Larry, you got me beat. I only have one tomato plant in, but my goal is three total. I got a bunch of stuff transplanted and potted up and I’m not sure what else I did cause I can’t even look around and figure it out. Well, I did plant some okra and some more long noodle beans. And I moved a bunch of mulch. Sometimes I wish I had it in me to use weed killer and grass killer but I don’t. I leave that for the other guys. I’ve got too many beneficial, insects and little birds. I don’t wanna cause any harm. I was trimming the dead parts off my elderberries and fig and snipped one of my elderberries right in half. I really need to pay more attention.

Well, I don't have it in me to go out to the garden with a flashlight. I just got home and got the coop closed up and I'm hungry and want some dinner, AND I don't know what I would do tonight if more tomatoes were snapped/cut. I'll try to look in the morning but I have to be to work early. BUT....should be able to take a peek.

Get some rest hopefully they are fine

Anybody ever use one of these :

https://www.vermontbean.com/product/V53010/189

Well I just ordered one.

Rick

Ricki bought one years ago but haven’t had opportunity to use it. I did use one on the farm in Lubbock and loved it. Even in chunky soil it worked like a champ.

Sorry about that typo Rick. Phone has a mind of its own

That's good to hear .

It's a little expensive but it looks like it'll make seeding out rows of corn and beans/peas

a whole lot easier.

Time to mechanise a little.

Maybe a small garden tractor later on.

Rick

Rick we bought one if those seeders 30 years ago. It had changeable plates for different seeds, worked well for spacing. It had a chain thst drug behind and did a fair job of covering the seeds. I loaned it out to several people and as usual had to go retrieve it and plates or parts were missing or damaged. At the time we had a big Troybilt tiller so the ground was worked up well. It was a big investment for us at the time but back then we planted a lot of garden. The last 15 years my beds have all been raised beds and I have no idea who ended up with the seeder/planter.

Well , I plan on keeping mine and putting it to use.

It seems to be getting harder and harder to plant out seed by hand these days.

Rick

Rick, they are a dream. Even in the chunky soil I had great germination. I was doing 700 foot rows and seeding by hand was really not an option. Here my bed unfortunately is only 10 foot long and it doesn’t really pay to get it out and set it up for three rows. But I have dreams of a better day with bigger property and bigger gardens. I also have 36 mineral tubs planted up. I don’t even wanna know how much potting soil I have bought over the years. Quite the investment. The seeder is a big investment buying brand new but know that it will last your lifetime. I bought mine and it’s probably 20 to 30 years old and I only paid $30 So I will someday get my money out of it. Right now it hangs in the shed waiting.

Rlck, I have, or had a Chapin much like that, but I have a neighbor that seem to forget where he gets things, I guess he still has it, at the time he really like it. I don't walk well so I just did not go get it. Mine did not do a good job on turnips, it planted them too thick. I think I could have made it plant small seeds properly, but there was no need it was at his house all the time. For larger jobs I have a cosmo 500 spreader.

I have had to follow the path you may be heading down for a long time. After buying this place I started with a Poulan Pro rear tine tiller, then a Troy Bilt Horse tiller, then to a Wheel Horse garden tractor, then to a Kubota B2100 tractor. The Kubota only has 3 more horse power than the wheel horse, but it will do a lot more work.

It is not a lot of fun when your body starts wearing out, but a person will work hard to find a way to keep doing the things he loves. My little Kubota, a chain hoist, and the lift gate on the back of my pickup have been life savers for me. Maybe I should also throw in my Kubota RTV, sometimes I call the RTV my powered wheel chair, I keep it parked at the end of the handicap ramp, and it will take me anywhere on the place that I want to go, and I drive it to close neighbors house, but it is not street legal.

I would say that anyone should buy the tools needed to keep doing the things they enjoy. I have been using air, and battery powered tool for a long time, and I have a generator to power my larger tool out away from the house.

I hope to plant more plants today, clean some on the garden, and work on the ditch in front of the house. The ditch has gotten to where if wont carry off the water if we have a really hard, fast rain. I can only work for a short time, then I have to find a project that I can sit down and rest while doing small projects, like sharpening or repairing tools.

Went ahead and planted a row of tomatoes yesterday. Mostly got tired of babying them on the deck. Glad we have backups, because the weather may decide to not play nice this coming week. We need the rain, but I hope it contain itself and not dump out everything in one hour.

