What do I need for mowing and plowing?

woodchipper · Jan 7, 2015

Since you don't plan on doing bush work, and only doing minimal garden plowing, why not getting a 2wd tractor? your front end loader will be working to a very minimal order. as long as your rear is heavy enough, as for traction purposes on a 2wd. Turning radius is usually better, and less ground destructive.
as for tires R4 should be a good compromise on a 4x4. R1 for a 2wd.
If going with front wheel assist, then you could easily pull a 2 mold plow. The hardest is you first pass, as the soil will be hardly compacted. subsequent passes will be way smoother. Your driving speed will increase as well. Get draft control if plowing.
When gardening, depending on what you will grow and what further uses you intend on doing with your tractor, the space between the inside of your wheels will dictate how to plant (ie. row width and spacing).
If you intend on carrying dirt in your bucket, then yes I think that what you are eyeballing right now is close to what you will need.
Therefore, my choice would be 4x4 with 35Hp at the PTO.
I can not comment on HST, as neither of my tractors have it. But I think that for mowing, it is perfectly suitable. If you do a lot of jockeying with your loader, then again it will proove to be a worthwhile option you will not regret to have. For field work, manual is the norm (usually for full size utility, or ag.)

If purchasing new, you will discuss options. Two rear remotes, as well as third function (joystick ready)for your loader will be nice gifts down the road. I would'nt miss on either of them

Good luck in your new endeavours and post some pics of your new tractor!

flusher · Jan 8, 2015

My neighbor has a Kubota L4630 with a FEL (6-ft wide bucket). Nice machine. Something like this would pull a 7-8 ft finish mower easily.

Another neighbor has a 1/3 acre vegetable garden (yours is more like 1/2 acre). He uses a tandem disc (4 axles in an X configuration) to plow the soil in March and then uses a rototiller to work mulch into the soil (he uses worm casings) before planting.

Good luck.

chim · Jan 10, 2015

Most of the hours on my tractor are mowing. We have 3-1/2 acres and it takes about 1-1/4 hours with a 6' finish mower behind a 32HP 4WD tractor. I use 2WD for mowing and never mow with the FEL attached. It's easy off and on and it's a whole lot easier to get mow close to things without the loader. Snow is a hit or miss thing here. Some years we get almost none, but we have been hammered at times.

At 65, I probably won't buy another tractor. This one is perfect for me. This is just my experience after living here since '89 or '90 and having a few tractors since then. Plenty of power and weight without being cumbersome. "Perfect" is different for everyone

MyBX25d · Jan 10, 2015

Wingshot, I looked up the area of TN you are in. For 5 acres, a BX series would probably do what you are looking for, however since you are thinking so much larger a B series would probably be more up your alley. Not sure of soil conditions in that area. Are there medium to large rocks in the ground? Soil excessively hard clay? If the answer to those two is "no" then a 3pt. rototiller would most likely do what you are wanting better than a plow.
Mowing, the smaller the tractor generally the easier it is on the lawn. Which was why I suggested a BX or B series, since you said that would be main duty.
With the FEL projects like retaining walls, clearing out smaller trees, and digging a pond come to mind. Once you get your tractor big projects that were out of reach previously become fun. Whichever machine you decide on I am sure you will love it.
As a side note: There are several dealers in the NC/SC area that offer aggressively priced package deals. Barlows is also someplace you should look, based on what I have read on these forums. Make sure to shop around before purchase.

newbury · Jan 10, 2015

TSO said:
Oh and get HST ... Only reason to have a gear transmission anymore is if you are doing constant heavy ground engaging work

Or if you have to have the lifting power of a utility tractor on the budget of a SCUT.
I would have liked a 50 hp HST, but couldn't find one for 11.5K

Jarrod32 · Jan 10, 2015

I am in south central Nebraska, pretty flat ground. We have 8 acres...I have a small yard tractor for finish mowing work on about 2.5 acres around the house and buildings. I mow about five acres that would best be described as pasture type land, and we have a large garden. I am able to do all I want with a Deere 1025r. That would be comparable to a Kubota BX series, or maybe a small B series.

I run a 48" rotary cutter, and don't think I would have a problem with a 60" finish mower. I have a Deere 647 tiller that does the garden groundwork nicely. Loader/blade handle snow removal. I think you could do everything you want with a tractor that is smaller than what you are looking at. Just my 3 1/2 cents.

wmonroe · Jan 11, 2015

wingshot said:
My situation: I live in the Middle Tennessee area. I have 5 acres that I mow. The land is mostly flat with some slight inclines. So, I need to pull a finish mower. I need to plow a garden that's maybe 200 feet long by 100 feet wide. I'm thinking a 2 or 3 bottom plow? I need a front end loader for hauling landscaping material on occasion and odd jobs. I'm leaning toward Kubota L3901 or L4600 or L4701 (whatever the difference is between the 4600 and the 4701). In other words, I'm thinking a 38-46 horsepower tractor will pull that plow? Some tractors have a hydrostatic transmission option? Is this just something else that can go wrong down the road or is it worth getting? Any opinions are greatly appreciated! Thanks, josh

Welcome to TBN.

I'll give you my opinion. I use a 6' rfm and while it does a nice job any wider would not work because of the slight variations in the ground height, my 6' mower still gouges the ground in places.

For the size garden you are talking about I would stay with a 2 bottom plow, depending on your soil type a 3 bottom would be harder to pull and might not be much faster. Are you also getting a disk for after you plow? Like some others have mentioned a tiller would be a faster option over a plow/disk operation. I have a 6' tiller that does a great job on my garden, but I did just buy a 2 bottom plow (more for fun, I've always wanted one) and it did a nice job turning the garden over but there is a big learning curve to get it right. The first couple passes I let get in too deep and it would stop my 50 hp tractor. It was in about 12" instead of the 6" it should be and was down in the hard clay, the top 2-3" of ground was frozen too so it was less than ideal conditions but I was still glad I didn't get a 3 bottom. I'll put a video below of me plowing and tilling to show the difference.

If it were me I would get a MX5200 in 4x4 and hst and definitely a loader.

Creamer · Jan 11, 2015

Since most of your effort is going to be mowing I would get a ZTR. I had a 60" RFM but was never quite happy with the cut - mostly because of the heavy tractor driving over it especially when the loader was on. When i dropped the loader it was much better and it only takes five minutes but that becomes a pain in the spring when you are mowing twice a week. When it is real wet or real dry the grass does not pop back up and get cut evenly.

Then I bought a 48" Simplicity front cut rear wheel steer mower. The cut was beautiful and i found i saved about 30% on mowing time because of my ability to turn quickly and get into the cut. RFMs are OK for large flat areas but a few trees really add to the time. I also had some slopes that were handled much better by the lower profile front cut.

The Simplicity only lasted a year as the drive train could not take the slopes and I bought a commercial type ZTR and have never been sorry. I bought a 60" front deck unit and I cut mowing time in half from the Simplicity. I also almost eliminated my trimming time without going to the "Commercial Look", i.e. kill everything that would need string trimmed.

Don't get me wrong - I love my tractor and use it often. It is a 28 hp Ford 1710 CUT and it works great - it is just not a mowing machine like a ZTR. Also - as others have said - forget the plow and buy a tiller then you do not have to worry about the strength of the HST which is a feature I wish I had. My vote - approximately 35 hp CUT with front wheel assist and turf or R4 tires for less lawn damage. R1s do too much damage to be worth it. You want to float over and get somewhere not dig in and pull.