Rough/Bumpy Land smoothing

[HurtPhoto]

Looking for some advice. Not sure if this needs to be here or in the UTV area. I have read some of the other posts about working land using subsoilers, disc harrows, pull behind harrow for leveling, or filling with sand. Purchased a tract of land about a year ago. At the time of purchase it had been hogged at that time noticed the bumps/ridges/valleys etc. which wasn't a concern as I was planning to enjoy seat time and working on the land when tractor was purchased. It looks like the land was farmed of it's timber (so have some maybe 3-6" humps/ruts) that run the course of the land.

The plan was build a shed on site, purchase a tractor to work the land, wife and I would build house sometime late this year or next. Of course shed was crushed by county saying I couldn't build that without residence. Only way is to register land as agriculture. That comes with it's own fun. Due to this and our lovely Florida rain and sun the field grew head high weeds in a matter of 3 months. Local guy came out and hogged it again close to fall/winter. Lucked out so it didn't grow for months.

Now I have a 800cc UTV, 65HP and a 52" 18.5HP rough cut tow behind mower. I have been using this to keep the land cut back about 5-6 acres. I know the best solution is to purchase a tractor but I really don't have anywhere to store it. Land is about 45 mins from where I live currently so hesitant about keeping it on land unattended. When I cut the field I of course really notice all the bumps even in a UTV with a suspension for off roading at 5mph it really bumps you off the seat.

Others in the area have had people come out and disc the land, not sure if they do anything else but it really smooths it out then lay down seed. Level enough for them to use zero turn mowers once seed grows. Quotes I have got are about 400 per acre or 125 per hour to prep land. Not sure if that is high but I could get a few good attachments or maybe a little more tractor and look forward to doing things myself. Now I have seen 3 point electric attachments for UTVs and they look like they work fairly well. One I was looking (Kolpin DirtWorks 3-Point Hitch System) at says it can do 300lbs of down pressure. When the ground is wet it's pretty soft in spots, do you guys think this would be enough to disc the land so that it smooths it out some? Only plan to do small amounts like an acre at a time due to time constraints and not living on property. I realize it will take a few passes.

I know that I will use the UTV attachments even down the road for a remote food plot in the woods, wife could use it with a tiller for veggie garden instead of a larger tractor. Just concerned that it wont be enough to work the land and it will be sitting and I could have just left that money in the bank. Also don't want to make things worse. Tractor I know for this is first choice but it seems UTV are getting used more around farms and what they are used for is growing.

Should I just tough it out and continue to get bumped and bucked around while I mow about once a month in spring/summer till I get proper equipment (tractor with right attachments)? Or pick up a 3 point UTV setup with a disc and give that a shot?

 

[PoorPlowboy]

Belt driven UTVs are about the worst choice one could make for ground engaging attachments. Everything you describe calls for a tractor. A 20-40hp CUT is no more difficult to tow to your remote land than a UTV with a tow behind cutter.

If you do use the UTV, take a spare one with you and a trailer large enough for the spare to tow the second one with the scorched belt up on to the trailer deck..

 

[john40981]

What he said :thumbsup:

 

[jeff9366]

Tractors are prime targets for thieves. They can disappear the first night left on unattended ground and be in Mexico within seventy-two hours. Recovery rate is about zero.


I would not fool around adding a 3-PT to any UTV.

Small tractors with short wheelbases 'buck' too.

DISC HARROW LINK: http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/308251-disc-harrow-selection-18-45-a.html?highlight=

 

[bswiv]

We are in the timber business and therefor have some experience with the "bumps" as you call them. They are actually the residual beds, just as many other forms of row crops have beds. Now you say the timber has been harvested but you did not mention how long ago.

Keep this in mind while considering doing it yourself: Unless the stumps were pulled there will be some of them that had enough sap in them ( Assuming pines here. ) to where they have gotten hard, basically turned into fat knots which will take forever to rot.

Of more immediate concern though it what they will do to equipment as the land is "leveled". I've spent a whole lot more time replacing disks and the like than I care to remember, the most recent last weekend. This is from doing fire line maintenance and while getting food plots ready.

Depending on how much land you have letting someone who knows how have at it could actually be less expensive.

 

[s219]

No way I'd mess with a UTV for that! When we bought our new property, I bought a tractor and trailer, and just trailered up there 1-2 days each weekend when I had time. Loading up the trailer added 15-20 minutes of extra work to the beginning/end of each day, and was inconsequential (sometimes I'd load up the night before). The trailer was a good investment for other reasons. So I wouldn't let the lack of onsite storage stop you.

