Since all you old hands here are so patient...

[Kyle_in_Tex]

As mentioned b4, the costs associated to bringing land up to a useful state, can't be understated. It can however be so costly that I would definitely shop around. On flat land, it can easily cost $1200/acre to bring an overgrown thicket to a decent pasture with planted grass. Not sure how productive steep land would be, much less how costly it would be to bring it along.

 

[56FordGuy]

For what you want to do, I would look at a 40+ HP tractor, whether you clear the wood lot yourself or not.

As for clearing the wood, I agree with the others that say contact your local ag extension office and some local loggers. I'm no fan of steep hills, despite living on one. With you being new to tractors and equipment, you're at enough of a disadvantage without throwing in the complications of operating on steep ground. I don't mean that as an insult at all, because we all start somewhere. I've been there. Tractors are dangerous pieces of equipment on flat ground, and you need to be paying attention. When you add in a steep hill with loose surfaces, things can get nasty fast.

If you do decide to deal with the wood yourself, I'm going to recommend not even using a tractor. Look around and try to find a used log skidder. They're wider, and usually have both more power and a lower center of gravity than farm tractors. Add in the grapple and winch, and it's just an all around better machine for that job. It's designed for that job, where a farm tractor is not. Farm tractors can do the work, but not as easily and not as safely, in my opinion. Buy a skidder, use it to do your job, then sell it. If you buy the right machine, you can probably sell it for what you paid for it after you get done.

For the log splitter question, I'd buy a stand alone unit. Why put the hours on your tractor, when a small air cooled engine can do the same job?

 

[BradGad]

> but either way you need a 4x4 50hp tractor an loader todo your other work.

Wow... so, what should I be looking at?

 

[Bigfoot62]

You have already gotten as good or better advice than I can offer, but that's never stopped me before.:laughing: . . .

I'm with TripleR on this one. :thumbsup:

As mentioned b4, the costs associated to bringing land up to a useful state, can't be understated. It can however be so costly that I would definitely shop around. On flat land, it can easily cost $1200/acre to bring an overgrown thicket to a decent pasture with planted grass. Not sure how productive steep land would be, much less how costly it would be to bring it along.

Around here, in heavily forested areas, the rule of thumb is about $3000 per acre to "clear and grub." That would include digging up all the stumps (excavator work) and piling them and the trees into windrows (bulldozer with a root rake).

As others have said, we're "flying blind" here. I would agree that you need to get the county agent out there to look it over and give some guidance.

As far as the tractor goes, my "little" tractor is the Ford 2600. (see my signature) That's a 2wd, 38 hp utility tractor that weighs 3500#. With my other, larger, tractors available, I only use the 2600 to run my finish mower and broadcast seeder. I go to the larger tractors if there is real work to be done. Point is, I think that little Kioti will be under sized and under powered to do a lot of the things you are planning to do. As has already been suggested, I would go larger and heavier. (hp is no good if you can't transfer that power to the ground)

Also, I would suggest sticking with the larger, well-established brand names. Unless you are going to trade tractors as soon as the warranty runs out, you will need parts and/or service one day. You won't be happy if you have to wait a couple of months for your part to be shipped in from the other side of the world.

 

[BradGad]

>I don't mean that as an insult at all

None taken! This is all very helpful.

 

[flusher]

>Orchards: what kind of crop?

Truffles. Don't laugh.

>What will be the separation between rows?

I'm not sure. I know they need to be planted close... 500+ trees per acre.

So, each tree will occupy about 100 square feet==> planting on a 10 x 10 ft grid.

So what do you want to do in your orchard with your tractor? Auger on the 3pt for planting? Cultivating with a disc? Mowing weeds with a rotary mower (aka brush hog, bush hog, shredder, slasher) or with a flail mower?

You appear to be facing the classic conundrum--want to buy one tractor to do a variety of jobs- some of which are better done by small tractors (<30hp pto like cultivation, orchard work with closely spaced trees) and others which are better done with a larger tractor (40-50 hp pto like field mowing, haying, clearing brush, saplings, trees, etc).

