First tractor

[69clone]

Hi everyone I have a Belarus 250as 31hp. I'm just wondering how do you decide on what size attachments to get? Ours came with a 5ft bush hog and FEL. I bought a middle buster but have a hard time keeping traction sometimes. I am planning on a large garden and want to make sure I'm not buying something that my tractor can't handle. I would like a double plow. And or a cultivator. Just don't know if my tractor can handle a double row 5ft or only a single 5ft etc.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

Might want to describe soil conditions...

 

[69clone]

Sorry I meant to. I live in Tennessee a little clay.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Hi everyone I have a Belarus 250as 31hp. I'm just wondering how do you decide on what size attachments to get? Ours came with a 5ft bush hog and FEL. I bought a middle buster but have a hard time keeping traction sometimes. I am planning on a large garden and want to make sure I'm not buying something that my tractor can't handle. I would like a double plow. And or a cultivator. Just don't know if my tractor can handle a double row 5ft or only a single 5ft etc.

Get all four tires filled with Rim Guard. That will add weight and traction.

 

[jeff9366]

TractorData.com Belarus 250AS tractor information

Your tractor is 58" wide with R1/ag tires, 31 horsepower and around 5,000 pounds.

You would be better served with a 60" wide, PTO powered roto-tiller in a garden, rather than a Moldboard Plow. Plows take many hours to learn to adjust correctly. In a garden you do not have enough space for plow trial and error. If you get a plow, you will also need a Disc Harrow to reduce the 12" to 14" plow furrows to reasonable smoothness, and Disc Harrows are less than optimum in garden situations. A roto-tiller is an all-in-one garden implement.
VIDEO: PTO tiller - YouTube


How dry was your soil when you lost traction pulling the Middle-Buster? I expect your answer will be DRY. In ag, you have to wait on Mother Nature. Even your relatively heavy tractor is going to have a hard time pulling through adobe brick. Wait on the Middle-Buster until after three to four days of steady rain, then a day or two of dry out weather.

Cultivators only penetrate 4" - 5" into the soil, so draft force resisting the tractor is not high. Your Belarus 250AS should allow you to pull a two row cultivator in moist soil. Most people using two row cultivators would be growing food for market sale, not for the table.

WHAT DIMENSIONS ARE YOU PLANNING FOR YOUR GARDEN? WHAT USE WAS MADE OF THE LAND, WHICH YOU NOW SEE AS YOUR GARDEN? PASTURE?
A 1/4 ACRE GARDEN IS ALL A FAMILY CAN MANAGE WITHOUT THE GARDEN BECOMING AN ONEROUS TASK RATHER THAN A PLEASURE.

Many would cultivate a kitchen garden with a Middle-Buster plus Roto-tiller for soil preparation, then hand tools or a small gas powered tiller, such as a Mantis, for cultivation.

LINK: 3 Pt. Hitch, Toolbar, Cultivators, Sweeps, S-Tines, Disc Hillers, & More!

 

[69clone]

Thanks, yes the ground was dry couldn't tell you the last time it rained to be honest. I knew it wasn't the best condition but it was my day off and I had nothing going on.
I was able to go through it about 3" deep to get the sod out the first pass then another 4" the second pass. I stopped in to our local tractor junk yard/store the owner didn't think I had enough hp for a cultivator and recommend a roto tiller as you suggest. I was just hoping to stay alittle cheaper but I don't mind a tiller. I know some folks don't like what a tiller does to the soil. But it beats using a front tine tiller on a large garden. We have a 5-6 acre area that doesn't get used one day I would like to have the whole thing garden and sell to market/ locally. But the lands never been worked as far as I know. I would start small. I have had gardens for awhile just small scale.

 

[Steave]

Hi everyone I have a Belarus 250as 31hp. I'm just wondering how do you decide on what size attachments to get? Ours came with a 5ft bush hog and FEL. I bought a middle buster but have a hard time keeping traction sometimes. I am planning on a large garden and want to make sure I'm not buying something that my tractor can't handle. I would like a double plow. And or a cultivator. Just don't know if my tractor can handle a double row 5ft or only a single 5ft etc.

Could be the reason you're losing traction is you have down pressure on that tractor. If you lower the plow and keep trying to lower it will lift the rear tires off the ground or bend your plow. You have plenty of weight to run a bottom plow or middle buster but you'll have to learn how to use the 3pt lift.

If you pull your lever toward you the 3pt will start to lower if you want it to float (meaning no down pressure on your implement) pull the lever all the way back toward you and it will lock into position. While its locked the 3pt hitch will be free to move up or down as your plow needs. To unlock the handle just push it to raise.

If you are using a middle buster start the tractor moving and slowly pull the lever back lowering the plow until the right depth is reached. You may have to adjust your top link so the middle buster is at the right angle for digging. Hope I didn't confuse you. It's hard for me to write what I'm thinking.

 

[Steave]

I'm going to add that the only time I find a need for down pressure is while using a post hole digger. While you're using your tractor just keep in mind what can happen if you're using down pressure. If you're using a rotary cutter you have to insure the rotary cutter has a means of at least a few inches of float built into the mower. Most rotary cutters have this float built on the hitch and so do finish mowers. Plows don't have this and you'll just have to learn how to use them.

There is a way to adjust some nuts on the lift link (the arm between the rock shaft and the lift arms) to help eliminate the down pressure problems but I'll have to get a few pictures to explain it. It'll probably be tomorrow before I can get the pictures though.

