Plow question?

[specialkkl]

Newbie needs help. I have a 26 horse Mahinda. I am looking at plows for a 1 acre food plot. Would a 1 bottom plow be enough or would a chisel plow be better. Ground is soft loam with grass/weeds now. Can't figure out what a chisel plow might be used for.

 

[Bird]

For a tractor of that size, I'd look for a 10" or 12" single bottom moldboard or turning plow, similar to this one. I'm not a fan of the chisel plow personally, although my rancher neighbor liked to use his on the pastures; just digging small trenches 12" apart and about 6" deep which allowed rain to soak in more and run off less. Now of course he was using an 85 hp tractor to pull one that looked like this.

 

[Fredex]

The Conservation Dept. here doesn't recommend plowing for wildlife foodplots; just herbicide burn-down and discing. Your part of the world may be different.
You probably have several options: plowing and discing; plowing and tilling. Chisel plowing is not bad if not done too deeply, but I haven't seen many used chisels that looked compatible with a CUT. Another option might be subsoiling followed by discing. Subsoiling helps root and water penetration.
Oh, you may even be able to pull 1-14" plow bottom with 26hp .

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Newbie needs help. I have a 26 horse Mahinda. I am looking at plows for a 1 acre food plot. Would a 1 bottom plow be enough or would a chisel plow be better. Ground is soft loam with grass/weeds now. Can't figure out what a chisel plow might be used for.

All those old n series Fords would pull a single 16" (Or 2X12") plow with less HP than you have at your disposal. Not sure of the model you have, but some compacts just don't hitch up well with a lot of CAT I plows. I believe it's Lienbach that sells a plow for "limited CAT I" hitch's. Weight/traction might be your limiting factor on how much plow you can drag.

A moldboard plow will do what you're trying. A single 16" pulled @ 4mph will cover just over .6 acre in an hour of plowing.

A chisel plow is the best method of tillage in MOST soils, IF you plan on deep tilling. The problem is, a REAL chisel plow will take a bunch more HP than you have for one of any width. At "normal operating depth" for a chisel plow, you'd be lucky to move one shank. Chisels are intended to operate 8" (at minimum) to 12" or 14", all dependent on current soil structure and its needs. (You'll find people that refer to their field cultivator as a chisel plow. There is a difference. Not made to work as deep)

The best alternative to chiseling with a small tractor is a subsoiler. One shank that can be pulled at whatever depth you so desire.

The object is to break up surface soil to a depth BELOW compaction level. If this ground has been previously worked with a moldboard plow, or just "pastured", it will have a compaction layer AT LEAST 8" to 10" down. NO moldboard plow will dig down that deep and UN-DO that layer. That's where chisel plows shine. In fact, a moldboard plow can actually make the "plow pan" (layer of compaction) worse.

I'd suggest plowing ONE TIME to deal with the sod layer. After that, look to use ONLY a disc or tiller in subsequent years. NATURE, with her freeze/thaw cycles will do what the cold steel of a plow can't.

 

[flusher]

Newbie needs help. I have a 26 horse Mahinda. I am looking at plows for a 1 acre food plot. Would a 1 bottom plow be enough or would a chisel plow be better. Ground is soft loam with grass/weeds now. Can't figure out what a chisel plow might be used for.

Use a middle buster. I have a 21-hp Kubota B7510HST and have just plowed about a 1/3-acre of ground around that house that will be landscaped in March with tall fescue. I'll use my 4-ft wide Yanmar RS-1200 rototiller in a few weeks to bust up the clods. Then I use a chain-link fence drag to smooth the surface prior to fertilizing and seeding.

You probably could plow your 1-acre with a middle buster in 10 hours or so.

 

[Doc_Bob]

A single bottom plow is great! Can you pull it? Depends on the ground type, and if the plow is corrrectly setup. I have a NH TN70A (5800 lb tractor with 70 HP) and a poorly setup single bottom plow almost dragged it to a stop in heavy clay soil.
Bob

 

[Slamfire]

I think you could dispense with a moldboard plow for a food plot, as there is no need to get down deep to grow grasses or grains. Burn down, then disc, sow and drag to cover. Did I mention I hate tillers, but then I'm dealin' with clay.