tilling gardens with a compact tractor.
Check out more of our tractor videos here:
Rockhill Farm is a daily equipment and rural living vlog. We mainly focus on tractors and working outdoors.
I really appreciate you taking time to watch this video. If you enjoy this type of content Check out some of the following links to support our channel.
If you are interested in a rock Hill Farms T-shirt check out our merch store
https://rockhill-farm.creator-spring.com/listing/rockhill-farm-logo
Please subscribe to our channel here: https://youtube.com/c/Rockhillfarmandhomes
Follow on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/Rock-Hill-Farm-102050688356056/
You can now support the channel by buying us a coffee at the following link:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/rockhillfarm
25 Comments
First
so i have been doing tilling on a professional level for the last 15 years or so , it is all i do once the ground is thawed and dry until early july , then again in the fall for about a month …..
the best plan of attack for new ground is do not peel off the top layer , this contains all your top soil and it loaded with all your beneficial organisms .
first i make sure the grass / weeds are no taller than 2 – 3 inches
then i take the tiller and set it so it just skims the surface , and i run the tiller at high speed ( around 300 rpm ish ) this separates the green part from the roots …. the next cut goes down about another 1/2 inch , and again the 3rd cut goes down about a 1/2 " deeper …. once the top layer has been pulverized properly , i set the tiller to do 10 – 12 inch deep cuts and i'll go as deep as 18 inches ….. ideally this is done in the fall where the ground can "digest " over the winter .
if this is done in the spring i'll get the owner to cover with a tarp , and 3 or 4 weeks later i'll do a "fluff" before they plant
By removing the sod, you’re removing all the nutrients and destroying the microbial balance in the soil. Best thing to do is to cut the grass low and take multiple passes with the tiller, slowly going deeper and deeper until you get 12-18 inches of pulverized top soil.
You call it a tiller I call it a Harley rake with tines. If I can ever afford a tiller I’m gonna level my yard and get rid of rocks and sticks and trash with it.
I haven't tried this, but one thing that's done is to put thick black plastic sheeting over the area (plus a little margin) and let it cook for a couple months. This kills all the weeds and grasses, but leaves it in place. I think this might be better for late summer planting since you get all the heat from the sun. There are companies selling used billboard signs as tarps that are extremely rugged. You don't want to use a tarp from Horror Fright as they breakdown under UV pretty quickly.
Howdy Brock! I like it! I'll give you my secret ingredient for the garden… amend the soil with Azomite! It provides additional minerals to your vegetables and makes everything more flavorful. Composted manure and mushroom compost is good stuff.
An option for next year's garden is cover the ground with a dark landscaping fabric in the fall… it will kill off any plant material and compost it over the winter. It also preserves the beneficial organisms and bacteria that are in the top 3-4" of soil (nod to Charles Boston). Then in the spring all you should need to do is add a little compost (and Azomite!) and a very mild tilling and you are good to go. Just my 2 cents… for what that is worth lol. Thanks for sharing 🤠
Nice video. Just curious why you till a row, and then back up to till next row as opposed to tilling a row, taking a wide turn and till going the opposite direction of the previous row. Is it more efficient, quicker to do this or some other reason? Thanks for all the great videos!
Good morning Brock. Where we put our garden a couple of years ago there was a lot of clay. There was a thin layer of top soil but a lot of weeds and briars. I didn't have my own tractor at that time so I had it tilled up, We put down about 5 inches of top soil, a good coating of mushroom manure and tilled it up again. We let it sit for about a month and then tilled it again for planting. Then we put down a layer of Geo-tech (road fabric). In order to plant my wife took a propane torch and burned holes in the fabric and put her plants and seeds in. The Geo-tech will let water through but won't let the weeds come up. The most you would need to weed would be right around the plants. The second year she said, "let's not bother with the Geo-tech" and it was a nightmare. Needless to say that the Geo-tech will be back in the garden this year. You can take it up in the fall and fold it up and re-use it. Then we tilled in some composted manure and tilled that in. We'll be ready to till it up again soon and be ready for this year. I know that I get long winded sometimes. God bless and I believe that your garden will be just fine. 👍👍👍😊
That method should reduce your weeding time. My father would hand me a hoe and remind me that supper was served at 5.
Black makes me look thinner also 🤪
Excellent idea removing grass with roots. Reminds me childhood time helping dad in garden, turning dirt over with shovel, brining cow manure under fruit trees, raspberry and black current bushes. Brock, you are awesome, positive energy person. Enjoying each video.
I've had good luck turning the sod into soil. Just need to do it on a sunny day and make 2 passes, let it sit and come back and turn it some more later on after dries out. Lots of good nutrients in that turf to break down for nitrogen, etc… going slow enough to keep chopping and turning is key. I've done that for my own garden areas and long 400ft by 40ft wide food plots.
How wide is that tiller? Good size for your tractor?
Check out more of our tractor videos here:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmYnhJtNUq7c2n8UTJASTf9qJQXQ_ngFP
Rockhill Farm is a daily equipment and rural living vlog. We mainly focus on tractors and working outdoors.
I really appreciate you taking time to watch this video. If you enjoy this type of content Check out some of the following links to support our channel.
If you are interested in a rock Hill Farms T-shirt check out our merch store
https://rockhill-farm.creator-spring.com/listing/rockhill-farm-logo
Please subscribe to our channel here: https://youtube.com/c/Rockhillfarmandhomes
Follow on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/Rock-Hill-Farm-102050688356056/
You can now support the channel by buying us a coffee at the following link:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/rockhillfarm
👍👍
It looks like you have some decent dirt for it being virgin ground.
I have been tilling gardens for 30 years. What I do with new plots is have the grass cut short so the soil dries up some, then I do a quick till to free up the grass. After a day or 2 in the sun the soil dries around the roots of the grass, I then till everything in, a pass one way and then the other way if possible.
Looks great!
Spray it with gly, till it, and call it done.
Still dealing with snowstorms here in Minnesota. This video does give me hope, though!
It will be interesting to see your results. I did a similar thing to my garden this year as well for the same reason. I used my tractor and tiller and just took the loose dirt out after tilling and refilled with well seasoned compost. Time will tell if that was a good decision.
Roundup
I see you have the Add-A Grapple setup on your bucket, was looking at that last night debating between it and a regular grapple. Does that Add A Grapple work good for you or would you rather have a standard grapple? The price seems good on it VS a regular grapple of at least 3x the cost.
It takes some pre planning but you can use a tarp to kill the grass on a small area like that and then till.
Love your vids bro! Keep ‘em comin…