What did you do to or on your Kubota today?

[Bmyers]

Mowed at the farm or should I say I stirred up the dust. Thankfully, woke up to rain this morning which is going to help, but still need more. Soybeans are trying to make it, but they are struggling.

Potato plants are looking good. Be interesting to see how big the potatoes are once we harvest or how many there are of them.

 

[S-G-R]

Had to till the garden again. Had it hilled and ready to plant and had 10-12 days of rain.

Widened out the ditch on the property line for spring runoff

And tilled another section of the property line that I had removed trees/brush from last fall.

And now I need to get this removed

 

[S-G-R]

Wasn't as bad as it looked.

 

[johnjk]

Not a thing. Packed up some parts for a fellow Orange friend and enjoyed a rainy afternoon. First rain in over 2 weeks. Was gonna mow trails today but it can wait.

 

[rc51stierhoff]

Spent the last 2 days working out the M4050 putting in my final spring plantings - pumpkin patch and deer food plots . The first 2 areas are the least rocky on my property so I broke up the soil with a subsoiler, then pulled the cultivator and finally tilled. Spread fertilizer and planted (sunflowers, rye & buckwheat) the 'flat' field, fertilized, hilled and then sprayed pre-emergent on the pumpkin patch. Planting today or tomorrow.

First pic is the pumpkin patch with the hills and reclaimed field below. 2nd is a field I reclaimed that was full of walnut saplings. Took out the trees and heavy vegetation in late winter, burned with glyphosate a month ago and got the soil turned, tilled and planted (rye and buckwheat). The last 2 pics are the M4050 with the cultivator I found & refurbed and added 2 bedding discs which worked pretty well.
View attachment 104639
View attachment 104638
View attachment 104643 View attachment 104644

My early sunflower planting and food plots that I planted buckwheat in late April haven't done so well with 0" of rain in the past 3 or so weeks, but hopefully they will recover with the rain called for this week.

Looks great…do you plant anything between the hills/beds? (I am assuming pumpkins in the hill?). I have been putting buckwheat in between my hills of potatoes.

do you normally plant buckwheat in April in your area? I normally plant it end June / beginning of July.

 

[Magicman]

Wife said "blade belt came off" of the ZT, so I crawl underneath.

Yup, Pecan limb wedged between the belt & pulley. Sometimes we get lucky and it's a simple fix,

 

[Bee-Positive]

I'm clearing a 20' x 30' spot for parking the BX and the future home of a new tractor shed. Took 2 days just to clear the sod with all the rocks, even with the BX tooth bar. Real hard on the little BX1880 but it did all that I asked. I think a sod cutter would have gotten torn to pieces. On day two I put the ballast box back on (took it off to pull the grand kids around in the wagon) and was eager to finish up - a little over eager. My ballast box won't fit on the QH and I don't have adjustable links so I just take out a cotter pin to free up the arm, works great actually, only one problem, don't forget to put it back on.

Clue #1 in the dirt and run over at least once.

Clue #2 on the garage floor.

Clue #3 one thing is not like the other, Hmmm?

Luck of the Irish (after looking all over the ground and garage area)

Being over eager (in a hurry) set me back in time searching, I got lucky.

Here's a pic of the project so far. Got 20 tons of fill coming next Friday along with 30 tons of gravel for the existing driveway and 4" on top of the fill for the new area.

I'm going to need a retaining wall since there's a two-foot drop away from the garage. Any ideas out there in OT land?

 

[Lil Foot]

Can't see your pics.

 

[L35]

Greased all zerks, adjusted front axle pivot point and adjusted the micro safety switch on the shuttle shifter. I would have to fuss with the lever in neutral to get the tractor to start. Everything went successfully.

 

[Old_Paint]

Can't see your pics.

Beat me to it.

If the drop isn’t any more than 3 feet, get some (hand picked and clean) RR ties to build the retainer wall. Make sure there’s no hollow spots in them. Notch them where they meet in the corner, and make sure you stack them overlapping like bricks. A piece of 1 inch pipe driven at least 24 inches into the ground (4’ long total) on 24 inch center (actually 1’ from the ends and 3’3” for the two middle holes) will give you well built wall. Put a couple inches of 57 under them for drainage, and backfill with 57. Don’t build too close because this is to stop erosion, not support a load.

