removing 'ditches'?

[bcp]

More research - seems the ditches were put in to separate crops..seems odd to me, but that's what I'm hearing.

Maybe it was to make separate fields.


Leviticus 19:19 You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed,


Bruce

 

[prof fate]

So far so good - how to move dirt sideways is what I"m not finding.

I assume a pass with the front disks loaded and in V shape to loosed up the dirt. Second pass with them both angled to the same side, rears too, to move dirt over into the ditch.

I assume this will work - but figure it will also put a lot of side pressure on the disks and the tractor..so not sure this will work.

I have a very light duty back blade that might move dirt..it moved snow.

 

[jeff9366]

I assume this will work - but figure it will also put a lot of side pressure on the disks and the tractor..so not sure this will work.

Side pressure is what Disc Harrows are about. The front and rear gang angle pressure mostly cancel each other, so the tractor load is directly behind the tractor.

Disc Harrow moves dirt sideways as you approach your problem ditches from varying directions.

None of us know your EXACT situation. You have to pick and choose from the suggestions offered.


A rear/angle blade will move dirt sideways if it is heavy enough. I presume 100 pounds per foot for starters, like a Box Blade. I have no rear/angle blade experience but I use a heavy Landscape Rake regularly, which is a similar dirt contact implement.

 

[Redlands Okie]

Keep in mind running the disc at a slight angle to the ditches may help.

 

[prof fate]

OK, got the disk thursday night (a 5 1/2 foot j=bar D with 18" disks and sealed bearings - nearly new, $300).

And got it adjusted and hit the field for an hour to day to try and figure out how to do this. Lots of adjustment - angle of front and rear disks, tilt of the assembly, and potentially speed.

What seemed to fill the best was front disks set straight and rears at a sharp angle with the front slight elevated - this caused the dirt to be pulled toward the center of the track. Then run over it again moving it more toward the ditch. Repeat on both sides.

I'll try it again tomorrow on a 'fresh ditch' as by the time i got it figured out I'd made numerous passes over it and had a plow path 12' feet wide and 200 feet long.

 

[Cord]

Could they be a dead furrow?

 

[prof fate]

possibly - that's a term i've not heard (googled it..ah hah!)

 

[oosik]

In this part of the world - many eons ago - there were MANY floods from the release of water from ancient Lake Missoula. This created what is called the channeled scablands. I'm at the very northern portion of that area.

I had about eight acres that had many, many "buns" about 50 feet in diameter and a max of about 14" to 16" high. "Tiny buns" Buns are created by the ebb and flow of water - ie, the outflow of ancient Lk Missoula. Buns will be quite fine sands but mainly silts and some clays. I first "broke ground" with a very heavy disk harrow and then leveled it with REPEATED passes of my LPGS - scarifiers down. It did not become a pool table but its quite level with no more visible buns.

I think a large rototiller would have done as well at "breaking ground" as the disk harrow - perhaps even better. Probably would have only required a couple passes.

 

[GLyford]

with disks that are angled in both directions in an X and "meet" in the center (as opposed to the ones where the front and back are a single straight run) the front one is angled so that the pans roll dirt out, and the back ones roll it back to center, so him running it weighted to the back makes perfect sense to me...? I am not sure how you'd get the "X" frame ones to pull in at the front?

This style


rather than this


...that last one I could see working especially if you had the more aggressive notched disks.

 

[jeff9366]

With disks that are angled in both directions in an X and "meet" in the center the front one is angled so that the pans roll dirt out, and the back ones roll it back to center, so running it weighted to the back makes perfect sense to me...?

An excellent point.