BCS Gardening 101

[mn_voyageur]

So, my tractor is on order and should arrive ... soon. Since I have only used a tiller in the past, I am looking for suggestions on using the tractor.

Some of my questions will be answered shortly after receiving the tractor, but having the information now will help me plan ahead.

Can someone tell me the wheel spacing on an 853?

Up until now, my gardens have been small. So, weed control was pretty easy with a good hoe and a rake. However, I expect that this garden will grow rapidly, since it is in the open. How effective is tilling between the rows for weed control? In my smaller garden, we use wheat straw to help hold moisture and keep the weeds down. It's also easy to spot the green weed against the straw back ground. (That was a weed, right?)

So, in addition to incorporating compost, should I plan on tilling between the rows periodically to control the weeds?

My next questions is about the adjustable tiller. If the 30" wide tiller is adjustable down to 26", when would you reduce the width? I would guess that dropping it down to 26” is just a matter of removing the outside tines.

I have read several comments about using the rotary plow to hill potatoes. Are you planting the potatoes and then using the rotary plow to cover them? Are you using the rotary plow to re-hill after the plants have sprouted?

If I am using the rotary plow to hill potatoes, I would think that I could make the rows for the squash plants in a similar fashion.

The remaining vegetables, beans, peas, and corn, should be relatively straight forward, but I would appreciate any comments or suggestions.

Thanks,
Mark

[greenmule]

Leave your tiller width alone,widest setting. I go between rows with my horse to weed and to make loose dirt to hoe with[I pull the loose dirt up on plants,gives them more dirt,and smoothers weeds,thats how I hoe everything,].

Tators,I don't plant in hills,plant in forrow,cover,than when tator tops are 6-10 inches tall,till between rows and pull dirt up with hoe on each side of plants,alota dirt and than,you got a hill.

Make the distance between rows plenty wide so's you can get tiller down through without hurting roots,make mine about 1 1/2 times at least wider than tiller.

I Till and hoe tators just once,corn generally once,maybe till twice and hoe once when its about 6-8 inches tall.Beans once,etc,

[timmylaz]

Couple of things...
I got my bcs 948 Saturday, AWESOME.
I used a 14" tiller last year and it beat me up. This weekend with my new bcs was a dream! I will say that it was quite the shoulder work out but that's no complaint. Have fun with your bcs.

You are talking about the paths between your rows. I read Elliot Coleman's New Organic Grower last year and learned a lot from it and got some real good ideas. I too used to use straw between rows. Yes it does what you say it will, and more. The -and more- is the part about straw I can live w/out...that is, that it grows...so we're eliminating weeds by mulching with something that becomes a weed itself. I know straw is not a weed but unless you're planting a field of it, straw growing in the garden is a pain in the...Read a little bit on living mulch, or undersowing or undercropping with green manure. I sowed my row paths with clover last year. Not only did it do what the mulch does(keep the ground cooler and moister/snuff out weeds) but it enriches the soil too. Clover is not the only option. Good luck with your bigger garden and your bcs. Mine took the piedmont red clay and crumbled it!

[wstr75]

Timmy, where in Piedmont are you located? I am in Asheboro and have a BCS 853. Congratulations on your BCS 948.
Bill in NC

[mn_voyageur]

Timmy -

I used a Barreto 1320H and it just bounced along the ground. It would not even cut into the ground with the tines running in reverse. That is the primary reason I bought the rotary plow.

What kind of clover did you plant? (I would guess that you just spread it on the ground.)
Where did you buy it? How much?

Mark

[Bret4207]

Couple of things...
I got my bcs 948 Saturday, AWESOME.
I used a 14" tiller last year and it beat me up. This weekend with my new bcs was a dream! I will say that it was quite the shoulder work out but that's no complaint. Have fun with your bcs.

You are talking about the paths between your rows. I read Elliot Coleman's New Organic Grower last year and learned a lot from it and got some real good ideas. I too used to use straw between rows. Yes it does what you say it will, and more. The -and more- is the part about straw I can live w/out...that is, that it grows...so we're eliminating weeds by mulching with something that becomes a weed itself. I know straw is not a weed but unless you're planting a field of it, straw growing in the garden is a pain in the...Read a little bit on living mulch, or undersowing or undercropping with green manure. I sowed my row paths with clover last year. Not only did it do what the mulch does(keep the ground cooler and moister/snuff out weeds) but it enriches the soil too. Clover is not the only option. Good luck with your bigger garden and your bcs. Mine took the piedmont red clay and crumbled it!

If your "straw" is going to seed then you either have very dirty straw or more likely you have hay. Straw is grain stalks with the grain threshed off it. There should be nothing but the wheat/oat/barley/etc stalk there. Hay is the whole grass plant as cut in the field and will include all the weeds cut too. That sounds like what you may be getting.

[mn_voyageur]

Sorry about falling off the web, but my BCS arrived and I was ready to play in the dirt.

Plowed, tilled, and hilled a 100 x 50 garden. Planted, laid soaker hose, and wheat straw. Also installed a water line to the new garden.

Corn is already pushing through the straw.

My wife wants to plant some more later, so, I am going to have to begin plowing more garden for her.

I appreciate the help.

Mark