Plowing field of tall grass

[D7E]

Or spray it with Roundup, burn it off, then plow/disc.

This is the cleanest way and the normal here !

 

[santagary]

Getting it off would make the corn planting go a lot smoother. Maybe brush Hog it and turn it under with a moldboard plow? Ken Sweet

Ditto and put #9 brace wire (about 25') on each coulter shank across the face of the mold board plows and the wire will run in the bottom of the furrow and suck all trash under. Used that technique for years in plowing contests in Ohio...works even in harvested potato ground which is really trashy. :thumbsup:

 

[Reg]

Ditto and put #9 brace wire (about 25') on each coulter shank across the face of the mold board plows and the wire will run in the bottom of the furrow and suck all trash under. Used that technique for years in plowing contests in Ohio...works even in harvested potato ground which is really trashy. :thumbsup:

Not SURE that I understand that COMPLETELY....

Maybe I just have the wrong image in my mind, but I would REALLY appreciate a little more description.
{Details ?}

 

[Farmwithjunk]

Read through this old USDA instructional manual on moldboard plowing. In it, you'll find an adequate description of "covering wires" and how to install them. They work in all but the worst of conditions.

http://ddr.nal.usda.gov/bitstream/10113/33763/1/CAT87204015.pdf

 

[Luremaker]

Read through this old USDA instructional manual on moldboard plowing. In it, you'll find an adequate description of "covering wires" and how to install them. They work in all but the worst of conditions.

http://ddr.nal.usda.gov/bitstream/10113/33763/1/CAT87204015.pdf

FWJ, thanks for the link. Good read.

 

[nspec]

Bah-Humbug to the covering wires! That's cheating. Half of the fun/art of plowing is getting the plow set up just right. Jointers work great for burrying trash when set up properly. So many variables you can adjust for clean plowing. Speed is often overlooked, and can have vast differences in what the furrow looks like, too.

 

[Farmwithjunk]

I've never used a covering wire, although I've seen the results in someone elses field. They work quite well.

Myself? I prefer the results that can be had with a good coverboard set-up. They bury trash (ie grass, weeds, crop residue) simply by curling it into the open furrow just before the moldboard throws the next furrow slice in on top of that trash. So long as you have a plow with decent throat clearance, tall weeds aren't the end of the world. (But....Many older plows didn't have as much clearance as they often needed...)

 

[santagary]

I've never used a covering wire, although I've seen the results in someone elses field. They work quite well.

Myself? I prefer the results that can be had with a good coverboard set-up. They bury trash (ie grass, weeds, crop residue) simply by curling it into the open furrow just before the moldboard throws the next furrow slice in on top of that trash. So long as you have a plow with decent throat clearance, tall weeds aren't the end of the world. (But....Many older plows didn't have as much clearance as they often needed...)

In the levelland plowing contests, the furrows had to be dead straight and evenly conforming with zero trash showing. The covering wires running back from the shank of the coulter (#9 brace wire) worked perfectly. Never saw or participated in a plowing contest where they weren't used!

 

[randy41]

you'll probably need to add some nitrogen to that soil. organic matter uses nitrogen while its breaking down.

 

[beenthere]

Used to use the #9 wire, but not 25' long. The turning dirt would wear away the wire reasonably fast, and had to replace with more wire when it happened. Don't think the wire needs to be much longer than where the furrow is covered. But makes a neat looking plow job, even with turning over cornstalks, but mostly to tuck the long grass under.
Doing a good job of plowing is a lot of fun. I miss it.