OP
mikeslavis
Member
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2001
- Messages
- 31
All,
Thanks again. I'll respond with what I can below and will TRY to keep it to a minimum...I went to the Kubota dealer yesterday, but didn't make it before they'd closed. At least I got to look at several of the tractors, including an L3710 and an M4900 with cab.
cowboydoc, you've got the right idea here, in that I'm trying to capture a much as possible with 1 machine, rather than trying to afford several machines to do it all. I definitely can't afford a Cat III-sized tractor, so hopefully Cat II is sufficient. It sounds to me like the Grand L Series is a no-go on pulling a 15' mower, am I gathering that correctly from your info? (Remember - I'm pretty "green" to all of this!). If my application dictates that I *need* the larger sized tractor, I will forego HST, no problem. Is the PTO HP the limiter as far as the size mower you can pull? I may have to contact Rhino on this one and ask specifically about their wing and see what pops out. I'm still looking for "exactly" what implements can run on Cat II but not Cat I, and still wondering if it's just a matter of the "Size" of the implement.
Bird, it looks like I'm heading towards the bigger tractors now, so thanks for the words of encouragement. I drive stick-shift automobiles, so I"m used to clutching to change speeds/etc, just it's a lot more "heavy-duty" on a tractor. I'll definitely look into the powershift transmission.
glennmac, sorry if I didn't make clear what our intentions are with the property. It's probably because we're not really sure ourselves just yet. Disclaimer: what I say below is all subject to change, because I have no idea what I'm talking about. The 15 acres of woods we're planning on managing somewhat. It was logged 2 years ago and there are many piles of discarded lumber that will need to be removed for mulch/firewood. The tractor path through this small forest has totally grown over and many of the lumber piles are on it, so we'll need to clear this. Going forward we'll probably maintain this for firewood and the natural stand of hardwood trees contained in it, as well as keeping the path through the 15 acres clear of brush. The 15 acres of pasture will need to be mowed short-term and this is where we plan to begin our experimentation with tree farming. It should give us plenty of room to play with row spacings and let us figure out how long it takes certain trees to grow, how to care for them, etc... You are correct, we'll be renting out the other 60 acres to "traditional" vegetable farmers for now. Once we get a better handle on what we're doing and, if we still want to push forward with the tree farming nursery, the rentals will stop and we'll expand our plantings to the other 60 acres. Now, just LOOKING at this land we have, that seems like WAY too much land for my wife and myself to manage in a nursery operation, so we'll map out areas we use for tree farming (miuch of this may depend on soil samples to be done down the road) and the rest we'll start to grow up with "our own" trees, so the property will eventually become a nursery surrounded by its own trees. Here, we'll most likely begin by spading trees from our original 15-acre nursery experiment and plopping them all over the property where we want the forest to be. Of course, if this experiment doesn't work out, I'll either need to continue mowing/hauling lumber on the 15 + 15 acres or may try "traditional" vegetable farming beginning with a 20 acre field and progressing through the others. I wish I had a concrete plan, but I don't, so this is where we're currently heading.
cowboydoc, thanks for the reminder from my original post. The tractor will also need to do our plowing/tilling/dirt moving operations. There's a pretty big laneway down the property which I'm not sure should be plowed during the winter (I guess this will depend on whether I need to reach the back of the property or not!). Sounds like you're still leaning me to the bigger tractor!
Thanks for the input, I'm attaching an aerial photo from New York State from a while back of the land so you can see the layout. I'll include a "doctored" version as well, hopefully this will make some things more "clear".
Von, I didn't get to talk to the dealer I went to yesterday (Saxby), but I'm making a note to look into Art White in Syracuse. I'm guessing I'll most likely go with Carver now, but if a local dealer can match him, they'll probably get my business. Thanks for the info.
John Miller III, Wow, that's pushing me even further to the realm of even bigger tractors. However, if the price is on par, I'll look into it. It seems that the tractors are priced $1,000 - $2,000 apart with identical features and just going up to the next size. This seems to apply to the L3710 - L4310 - L4610 - M4900 - M5700 - M6800, and may continue further. The jump from L3710 to M6800 looks to be ~$7,500. If only we weren't so strapped for cash from actually PURCHASING this place, I might be more easy to convince to jump up. I will bring this one up with the Mrs.
glennmac, I'm trying to do the research on what we'll need for tree farming before I buy anything...my research tells me I'll eventually need BOTH a tractor and skid steer, my finances tell me to stick with the tractor for now. It can do the "tree" things a skid steer can, just not as fast and fun as one. We're looking to grow the following: Sequoia Sempervirens, Sequoiadendron Giganteum, Metasequoia Glyptostroboides, Taxodium Distichum, Picea Pungens 'Glauca', Picea Abies, Pinus Nigra, Gingko Biloba, Quercus Alba, Quercus Rubra, Acer Saccarum, Acer Rubrum, Larix Laricina, Abies Concolor, Juglans Regia, Ulmus Americana and Castanea Dentata to start. Translated, that's Coast redwood, Giant Sequoia, Dawn Redwood, Bald-Cypress, Colorado Blue Spruce, Norway Spruce, Austrian Pine, Ginkgo Biloba, White Oak, Red Oak, Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Tamarack, White Fir, English Walnut, American Elm and American Chestnut. The elm and chestnut are "pet" projects aimed to help bring these trees back from the brink of extinction in the Eastern US.