How are everyone's cool season plants? It seems to have been a little on the warm side this year. Hoping to at least get my time's worth on the cabbage and broccoli.

If anybody needs marigolds, salvia or black-eyed Susan, come over to my garden and pluck em. The marigolds really put out some serious reseeding from last year. Salvia has definitely become native to this garden since the first planting. Trying to get my Agastache to do the same. Maybe I should move some marigolds over to where the melon is planted. I hear aphids don't care for marigold.

Almost forgot. The warm season cover is coming up. This is going to be strange. I've got two borders stripped with piper sundangrass, and the two opposite border strips done with buckwheat. Things are going to look a little strange when the piper shoots up to 6 feet on two sides. But that ought to put down some nice roots to prevent washout for a few seasons.

Josh, I have worked for years trying to make the yard easier to mow, and shed water better also. I got the front ditch to where I could mow it with the Zero turn, but now I am going to see if I can get the box blade on the back of the Kubota, and undo some of my masterpiece. The ditch has worked fine, but we seem to be getting rains every year or two, that seem worse than in the past.

I really enjoy reading all the different ways you all garden now and how you used to garden. And all the tricks you're trying to put in place like Josh's warm season cover to prevent washout.

Josh, so far my cool season things are doing okay. I didn't have a chance to water anything yesterday to really check on them. I only have beets, cabbage spinach, lettuce, carrots, radishes and salad turnips.

I overslept until 6:38 this morning, but took the time (even tho I was late to work) to check on the tomatoes in the kitchen garden. Luckily no others were broken or cut. They looked pretty good, actually. Rain will be good for them, but I sure hope it's a new slow and soaking rain. I also hope it's overnight rain. I'm not the only one with a huge event planned this weekend.

As far as tonight goes, I would like to say that I'm going to get to work in my garden, but more-than-likely someone will need me to do something else. That's how it's been going lately. I woke up with texts asking me if I had seen the weather forecast for Saturday and what my Plan B is. Um. yeah. Of course I've watched the weather. 1. I have a community outdoor event planned. 2. I'm a gardener.

Anyway...people are funny.

If I get my way, I'll continue the weeding of my kitchen garden beds. I'm so close to having it done.

Larry I've been thinkin of you.

I've been kinda sick over the winter going into early spring.

Planting out seed by hand to getting harder to do anymore , so I hope the seed planter helps out. I been thinkin of other ways to mechanise like with a small garden tractor to till with .

I had to ask Tom (Jennifer's husband ) to till out some ground the other day, so I could start putting down tomato plants before it rains.

And I'm trying to get my grass mowed before it rains or I'll be looking into getting a bush hog.

So I'm hiring out lawn care companies and pay to get it done for a while.

I'm not a fan of mowing the lawn , it takes up too much time and energy away from the gardening especially now that it's spring planting time.

Got some sweet corn already planted at Jennifers the other day ( some how).

Later I need to think about planting green beans and shell beans when the ground warms up a little more.

Rick

Rick, the only thing I regret about the junk I own, is not buying it sooner, and I wish that I had bought newer stuff. I an getting to the point that it is harder and harder to keep it maintained. Also It is hard to find good used equipment, most people want to keep it till it is completely worn out. The market seems to have slowed down lately, and a guy might be able to get a good deal on something new.

My daughter comes over every other Sunday, a week ago last Sunday I showed her a video of a small Chinese bulldozer, ask her to check on the red tape and shipping cost, and if it was within reason, to order me one. She use to work in international shipping, and I figured that she might know what to do. My daughter has not called me, so I expect that the cost and red tape was too much. I guess its just as well, I have more junk than I have room to store it. I checked on a shipping container w few days ago, and they seem pretty easy to get, looks like I can get one of those out of Ft, smith and have it delivered the next day.

Today didn't play out like I was hoping--a quiet day indoors alone. BUT, it's all okay. I did get some time outside to clean out the other front flower bed and the one that's near the back patio. Also, grabbed the asparagus, watered the hoop house, sorted through plants to take to SF.

Also did a little up-potting of the spring equinox marigolds. They were still in the egg shells.

And planted a few sweet potatoes into a hoop house bed.

Larry, should I remove most of the foliage?

