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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Sweeps, knives, shovels

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  • From: Johnathan Yelenick <yelenick AT riseup.net>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Sweeps, knives, shovels
  • Date: Fri, 05 Feb 2010 09:25:36 -0700

Check this out:

http://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/Videos/weedvideo.htm
This is a fabulous video giving a survey of some of the latest and greatest weed machines out there.

http://www.marketfarm.com/
Click the "online catalog" tab, then click the "cultivators" tab. I like the Williams Tool System description in particular.

Best,
Johnathan Yelenick
Blacktail Permaculture Farm
South Platte River Watershed of the Short Grass Prairie Steppe Bioregion

Message: 1
Date: Thu, 4 Feb 2010 15:14:47 -0600
From: Chris Corbin <corbincdc AT gmail.com>
Subject: [Market-farming] Sweeps, knives, shovels
To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org

Hi,
I am looking for information on the different intricacies of cultivating
tools for weed control. We currently do a lot of hand weeding and would
like to try to do weeding with tractors. We have an old farmall tractor
with a belly mount cultivator and standard row crop sweeps( now rusty). I
am looking at buying some new sweeps. We run a raised bed 3-2-1 mixed
vegetable system with some plastic. Our beds are spaced 4ft from side to
side. The rows are set up 15" in the center and 9" on the edge. My plan is
to use the belly mount cultivator in the rows and a rear cultivator
for the
wheels and the side of the bed with knives.

Can any one point me in a direction where I can read about how these
different implements function in the soil or your experience. For instance
how does a beet sweep compare to a standard row crop sweep
http://www.agrisupply.com/sweeps--row-crop/c/4500039/c2c/sc/. When should I
use knifes as opposed to sweeps. What size of a sweep do I buy if I want to
cultivate 15" rows- throwing some dirt or alot of dirt? Does the size
matter or is it more of the pitch and depth? This place has a lot of
different kinds http://www.nicholstillagetools.com/products/

I could be making things too complex and maybe these thing just need to be
experimented with not read in a book or a listserve, but I thought I would
check before I start to purchase these implements. I realize these things
also change with the type of crop and growth stage, but some general
guidance would be helpful.

Thanks




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