Leveling a field

[Boondox]

I have a four acre section of my lower field that's pitted like the surface of a giant golf ball. The pits are about three feet in diameter and 3-6" deep. They collect rainwater and make brush hogging a pain, and the uneven ground often trips up my old dog. The soil has a lot of clay which impedes drainage and dictates that the land can only be worked when there's been a dry spell. I'd like to smooth things out and scarify things a bit so I can broadcast a mix of grass and wildflower seeds.

I've been using a york rake and while it does a fine job scratching the surface for seeding it has no effect on the pits. Other implements at my disposal include a rear blade, bucket loader, and mini-excavator with angled blade. I'm thinking of adding a wider landscape rake (mine is just 6' so doesn't cover my tire tracks) but one with a scarifier attachment, a disk harrow with notched disks, or a 7' box blade but I'm not sure how it would work on a grassy field. A tiller would be ideal but is out of the budget.

Pete

 

[bigtiller]

How many acres are there in this project?

 

[oldnslo]

What size or model of tractor do you have? If big and heavy enough an offset disc will cut sod better than tandem disk but are not as good for finish work.

A heavy tandem disk will also work but could take multiple passes to get sod worked to a depth you can level or fill the depressions.

 

[Rockbadchild]

you could disk it, after do multiple pass with a diamond harrow (it breaks up the lumps quite a bit) then you would need to roll it or drag it.

 

[Boondox]

you could disk it, after do multiple pass with a diamond harrow (it breaks up the lumps quite a bit) then you would need to roll it or drag it.

My concern with disking is that with so much clay in the soil I'd be left with thousands of clumps that had to be broken up.

What size or model of tractor do you have? If big and heavy enough an offset disc will cut sod better than tandem disk but are not as good for finish work.

A heavy tandem disk will also work but could take multiple passes to get sod worked to a depth you can level or fill the depressions.

It's a JD 4044R and the field in question is about four acres

 

[Rockbadchild]

My concern with disking is that with so much clay in the soil I'd be left with thousands of clumps that had to be broken up.



It's a JD 4044R and the field in question is about four acres

Yes, regardless of what you are doing it will make it worse before it makes it better… there are rollers made to breaks clumps kinda like an aerator.

I did a field last year like what I describe and my field are hard clay as well. I disked it late summer during dry conditions, left it over the winter (frost dose wonder to break clumps) then the diamond harrow and that broke down everything very nicely.