There's a few left to put into the mineral tubs. AND maybe a few to put into the back garden if I can get it rebuilt in the next couple of weeks.

The day is not over, of course.

Last night I finally got the last bed in the kitchen garden cleaned out. I was out there at twilight, but got it done.

There's a lot of small lettuce plants still in their original pellets in the hoop house. A plan needs to be made for those, but I'm not sure where to put them. I'm considering putting them in that new little raised bed where I was going to put the basils. BUT, I might just cram all the lettuces into it instead.

The peppers are getting ridiculously big and will hopefully be planted next week. Some are starting to get blossoms.

So far, no more cut/snapped tomatoes. But, this wind is doing a number on them. Pretty sure the majority of Rick's in the SG won't make it. The ones in the kitchen garden should be fine.

I smell like curry. I can't figure out what plant that I touched today has caused this. The smell is even on my shirt.

What's everyone doing today?

Rick. I don't know how much land you try to take care of, but a little tractor can do a lot of work.

I paid $6,500 for this little Kubota, a 4' finish mower, and 4' box blade. I don't use the finish mower, but I use the stuffins out of everything else. That beat up tractor and a zero turn mower are life savers for an old man that wants to get out and work a little, but does not get around well.

Lynn, I thought that I would try to mound dirt up like you. I used the Kubota and a middle buster to see what I could do. I tried growing some stuff in the wildlife garden a few years ago, but I only made one furrow, and planted on the high side of it. The furrow was mainly used for irrigation, but it worked well. I expect to have extra plants, and this may be my overflow area.

This crazy weather has some of mt onions trying to bolt already. May not be a good year for onions.

Feels stormy. I don’t like it.

I desperately need a day to plant things.

Jennifer, I get my best potatoes off of the long runners that I plant, leaving a few leaves on then, maybe each end. I bury the vine about an inch or two deep, hopefully after the roots have started to form and the leaf nodes. I have so little room in the house that I can't get all the slips I want in one pulling, so I start early pulling slips or making cuttings so can have around 100 slips by the first of may.

I went out into the yard and picked up a 6 pack of purple slips ( plant ) I hope to give away. All of these plants would do well to strip most of the leaves off, except a few at the growing tip. My soil is shallow, so I cant plant deep, but that stem in front of my thumb should for potatoes very well with most of the stem buried.

We went to the Dr. again this morning, and go again Mon. I am still hoping to be able to make SF. I expect to be able to be well enough to come, but I am not sure about Madge, and I had rather not come without her. At this point it looks like we wont have a driver, and if we come, I expect to get a room along the way back so we wont get too tired. Getting old is not as much fun as I had planned on it being.

Larry, that Kubota did the work. Got a raised row garden there.

Cold front moved through sooner than weathermen expected, its well southeast of OKC . I think the chance of storms in OKC area has gone down greatly. Its always good to be on the north side of the cold fronts.

I've done more fence repair the past couple days. Me and my neighbor split the work. We had broken fence posts and instead of trying to pull the " stump " out, we just set two metal poles on either side. Glad to have this done .

Lynn, the post look nice.

Emmy and Jerry came over this evening and brought supper, we had a meal, nice visit, then they took a bunch of plants home with them, and Jerry's family. I parked the pickup over the plants after they left, just in case we get bad weather.

Rebecca, me too! I need a planting day.

Wow. Sorry about the onions. I'll have to check mine tomorrow night. See if I have some bolters. What variety did you plant?

Tom was able to get some boards "ripped" (is that the word?) They were 12 inches and now they're 6 inches. The back garden is changing up a bit. I won't go into all the boring details, but the beds will just be 6 inches tall now. For a couple of reason.

I found a picture of the bed in 2021 and I really liked how it looked, but there was problems with it. I'll come back with a picture. It's a small garden, but I like to keep it for overflow and for other reasons too.

I can't remember what else I did. We grocery shopped, took recycling in, delivered eggs to an elderly friend, and went to the feed store.

I'm happy to be home.

I'm almost always happy to be home.

Hey Larry .

Lets say that I got to where I couldn,t till anymore( just for planning later ).

What small tractor and farm implement would you use for tilling ( or maybe plowing I guess).

Without packing the ground too much ( smallest tractor I can get by.

This is the area of 1st concern.

