Call me "Oliver"

old gaffer · Jul 24, 2014

Greetings All.

The title is a reference to the television show "Green Acres", which for those of you old enough to remember, was about a guy and his wife who moved from the big city to a farm; well, I'm that guy.

I've spend the past umm, too many years, living in and around Washington DC, and now I'm on a small farm in the mountains of East Tennessee. What I DON'T know about farm life will fill several books, none of which I have yet.

I have learned that mowing a couple of acres of ground that used to be garden plots is NOT a job for a riding mower - my lower back is still hurting from bouncing over the furrows.

Other than that, I'm still in teh very early stages of what I'm sure will be a long learning curve, and [hopefully] DW and I will stay in this farm (that used to be her parents) for many, many enjoyable years.

I can tell you it already beats the heck out of living in DC's suburbs.

Cheers,
Rob

KiotiKowboy · Jul 24, 2014

I can so relate to your circumstance! I left the city and a career in computers behind, now having 110 acres and no real clue what I'm doing - lol. It took very little time to learn I needed a tractor, a UTV, a slew of implements and a barn in which to store everything. Getting started has been a steep learning curve and financially expensive. After 2 years, I've begun to make a little progress and gain a marginal degree of confidence. Still, I am quite the newbie and am forever soliciting advice. All in all, it's been an interesting and entertaining transition. Plus, I will never have to worry about becoming idle and lazy during retirement!

I wish you well as you move forward and hope you enjoy your new life as much as I do ... so far - lol.

vulcancowboy · Jul 24, 2014

Suggestion #1: No need to wear white shirt and tie while running your tractor!

old gaffer · Jul 24, 2014

DW has threatened to make me put on my tux for a photo op - something to send my friends in the city...I may just accommodate her on this one

old gaffer · Jul 24, 2014

Wow - 110 acres, I don't even have a feel for how much land that really is. What implements do you find most useful? Do you have a PTO-mounted boom pole? How useful is it? I see they're cheap enough that if it's worth having one, it falls under the "why not?" category.

and thank you for your kind well-wishes!

vulcancowboy · Jul 24, 2014

old gaffer said:
DW has threatened to make me put on my tux for a photo op - something to send my friends in the city...I may just accommodate her on this one

I've actually been to Roan Mountain, there used to be a big horse ranch there...Eagle's Nest Ranch.

KiotiKowboy · Jul 24, 2014

My property is a mix of pasture (88 acres) and wooded (22 acres). It was in somewhat of a state of neglect, so much of my chore has been in cleaning up downed tree debris and pasture weed control. My first purchase was a cabbed Kioti DK50 HST. I should have gone a little larger but I've been mostly satisfied with the capability. It came with the FEL bucket but that has proven to be the least useful implement. BY FAR, a grapple is my most used implement - essential in moving large logs and piles of limbs. Pallet forks have proven to be quite handy and I just took delivery of a new stump bucket - for popping up small trees and digging out a few stubborn rocks. Since I have the pastures cut for hay, I've not needed a 3pt rotary cutter. Instead, I purchased a tow-behind Swisher Trail Cutter, which I hook up to my Cub Cadet UTV, for cutting the perimeters that are under the tree line. I also hope to eventually drag this through some of the wooded areas to create a walkable path. I will eventually pick up a 3pt tiller and establish a nice garden.

My wife has been wonderful in all of this. She says - Without good tools, it's just work.

TripleR · Jul 24, 2014

Welcome to TBN, if you know little to nothing about tractors and nomenclature, check out the TBN link in my signature line and watch this video, Everything Attachments has a KOT of helpful videos.

"How To" Operate and Drive a Tractor: Part 1 - YouTube

old gaffer · Jul 24, 2014

vulcancowboy said:
I've actually been to Roan Mountain, there used to be a big horse ranch there...Eagle's Nest Ranch.

there's still an Eagle's Nest over in nearby NC - I think it's mostly high dollar homes serving the ski crowd now :/

If there's' a ranch nearby, DW will know - she's the rider in the rider in the family - I don't get on things that are smarter than I am