Ground Breaking Advice

[sqdqo]

Can I get some advice for a novice in breaking new ground for food plots. I will have appr. 13 acres of unbroken grass fields to break open and turn into food plots. I have a 90 pto hp tractor and am trying to determine which is the best way to get started with opening the fields. People have told me that I should get a 7 shank chisel plow for initial opening and follow with a disk. As far as the plow goes is the chisel type vs a bottom type the right way to go? Is 7 shank right for my hp? Should I use a 3 point or pull type? The type of ground varies from pretty rock free to pretty rock infested.

As far as a disk goes I am planning on a pull type 10'-12'. Should I find one with a harrow attached for smoothing or use a separate drag harrow?

Obviously I not a farmer so any advice is appreciated.

 

[Uncle Levi]

Not sure if this will help. When I broke sod for my garden, I used my 10 shank chisel plow and then used my drag disc. It really worked up well.

 

[Mac2411]

A bottom plow probably isn't necessary, and in some cases would be counterproductive, for food plots. For example, using a bottom plow in creek or river bottom land that floods might just result in a lot of your soil being washed away. Better, in my opinion, to simply use a heavy disc in those situations and not till too deeply. Most forage species for food plots don't need deep tillage to begin with. If you have upland food plots you might use a chisel plow or bottom plow, but again, a bottom plow would probably be overkill for most food plot species I can think of. Better to keep tillage to a minimum if you can get away with it. Just my two cents-opinions may vary.

 

[flusher]

With 90 hp (pto), that 7 shank chisel with hydraulic transport wheels should be no trouble. If I were you, I'd get that chisel and a 10-ft wide pull type transport disc (aka wheel disc, one with the hydraulic transport wheels). The transport wheels allow you to adjust the penetration depth easily to compensate for soil conditions (dry, hard; wet, soft). You can attach a spike harrow to the disc or rig up a DIY drag (chain link fence weighted with railroad ties or old tires/rims) and chain it to your disc.

Good luck.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Depending on what you call FOOD PLOTS. Food plots for deer etc likely don't need all the grass killed out and can be planted after chisel plowing. Garden plots would need all the grass killed out prior to planting and might even require a spraying of roundup first to kill off the grass then just a disk to turn it under. If you have a chisel plow, that would certainly be beneficial in allowing some aeration of the soil for deeper water penetration, followed by a disking to break up the clods. I don't think I would go out and buy a chisel plow just for this task though as a thorough disking (several passes) will accomplish your need task.
As far as chisel vs bottom plow, I would go with a chisel plow. I think the aeration of the chisel plow is better than overturning all the sod with a bottom plow, but either option is going to be needing a disc pulled over it afterward to smooth out the large clods.

 

[Looking4new]

I plow with a two bottom breaking plow, then go over it with tandem disks 3 ways, with the furrows first, then across the furrows and finally diagonally. Sometimes IF there are lots of weeds and clods that didn't get cut up sufficiently then I will use the spring tooth cultivators last.

 

[bdog]

I think you were given good advice. A 7 shank chisel would be good provided you don't try to run it to deep. Just see how your tractor handles it in your soil conditions. A 9 shank chisel could easily stop my 90 hp tractor in its tracks if I went over 7" or so deep in my soil. No more acres than you are covering either a 3 point or pull type would fine. Pull type is better but 3 point works ok especially if it has gauge wheels.

Your plan to chisel then disk sounds right on. Chisel is for primary tillage and disc is for secondary.

 

[Guesseral]

See I am just the opposite I think the turn plow is the way to go to get all of the sod gone and out of the way, then a wheel disk. I am old school and I just don't want that sod around making my life miserable, of course if it is just for deer or wild life then no a turn plow isn't necessary.

 

[Deerherd]

I use a 7 shank on my 88 hp tractor and I wouldn't want to go any bigger, but I use the turning blades and that adds to the drag. I can turn stubble/sod with no problem and hitting it a time or two with a heavy disc dragging a harrow and it's good to go.