 

[jenkinsph]

Don't think I would spend money on utv attachments to perform these tasks. Might be cheaper to have the place mowed by others until you can have a place to lock up a tractor of your own. If you can store one at your current residence and have a tow vehicle that would help.

I would recommend you decide what you want to do with the land long term and buy an appropriate tractor and implements for those needs. You may be better off to go ahead and have the place tilled and planted by others so that mowing is easier to do.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Looking for some advice. Not sure if this needs to be here or in the UTV area. I have read some of the other posts about working land using subsoilers, disc harrows, pull behind harrow for leveling, or filling with sand. Purchased a tract of land about a year ago. At the time of purchase it had been hogged at that time noticed the bumps/ridges/valleys etc. which wasn't a concern as I was planning to enjoy seat time and working on the land when tractor was purchased. It looks like the land was farmed of it's timber (so have some maybe 3-6" humps/ruts) that run the course of the land.

The plan was build a shed on site, purchase a tractor to work the land, wife and I would build house sometime late this year or next. Of course shed was crushed by county saying I couldn't build that without residence. Only way is to register land as agriculture. That comes with it's own fun. Due to this and our lovely Florida rain and sun the field grew head high weeds in a matter of 3 months. Local guy came out and hogged it again close to fall/winter. Lucked out so it didn't grow for months.

Now I have a 800cc UTV, 65HP and a 52" 18.5HP rough cut tow behind mower. I have been using this to keep the land cut back about 5-6 acres. I know the best solution is to purchase a tractor but I really don't have anywhere to store it. Land is about 45 mins from where I live currently so hesitant about keeping it on land unattended. When I cut the field I of course really notice all the bumps even in a UTV with a suspension for off roading at 5mph it really bumps you off the seat.

Others in the area have had people come out and disc the land, not sure if they do anything else but it really smooths it out then lay down seed. Level enough for them to use zero turn mowers once seed grows. Quotes I have got are about 400 per acre or 125 per hour to prep land. Not sure if that is high but I could get a few good attachments or maybe a little more tractor and look forward to doing things myself. Now I have seen 3 point electric attachments for UTVs and they look like they work fairly well. One I was looking QUOTE]

That sounds a bit high on the hourly rate and per acre rate for a tractor at least for around here. I can contract a D6 dozer for $85 per hour with a 4 hour minimum. A good dozer operator can smooth out any ruts from logging and even push out any remaining stumps and pile them for burning later. I think that is the way I would go if you don't want to invest in a tractor.

If you have a place to store at home, a CUT with heavy 3 PH disk and trailer could work, but it would take several passes with the disk and it would need some kind of trail behind drag to smooth out the "lumps and Humps" to be effective. Just disking alone wont remove humps but it might fill in the ruts a bit so it would be smoother. Since I didn't find a reference to the amount of land you have, I cant recommend a tractor size, but a 30-40 HP is about right for 10 acres or more.

 

[jenkinsph]

Gary,
While $400/acre may seem high to you just recognize that there isn't much profit in that for a hired tractor/operator. For a one time job on 10 acres for instance for $4000 that is cheaper than the land owner can do it. Money just isn't worth much today.

 

[HurtPhoto]

Thanks everyone for the reply. That really confirms what I was thinking I need to just wait till I can have access to a tractor and or have someone else do it for me. I had the UTV and trail cutter prior to land purchase. Once it was hogged with a tractor, I have been able to keep it maintained. Takes a while but it's something I can do to keep the brush knocked down.

bswiv - you are correct they are residual beds, couldn't think of the correct term. It was farmed of timber about 5 years ago from what I have gathered. From the neighboring properties that were originally part of the larger tract that have been smoothed out said the stumps had been pulled as well.

I wish I could pick up a tractor now but living in a subdivision (hence the move) leaves little space for an extra trailer with tractor and implements to keep. Unless I find a secure storage place but then that's added costs to keep the tractor that could be used to pay someone.

I know we really need to think more about long term then we have. It's about 5-6 acres of land cleared of timber with another 11 acres of forest. I know 1-2 acres we plan to keep clear for growing our own items, home, yard to play in, etc. I have an area behind where we plan to build our home that we plan to do a food plot but it's a horseshoe shape that goes into the existing tree line so it's separate from the 5-6 acres of field. For the remaining amount it's a toss up between a pasture for horses in the future or planting more trees for privacy. I know if we do the tree route those areas wont need as much smoothing out.

Sounds like my best option is to first and foremost think about what exactly the plans are for the land. Then have someone come out and do the initial work for the areas we plan to keep clear. Then I can manage it down the road with a tractor and implements that we need for our plans once we have moved onto property. I would say to look for a local farmer who would want to use the land but with our goal of breaking ground this year or early next at the latest I think would hamper that idea.