It's the SG 2020 , the very first on over at Jennifer's. That's me putting down Black Cow for very 1st time. Size: 50 ft X 36 ft (?) Clay soil .

What rig would you use for that ? tractor/implement ?

Rick

Rick, that is a big question, a lot depends on the amount of money you want to spend. I sorta like the old style. A breaking plow, disk, any thing you can pick up cheap. I have 4 tractors, the one I use the most is the kubota, it is the newest at 25 years old. Three of my 4 tractors have loaders on them, I like the idea that I am still able to lift something. I am not to lift over 10 lbs, but with my lift gate on my truck I can lift 1000#, the kubota can lift 600+ pounds , but it is light and needs a counter weight. Unless you have a need for a larger tractor, don't get one, a small tractor is better at gardening. If you want a tiller, it is recommended 5 pto hp per foot of tiller width. I run a 4 foot tiller with 16 pto hp just fine, i run a 4' brush hog just fine with 16 pto hp.

Most newer small tractors are under 25 hp because of EPA regulations. If I could have only one tractor, I would want a tractor with a loader, it would have to be 4 wheel drive, and I had rather have a hydrostatic transmission, I think that they all come with power steering now. If I were looking for a tractor now, I would check in on some of the package deals you see online and locally. I like the sound of some of the deal that TYM is pushing, but nearly any retailer will offer a package deal, if you are buying used, just go for what ever you think is the best deal. I bought a pretty good 50 HP Long tractor with loader, bucket, hay spike, and a 6' brush hog for $2000.00, but it is too large for a good garden tractor, but I expect it will lift the back of my 3/4 pickup.

The old garden tractor did fine with 10 to 12 HP engines

I might add that I would want a middle buster, they are cheap and easy to find. I can not lift any of my implements, but I can lift them with the loader on the tractor, and in this case, lean the middle buster against something and then attach it to the tractor.

Thanks Larry.

Do you know what price range that pic there would be in nowadays ?

I think most of the small tractors are 25 HP.

Is that ok ?

Rick

My kubota is listed as 21 engine HP, 16 pto hp, because the hydro take away more hp than a gear drive, but I had rather have the hydro. I dont know of any new tractor under 22 engine hp. My neighbor has a John Deere 25 HP, he runs his engine at 3000+ RPM, I seldom run mine over 2000 RPM, The John Deere is 2 or 3 years old, my Kuboda is 25 years old and I think his tractor has spent more time in the shop than my tractor has, and John Deere is a very good tractor, it is made heavier than my Kubota.

I am enjoying all your posts. . . tractors would be of no help here, since it's all rock with a little soil covering. So many different ways to garden! And so all our beds were built from the ground up--the raised ones, AND the in-yard ones. When I started here 11 years ago, poor Garry! We had wood chips and soils trucked in. . . and saved up cardboard and newspapers like crazy. . . and built up these yard beds by about 12", using those things and leaves and grass clippings. And then built the 700-plus square feet of raised beds for the veggies. Lots of money for raised bed soil, and lots of dried branches, leaves, grass clippings, cardboard.

At least we can use a zero-turn mower (never could use a riding lawnmower--too many trees to get around)--and we love it.

I don't have pictures to share yet. . . hope I can as the season goes on. And. . . it is RAINING cats and dogs here tonight. Woke me up, in fact. . . it looked hit and miss on radar. . . well--it hit.

My List: For my older age equipment.

Middle buster , plow:

https://palletforks.com/products/3-point-middle-buster?variant=47327917965616&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21579141543&gclid=CjwKCAjwk43ABhBIEiwAvvMEB5zA44m7kg7UTjoYAvFp7XmKPlIMDLLChxm57dxzz0_KEW8pFFbq8hoCWAUQAvD_B

implement : Disk

https://factorypure.com/products/motoalliance-disc-plow-harrow-cat-0-hitch-three-point-attachment-new?variant=44830532862141&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&campaignid=6446019074&adgroupid=180237929651&creative=731915592918&matchtype=&network=g&device=c&keyword=&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=6446019074&gclid=CjwKCAjwk43ABhBIEiwAvvMEB6SzmLJsox6uB4F1ulWWDpiw9ol5eJ3sTYzAaOZelN1_RuT_qiAQURoCxcUQAvD_BwE

