Time to Put Down Plastic

[hunterridgefarm]

I was able to lay a few rows of plastic Saturday and work the kinks out of my new mulch layer. It took about two or three rows to fine tune all the adjustments needed. Considering this is the first time I have ever used one and basically watched a YouTube vid to see how others did it; I think it turned out ok.

We laid 18-20 short rows (125')and two long rows before other projects called. The L3130 pulled the attachment with no problem, and there was no issue getting enough soil pulled in to form the hills. I used 48" plastic and put the drip line slightly off center for the tomatoes and centered it for my double row crops.

I will lay more rows this weekend if its not too wet. I also had the recommendations for lime and fertilizer from my soil test and tons needed per acre. I figured the amount need per square foot for an acre the the square foot for the width and length for the bed. I don't have the numbers in front of me now but it was around 6 lbs of triple 10 and 22 pounds of lime per row. So we would spread that in the row line before bedding the row. No need fertilizing the weeds between the rows and it save a few $$.

I will start laying the mainline and sub-main line for the drip this week or the first of next week. Test everything and run the irrigation 2-3 times before transplanting the last week of April.

I may use this thread to document my harvest as compared to last year when I did not use plastic or drip. This is a learning experience for me.

 

[oosik]

David -
So I guess this mulch laying implement will develop the shape(mound) of the row, lay down the tiny drip feeder pipe, then roll the dirt back over to secure the edges of the plastic. By the size of what you have already completed, in the pics, this is not a home garden. I remember last year the thread where you purchased the machine. Prior to having this ability did you do all this by hand? Will you feed the fertilizer & lime thru the drip irrigation system? I've never seen anything like what you have and we have some pretty large Chinese gardens in this area.

 

[hunterridgefarm]

oosik,

Yes, this implement does it all. I can lay the drip line ( adjustable depth and offset) and plastic at the same time. It is wider in the front so to pull the dirt in and mold the shape of the bed. The tires holds the plastic in place and the disc cover the plastic with dirt to hold it down.

The initial fertilizer was put down by hand. However I will purchase or make a fertilizer injector to pull the liquid fertilizer thru the drip lines.

Total under plastic will be 1-1.5 acres with the balance in conventional type rows for a total of 2.5-3 acres.

I did all this conventional last year and this should really cut back on my labor...hoeing weeding:thumbsup:. I work around 45 hours per week and occasionally have to travel overnight somewhere. So we will see how this goes. Weeding and hoeing like to have got the best of me last year. And once harvest is in full swing the weeds start taking over.

Thanks for the reply, I was beginning to wonder if this thread was interesting enough to get a reply.

We plan to sell a the Farmers Market like last year and hopefully more than one day per week. We only sold at the market on Saturday last year with some people coming by the house during the week to buy. Once we harvest we have a list of people my wife texts and its first come first serve. I do have a couple of customers that just give me a couple of hundred dollar at the beginning of harvest and tell me to let them know when they are running low and they will put more money in.

We plan to donate a lot to the soup kitchen this year since I don't try to sell everything but keep some for donation.

We hope to retire early and do this full time. We also have several other things related to agriculture to supplement income.

Thanks for the reply, I was beginning to wonder if this thread was interesting enough to get a reply.

 

[Western]

David, your rows are crooked! Sure looks good:thumbsup: and that machine is "neater than a sqeeters" p**ter"! You wont know what to do with all the free time now!!

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

What a neat contraption. There is a watermelon farm about 10 minutes west of College Station Texas (Home of the fighting Texas Aggies), that uses plastic rows to plant their seedlings. I would guess it is at least 50 acres, maybe more. They plant some type of knee high grass between the rows of plastic. Not sure if the grass is for a wind break, or to keep the watermelon vines in their respective rows. I think the equipment that works the fields has wheel spacings that match the grass rows.
Keep us posted on your outcome. I hope you don't have to pull a single weed!

 

[hunterridgefarm]

Dennis, The rows are not crooked, my son held the camera at a slight angle. Actually he gave me a hard time about not keeping the rows straight, however when I offered to let him drive the tractor...he said they looked fine. Trick is don't look back for too long.

Kyle,

Some people plant rye between the rows for wind brake, to keep weeds down, or let it dry then roll over it as a mulch between rows. I don't think I will have time to do that this year. If needed I will use a type of roller that applies roundup without the over-spray to control weeds once plants are to high to use the cultivators.

 

[charlz]

Looks good! Having done it by hand for my fewer and shorter rows I can only imagine how much nicer that is than using a shovel!

 

[charlz]

Dennis, The rows are not crooked, my son held the camera at a slight angle. Actually he gave me a hard time about not keeping the rows straight, however when I offered to let him drive the tractor...he said they looked fine. Trick is don't look back for too long.

I find the same thing when I till my raised beds... once you drop the implement it is better to just concentrate on keeping the tractor pointed straight ahead!

 

[hunterridgefarm]

Charlz,

You are right and I usually do that. But I had to make sure I was covering the plastic right and would make adjustments at the end of the row.

 

[MossRoad]

Looks good. I use plastic in my small garden every so often. I use drip irrigation as well, but I have one emitter for each plant. That wouldn't be practical for an operation your size. What type of hose do you use under the plastic?