How to level pasture

[CobyRupert]

(IMHO) A couple good recommendations to preserve (most of) existing grass:

Chain harrow.
Spike tooth harrow (-maybe wouldn't rip up grass, depending on soil and grass conditions at the time)

Has anybody mentioned using a landscape rake?

 

[MNBobcat]

Totally agree with this advice. I was thinking worse case use a box blade on the holes. I don't have issues with my box blade ripping up grass as long as I set the angle (top link) so the blade on the back is not aiming down where it wants to cut in. It will slide right over the grass unless it hits a mound. Granted the sides of the box cause slide marks since they are riding on the ground, but you're not leveling a golf course and what grass is damaged will come back quick. I'd give it a try before I invested a lot of money in other new attachments (unless you don't already have a box blade).

I was also thinking a pull-type box scraper with gauge wheels on the back and then sitting it about 1 inch off the ground. It's good to hear that you suggested this as I wasn't sure how well it would work.

I want to get this smooth enough that I can mow at a pretty good clip.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

You pretty much use the implements you have. I have a smaller tractor and an old JD cover crop disc, plus spike tooth harrow, so did a 1-pass disc and harrow to level my pasture. I set the disc to about 50% depth. It turned out to be a 2-pass, but ended up pretty smooth. Then I broadcast some grass seed, though quite a bit of the old grass rooted back in. Pick a time when it's good seed bed moisture but not muddy to do something like this.

 

[MNBobcat]

Larry,

How did you go about seeding after you disc'd and harrowed? I don't think I'd be able to use my tractor to seed as the tires would cut into loose sand about a foot deep. I could see seeding with an ATV. Was just curious how you went about it.

Thanks!

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I borrowed a 3-point fertilizer broadcaster from a neighbor, filled it with seed, and spread it around. With the PTO at full speed, it would toss grass seed about 20' on each side of the tractor, so one pass was 40' wide. I used perennial ryegrass seed, which is fairly heavy for grass seed. If you went to something like low endophyte fescue, it wouldn't fly so far. Oats will re-seed well if you leave them alone. If you plant oats and field peas, you can take a really high quality hay crop.