Large Garden Tips needed

[jyoutz]

Why no black walnut? Just asking cause I have a few. Was gonna put limbs through a chipper/shredder and use it.

It has chemicals that poison other plants.

 

[jaxs]

Since you know your capabilities with a rear tine tiller,that and the fact a rear tine can be used to weed between rows and other chores throughout year I suggest skipping pto tiller. Farmers use tools similar to the red one in post #12 to loosen soil at beginning of year. I find a tool bar which can carry various plows is a good investment compared to several specialized implements. You can mount as many or few shanks as your tractor can pull and shanks can be spaced to configuration best suited for chore at the moment. A moldboard is difficult to pull in clay soil and a disc turning plow twice as wide as moldboard can be pulled for given horsepower. Disc plows can be mounted on toolbar and also build beds just as fast as middle busters. Spend money saved from buying fewer implements on a fel. Most soil that hasn't been cultivated benifits emensily from addition of compost. Find a ready sourch of compost and mulch to establish ground and start large piles to use in following years. Lots of leaves,manure and other organic matter kept damp and routinely turned with fel will make your soil productive and require less watering.

 

[jyoutz]

Since you know your capabilities with a rear tine tiller,that and the fact a rear tine can be used to weed between rows and other chores throughout year I suggest skipping pto tiller. Farmers use tools similar to the red one in post #12 to loosen soil at beginning of year. I find a tool bar which can carry various plows is a good investment compared to several specialized implements. You can mount as many or few shanks as your tractor can pull and shanks can be spaced to configuration best suited for chore at the moment. A moldboard is difficult to pull in clay soil and a disc turning plow twice as wide as moldboard can be pulled for given horsepower. Disc plows can be mounted on toolbar and also build beds just as fast as middle busters. Spend money saved from buying fewer implements on a fel. Most soil that hasn't been cultivated benifits emensily from addition of compost. Find a ready sourch of compost and mulch to establish ground and start large piles to use in following years. Lots of leaves,manure and other organic matter kept damp and routinely turned with fel will make your soil productive and require less watering.

I reached that conclusion after many years of gardening with a pto tiller. After upgrading my tractor, I opted to buy a 3ph Fred Cain 9 shank plow for deep cultivation during spring and fall when the garden is fallow, and a rear tine walk behind tiller during the growing season between rows. The pto tiller was really only useful for spring soil prep, then I had to hand hoe between rows during the growing season. Now the tiller makes quick work of growing season cultivation.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

hand hoe in between the rows ? I eliminated that ordeal when I offset the tiller. Every 5' there's a big tire track in the garden that becomes the footpath ! Add some grass clippings/straw and zero weeds . It also gives nice 5' wide beds,easy reaching from both sides.

 

[Foxrunfarms]

I know what you mean. My father inlaw gave me his wheel horse tiller I use for cultivating and I'm pretty sure some china man is missing some fingures how deep it goes.

When my wife and I 1st bought our hobby farm we used what we had at the moment for our 50x50 garden. I used my 700cc atv with a spring tooth drag. It worked really nice in the spring but would plug up sometimes with corn stalks in the next spring. It dug deep though.

After I had some extra money I bought a small disk. I really liked it it chopped up the residue really well. I had to make multiple passes to get a nice bed. It really compacted the soil though and I started to lose production.

I'm into restoring antique tractors and implements and playing farmer.

I bought a fence line plow for 100.00. That really turned the soil, buried residue, got rid of the hard pan and up production.

I also bought a field cultivator for 100.00 and pull a drag behind it. It just kind of scratches the grand vs the spring tooth I had.

I also have a tiller for the Kubota. It leaves a nice seed bed, but struggles with thick reduce.

I was in the same boat as you. I wanted a brush hog but would only use it once maybe twice a year same with a post hole auger. You can find cheaper......and maybe more solid units at auctions, or on 3rd party sale sites. The only thing is some older equipment doesn't hook up well to newer quick hitches.

If I only had to have 1 tool I'd probably get a disk. There's a whole bunch of videos on disk and tiller debates online.

 

[fried1765]

That's what keeps me from getting one (tiller) they have the 5 foot on sale at TSC but cant see dropping 1800$ and use it 2 hours a year. It would be nice though!!

Tillers sold by TSC are made by "Tarter Gate", and are at the very low end of the tiller spectrum!

 

[jaxs]

Oh my gosh Foxfarm , restoring that old iron and putting it to work is the pinnacle of hobby farming. I wish I lived nearby so I could hear your tractors at work.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Providing the grounds been plowed a couple times, and you keep adding 'compost' every year, you don't need an expensive, super high quality, 'top of the line' tiller. Slow ,steady and don't abuse the equipment.
Learn how to properly use whatever implements you have. Generally you till the soil ONCE per year, so in 10 years, you've only done it 10 times. That is NOT a lot of practice or time to figure out how it works,let alone remember what DID work right.Like everything else ,the more you do it , the better you can do it.

 

[Yasmance]

Starting a garden sounds exciting! For your large hobby garden, a tiller, plow, and cultivator would be handy. If you're on a budget, consider buying second-hand equipment.