plowing

[mediocrates67]

i bought a disc for my 3-pt thinking it would work ok for small food plots in breaking up the sod. doesn't work the greatest. i will probably need a plow. do i need a chisel plow or a 2-bottom plow? i have a 45 hp diesel century tractor.

 

[kf4uda]

For food plots, I would consider a field cultivator. You should be able to pull a 7~9 shank with your 45hp tractor. There are a few advertisers on here that has them. Here is one example.

Fred Cain Tractor 3 Point Field Cultivator, Ripper, Tillage Tool, Jitterbug, Field plow, Bermuda grass plow

 

[Johndeere3720]

I have a few customers that use their Jake Rake's to prep their ground for food plots/gardens/reseeding. The solid ripper shanks work great for digging up the hard packed earth, plus the rear rake does a great job at breaking down the dirt clods produced from the ripper shanks. Check out my website in my signature to see what the Jake Rake is all about. :thumbsup:

 

[timberwolves]

Did you try spraying a round-up type product on the plot before discing ? I now have a bigger set of transport disc that can cut sod good, but before that I used a little set of three point discs. We would spray the area with 41% gly. atleast 10 days prior to discing it up. The more time you leave it the roots die and it becomes easier to disc. John

 

[HCJtractor]

I agree Roundup helps alot. My 3 point disc also is pretty sorry. Even after adding several hundred pounds, it still works poorly and takes muliple passes, and forget it if it is dry. The disc is Leinbachs biggest, so its not a cheap disc. It definitely helps to use a moldboard plow first. I use a 3 bottom Ford 101 with my 70 horse. It really speeds things up as it really tears up the sod leaving it soft for the disc to follow. But it can leave the field uneven, so after discing, you may need to use some sort of drag harrow (I made one) to smooth things out.

I recently restored a heavy Athens 166 disc, not a 3 point. Now it is a beast, and no plowing is necessary. But it is all my tractor can handle.

Get a nice plow, a two bottom, but make sure it has trip protection. It will take the frustration out of disking.

 

[ljohnson778]

Yep, sometimes we ask too much of disc harrows... But to be clear, chisel plows are not what you want for sod... A good turning/moldboard plow, then discs are what you would want.

 

[heviduty]

Do you have a box blade? Lower the scarifiers, retract the top link so the box blade tilts forward, and have at it. After a few passes at right angles, your disc should work just fine. You may find you don't need the disc after smoothing the plot with the box blade.

 

[HCJtractor]

Do you have a box blade? Lower the scarifiers, retract the top link so the box blade tilts forward, and have at it. After a few passes at right angles, your disc should work just fine. You may find you don't need the disc after smoothing the plot with the box blade.

A plow will flip the sod in one pass and go deeper. And nothings more fun and satisfying than plowing!!!!!!!

 

[schmism]

2 bottom are quick and easy to find on Criagslist. takes a bit to learn to set one up but once you do they are a great tool for breaking virgin ground.

 

[mediocrates67]

thanks for the input everyone. yeah, i did round it up beforehand but it's been pretty dry lately. i do have a box blade with scarifiers on it, had tried it a little and will try it again.

i saw this cultivator for $279. any thoughts on if this would do the job?

CountyLine® "C" Tine Cultivator, 1 Row - 2128139 | Tractor Supply Company