JD vs Kubota

[MikeFanelli]

I am looking to add to my existing JD 870, 650 tractor stable. I need to mow between rows of christmas trees 5 ft apart.
I am thinking of a mmm since that allows me to turn easily without mowing down trees (A few have given their lives) with a rear mount. Any opinions on the diff between a 4010, 4110 and a Kubota or maybe a 2210. I have a loader on the 870.
So many questions but I just found this site.
Thanks

 

[KiotiJohn]

Sorry don't have any input on those, but my Kioti CK20HST has been perfect for me to mow between Blueberry Bushes with a 4 ft. brush hog. The ease and control of the HST is great, and they offer a MMM as well. It's a great tractor for all the many things I do with it, and I saved money over the others when I purchased. John
CK20SHOTS

 

[mathey]

I too have Christmas trees with rows 5' apart, about 6 acres worth. My father-in-law is a professional Christmas tree farmer, with over 100 acres of trees.

I bought a Kioti CK20 to mow the rows, the CK measures about 44" outside of tire to outside of tire and pull a 48" bush hog rotary mower. When my FIL saw my tractor he said "nice tractor, but its way too big! it'll be fine for the first few years, but when the rows start to fill in, it'll break too many branches" DOH!

He uses NH TC21's with the narrow ag tires, dished in, and pulls 42" bush hog mowers. They've also modfied them with wheel shields to push the branches out of the way to avoid them getting run over.

I guess my advice to you is not to buy what you need now, but what you'll need in the future when the trees are mature. I'm not sure JD has anything that is narrow enough to do the job...i'm sure some JD guys can speak more to that as well as to other brands that offer some smaller narrower units.

In regards to the MMM, IMHO you really need to keep up with the mowing to use a MMM...let it get out of hand one time, and you really need to slow down to get it mowed. With the rotary, you can pretty much just roll through the field, no matter how tall the grass is (within reason). Hopefully, you have enough room at the ends to turn around with a 3ph rotary mower.

I'm guessing that in the next 2 years, i'll need to buy a smaller tractor to do the tree field mowing, i'm leaning towards either the NH TC18 or 21 in 2wd form or perhaps a commercial ZTR type mower.

 

[KiotiJohn]

Good points Mathey, I hadn't thought of the future growth as I don't do Christmas Trees, but it sure makes sense. Maybe a power trac would do the job you both need to do? John

 

[MessickFarmEqu]

I would consider a steiner with a front mount christmas tree mower. Its made specificly for that job, I know one farm that has 8 of them.

Kubota also makes a few specific narrow models if thats an issue for you.

 

[rockyridgefarm]

Here's a little input:

<font color="green"> Any opinions on the diff between a 4010, 4110 and a Kubota or maybe a 2210. </font>

A difference between the CUTs (4010, 4110, etc) and the sub CUTs (2210_ is that it seems like you are getting more Hp for your money with the sub, but it is more of a marketing trick.

A good dealer makes all the difference, if you are happy with the current one, you might want to start there...

Even though you aren't needing a loader, I'd at least make sure that the machine would be capable of one that I liked. Things could change down the road and having a Quick Attach loader might be real handy.

 

[mathey]

the JD webpage doesn't list rear tread width...neither does the NH page for that matter, but i'm more familiar with NH.

the Steiner looks perfect, but dang aren't they expensive little guys! I had no idea...but it's ideal, wide at the bottom and narrow up top.

 

[rockyridgefarm]

FWIW the Deere site has the Owners manuals online. You can check any detail such as wheel spacing, tread width, etc.

 

[rockyridgefarm]

BTW good informative posts, Neil. Always good to get good info from a dealer's angle.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

<font color="red"> I need to mow between rows of christmas trees 5 ft apart.
color]


Venture Products, makers of the Ventrac line of tractors makes a Christmas tree mower specifically designed to mow between & under conifers. It has diverters that lift the branches over the mower deck so they are not cut off. The wheels are also partially covered so they do not damage the trees.