Depending on your soil, take a serious look at getting scrapers for your disc, I would be dead in the water without them. Good luck!



Here's that same field 4 months later with clover and Egyptian Wheat



I use the Egyptian Wheat to divide the field up and on the other side is soybeans.

 

[oosik]

I've tried breaking new ground using three methods. Using a 3pt hitch disk only - with a two bottom plow only and first with the plow followed with the disk. The plow/disk method leaves the soil in a condition for home garden planting. If you need even smoother/more broken then use a pull harrow as final prep. Use of disk or bottom plow only can be adequate for a food plot for animals. Honestly, I've never prepared or planted a plot for animals, only for home gardens. I'm completely surrounded by thousands of acres of wheat, alfalfa or corn.

 

[R W]

Not knowing how hard your ground is I can only make the following remarks based on my own experience.
A 7 tyne chisel plough is the way I'd go. As stated. don't try to go to deep the first time (3"to4") should be enough, if you wish to go deeper go over it again after a reasonable fall of rain then use a disc after the next rain.
A 90HP tractor should handle a 10 tyne chisel plough no problems. Used to pull 10 tynes with a Case500 Diesel.

 

[OldMcDonald]

Sqdqo, Assuming Gary Fowler @ #5 is correct and you are talking about food plots to bring in wildlife, then all you need is a cheap method of cultivating to the level where winter growing seeds will germinate and flourish. That means a rough seed bed by farming standards. I would guess that I have brought more ground than most folks into farming cultivation in several countries, and that means to a higher standard than you require.

For your needs, and especially in the first, or pioneer, season, you cannot expect the level of growth you will have in future seasons. Disks and rocks are not a good combination. Neither do you need the fineness that disks will give you. At the same time you talk of "grass fields" suggesting the land has been cultivated in the past. I have farmed around the world and back again, and for many years have never used anything other than a tined implement. I used disc ploughs in Australia because I acquired them with the property. Tines are cheap, and provided you use a modicum of care, virtually unbreakable. Change the points when necessary and you have the one ideal implement for your purposes - except, how are you going to sow 13 acres? By hand is out of the question, and then you need to have at least a half-hearted go at covering the seeds, but again a fairly rough job is all that is needed. Sow thick, and drag almost anything over a rough seed bed and you should be fine.

Keep your costs down and use the biggest cheapest tined implement you can find that has spring loaded shanks for the inevitable big rock you will come across. 90 hp is plenty power to pull at least 11 tines. Be sensible, go just a few inches deep because you do not need more than 3 or 4 inches for what you intend to do. If possible feed the soil with a few bags of fertiliser. In following seasons you will be able to increase the productivity.

 

[DJ54]

If it's just for wildlife food plots, why wouldn't a no till drill work..?? If it was mowed down pretty tight, and use a drill that will plant all of the sized seeds in one pass, I'd think that would work fine. If you don't want to invest that much in a no-till outfit, some dealers will rent units, and around here, most County Extension Offices have no-till drills they rent out at so much per acre.

I have a small 3 pt. slit seeder I use in the pasture, and hay field, but I only do 6 acres, but does a great job without disturbing the existing grass too much, other than pulling some old thatch up.., plus no worries of soil erosion. I have more time than money, and pulling it with my little IH 240, I doubt I used more than 5 gallons of gas to seed that many acres.

 

[OldMcDonald]

If hiring a no till drill is an option, then I agree with DJ54. For once a year use hiring is probably the cheapest. Failing the ability to rent, I stick with my suggestion of an old tined implement.

 

[bdog]

90 hp is plenty power to pull at least 11 tines. Be sensible, go just a few inches deep because you do not need more than 3 or 4 inches for what you intend to do. If possible feed the soil with a few bags of fertiliser. In following seasons you will be able to increase the productivity.