You will destroy ANY tool you use to make holes in or cut ties. Stone chips get embedded in every check and split, and you know they are there when you see the sparks or the tool stops cutting. Get good carbide drill bits for drilling, and figure on replacing your saw chain. Auger type bits work best in gummy creosote, but don’t even think about standard augers for wood boring. Did I mention getting a good supply of files for your chain saw and extra chains? I use the little cheap sharpener from HF to correct the worst damage, then file the edge to sharpen it for the next cut.
A little secret I learned about ties is to set them upside down so the side that has been ‘finished’ by the gravel in the rail bed is the side that’s seen and a smoother working surface for setting the wall. This also hides the spike holes and wear plate wear as well as reducing the likelihood of nasty splinters down the road.

Otherwise, dig and pour a footing, build the wall with block, fill the cells with concrete, and make sure to seal the top with cap block. Not quite as‘natural’ looking, but if it’s the back side, who’s gonna see it. Block walls are ugly, IMO.

Ties are cheaper, but harder to handle and process for the construction, but carefully chosen ties will likely last a lifetime. A side benefit is the creosote will keep a lot of bugs away. If they can dry back out between rains, they’re the gold standard for treated wood. Don’t expect them to be straight or perfectly sized.

Cinder block and concrete is even more permanent, but doesn’t lend itself to possible future modifications or expansion. Make sure you’re not gonna be wishing you put the wall in a different place.

Plan C is to use the block retainer wall as the foundation for the back wall.

 

[dirtydeed]

cleaned up both machines after relocating some dirt and stone piles...some of the time spent was really just playing in the dirt pile. Is that ok with y'all?

clean(ish)

 

[Bee-Positive]

Can't see your pics.

Sorry about the pictures

 

[Bee-Positive]

Beat me to it.

If the drop isn’t any more than 3 feet, get some (hand picked and clean) RR ties to build the retainer wall. Make sure there’s no hollow spots in them. Notch them where they meet in the corner, and make sure you stack them overlapping like bricks. A piece of 1 inch pipe driven at least 24 inches into the ground (4’ long total) on 24 inch center (actually 1’ from the ends and 3’3” for the two middle holes) will give you well built wall. Put a couple inches of 57 under them for drainage, and backfill with 57. Don’t build too close because this is to stop erosion, not support a load.

You will destroy ANY tool you use to make holes in or cut ties. Stone chips get embedded in every check and split, and you know they are there when you see the sparks or the tool stops cutting. Get good carbide drill bits for drilling, and figure on replacing your saw chain. Auger type bits work best in gummy creosote, but don’t even think about standard augers for wood boring. Did I mention getting a good supply of files for your chain saw and extra chains? I use the little cheap sharpener from HF to correct the worst damage, then file the edge to sharpen it for the next cut.
A little secret I learned about ties is to set them upside down so the side that has been ‘finished’ by the gravel in the rail bed is the side that’s seen and a smoother working surface for setting the wall. This also hides the spike holes and wear plate wear as well as reducing the likelihood of nasty splinters down the road.

Otherwise, dig and pour a footing, build the wall with block, fill the cells with concrete, and make sure to seal the top with cap block. Not quite as‘natural’ looking, but if it’s the back side, who’s gonna see it. Block walls are ugly, IMO.

Ties are cheaper, but harder to handle and process for the construction, but carefully chosen ties will likely last a lifetime. A side benefit is the creosote will keep a lot of bugs away. If they can dry back out between rains, they’re the gold standard for treated wood. Don’t expect them to be straight or perfectly sized.

Cinder block and concrete is even more permanent, but doesn’t lend itself to possible future modifications or expansion. Make sure you’re not gonna be wishing you put the wall in a different place.

Plan C is to use the block retainer wall as the foundation for the back wall.