What to do? What to do? Maybe buy a new tractor in the 30hp pto range with all the whistles and bells (FEL, hydrostatic tranny, 4WD, power steering, etc) and a used older tractor in the 40-50 hp range to handle your field work.

 

[TripleR]

I left it out of my previous post, but for new users, I recommend renting a tractor before buying to get a baseline for comparison/point of reference.

As mentioned, working on hills adds a whole different dimension. New operators working on slopes makes me really nervous. I farmed/worked flat land until we acquired two hill farms in 1985 and even with thousands of hours on tractors, working on slopes requires a whole new set of skills/techniques.

I am now 64 years old and working on steep slopes will never be "just another day at the office". I was mowing on one yesterday and happened upon a couple of new holes. I took a couple of loads of dirt up and filled them in and will plant grass there AGAIN. Not far from there, the ground fell in while I was on my Rhino and I had to crawl out the down hill side. To get out, I had to get my son up there and stand on the back of his ATV; couldn't get to it with a tractor, hook my winch as high as he could reach then cut out a couple of trees and literally lift it up and out to firm ground.

Hill farms can be ever changing and you really can't count on a place being safe today just because it was a few months ago. I spend a lot of time checking things out with the Rhino then filling in and stabilizing with the tractor. There are also quite a few areas you can access only on foot.

Get a knowledgeable friend or extension agent and walk the land if you haven't before buying to see if your plans and land are a match. I have had land fever and tractor fever, but sometimes you just may need to walk away; just some random thoughts.

Good luck

 

[Deere Dude]

I am just curious how big the big trees are and how thick the trees are that are laying down and how many are standing. Any pictures. We need them.

I cleared probably an acre of trees trying to grub the stumps out when possible and the trees were in the 2" diameter up to a foot and a half plus in diameter. There wasn't crap laying around like fallen tree tops. I would take a couple down, clean them up and then do some more.
The point is, this takes a long, long, long time. It is difficuly to do on flat land much less slopped, slick land with tops all over. I have a 45 HP 4WD JD which works great, but 5 -10 acres, forget it.
You will wreck your tractor with branches and stumps the concern about rollovers with a full load can't be taken lightly.

By the time you get done with 1 acre in a year or two or three you will have saplings and brush started in the rest of the land. Then you really start having a mess.
I am one for doing it all yourself if you can, I just hate to hire out anybody, but you will just beat yourself up on this one.

If your situation is as I imagine it is, I would hire out a track-hoe or a big dozer and have it over with. It will cost $3000 an acre according so some posts, which sucks, but the value of the land will improve by that amount. Your new tractor will probably cost you that much in repairs and down time from branches going through radiators and ripping off things.

Good luck. Hernia surgery are expensive to

 

[MarkV]

Hi Brad, welcome to the forum. There is too much emphasis being put on the one time clearing project in my opinion. First off what is steep property in your situation. I have property in NE Georgia near Cleveland and there is no way you could run a tractor on my steep hill sides, I don't care what size or hp. When we built the track equipment was having problems with the grade.

For your other tasks one of the things I would consider is the mowing of pastures. It sounds like you have 12 to 15 acres that will need mowing until developed. I would want a 6' mower for that much and that requires a tractor with 30 to 35 PTO hp. The CK-30 would be a little small for a 6' rotary mower. Why a boom pole when you are getting a tractor with a FEL? You for sure will want to have the tractor rear tires filled with liquid ballast when you buy. It make a big difference in stability on hills.

Have you talked to the county extension agent about your agricultural plans. They have a great deal of information about what works with the poor soil in our area. The ideal of truffles is interesting. I know someone that looked into it a long time ago and didn't find it practical for the N Georgia area. Do you know anyone successfully growing them up your way? If I remember correctly the start up cost were pretty big. Eight to ten acres will be a challenge. Keep us informed when you get started.

MarkV

 

[Don87]

Since you haven't purchased the property yet, is there a chance you could purchase a different place.

Figuring what you are going to have in this one(before actual farming starts), it may not be worth it.