[AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion

Larry Goss rlgoss at insightbb.com
Sat Apr 23 06:48:04 PDT 2011 

Grant, what's your read on the correlation between hive collapse in bee colonies and the extensive use of herbicides to combat dandelions in lawns?

Larry 

----- Original Message -----
From: "Grant Brians" <sales at heirloom-organic.com>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Saturday, April 23, 2011 7:06:07 AM
Subject: Re: [AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion

John, for most farmers the type of rows you describe are not done. However
there is an organic farming practice which is becoming more common for both
Organic and Chemical growers of having a bed about very 60 to 80 feet
planted in "insectary" crops. What is done is to plant one or more flowering
plants (Alyssum is the most common) that support a number of type of insects
that are beneficial in fighting harmful insects and plant diseases. This is
especially useful for Broccoli and Head Lettuce in the California coastal
zone. This can reduce production costs a significant amount by eliminating
most chemical or organic sprays. The interest in this practice is two-fold.
First it saves the cost of the spray and application. Second, it helps
control some pests that the chemicals are becoming or have become
ineffective at controlling or there is no registered organic material to
control the pest.
     Many vegetable crop pests there are few effective options to control
pests by spraying conventional agricultural chemicals nowadays. This is not
because there are immense regulatory hurdles (in some cases there are...)
but because despite the very large value of fruit and vegetable production
in the US and worldwide, the profits to be made by a company in an
individual vegetable crop are often judged to be too small to pay off. This
is the root of the interest by chemical vegetable farmers in IPM (integrated
pest management or looking at all factors in the problems and controlling
whenever possible with cultural practices or organic practices).
     Also, as you noted below, the self propelled purpose built sprayers are
now largely tall enough to clear even tall row crops. I have noticed a
continued trend toward fewer aerial applications of pesticides due to the
combination of drift problems and the rapidly rising cost of doing them....
          Grant Brians
          Hollister,California vegetable, nuts and fruit farmer

-----Original Message-----
From: at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com
[mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com]On Behalf Of john hall
Sent: Friday, April 22, 2011 4:22 PM
To: Antique tractor email discussion group
Subject: Re: [AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion


Grant, do any of the vegetable crops use "sled rows"? Basically for tobacco
you don't plant the fifth, seventh, or ninth row---usually determined by the
width of your sprayer. The reason behind this is tobacco is too tall to
straddle the rows. With the equipment. The harvest trailers, sprayers and
irrigation equipment all use the sled row.

Now that I think of it, self propelled sprayers should be able to fit down
the crop rows. I've never been around a harvester to know what they do with
the crop trailer. Some of the old ones used to carry the trailer I think,
the new ones may hold the crop and dump at the end of the row. I think all
irrigation would still require a sled row--either for the trailer or for the
gun on a reel system.

By the way, do you guys have any ride-on harvesters? We used to have a four
row model for tobacco. Everything was hand harvested and when the storage
racks were full we packed them onto a trailer.

John


----- Original Message -----
From: "Grant Brians" <sales at heirloom-organic.com>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Friday, April 22, 2011 4:01 PM
Subject: Re: [AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion


> We use tractors for harvest two ways. Either with a three point hitch
> mounted box or with a welded platform mounted to the tractor on all four
> sides. The 100's have the platform mounted and the other tractors have the
> three point hitch boxes. The platforms are an item that is pretty much a
> California vegetable area exclusive as they actually were designed for
> carrying the 30' long portable aluminum sprinkler pipe on either side of
> the
> operator. I have four tractors set up with what are locally referred to as
> "pipe racks". While many different types of tractors were converted for
> pipe
> racks, the preferred models are ones like the Farmall 100 or 240, AC model
> C
> and JD2010. The reason for these being preferred is that they are two
> wheel
> drive (less weight and cheaper), narrow wheels, wide front end to match
> 60"
> to 80" wheel spacing and straddle the vegetable or strawberry beds and low
> height wheels to make it easier to place the pipe on the tractor and
> remove
> it. Typically the weight is balanced on the rear wheels with just enough
> weight on the front wheels to make for easy control of the tractor - no
> power steering needed.
>     For the harvest boxes, then you need a heavy enough front end of the
> tractor to counter-balance the box, either with weights or inherent
> construction.
>          Grant Brians
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com
> [mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com]On Behalf Of john hall
> Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 3:09 PM
> To: Antique tractor email discussion group
> Subject: Re: [AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion
>
>
> I can't stand the larger steering wheels on the number series. Not certain
> when they changed it, may have been with the 100. We've always had Super
> A's
> and they are pretty easy to off and on.
>
> What exactly do you mean by "harvest configuration". Is this something
> like
> the Asparagus A's I read about one time?
>
> John
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Grant Brians" <sales at heirloom-organic.com>
> To: "Antique tractor email discussion group"
> <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2011 7:30 AM
> Subject: Re: [AT] Actual antique tractor vegetable discussion
>
>
>> John, I actually have a 240 with cultivating bars. The issue with the 100
>> and 200 series tractors is that they were made for a light amount of
>> weight.
>> They have small wheels and the wide front ends wear out the kingpins and
>> wheel bearings when loaded down in a harvest tractor configuration. The
>> parts are appropriately sized to the rest of the tractor, but are not
>> made
>> to haul rutabagas, turnips, watermelons etc.... There is one other 100
>> issue
>> that I mentioned before - I am 6'6" tall and cannot fit into the seat
>> area!
>> It would be even worse for my son, he is almost 6'8" tall and has quite a
>> bit longer legs.
>>     The harvest tractor issues are becoming exacerbated as we will have
>> well over 300 acres planted of vegetables this year on the current 185
>> acres
>> I am farming and if the new 100 acres gets added as planned to my
>> operation
>> this season then it will be even more of an issue clearly.
>>          Grant Brians
>>          Hollister,California Vegetable, Nuts and Fruit farmer
>>
> at
>
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