Thanks for the ideas Old Paint. I'll have to shop around to see if I can get used RR ties in my area. I agree about the block wall not looking as "natural". I also have the HF sharpener, love it - fast and cheap like me. LOL.

 

[fried1765]

Throw in some CCR, Steppenwolf, Doors, Aerosmith while you’re at it.

Meanwhile, back on track. Didn’t do anything on the Kubota the last two days because I was busy cleaning up the mess I made with it. Pressure washed the driveway and sidewalk to remove all the tracks and clay from the parking expansion project. The missus made me throw away my favorite (really old) pair of sneakers. They were only 6 years old. They went to Scotland, Ireland, and Australia and have given me countless hours of service in the yard. Farewell and adieu my old New Balance 608’s. Did I mention that bleach and dead algae stink like bad fish?

NB 608's are my favorite.
I have several pairs.
They range from disgusting, to brand new,..... still in the box.

 

[Toyman]

Looks great…do you plant anything between the hills/beds? (I am assuming pumpkins in the hill?). I have been putting buckwheat in between my hills of potatoes.

do you normally plant buckwheat in April in your area? I normally plant it end June / beginning of July.

Thanks! I don't plant between the beds as the pumpkins will fill that space pretty well by August, and yes the hills are seeded. I try to plant my buckwheat 10-12 weeks out from Labor Day normally (for fall planting), but I got some in a little early because I like to plant my turnips in mid/late July. Hoped the early buckwheat would take off in those plots to plant the turnips into the buckwheat (and then mow), but we went into a 3 week drought shortly after I planted. One shady area I planted is coming in ok, the other isn't doing so well. Getting rain most of this week which is perfect for the plots I planted a few days ago, and hopefully it will help the early plots a little, but the weeds are already thriving.

 

[fried1765]

Thanks! I don't plant between the beds as the pumpkins will fill that space pretty well by August, and yes the hills are seeded. I try to plant my buckwheat 10-12 weeks out from Labor Day normally (for fall planting), but I got some in a little early because I like to plant my turnips in mid/late July. Hoped the early buckwheat would take off in those plots to plant the turnips into the buckwheat (and then mow), but we went into a 3 week drought shortly after I planted. One shady area I planted is coming in ok, the other isn't doing so well. Getting rain most of this week which is perfect for the plots I planted a few days ago, and hopefully it will help the early plots a little, but the weeds are already thriving.

Turnips......
I love 'em raw.
When I was in high school, pulled thousands of turnips each fall for a local grower.
All gone now.
Field is filled with affordable housing, and a small business mall.
UGH !

 

[SteveBX23]

Mowed at the farm or should I say I stirred up the dust. Thankfully, woke up to rain this morning which is going to help, but still need more. Soybeans are trying to make it, but they are struggling.

Potato plants are looking good. Be interesting to see how big the potatoes are once we harvest or how many there are of them.

I'm in the business of welcoming some good rain, and holy crap do we need some here in NJ!

 

[aaluck]

Tuesday a tree fell on my wife's car and covered the parking area. So Saturday was "fun". Luckily I went out and bought some pallet forks. I will tell you that was the BEST tractor purchase I have made. I would guess it cut the trips down by a third compared to the bucket.

 

[RCW]

Tuesday a tree fell on my wife's car and covered the parking area. So Saturday was "fun". Luckily I went out and bought some pallet forks. I will tell you that was the BEST tractor purchase I have made. I would guess it cut the trips down by a third compared to the bucket. View attachment 104820 View attachment 104821 View attachment 104822 View attachment 104823 View attachment 104824 View attachment 104825

Oh no!! Sorry to see that! Looks like your forks served you well.

Unfortunate you had to use them to that purpose….

 

[S-G-R]

Tuesday a tree fell on my wife's car and covered the parking area. So Saturday was "fun". Luckily I went out and bought some pallet forks. I will tell you that was the BEST tractor purchase I have made. I would guess it cut the trips down by a third compared to the bucket.

Glad you had the forks. Hope your wife's car was unscathed with all those branches.