[AT] OT garden rototiller

[Cecil E Monson]

> Depends of if he wants it to prepare his garden or for cultivation.  For
> prep I have to agree with the pto type but a 50" 3pt pto type wouldn't help
> much for getting weeds out of the rows.
> 
> Charlie


	Charlie has hit the nail right on the head with his post. Rototilling
the garden is just fine but it won't get rid of the weeds that are the most
trouble.

	I have three rototillers - an 8 hp Troybilt Horse, a 5 hp Troybilt,
and a small front tine tiller my wife bought that I call the "jumping jack".
I also have a fairly large garden - a hundred feet wide and 170 feet long -
or just over half an acre. I could have more but this is about all I can
handle without making it a job.

	I plow the ground with one of the antique tractors - generally the
JD 40 or one of the Allis Chalmers. I have a single bottom plow for the JD 40
and a 2 bottom Snap Coupler plow for the ACs plus a single bottom plow for the
AC G if I really want to work slowly. Plowing with the one bottom plow makes
the job last just about long enough to make me feel good about it and having
only a one bottom plow makes the job also look better with all the rocks we
have here.

	After plowing, I disc using anything from the little Farmall Cub or
the AC G to the D-12 or the WD if it is running. Discing just breaks up the
big lumps and smooths things out so the large rototiller has an easier job.
After discing, I go crossways with the 8 hp Troybilt which gives me a good
seed bed. After planting, I leave everything set waiting for both the weeds
and the vegetables to come up.

	Weeds that come up between the rows are easily handled with either the
small 5 hp Troybilt or one of the small tractors with cultivators. I have to
admit that the cultivators are so time consuming and labor intensive to put on
that I can use the Troybilt and be done before I could get the cultivators on.
So, I generally use the tiller.

	Weeds that bother the most come up right with the vegetables and must
be either pulled by hand or hoed out with a hoe. I have several custom hoes
that work a lot better than the standard variety and I use them. They are made
to work around plants you want to keep and hook out the ones you want to get
rid of. I try not to make hoeing a job and only work until I get tired of it.

	There is a way to reduce the amount of time spent hoeing and I do it
whenever I can. Sweet corn and potatoes in particular are easy to take care of
this way. I fashioned "hillers" for my cultivators that throw dirt toward the
corn or potatoes from both directions at once and "hill" up the dirt around
them. Both potatoes and corn must be about 8 inches or so high for this to
work best but it covers the small weeds and does not hurt the corn or potato
plants at all. Sometimes a rock will be shoved on to a plant and you have to
go thru afterwards to free them up but that is about all.

	Having a garden is a pleasure. Ours here in the East is way behind
those in the South but the wait is worth while. My early sugar snap peas are
in full bloom right now and pods are just starting to form. Early onions are
forming bulbs and are ready for the table. Radishes are about done. Rutabagas
are almost 18" high and making little rutabagas. Beets are coming along. My
garlic is 18" or so high and looks the best I have ever seen. Sweet corn is up
about 8 inches now and I am in the process of finishing the weeding with a hoe.
If I feel like it, I will finish the weeding this morning and then run the small
Troybilt between the rows this afternoon. Stay ahead of the weeds if possible
and your days will be brighter and you will get a much better crop. It is very
important to do some hand work in the garden as it keeps you closer to things.
Don't try to do too much with a tractor or tiller and you will be happier.

	Oh yes, the question was about a tiller to use behind your tractor -
I don't think I would. I'd rather use some of the old horse drawn stuff with
my old tractors. Makes the days brighter somehow. Think about it.

Cecil
-- 
The nicest thing about telling the truth is you never have to wonder
what you said.

Cecil E Monson
Lucille Hand-Monson
Mountainville, New York   Just a little east of the North Pole

Allis Chalmers tractors and equipment

Free advice

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