Tiller questions
07-29-2019, 04:22 AM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2019
Posts: 7
Tiller questions
Going to till my food plots in 2 weeks. Spraying the plots twice 14 days apart weeds were green and 2-4ft high before spraying. Soil is somewhat sandy. Question is will the 5ft wide tiller I am using behind the tractor clog up with weeds or will it cut/mulch them up pretty good since they will be dead(hopefully!) Plots are new, Green lake county Wisconsin. Thanks for any helpful info. Love the site and just joined! Lots of helpful info on here!
07-29-2019, 04:33 AM
#2
Super Moderator
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Trumbull County, Ohio
Posts: 9,520
Yes, probably. But it depends on your tiller and how thick the weeds are there.
I would get in there with a brush hog or belly mower and cut it down as short as possible. This will help break up the weeds and help them to till into the soil better.
Since you've been spraying, hopefully they're mostly dead and tilling them in won't just spread them.
mrbb will have good input on this when he sees the post.
Good luck.
-Jake
I would get in there with a brush hog or belly mower and cut it down as short as possible. This will help break up the weeds and help them to till into the soil better.
Since you've been spraying, hopefully they're mostly dead and tilling them in won't just spread them.
mrbb will have good input on this when he sees the post.
Good luck.
-Jake
07-29-2019, 08:37 AM
#3
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
HAHA< I agree with the mowing, , mow that stuff while its still standing if you can, the chemical that kills it will hit the roots in a day or so
, so anytime after that you can pretty much mow it, longer the better, but before it lays down
heavy matted material on top will make SOME tillers struggle, depends on the HP of the tractor running it some things and quality of the tiller!
something you can do you MAKE your plot sites even better , IS< if SAFE
till the site into smaller squares, leaving material in small sections with a nice dirt barrier between things and burn them one at a time
just do it on a safe day, NO to low wind, (Looks like rain soon)and have some help handy in case anything flys!
I used to have a 55 gallon tanker sprayer with a wand that would help pout out anything SMALL
and the key here is SMALL squares, don't try burning large sections at a time, unless your willing to get your local fire dept involved, and MANY times they will , it gives them practice on fires!
its called controlled burns, and a major tool in habitat restorations and farmers been doing it for yrs to make lands more fertile
adds feed fertilizer/mostly potash, but it gets rid of all that material on top!
also NOT sure what your planning to plant, but some things you can also just burn down site(chemical burn down) and seed right thru it and use the material as protection from critters eating the seeds,
do so in a rain and most seeds will get seeded from he rain, no need to turn site over at all,
as turning over a site, you always turn over old seeds in dirt and then have them growing along with your desired new plantings!
sites don't always need to be tilled over or disc'd!
, so anytime after that you can pretty much mow it, longer the better, but before it lays down
heavy matted material on top will make SOME tillers struggle, depends on the HP of the tractor running it some things and quality of the tiller!
something you can do you MAKE your plot sites even better , IS< if SAFE
till the site into smaller squares, leaving material in small sections with a nice dirt barrier between things and burn them one at a time
just do it on a safe day, NO to low wind, (Looks like rain soon)and have some help handy in case anything flys!
I used to have a 55 gallon tanker sprayer with a wand that would help pout out anything SMALL
and the key here is SMALL squares, don't try burning large sections at a time, unless your willing to get your local fire dept involved, and MANY times they will , it gives them practice on fires!
its called controlled burns, and a major tool in habitat restorations and farmers been doing it for yrs to make lands more fertile
adds feed fertilizer/mostly potash, but it gets rid of all that material on top!
also NOT sure what your planning to plant, but some things you can also just burn down site(chemical burn down) and seed right thru it and use the material as protection from critters eating the seeds,
do so in a rain and most seeds will get seeded from he rain, no need to turn site over at all,
as turning over a site, you always turn over old seeds in dirt and then have them growing along with your desired new plantings!
sites don't always need to be tilled over or disc'd!
07-29-2019, 11:13 AM
#4
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2019
Posts: 7
The use of fire would be awesome but not going to risk burning our property and the neighbors down. Going to have a co-worker come out and mow the plots for us for a couple bottles of vodka. Hopefully this will avoid any problems with the roto tiller in a couple weeks. Plan on planting a mixture with clover, alfala, chicory, radish, turnuips. Thanks for the tips!
07-29-2019, 02:07 PM
#5
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
I think I would skip the alfalfa seeds here for a fall planting, odds are against you getting any to grow in time IMO
but the rest will be fine!
I would also maybe suggest planting things in sections over just mixing all seeds together, and just seeding that way!
if that is your plan!
seldom to just mixing ALL things work out from my experience, some things grow taller faster and shade things out and then there just stunted and wasted seeds!
clover and chicory can be mixed together if wanted, and so can the radish, turnips(also can be called rape/ brassicia) are basically the same things! and as such mixing them in same site too will be fine!
but these things will shade out your other seeds(clover/chicory)
plus the clover /chicory are going to grow for a few yrs, where the turnips and?? are once and done plantings , needing to re do the sites the following yr,m
so why waste the $$$ on the clover and chicory seeds??
but the rest will be fine!
I would also maybe suggest planting things in sections over just mixing all seeds together, and just seeding that way!
if that is your plan!
seldom to just mixing ALL things work out from my experience, some things grow taller faster and shade things out and then there just stunted and wasted seeds!
clover and chicory can be mixed together if wanted, and so can the radish, turnips(also can be called rape/ brassicia) are basically the same things! and as such mixing them in same site too will be fine!
but these things will shade out your other seeds(clover/chicory)
plus the clover /chicory are going to grow for a few yrs, where the turnips and?? are once and done plantings , needing to re do the sites the following yr,m
so why waste the $$$ on the clover and chicory seeds??
08-23-2019, 07:14 PM
#6
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: a van down by the river
Posts: 8,939
I wouldn't spray if I were going to use a tillage method that can also control vegetation. If your tiller cannot handle the vegetation, a shredder should. Then the tiller should be able to make short work of the residue and what is left.
I have an 80" tiller and a decent-sized tractor, and I have yet to find anything it won't handle. Had a bunch of little mesquites and a whole lot of amaranth growing in a lot that had been packed like concrete from dry weather and the pounding hooves of cattle. It chopped up everything, including a PVC line I thought was buried a lot deeper.
I have an 80" tiller and a decent-sized tractor, and I have yet to find anything it won't handle. Had a bunch of little mesquites and a whole lot of amaranth growing in a lot that had been packed like concrete from dry weather and the pounding hooves of cattle. It chopped up everything, including a PVC line I thought was buried a lot deeper.