 

[69clone]

Thanks for the response. When I hooked up my middle buster I turned the top linkage all the way in as to point the plow downwards some. I may need a shorter one though because I put it in float mode before and it barely goes under the soil. Of course I hit a rock hard in the spring because it bent the front of the plow down.

 

[jeff9366]

Many families do commercial market gardening on one to two acres.

Used properly roto-tillers are excellent tools. Some newbies mistakenly believe tilling until the soil is powder is a good idea, but powder soil turns to adobe brick after it is next saturated. Powder soil contains no oxygen. Only roto-till once or twice per year. You want good crumb in the soil.

I would commence composting all kitchen waste and garden waste immediately. It takes a huge amount of compost to ameliorate clay but when you commence the garden you will soon have lots of vegetation waste.

In most of Tennessee people raise scrumptious tomatoes.

Do you have an Operator's Manual for your Belarus? If you do not, and request one here, someone will likely e-mail you one.

 

[jeff9366]

Thanks for the response. When I hooked up my middle buster I turned the top linkage all the way in as to point the plow downwards some. I may need a shorter one though because I put it in float mode before and it barely goes under the soil. Of course I hit a rock hard in the spring because it bent the front of the plow down.

No, you just need to experiment with Three Point Hitch Top Link adjustment. Your local welding show should be able to restore the plow to good condition. It is good to establish a warm relationship with a welding shop. All of us need implements repaired/restored regularly. Next time purchase a shear-bolt protected implement.

In moist soil the plow probably would not have bent hitting the rock.

You may consider a $249 protective HydrauLink. I am a fan.
VIDEO: HydrauLink Category 1 Cylinder - For 45 HP Tractors or Less, Model# HL-11 - YouTube

Amazon.com: Hydraulink

 

[69clone]

Thanks, 1-2 acres is a lot easier for me to manage as well. Or so I think. The rest I thought corn, sunflowers or something for our chickens/ducks. I have a compost until the chickens rip it apart looking for a cricket

 

[Steave]

It's just like jeff9366 said you'll have to get the middle buster or whatever plow you're using to dig by adjusting the top link. You don't use down pressure to make these implements work besides most tractors don't have down pressure and they use these plows all the time. By adjusting the nuts I mentioned you'll be able to have position control without down pressure but the whole 3pt will lift if needed. If your tractor runs in a swell with an implement sticking out 5'-6' you'll need it to move up to keep from bending something.

 

[jeff9366]

Here are some roto-tillers near zip code 75694:

Frontier RT1157 Tiller Low Hours | eBay

Heavy Equipment Tillers Attachments | eBay

The Frontier looks like a good deal but you need to research for yourself.

I purchase regularly from everytfhingattachments.com in central North Carolina.
Tractor Rotary Tillers | Tractor Rotavators

 

[Steave]

You may already know about adjusting these nuts but I'll show the pictures in case somebody else wants to know how to keep down pressure from not becoming an issue.



This is the nut and running it to the top will keep the lift arm from sliding up:


This is the way I leave mine so as to let the lift arm slide up eliminating down pressure:


This is the lift arm with me picking up on it you can see the threaded part raised about 5":

 

[69clone]

You may already know about adjusting these nuts but I'll show the pictures in case somebody else wants to know how to keep down pressure from not becoming an issue.



This is the nut and running it to the top will keep the lift arm from sliding up:View attachment 484242


This is the way I leave mine so as to let the lift arm slide up eliminating down pressure:View attachment 484243


This is the lift arm with me picking up on it you can see the threaded part raised about 5":View attachment 484244

Thank you, I had no idea it lifted like that. I will have to take a better look at mine tomorrow and post picture. I probably have it all set up wrong. I do know when I hook up the MB I adjust those so the plow can go a lot deeper down. Other wise when we have the bush hog on those are typically pretty short so the BH can lift up higher to clear ditches/stumps. But I never paid attention that those slide up and down.

 

[Steave]

That's not to say mine is set up right or wrong it's just one of the ways to set it. :thumbsup:

 

[jeff9366]

The rest I thought corn, sunflowers or something for our chickens/ducks. I have a compost until the chickens rip it apart looking for a cricket

Also consider Fall/Spring/Fall cover crops to be turned under, adding humus to the soil. There will be favorites in your part of Tennessee.

Consider price of Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter game food plot mixes as cover crops too. Often a cheap option. My Walmart and Ace hardware have these @ $24/50 pounds. The chicks will like these too.

A soil test would be good to have. It is best to notify the tester of what crop(s) you intend to grow.

Southern States ag co-ops almost always have cheapest fertilizers and other soil amendments in 50 pound bags.

 

[69clone]

Also consider Fall/Spring/Fall cover crops to be turned under, adding humus to the soil. There will be favorites in your part of Tennessee.

Consider price of Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter game food plot mixes as cover crops too. Often a cheap option. My Walmart and Ace hardware have these @ $24/50 pounds. The chicks will like these too.

A soil test would be good to have. It is best to notify the tester of what crop(s) you intend to grow.

Southern States ag co-ops almost always have cheapest fertilizers and other soil amendments in 50 pound bags.

Thanks I am planning a cover crop. I need to have my soil tested still. I know I'm short on nitrogen. I'll have to look into what's preferred down here and pick some up. I do have a co op in town I have bought from before.

 

[69clone]

Here's how mines set right now.