, which disc or tiller is recommended?

[Sid Post]

My tractor is two wheel drive with Ag tires and the gear transmission with the factory loader. I have 40 acres of very rough grass that I need to work over. The hogs and gophers are destroying the hay equipment and putting livestock at risk (heck I even caught 'air time' going 10~15mph when I hit a hidden hole in the pickup). The soil is real sandy so it doesn't pull too hard but traction can be a problem.

Part 1:
I have 30 acres in the back pasture so, I'm questioning whether to try to roto-tiller everything or, just disc it up. What say the more experienced around here? A roto-tiller would probably leave a better surface for the grass with one pass but, would a disc work? Would I need to come back with a drag harrow to smooth things out? Would I need to disc multiple times to chop up everything (assuming notched blades).

Part 2:
What is a good quality good value disc for my tractor? How much should I expect to pay? I'm thinking ~8 feet with large disc blades. Do the 20"/22"/24" disc blades really work that much better and justify the extra cost? What should I expect to pay (prices are all over the place even after ruling out the flimsy discs)?

Part 3:
Same for the roto-tiller. I'm thinking I would be better served with a reverse turn model. What size and how heavy duty do I need to consider? What are the good quality good value models and what should I expect to pay?

TIA,
Sid
from East Texas

 

[Tooljunkie]

As i look out into my back 40,it is just that-40 acres. I cant help but imagine what kind of undertaking that would be. Ok, it would be huge. Im a patient persistent guy, i wouldnt have the patience for that much seat time. Not 8 feet at a time anyway. A significantly larger machine and 25 foot disc would be more my preference. But i know many farmers with all the latest and greatest. Any one of those guys would have it done in a few hours.

Im lucky,that 40 acres is attatched to another field, i let him farm it.

I mow 8 or so acres, soon will be once a week, hoping my kubota will cut down on seat time with 6 foot mower.

With an 8 foot implement you will have to drive 217,800 feet to do one pass on 40 acres. Which is roughly 40 miles. Imagine two or three passes.

 

[skeets]

First off kill off the hogs and gophers carry a rifle on the tractor and get a Jack Russell for the ground critters!!!
I would say if your doing 40 acres a tiller would not be your best option. I would think disks and a harrow would better suit your needs. Or have a guy with a BIG tractor come out and just plow the whole thing up then disk it.

 

[Sid Post]

As a kid, I disc'ed and chisled a field that took an hour and a half to make one pass with our 150HP John Deere. Sure, I'm not taking as big a cut with each pass but, each lap will be much faster.

I finally caught up with the local Ag Extension agent and he confirmed the disc and harrow are the right tools.

 

[Sid Post]

First off kill off the hogs and gophers carry a rifle on the tractor and get a Jack Russell for the ground critters!!!

I have the rifle but not the thermal scope.
Those things are expensive.

I'm currently running three hog traps but, I seem to have already caught the dumb ones.

Jack Russell's wouldn't last long with the coyotes.

 

[Diydave]

If I had that large an area to do, I'd go with plowing, then discing, then drag harrowing it. Loads faster than a tiller. You can pull a 3 bottom 14" plow, and an 8-10 foot disc, and as big of a spike toothed harrow, as you want. Depending on where you are in the country, now might not be the best time to do this. Fall may be better, check with your county extension agent, for local info.

 

[Sid Post]

If I had that large an area to do, I'd go with plowing, then discing, then drag harrowing it. Loads faster than a tiller. You can pull a 3 bottom 14" plow, and an 8-10 foot disc, and as big of a spike toothed harrow, as you want. Depending on where you are in the country, now might not be the best time to do this. Fall may be better, check with your county extension agent, for local info.

The local Ag Extension guy suggested discing followed by a harrow and a gopher exterminator. He said right now was a good time before things dried out so I could get the gophers during mating season and before it gets too hot when they go deep.

 

[Tooljunkie]

One of my favorite videos- helihoggin.
After being on the field for a few days, hogs will get used to you,then you can get close enough to take em out.

Good luck, hate to see all that hard work go to waste from varmints.

