Rotary Hoe knock down gopher mounds?

[MNBobcat]

I've got a field that hasn't been touched in 10 years and the gopher mounds are horrible. Soil is sand. Some of the mounds are 2 feet high with grass grown over them now.

I was looking to rent a 10 foot disc. Someone said to use a disc set shallow to knock the mounds down and then I could drag the field.

I'm having trouble finding a disc to rent and purchasing is more than I want to spend. A tractor dealer has a rotary hoe for $400 and suggested it would work.

I'm interested in hearing thoughts and recommendations on how I can get these gopher mounds under control. I don't want to plow and have to replant the grass. My long term goal is to get to grass that I can mow with my 15 foot bat wing mower.

 

[Diggin It]

Got a neighbor that has a disc? Maybe a neighbor who likes beer?

 

[Industrial Toys]

We had thousand of gophers. In a short period, they all went away. Not one, nada! Scary, like the Canary in the coal mine.

My latest issues of unused fields was big ANT hills! Would shear the 16 foot finishing mower blade bolts off!

I would mark the worst of the mounds, with traffic cones or something, then knock the worst of them down with a loader and disk them. Maybe disk the mounds specifically, and then the whole field

 

[jaxs]

I believe you will do a lot of damage to the grass with a disk and multiple trips will likely be required with a rotary hoe and that will damage grass as well. You didn't mention type of grass nor where you are located but our primary pasture/hay grass in Texas is Bermuda. Disking or plowing during Feb-March will improve Bermuda if it's fertilized at the same time. I would think a box blade or land plane should do a good job leveling mounds without hurting grass. Even a grader blade with guage wheels or skids should suffice.

 

[Egon]

You got gophers you will have mounds. To remove gophers cultivation will remove their food source and they will move.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I recall cutting wheat in and around Goodland Kansas, and hitting some sort of a mound; it seemed to be a lot bigger than any gopher mound I ever saw, I thought maybe a badger...in any case, got a header full of dirt.

 

[txdon]

Are you in Texas? My mom wants to sell her disc, it's either 8 or 10 ft, loaded with weights and I think I can round up several drags. She also wants to sell her gopher trenching machine - used on fields to bait gophers.

This is why it's nice to put your general location in your profile. To get local help.

 

[AWSubie]

If you’re dealing with 10 or so acres I would go with the aforementioned loader bucket or box blade. If we’re looking at appreciably more acreage hire it out to someone with big equipment.

 

[MNBobcat]

It's 18 acres and it gives me a chance to have some fun with the tractor so I'd like to do it myself. Plus I hate paying someone for something I can do.