Assembly for disk manual: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1163/1976/files/IP6004-1738683046427..pdf?v=1738683047

pto driven tiller: https://www.everythingattachments.com/Phoenix-T4-Series-Value-Model-59-Tractor-Tiller-p/ph-tiller-rotary-t4-59k.htm

Chiesel Plow:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C1YNNXP5/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B0C1YNNXP5&pd_rd_w=xDGsN&content-id=amzn1.sym.386c274b-4bfe-4421-9052-a1a56db557ab&pf_rd_p=386c274b-4bfe-4421-9052-a1a56db557ab&pf_rd_r=MJVKRNSVMVPAWVF7WRGZ&pd_rd_wg=xKUDJ&pd_rd_r=698af677-8ff3-4a6f-90d7-5a076096529b&s=lawn-garden&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWxfdGhlbWF0aWM

Tiller: https://www.ruralking.com/5-foot-rotary-tiller-with-pto-shaft-rt5

Tractor:

https://www.kenotractors.com/product/mahindra-2126-tractor-loader:

Rick

Ol' busy . Got anything add to any of the above ?

I'm open to any suggestions.

Rick

Rick, I think that you would want a disc that hooked to a 3 point, the one I in the picture is for pulling behind an atv, in my opinion they are too light, and the 11 disc is too small. I think you would want at least a 4' tandem with 16" blades. I have a 5.5' tandem with 16" blades, it really makes my Kubota grunt.

here is my 5.5'disc. I have to run the Kubota in 4 wheel drive, low range, and it grunts loud running deep in heavy soil, I have to raise the lift a little to transfer some of the disc weight to the back of the tractor to get enough traction to pull the disc. My neighbor' 1025 John Deere wont handle that disc.

This disc was given to me, I had to do a lot of welding, it was broken in several places. I may have even replaced a blade or two, it has 16" blades like my other disc.

Here is another option if you have a tiller. This cultivator will reach pretty deep. You can bust up new ground with this cultivator, then follow up with the tiller, but neighbor can come behind this cultivator because his tractor does not have the ground clearance. My Kubota wont handle this cultivator, the tractor needs more lift height, and more horse power. That tractor and cultivator was given to me also, but I had to spend about 7,000 to get the tractor repaired, and to replace some of the points on the cultivator. A lot of the stuff I have is things that I got free, or at little cost, then put a million dollars worth of labor in getting it repaired.

I am not able to work on things like I use to.

I have free pallet forks also, but they are 3 point and hook to the back of a tractor. The rear of the tractor has more lifting capacity, but you cant go very high.

I would love to have a grapple, but I would also need a 3rd function valve.

I can use my bucket sorta you would use pallet forks by attaching a short chain with a hook high on the bucket, I put the lip of the bucket under what ever I want to pick up, then place a short piece of chain from the hook on one side around load item, and attaching to the hook on the other side, then rolling the bucket back, then lift the arms. That is how I move my 7000 watt generator around, and a lot of other junk also. Forks are really nice, but often you can get by without them.

If you have a weak mind like I do, you can always find someones junk to repair, and get a few more miles out of it.

Thanks Larry !

Just dreaming right now.

Rick

Do all small garden tractors run on diesel?

Any that run on gasoline?

Rick

Oh man...what I could get into with a tractor. Lawdy! I'd probably end up in the creek and given enough time, all my neighbors would have slabs instead of houses.

Gardening was on hold today. Rainy and muddy. I did harvest my first handful of strawberries. Everything is growing so good. Need to get some more okra planted.

Rick, most new tractors run on diesel, you can buy a lot of old small tractors that run on gasoline. I have a 1952 8n ford that is a gas tractor, it is broken, and I dont think it is worth repairing, I really dont need it anyway. I think diesel fuel stores better anyway, and there is more BTU in diesel, and I feel that it is a safer fuel.

Josh, I did run my Kubota off in the creek. I was brush hogging on the back side of the property. I knew there was a deep creek/ditch back there. I had the bucket set to push the brush away from the radiator, driving slow because I could not see anything. The next thing I knew the tractor was standing on its nose and the bucket stuck in the far bank of the ditch. Thank God for cell phones, I called my wife and had her drive around the road to pick my, and take me to the house to get a larger tractor. The brush hog was sticking almost straight up, I could not get to the tractor, but I hooked onto the tailwheel support with the John Deere and drug tractor and brush hog out of the creek, then drove the John Deere back home, and had my then take me back to finish hogging. My wife does not like for me to be out working alone.