 

[skeets]

Sid I understand about the coyotes , baby daughter lives in Ca. and her little dog was in the yard and disappeared,, yeppers a coyote,,, bad move for them critters, she declared war.. she has my 22.250 and after 6 months she says there hasn't been one with in 500 yards of the farm since. Now big cats on the other hand, when the horses are foaling, she always has the SKS with her in the jeep

 

[Bulldog]

Wow, 40 acres on a tractor that size sounds like a good case of sore ass to me but then again I cut 25 acres one time with my B7100 and a 4' rotary cutter. And I do mean ONE TIME ONLY.

Seriously though, I wouldn't even think of doing it with a tiller. You'll still be in the field this time next year if you go that route. A disc would be the only way to go and even then you'll be in the field for a long time.

The disc size isn't the real difference. It's the simple fact that 20, 22, 24" disc blades are mounted on a much larger / heavier frame than say a 16" disc would be. Therefore the larger disc bite in and cut much deeper which gets the job done faster.

That said, if your plan is to put it back in grass you really don't need to cut the ground like your getting it ready for corn or something along those lines. Smoothing the top few inches probably is all you need to do so my thought would be look at a smaller diameter (maybe 16") trail type disc (assuming you have rear remotes) so you could get a wider cut. I have a old IH disc that's about 9 or 10' cut that I pull with my L3000. I do have to run in 4wd but it pulls it fine. Going with a disc that size I see no reason why you couldn't pull at least a 10' which would make a huge difference over 40 acres. I see 10' and 12' disc for sale quite regular in the Market bulletin but I bet they are harder to come by in Texas. I heard the other day the average garden tractor is 140 hp pulling 25' disc so that may be a problem.

No matter what you have a pretty big project on your hands so keep us posted.

 

[ShaunRH]

Disc doesn't go very deep.

If it's sandy enough, I'd actually suggest a few days of zoning out with a 3 bottom plow. That will turn the soil, hack up/off a few critters and re-nutrient the lower areas of the soil. You could do it in one day with a rented (or borrowed) larger tractor and a 6 board plow.

If you only want to do the top of the soil, then disc and harrow is fine.

I'm surprised the coyotes aren't handling the gopher problem for you, it's their primary food source in areas that have both critters. If you could trap the coyotes on the land for a month, you wouldn't have a gopher problem any more.

 

[skeets]

Then all he would have to worry about is the HOGS

 

[Tallahassee Kubota Man]

Skeets, that 22/250 is one fine round. Coyotes all over the place here and seem to like the buffet of cats, small deer, quail, and turkeys. All I have is an '06 to keep the numbers down..... Hogs aren't here yet, but.......

Sid, sounds like renting or getting a friend to do that area would be a good choice.........not saying it can't be done with the tractor you have though. Enjoy!

 

[Diydave]

Or you could break it up into smaller sections,and spread out the risk, a little, in case of a dry spring...

 

[Sid Post]

That said, if your plan is to put it back in grass you really don't need to cut the ground like your getting it ready for corn or something along those lines. Smoothing the top few inches probably is all you need to do so my thought would be look at a smaller diameter (maybe 16") trail type disc (assuming you have rear remotes) so you could get a wider cut. I have a old IH disc that's about 9 or 10' cut that I pull with my L3000. I do have to run in 4wd but it pulls it fine. Going with a disc that size I see no reason why you couldn't pull at least a 10' which would make a huge difference over 40 acres. I see 10' and 12' disc for sale quite regular in the Market bulletin but I bet they are harder to come by in Texas. I heard the other day the average garden tractor is 140 hp pulling 25' disc so that may be a problem.

No matter what you have a pretty big project on your hands so keep us posted.

10 or 12 foot discs around here are few and far between. You go from the ATV food plot implements to stuff needing a 100HP tractor real fast - bi & tri-fold discs are common.

 

[Sid Post]

I'm surprised the coyotes aren't handling the gopher problem for you, it's their primary food source in areas that have both critters. If you could trap the coyotes on the land for a month, you wouldn't have a gopher problem any more.

The Coyotes are well fed by dog food left out for Fido.

I think the hogs keep running them off. Bunnies are a better meal too.

 

[Sid Post]

Or you could break it up into smaller sections,and spread out the risk, a little, in case of a dry spring...

I'm already doing that with a dozer pushing stumps. I'll add about 5 acres to the hay bales when those are gone.