Assuming you only go 3-4 inches deep (which would be adequate for a food plot) then yes 90hp would be good for 11 shanks. To pull a chisel like they are designed to do at around 8" 90 hp is not going to cut it. I pull a 11 shank chisel (see my avatar picture) with a 135hp 16,000 lb tractor with dual wheels and it will stop the tractor in hard spots when running 8" deep. To run a chisel properly you want to go 5-6mph. If you are barely able to creep along it is not going to fracture the ground and throw dirt like it is supposed to do. Again this probably doesn't matter on a food plot but is just some info.

 

[bdog]

90 hp is plenty power to pull at least 11 tines. Be sensible, go just a few inches deep because you do not need more than 3 or 4 inches for what you intend to do. If possible feed the soil with a few bags of fertiliser. In following seasons you will be able to increase the productivity.

Assuming you only go 3-4 inches deep (which would be adequate for a food plot) then yes 90hp would be good for 11 shanks. To pull a chisel like they are designed to do at around 8" 90 hp is not going to cut it. I pull a 11 shank chisel (see my avatar picture) with a 135hp 16,000 lb tractor with dual wheels and it will stop the tractor in hard spots when running 8" deep. To run a chisel properly you want to go 5-6mph. If you are barely able to creep along it is not going to fracture the ground and throw dirt like it is supposed to do. Again this probably doesn't matter on a food plot but is just some info.

 

[OldMcDonald]

bdog, I totally agree with you. This is one of the problems of this site. A few of us do have bigger acreage experience, but the majority of posters are fairly new to land cultivation, or are not farmers. It is often difficult to know where to pitch the relevant information.

I am more or less semi retired on 16 acres and use a 7 tine spring loaded cultivator at 10" spacings with usually 2" feet on the tines, although I have wide feet that give a total root cutting/soil lifting effect to kill off weeds if that is all I want to do. It is easy when you know what you are doing, but difficult to advise when the questioner can only give so much information in a post. I am sure you could have written a couple of pages more to explain what to do if you want to achieve this or that effect. The trouble is that if you write that much nobody reads it.

 

[sqdqo]

I have been keeping up and appreciate the advice it will be very useful. My tractor is a Massey 492 appr 90 pto hp. I guess I am going to try to find an. 8 or 9 shank chisel . My tractor is 4wd if it makes a difference. 12,000 lb with loader and filled rear tires .

 

[super55]

SQDQO,

You planning on mostly putting in fall plots such as brassicas, cereal rye or winter wheat?

I wouldn't recommend planting a summer annual this year such as corn. You'll have way too many weeds to deal with, probably have to ammend the soil, and with the 20' of snow you guys got this year it will be a late plant. Congrats on having the most consecutive below zero days anywhere in the US this year :thumbsup:

If you end up plowing either with moldboard or chisel I would look seriously look at renting one out of having the plowing done versus buying one. Reason being: 1) It sounds stupid I know but you can seriously mess up a field if your good with a plow. If the furrows aren't spaced perfectly than there are hips and dips all over the field and becomes a P.I.T.A to plant seed if using a drill or leveling it out. It's not such an issue with a moldboard. 2) Once the soil is broken up odds are you will rarely use the plow at all and 3) If you soil is like my Michigan soil in the NWLP you might only have about 6 inches of good topsoil. Running a plow could very well take your best soil and bury it under leaving
sand. Plus rocks really like bare soil because as soon you till they seem to sprout up out of the ground everywhere.

I have about 5-6 acres that I do in food plot rotation and I have a plow, disc and a tiller. 90% of my tillage for my food plots is done with my 6 1/2 disc. It's a little light but 500# of weight got it to the point where I can get the soil worked up enough in two passes on virgin ground to be ready to plant. The good thing about 90% of the seeds used for food plots are extremely competitive against weeds and for the most part very forgiving planting.

 

[jeff9366]

90% of my tillage for my food plots is done with my 6 1/2 disc. It's a little light but 500# of weight got it to the point where I can get the soil worked up enough in two passes on virgin ground to be ready to plant.

What is a 6 1/2 disc? Spacing between pans?