Attachment to create rows in a home garden

[ronjhall]

Ralph
Your link did not work. Click Here
Thanks for posting the URL. I need some replacement plates from my seeder.

 

[Bird]

My main garden was 83' x 103' and I used a walk behind tiller until I got a tractor and tiller. And I used the same one row planter that Dumbdog provided a link to; bought it at Gebo's before we got a Tractor Supply Co. store in our area, but the price was the same. I did spend a little more because I ordered all the "optional" seed plates to go with it. And maybe I spent a little more time than necessary laying out the rows because I drove steel rods into the ground at each end of each row. Then I pulled a string from rod to rod to lay out the rows. I had a long enough string to do 4 rows at at time. Some things were single rows; just push the planter down one side of the string, and some were double rows, push the planter down on side of the string and back up the other side. The planter has a little chain that's supposed to pull the dirt back over the seeds, and in my opinion it wasn't quite heavy enough, so I usually walked back down the rows dragging a garden rake over them to pull the dirt over the seed a little better. The back wheel on the planter is also supposed to "pack" the dirt down on the seeds, but I never worried about that because as soon as I put the seeds in the ground, I just used water to settle the dirt on the seeds.

 

[SPT]

I have misunderstood your question but it sounded like you wanted an easier way to mark the rows for planting? I made up a row marker that is quicker than using the hoe and string method mentioned, but it may not be easier. Basically, it consists of a 6' 2X3 with 3- 1X3 row markers attached (spaced 3' apart) that were cut to a point at the end. I attached a 6' 1X3 to the top to pull it down the garden. It was also braced from the ends to the pull board with 2 more 1X3s. The following year an old wooden snow shovel handle with a plastic D handle was bolted on to get a better grip. (Have to get the digital camera working.) I try to get as straight a row as possible the first time down and then overlap on the return (to make only one new row). This way it cleans out the furrows a bit more and gives more depth, usually enough for seeds. By keeping the rows straight and spaced right, I can cultivate with the rototiller. You could put two markers the right spacing to do the double row on either side of the T tape. It is still doing the job by hand and your garden is larger than mine. Perhaps if you beef it up, an attachment to the rototiller could be made.

 

[RalphVa]

Sounds as though you walk down your rows with that 2x3 with 1x3 diggers in it. No in-between row walking space?

Many gardeners world-wide avoid walking in the rows. They generally keep the rows about 3' to possibly 4' wide and only have skinny paths between them that they walk or push a wheelbarrow down. Many of the rows of veggies are actually planted perpendicular to the walking paths.

Ralph

 

[chuckcou]

Ok, I have done a little more research thanks to all the great feed back. Now I have a better understanding of what I need.
Does anyone have any pictures of their Bed Shaper? I am trying to see the front to understand the concept of how it works.

Next year I will step up to a small tractor, but this year I am making a small Bed Shaper.

I am pretty good at welding and with metal. I think a mini bed spreader might work.

I attach a home made bed shaper to the back of my rototiller in the final pass. Since the rototiller has it wheels spaced two feet apart my rows will have to be 2 feet. Since the rototiller isn't a tractor the Bed Shaper has to be smaller than ones I would purchase, like(see attachment) buckeye pro junior but smaller.

<font color="orange">So now comes the fun---Any pictures of Bed Shapers would be great. Any suggestions would also be great. Of course maybe I am going off the deep end on this one. I am sure I will hear about it. I want to thank all those who have posted thus far, it has been a great help. THANKS AGAIN!!!!!! </font> /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[theboman]

For furrows: I use a one row cultivator now. In the past I used a tater plow.
My dad used a push plow unless he had a horse and most my life it was a horse.
The funniest was my pulling the horse plow on the Wheel Horse garden tractor as my 70+ dad guided it along...I still laugh thinking about what folks drivin' up and down the road must have thought....you know he'd never let me do the guiding the plow.

Raised beds, never mess with them. I should I just don't know anything about them.

 

[KiotiJohn]

Attached is a picture of a bedder disk that goes on a 3pt hitch. I realize you don't now have a tractor, but if you get one, these are great for raising beds. I don't think you'll get a 36" bed though, I've never seen anyone make a 3ft high bed.
If you run the slide show on this attachment, you'll see the individual bedder discs with shafts. By the way, when it's on the tractor, the discs are not in the position they are in the pic. John
Bedder disc
EDIT: I'm not sure it's possible, but maybe you could modify one of the discs to fit on your walk behind so it beds as you go. John

 

[MMM]

Here you go chuck
2 legged mule

and here's one for the tiller
No kill tiller hiller

 

[RalphVa]

The Gravely rotary plow does about the same job as that picture shown of the David Bradley. You can find a lot more old Gravelys around for as cheap as about $250/tractor and about another $150-250 for a rotary plow. They're easy to work on.

One way that came to mind for me is to remove the inner wheel of my duals on the Gravely. Then remount the wheel spacers and only the outer wheels. This will yield a track about 30+ inches wide. Turn at the ends of the rows and come back down the same track on one side each time: rows about 30" wide and between-row tracks about 6 to 8" wide. Shovel out the compacted stuff made by the tracks and put mulch there.

Plant rows with a skinny hole, backfilling with back side of the hoe that has a little rake (available from Southern states). Easier way is one of those push type seeders, but I've been told that they plug or bind.

Ralph