Proper pasture and garden preparation - looking for advice

[Otto Syracuse]

I have a John deere 4410 that I would like to use for preparing a garden and to "renovate" horse pastures every 4 or 5 years or so. I have been looking for 3 point hitch tillers and may have found one at a good price (48", $1500, 6-7 years old)

Q1 - is this the proper attachment for what I want to do? If not, what would work better?

Q2 - Price check on the tiller, I believe I can talk it down to $1200 or 1300.

Thank you!

[nybirdman]

You can purchase a new tiller for $1800+-,if that one is in good shape maybe a good buy.If it has a slip clutch ,make sure to service.You may need to break the soil first;an inexpensive one bottom type plow(potatoe plow) will help to break the sod.I plow,till then cultivate ten acres a year.

[Car Doc]

I think the 6 yo tiller is high compared to new KK etc which could probably be bought new for that price. But it may be a top of the line higher priced model so w/o knowing the brand thats all I can say.

My friends wife trains barrel racing horses and they have a pretty big arena and she just discs it with an 8n. So a disc is probably ok for that but imo a tiller and a middle buster for the garden would be my choices and is what I use fwtw. ymmv

[MarkV]

Think I would look a bit more. I am not up on current prices but paid $800 for a KK 48" new about 9 years ago. Maybe they have gone up that much. As others said a small plow before the tiller will make for a better and easier job.

MarkV

[flusher]

I use a middle buster plow (aka potato plow) from Tractor Supply ($150) to break the soil and then work it over with a 48" rototiller (Yanmar RS1200, $300). That tiller you're eyeballing is way overpriced.

Good luck.

[Jerry/MT]

What do YOU mean when you say "renovate" the pasture?

A far as preparing a garden, a rototiller is a good tool if the ground is broken and relatively free of rocks. I would prefer a single or two bottom moldboard plow and a small disk to break sod for a garden spot. You can plow it down and disk it every spring.

[JimRB]

My neighbor took a set of disks to a pasture. Now he mows rocks, unless he picked up all the rocks he turned up.

[sweettractors]

I have a John deere 4410 that I would like to use for preparing a garden and to "renovate" horse pastures every 4 or 5 years or so. I have been looking for 3 point hitch tillers and may have found one at a good price (48", $1500, 6-7 years old)

Q1 - is this the proper attachment for what I want to do? If not, what would work better?

Q2 - Price check on the tiller, I believe I can talk it down to $1200 or 1300.

Thank you!

.

Check out this TBN thread. Ken Sweet
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/a...to-tiller.html

[Otto Syracuse]

What do YOU mean when you say "renovate" the pasture?.

We have four pastures that can be closed or opened so that the horses move around and don't eat too much of any one pasture. (my father did it this way, so I've continued it). In the spring, I'd like break up and soften the soil and to replant one of them each year with new seed mix.

For the past few years I would just drag a drag harrow across it and throw down some seed. Some took, some didn't. Somehow the drag harrow turned up missing (scrapers?) so I am looking for an alternative that would do a better job.

I wouldn't mind the tiller so I can plant a small (50x50) garden and some food plots in other areas of the property.

Ken, thanks for the link, I can see new equipment for around the same price, I'd rather lean that way.

Otto Syracuse

[dclynch]

I've learned from a few years of trial and error. What I have found is if you are going to plant something different that what is there already. I spray round up or something similair. (I bought some stuff from TSC last year that worked just as good as round up on my food plots) Wait 1 to 2 weeks until everything is dead then roto till and plant. By the way I have a 60" tiller from TSC that I paid 1600 for 2 years ago. It has the slip clutch and does a very good job. I also plant a small garden with it at home.