Sorry so wordy...thanks for all help!
Thanks again. I'll respond with what I can below and will TRY to keep it to a minimum...I went to the Kubota dealer yesterday, but didn't make it before they'd closed. At least I got to look at several of the tractors, including an L3710 and an M4900 with cab.
cowboydoc, you've got the right idea here, in that I'm trying to capture a much as possible with 1 machine, rather than trying to afford several machines to do it all. I definitely can't afford a Cat III-sized tractor, so hopefully Cat II is sufficient. It sounds to me like the Grand L Series is a no-go on pulling a 15' mower, am I gathering that correctly from your info? (Remember - I'm pretty "green" to all of this!). If my application dictates that I *need* the larger sized tractor, I will forego HST, no problem. Is the PTO HP the limiter as far as the size mower you can pull? I may have to contact Rhino on this one and ask specifically about their wing and see what pops out. I'm still looking for "exactly" what implements can run on Cat II but not Cat I, and still wondering if it's just a matter of the "Size" of the implement.
Bird, it looks like I'm heading towards the bigger tractors now, so thanks for the words of encouragement. I drive stick-shift automobiles, so I"m used to clutching to change speeds/etc, just it's a lot more "heavy-duty" on a tractor. I'll definitely look into the powershift transmission.
glennmac, sorry if I didn't make clear what our intentions are with the property. It's probably because we're not really sure ourselves just yet. Disclaimer: what I say below is all subject to change, because I have no idea what I'm talking about. The 15 acres of woods we're planning on managing somewhat. It was logged 2 years ago and there are many piles of discarded lumber that will need to be removed for mulch/firewood. The tractor path through this small forest has totally grown over and many of the lumber piles are on it, so we'll need to clear this. Going forward we'll probably maintain this for firewood and the natural stand of hardwood trees contained in it, as well as keeping the path through the 15 acres clear of brush. The 15 acres of pasture will need to be mowed short-term and this is where we plan to begin our experimentation with tree farming. It should give us plenty of room to play with row spacings and let us figure out how long it takes certain trees to grow, how to care for them, etc... You are correct, we'll be renting out the other 60 acres to "traditional" vegetable farmers for now. Once we get a better handle on what we're doing and, if we still want to push forward with the tree farming nursery, the rentals will stop and we'll expand our plantings to the other 60 acres. Now, just LOOKING at this land we have, that seems like WAY too much land for my wife and myself to manage in a nursery operation, so we'll map out areas we use for tree farming (miuch of this may depend on soil samples to be done down the road) and the rest we'll start to grow up with "our own" trees, so the property will eventually become a nursery surrounded by its own trees. Here, we'll most likely begin by spading trees from our original 15-acre nursery experiment and plopping them all over the property where we want the forest to be. Of course, if this experiment doesn't work out, I'll either need to continue mowing/hauling lumber on the 15 + 15 acres or may try "traditional" vegetable farming beginning with a 20 acre field and progressing through the others. I wish I had a concrete plan, but I don't, so this is where we're currently heading.
cowboydoc, thanks for the reminder from my original post. The tractor will also need to do our plowing/tilling/dirt moving operations. There's a pretty big laneway down the property which I'm not sure should be plowed during the winter (I guess this will depend on whether I need to reach the back of the property or not!). Sounds like you're still leaning me to the bigger tractor!
Thanks for the input, I'm attaching an aerial photo from New York State from a while back of the land so you can see the layout. I'll include a "doctored" version as well, hopefully this will make some things more "clear".Von, I didn't get to talk to the dealer I went to yesterday (Saxby), but I'm making a note to look into Art White in Syracuse. I'm guessing I'll most likely go with Carver now, but if a local dealer can match him, they'll probably get my business. Thanks for the info.
John Miller III, Wow, that's pushing me even further to the realm of even bigger tractors. However, if the price is on par, I'll look into it. It seems that the tractors are priced $1,000 - $2,000 apart with identical features and just going up to the next size. This seems to apply to the L3710 - L4310 - L4610 - M4900 - M5700 - M6800, and may continue further. The jump from L3710 to M6800 looks to be ~$7,500. If only we weren't so strapped for cash from actually PURCHASING this place, I might be more easy to convince to jump up. I will bring this one up with the Mrs.
glennmac, I'm trying to do the research on what we'll need for tree farming before I buy anything...my research tells me I'll eventually need BOTH a tractor and skid steer, my finances tell me to stick with the tractor for now. It can do the "tree" things a skid steer can, just not as fast and fun as one. We're looking to grow the following: Sequoia Sempervirens, Sequoiadendron Giganteum, Metasequoia Glyptostroboides, Taxodium Distichum, Picea Pungens 'Glauca', Picea Abies, Pinus Nigra, Gingko Biloba, Quercus Alba, Quercus Rubra, Acer Saccarum, Acer Rubrum, Larix Laricina, Abies Concolor, Juglans Regia, Ulmus Americana and Castanea Dentata to start. Translated, that's Coast redwood, Giant Sequoia, Dawn Redwood, Bald-Cypress, Colorado Blue Spruce, Norway Spruce, Austrian Pine, Ginkgo Biloba, White Oak, Red Oak, Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Tamarack, White Fir, English Walnut, American Elm and American Chestnut. The elm and chestnut are "pet" projects aimed to help bring these trees back from the brink of extinction in the Eastern US.
Sorry so wordy...thanks for all help!
