Just Tooling Around

Every year, we make adjustments to the tool set we use at the Genuine Faux Farm.  Sometimes, we make a batch of minor purchases or perhaps a major purchase.  Most years, we make some repairs or adjustments to tools that we already have in our possession.  And, every year, we work on optimizing how we use each and every one of the tools at our disposal.  Sometimes, the result of our efforts to optimize is to remove a tool from the process.  But, usually, it is just a matter of taking the experience we've built over time to get better with the tools we have.

Big Purchase for 2018
We did make a decision to go through with a major purchase for the year when we acquired a Maschio power harrow for Rosie (the tractor).  We'll try to take video of it working some day so every can see exactly what it does.  But, for now, let it suffice to say that a power harrow does not treat the soil the same way a roto-tiller does.  We are hopeful it will make our work more efficient while reducing damage we do to the soil structure when we work it.

Welcome the GFF power harrow

Believe it or not, we have been farming five acres of vegetables since 2007 and we have never owned a tiller any bigger than the walk-behind tractor.  Most farms our size are likely to have access to a roto-tiller for the back of the tractor, but we have not had that tool at our disposal.  On the plus side, this approach has encouraged us to learn the value and proper use of the disk harrow among other implements.

We came to the conclusion that one of our biggest bottlenecks was bed prep for planting throughout the season and we agreed that addressing this problem would be worth the investment in a roto-tiller, a spader or a power harrow.  We estimated that the return on investment would be realized in between three and four years by saving hours of effort - specifically in Rob's work hours.  That means the most efficient planter on the farm (Rob) can be putting things in the ground for a higher percentage of the time.

What?  Were you thinking he would get to sit in the hammock instead?  I suppose that would be nice, but we have a ways to go until that happens.

Adjustments
There have certainly been (and will be) more than one adjustment made this year in tool use, but we thought we would feature one in particular.  The picture below shows one of our S-tine cultivators that has been built to cultivate the wheel tracks of our tractor.

S-tine cultivator at GFF

Why is it called an S-tine Cultivator you ask?  Your answer is in the picture at the right.

This is a tool that has actually been on the farm since about 2012 when we were trying to figure out how to use Durnik, our 1942 (ish) Ford 8n/2n tractor.   We were able to purchase a 30 foot long cultivator and cut it into smaller sections that fit our operation's (and our tractor's) size.  The second S-tine we put together (with Band Saw Man, Jeff Sage's guidance and help) covers the entire area behind the tractor and gets used infrequently.

But, starting last year, the wheel track cultivator finally got fixed up and adjusted to work in our system with Rosie as the tractor, instead of Durnik.  The tool bar has a bit more clearance than some of our other implements, which allows us to get around larger crops without beating them up so much. 

Note the new attachment on the back

After replacing some rusted and broken parts and adjusting the tool a bit, we now have an fairly easy on/easy off implement that can get the paths behind our vegetable rows cleaned up quickly.  It doesn't cultivate too deeply so we can weed without messing with the soil structure AND it is shallow enough that we shouldn't be unearthing any new weed seeds from deeper in the soil. 

One of the best parts?  It's a fairly low-tech solution that isn't too hard for this farmer to fix if something goes wrong.  We like that.

Smaller Acquisitions and Other Adjustments
Barty the BCS (walk behind tractor) has been with us for a while now (new April 2011).  Long enough that we needed to replace the tines on the tiller (badly).  That change, in and of itself, has already paid us back with fewer passes to make a seed bed for onions, carrots, peas and beans so far this year.

We added a removable wheel for the back of the BCS so transporting it to and from the fields has become MUCH easier for us.  And, we went ahead and purchased a furrowing attachment so we could create shallow furrows for plantings things like potatoes.  We also can use this to hill potatoes if we so desire.  However, we have made adjustments to the disk hiller created by Wade Dooley several years back so it serves that purpose with Rosie in a much more efficient manner.

Perhaps the biggest adjustment has been in attitude regarding equipment.  I have not been terribly confident in my abilities to maintain, repair and efficiently use equipment.  It is not part of my background prior to farming and I have never professed to particularly enjoy changing oil, etc.  However, I took a moment and signed up for a Practical Farmers of Iowa mini-course on equipment safety and maintenance with Shane LaBrake.  I attended the first of two days and came away believing that while I am not an expert, I was (and am) sufficiently competent to do this work.  It is amazing how easily we can talk ourselves out of doing something when we don't believe we are very good at it. 

Do I believe I am a mechanic now?  Pffft.  Of course not.  I don't always remember all of the proper terminology.  Repair and maintenance work will usually take me longer than it will others with far more experience, skill or inclination.  The tools in my 'shop area' wouldn't fool anyone into thinking I do much with this sort of thing.  But, I am not going to let uncertainty stop me any longer.  I've got this - just as long as I can be allowed to "cry uncle" when the task goes beyond what I know. 

Besides, I want these tools to work for us and work well - for a long time.