I am excited about your strawberries, Kim! Mine aren't ripe yet.

The rain is good for sure. We were really dry here. But, the weather isn't fun at all.

We pressed through and had the event today and it went really well. But, man oh man, am I tired.

And, why do we have to get so much rain all at once? Instead of spacing it out????

I didn't really do anything outside other than feed the animals, look at my tomatoes in the kitchen garden and check to see if anything in the hoop house needed watered. Most everything was still damp other than some of Rick's store-bought plants. I gave them a quick drink.

(It's really pouring here now)

I don't know anything about tractors. We probably wouldn't get one. For one, we have no place to house it. Do people just keep them outside? I'm not sure how that works. And our property isn't very big. I'm sure they are SO useful though.

I'm a little sad that I won't see family tomorrow other than my Mom. We'll probably just go out for lunch. This is the first time since I can remember that we didn't have Easter lunch at my Mom's or our house...or even my Grandmas (from way back). I do have a busy work day in the morning, tho. So, not having to cook lunch seems okay right now. We saw our little grandboy this late afternoon after the event. Took him his Easter bag of goodies.

Depending on what the weather is like tomorrow afternoon, I might work out outside in the late afternoon. If it's too wet, there's always plenty to do indoors. I feel like I need a weekend after this weekend. Honestly tho, it's like that every week. I do think things will get better in a couple of months. Goal is to work less. Not do the school job. Which is going to be a thing. Sometimes people get attached and it's hard to get away. And sometimes they are so attached that they have to make it a thing. Even tho it isn't personal.

Anyway, hope you are all getting beneficial rain and not flooding destructive rain. Or worse.

Happy Easter. :)

I personally don’t believe in tilling or plowing. I had a gorgeous garden in Quitaque and for two years it was great then I had it tilled. It was so full of weeds the next year it was awful. When I get land I will till once thoroughly and then do Charles Dowding style gardening. And maybe some tall raised beds so I can garden as I age.

Hey Larry , what do you use the PTO for besides running a brush hog.

I see that you recommend 5 hp per 4 ft of tiller width so you must run a tiller with the PTO . Do you have a pic of your tiller or one from a store.

Rick

Tornado warned circulation just passed over the east garden.

Oh Boy ............................................................." FOG - HORN ".

Rick

+Larry you might have some rough weather coming up you're way..

Seem like when it hit me east. , it develop a squaw line of tornadic storms that keeps trailing up from southwest to northeast. , kinda like it did last week over in Ark

Rick

.

H/J .......... we get more annual rainfall than Seattle, where it rains almost daily . But we get almost all of ours in April, May, and June.

Probably for the same reason we get storms and tornadoes in April/May. The cold fronts come through about every 5 days or so , creates the storms which bring the rain.

Cliff notes version ..........the weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, come through the Pacific NW, and on down through Oklahoma. In the winter they dont' stall out till they get into the Gulf of Mexico. But by summertime, they stall out before they reach Oklahoma.

I'm not a weatherman, I just play one on the internets. But I got my weather education from a lifetime of being a fisherman. Fish behaviour is very dependent upon the season and/or the weather.

And gardening is weather dependent.

I put 34-0-0 and pelletized lime on my lawn yesterday. Hoped to take advantage of the rain to water it in.

But now I'm hoping we did not get too much rain and it all got washed away, if that's what happens. Got about 2" last night.

My guess, a soaking rain dissolves the fertilizer and takes it into the soil. But I wonder if heavy rain afterwards, doesn't just somehow wash it out ?

We're sitting here watching TV last night and this horrible sound went off. It was VERY loud. Turns out the weather radio has an alarm. Funny thing is when we had the tornado it didn't go off. Apparently Ron touched something. He says I'll take it to the bedroom when I go to bed. (I sleep in the recliner). He forgot, it went off again. He came and got it. All the bad weather was at least as far as Okmulgee. He said after the 5th time he took the batteries out. We got a good rain.

Amy, that's a problem with weather radios, they're not local enough. I had one a few years ago that I could set for one county. I'm in the NW corner of Cleveland County, Oklahoma County is 1/2 mile north. McClain, Grady, and Canadian aren't that far away.

