I'm wanting to put in a food plot or two this spring and I'm starting to look at implements for the tractor. I would prefer to purchase a tiller to prepare the ground for the food plots but after watching a few videos I began to wonder if I could get away with using a landscape rake to prep the soil for planting something like clover, corn, soy beans, etc. I could find other uses for the rake of course too and not having an endless supply of money factors into my limited future implement purchases as well.
Landscape Rake?
- Thread starter flati
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Burt
New member
Equipment
L3700SU, box blade, 6 foot rhino blade, 1 bottom plow, 3 point receiver hitch.
Flati,
It would be very helpful when asking advice to tell the OTT members the size of your property and the size of what you want do dig up. The type of soil and conditions swill help also. You'll get some good accurate answers fairly quickly that way.
You may want to invest into an attachment that can be used for other purposes as well if you only want to dig up the initial plots. Let the OTT members know how big your property is.
Burt
My plots will be relatively small, probably 50-60 yards long by 30-40 yards wide. The property where I intend to put the first food plot is sloped and covered in high one year growth that was multi flora rose the year before. If the soil is anything like my yard which it is adjacent to, I would think it is of a clay content. Right now my intentions are to plant Imperial Whitetail clover and corn.
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North Idaho Wolfman
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L3450DT-GST, Woods FEL, B7100 HSD, FEL, 60" SB, 743 Bobcat with V2203, and more
A landscape rake is NOT what you want to do any prep work on the ground for growing, it's great for clean up but not prep.
You want either a spring tooth , disk, rototiller, or Plow and a harrow, spike or chain.
I personally use a spring tooth cultivator and spike harrow.
I made this one for fairly cheap
You want either a spring tooth , disk, rototiller, or Plow and a harrow, spike or chain.
I personally use a spring tooth cultivator and spike harrow.
I made this one for fairly cheap
NOPE landscape rake is not heavy enough to til up hard pack ground. You need something more aggessive to break the soil up first. A bottom plow or tiller, even a grading box with the teeth down.
So you think a box grader would be appropriate for prepping new ground for planting? that implement would be useful for other jobs on my property as well.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Staff member
Lifetime Member
Equipment
L3450DT-GST, Woods FEL, B7100 HSD, FEL, 60" SB, 743 Bobcat with V2203, and more
I would think very few of us thinks a box scraper is the appropriate tool to use for ground prep for growing, (otherwise every farmer would use it).
It's ok for ripping up and leveling ground, and moving material, but does very little for blending and breaking up the soil for a decent seed bed.
It's highly unlikely that your going to find one implement that will "do it all" for you, your going to have to break out some funds and get several different tool to get the job done to any degree of success!
It's ok for ripping up and leveling ground, and moving material, but does very little for blending and breaking up the soil for a decent seed bed.
It's highly unlikely that your going to find one implement that will "do it all" for you, your going to have to break out some funds and get several different tool to get the job done to any degree of success!
Maybe look around at some of the locals and see if they might have a small tractor with plow and disks that might be talked in to doing the job for you for a few bucks or a deer stand for a couple of days,, or at least somebody with a tiller
^^this
My soil in hard clay as well, I found that it needs to be turned over (bottom plow) then hit with the tiller.
Or if the tiller is out of your price range it would be cheaper to get a 3pt disk and hit it with that after you have turned it over.
Also, if I work my soil when its a little wet it is much easier on the equipment. Not standing water wet but if there's moisture in the soil works better, for me anyway.
My local tractor dealership rents tillers for $60 a day. That might not be a bad idea considering a once a year use I guess.
Grading box will work. I've done it several times for friends and family. Its not as fast and as efficient as a tiller but if you have nothing else better to do one day it can be done with a grading box. Just criss cross dragging the box in different directions and break the dirt up from different angles.
It wont leave a fluffy seed bed like a tiller will but its not terribly bad and manageable by hand or with a small walk behind tiller.
It wont leave a fluffy seed bed like a tiller will but its not terribly bad and manageable by hand or with a small walk behind tiller.
I put my first food plots in this fall. Kind of old school but I used an economy line house disc and got 3 1/2 acres of great plots. Had to make multiple passes on the old pasture ground but it worked. The real farmers in the area told me to spray and drill but the disc worked for me
Do you have any equipment rentals near you? We have one here that rents attachments by the day or half day.