The Life of a Custom Mowing contractor

[LouNY]

That's a lot of work, but what is catching my eye is all the wire on those power poles!!!! OMG, they have set some sort of record for the most wire possible on a power pole.

It's interesting how the wires are arranged on most power poles, the higher voltage electrical wires the highest and communications (cable and phone) copper and fiber lowest.

 

[EddieWalker]

I learned that when an excavator broke the bottom wire of power line to my house. It was unloading a truck next door and driving with the boom all the way up when it caught the cable. I still had power because the top line is the hot line. It's one of those things that I never thought about until then.

 

[Xfaxman]

I learned that when an excavator broke the bottom wire of power line to my house. It was unloading a truck next door and driving with the boom all the way up when it caught the cable. I still had power because the top line is the hot line. It's one of those things that I never thought about until then.

Yep, I remember that thread: Power Line to my house was broken

 

[EddieWalker]

Thanks for finding the link. I was too lazy to look it up!!!

 

[Hay Dude]

Our lower wires are mostly verizon copper phone lines. About every mile, you’ll see the cable ruptured and a bunch of the old school bell wires in a tangled mess.
They never seem to fix them and nobody seems to care lol
In fact, I’ve seen them cut completely and laying on the ground.

 

[sixdogs]

Maybe you guys could offer some advice. I have 20ac of hay fields that a guy in town cuts and bails several times a year. But nothing ever goes back down on the fields, which I don’t think is good.

The question is what should I be doing? Spred manure? Leave one or two cuts to decompose in place rather than taking it all out? Do nothing?

Thanks in advance.

Have a fertilizer dealer do a soil test for you and see what you've got. They will help you read and understand it and ask what it would cost to get things right with commercial fertilizer applied by them. That's just for comparison.

You'll likely find very low fertility numbers. Plus, that low fertility has let weeds get a serious foothold in the fields so there was that to deal with.

You then either have to address the issue with the renter and likely add a cost for what is being removed from the ground. In reality, you're better off leaving the ground fallow and just mowing it once a year. You'll save money.

If he wants to pay more, fine, if not, it's better to just not rent it. For coaching on this you'll need a local farmer that's savvy on things like this. Maybe the fertilizer people or maybe an ag teacher at a school can help. You can look up your state and county's land rental rates online too.

You could also enter into a five year contract with someone who agrees to improve the land. Then he has skin in the game for the five years. You need a contract and common ag ones are on-line. It sounds daunting but isn't.

 

[Hay Dude]

Have a fertilizer dealer do a soil test for you and see what you've got. They will help you read and understand it and ask what it would cost to get things right with commercial fertilizer applied by them. That's just for comparison.

You'll likely find very low fertility numbers. Plus, that low fertility has let weeds get a serious foothold in the fields so there was that to deal with.

You then either have to address the issue with the renter and likely add a cost for what is being removed from the ground. In reality, you're better off leaving the ground fallow and just mowing it once a year. You'll save money.

If he wants to pay more, fine, if not, it's better to just not rent it. For coaching on this you'll need a local farmer that's savvy on things like this. Maybe the fertilizer people or maybe an ag teacher at a school can help. You can look up your state and county's land rental rates online too.

You could also enter into a five year contract with someone who agrees to improve the land. Then he has skin in the game for the five years. You need a contract and common ag ones are on-line. It sounds daunting but isn't.

This is my arrangement with most land owners. I did the organic fertilizer route and fertility has increased- so has yields

 

[sixdogs]

This is my arrangement with most land owners. I did the organic fertilizer route and fertility has increased- so has yields

Yields do increase, weeds are down and it's all good. The landowner is happy because no one else does this and the haymaker loves it because hay customers love it. This is how you build a successful business.

 

[Hay Dude]

Back to clearing the fence…..
I got all the brush & saplings cut down & pulled away.
Today, I used the CX-15 to grind it all up. Worked great.

Didn’t have to rent a chipper (Lord knows I need to buy one really BAD)

Below, here’s what it looked like after a slow steady pass.

Below: Looking the other way. Lots more done.

I left anything over 3” diameter in piles. Picked them up and put them in loader bucket. Dumped in woods. I’m damn near done!

Trying to figure out a way to rake up the chippings. They’re too heavy for the grass.
Did I mention I need a 9’ wide york rake?


And a chipper? And a skid loader? And a 4th tractor? And a tandem axle hay truck?

 

[RayIN]

I learned that when an excavator broke the bottom wire of power line to my house. It was unloading a truck next door and driving with the boom all the way up when it caught the cable. I still had power because the top line is the hot line. It's one of those things that I never thought about until then.

It's interesting how the wires are arranged on most power poles, the higher voltage electrical wires the highest and communications (cable and phone) copper and fiber lowest.

That design is because the phone and internet companies rent/lease the right to use the utility companies poles; plus, it would be dangerous to have to work past HV electricity wire to work on low voltage phone wires.