Rick, I have 4, 5 , 6 foot brush hogs that run off of the PTO. I also have a Cosmo 500 seeder, and a 4 foot finish mower that run off the PTO. Most PTO's operate as 540 RPM, and it is recommended that you operate a rated engine RPM when using the PTO. The Tach will have a mark on it that show the RPM to run the engine to have 540 RPM at the PTO. The Gear box on the implement is geared to match the speed needed for proper operation from 540 RPM input, on brush hogs, that is normally around a 1.3 to a 1.5 step-up. On any kind of cutting equipment you want to be concerned about tip speed of the blade, also on a brush hog you want the centrifugal force to keep the blade from moving so much on the pivot pin, which wears the pin and blade, but the pivot pin is needed to permit the blade to swing back if you hit a rock or stump. A finish mower is not set up that way, and they run a higher tip speed. I almost never use my finish mower, because I often use it more like a brush hog and wear the belt out from slipping.

I went out and took a few pictures of my tiller. My tiller is like everything else I have, I bought it knowing that it needed repaired.

This is a picture of the PTO shaft. One of the problems you might have is the release pin you see on the yellow part can be a little hard to press when you are attaching, or detaching the shaft to the tractor. My hands are old, sore, and stiff, and that pin can be a little hard for me to press. My neighbor has a Frontier tiller, it has a ring with a lip on it to pull back on, it is easier for me to release it.

A tiller pulled behind a tractor is about like any other tiller, when the tines wear down to a point, you are running short on the life of that tine, and it you buy used check the runner that slides on the ground ( far left with the dirt on it), those will wear out and have to be replaced, or as I do, just weld, or bolt another piece of metal on the bottom of it, its cheaper than buying replacements.

If you buy used, like I do, the tail gate on the tiller may be beat up like mine. When I bought mine the gate had been ripped off, but they are easy to repair, and mine needs repairing again..

I don't know if any of this helps you, but I will try to help in any way. I dont remember what I said before, but general rule of thumb is 5 PTO horse power per foot width of implement. My 16 HP tractor runs my 50 inch tiller fine.

I am going to go out and drive my pickup from over the plants. When I was driving over them yesterday late, I turned at least one tray upside down. The plants are getting too tall to park the truck over, it is past time for them to go in the ground anyway.

I am losing hope about us coming to SF, Madge and I both are having a hard time getting back to where we want to be, it seems to be age related.

Rick, thanks for the heads-up. Our weather does most often travel to the northeast. I often get Roberts left-over weather. My weather is strange, in the winter it is often like Fayetteville Ar. weather, in the summer it is like Poteau Ok. weather.

Larry it sure does help . I just saw that you're running a tiller off the PTO and I was needing to know what the implement looked like.

I'm making a list of what implements I want to run. : tiller ,chiesel plow , disk , middle buster ,brush hog ,.....

Then find a suitable tractor to run it all.

What do you do for cultivating in between rows. ( Row Cropping ).

Rick

Rick, what little work I do between the rows, I do by hand. My rear tine tiller is an old Poulan Pro, it has a 17" width, for a short while I can use it between the rows, but soon, the plants gets so bushy that nothing will grow between the rows. About the only problem I have is with sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and water melons, if I want to keep them clean it requires a lot of hand work.

I try to build my trellises about 7 to 10 feet apart, and use the tractor to till in between the trellises, then, right under the trellis i work by hand.

when I plant smaller stuff, I try to leave a path wide enough to sit one of there stools down and work by hand.

If I don't leave room to get in and work by hand, my garden looks like this. I dont like to go more than 2 feet without leaving a work trail. I have 8 rows of garlic between those 2 trellises, and it is hard to get in to pull weeds. I also use Glyphosate to kill the bermuda before it gets into the garden.

You will want to think about ground clearance also, if you want to use your tractor for gardening. My neighbor had Kubots BX and a John Deere mini compact with a belly mower, no belly mower works well in a garden because of no ground clearance. You can some of the older small tractors that have a belly mower, and remove the mower to work the garden, but then you have a problem of always switching back and forth with equipment.

If your bones hurt like mine, I would suggest a small tractor for gardening, and a zero turn mower for mowing, and it has helped me to buy stools to sit on, and a atv to haul my tools and supplies in, and to also cut down on walking.

I will also add, that I saw 4 tomatoes when I went out to take these pictures.