Small plot planter.
- Thread starter shawnv
- Start date
kabic
5 year old buck +
Here is another video of a similar setup
I help my father-in-law plant some sweet corn with an earth way, the ground needs to be tilled good to push it through the dirt. Maybe if it was hooked to a tractor it would be easier. There also needs to be a good amount of seed in the hopper for the seed plate to pick up a seed since it is vertical on the side.
The hoss seeder is another one to look at. The plate is on the bottom so, may be easier to run when the seeds get low. I have read that the hoss is better quality than the earthway, but have no first hand experience.
https://hosstools.com/product/hoss-seeder/
I help my father-in-law plant some sweet corn with an earth way, the ground needs to be tilled good to push it through the dirt. Maybe if it was hooked to a tractor it would be easier. There also needs to be a good amount of seed in the hopper for the seed plate to pick up a seed since it is vertical on the side.
The hoss seeder is another one to look at. The plate is on the bottom so, may be easier to run when the seeds get low. I have read that the hoss is better quality than the earthway, but have no first hand experience.
https://hosstools.com/product/hoss-seeder/
wiscwhip
5 year old buck +
I still have our old Earthway in my FIL garage after my dad sold his place. I was just getting ready to build a rig like this before he decided to sell. It worked great for sweet corn in the garden and I couldn't see how this wouldn't work behind a lawnmower or even an ATV. We even have the side dress fertilizer attachment for the one we have, they should have designed it to work while planting, but the way it is set up you would have to go over the rows twice, once for fert and once to plant. I was going to work on a way to fix that as well, all it would have needed was a few well placed angle irons.
younggun1849
5 year old buck +
I'm looking at purchasing one of these for planting corn & beans. I asked if they could add a third planter to it to make it a 3 row, and currently they don't do that unfortunately.
https://stcloud.craigslist.org/grd/4806759342.html
https://stcloud.craigslist.org/grd/4806759342.html
SmallChunk
5 year old buck +
Has anybody found one that is designed for an atv besides that last link? I would think this could be a very useful tool!
shawnv
5 year old buck +
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200418176_200418176?cm_mmc=Google-pla_with_promotion-_-Lawn + Garden-_-Lawn Spreaders-_-365392&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=365392&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=365392&gclid=CNnzuYWEzsICFUWUaQodv1kAKw
Field tough makes one.
Another spendy one:
http://www.growbrutebucks.com/equipment/go/
Not sure about this one.
http://www.lilplanter.com/p/home.html
Field tough makes one.
Another spendy one:
http://www.growbrutebucks.com/equipment/go/
Not sure about this one.
http://www.lilplanter.com/p/home.html
Last edited:
browndog
5 year old buck +
I agree with kabic, the ground would need to be tilled good and be nice and smooth. I have the same planter and have used it by pushing it only. I've had root clumps that got caught in the belt and was a PITA, knocked the belt off,etc. Seed plate for corn needs a little modification. Maybe behind a wheeler and tractor might be better.
Catscratch
5 year old buck +
I had thought of building something like that (or just pushing the planter like it was built to do) but then reconsidered. I ended up just broadcasting the seed. After germination I went through it with a cultivator and mechanically made rows. It worked pretty well.
I still might convert one like the video for a 4 wheeler.
I still might convert one like the video for a 4 wheeler.
biglakeba$$
5 year old buck +
I pulled our John Deere 290 with ease behind my ATV. Something to consider.
sticknstring
5 year old buck +
On these small 1 acre or less plots, why are rows preferred so much over broadcasting? Control of depth at planting? More light to overseed w/ other crops? Just curious as I've had great luck broadcasting the past few years. Incredibly simple and inexpensive.
I agree - I've had really good luck with soybeans by simply broadcasting the seed on disked soil and then running over it again with a drag or disc.
I've never tried broadcasting with corn, but I'm sure it would work fine as long as the correct amount of seed was used and it was covered with soil.
JackTerp
5 year old buck +
I have that exact Earthway seeder. It works fine for larger seeds but is worthless, IMHO, for seeds like radish or turnip. I bought it to plant turnips in rows through my smaller plots. I tried many times to get it to feed seeds properly and failed miserably. I can't see how it could be operated off the back of anything that travels faster than a slow walk. The gearing for the seed tray is designed to work at a relatively slow walk. Anything faster would just throw the seeds out the top of the hopper.
foggy
5 year old buck +
Yep, I think it is primarily to get the depth correct. Corn is more fussy than beans, but both can benefit from the right depth and packing the seed bed properly. I have broadcast soybeans and corn with fair success on both. I am considering a planter as it assures better depth control and results. I could have up to about 5 acres to plant.....and at some point the seed cost and work involved starts to become a factor. With the right planter you can get it done with minimal passes over the plot (3 - unless you have fertilizer attachment and a no-till $$ planter).
My plan would be to fertilize....light till the top 2"......then plant with RR corn and then with rr beans between the 30" rows. (late season I would plant brasica into this crop)
With broadcast you would do the same prep....fertilzie.....then a bit deeper till.....then broadcast 2x the seed rate....then drag the seed in.....then cultipack the seedbed. (5 trips)
j-bird
Moderator
Will these light weight planters handle the possible forces exerted on them via an ATV or the like? There is a big difference vs being used by hand like they had been designed for. Also it looks like you are going to have really well worked soil. Hopefully you guys have tillers.
Like Foggy said soybeans are much easier to grow via broadcasting and are cheaper so the additional quantity needed for broadcasting isn't as prohibitive than corn. I have always done corn in rows - it's expensive, picky and requires a totally differet fertilizer (moe expensive) than beans - so with the higher inputs I want as much insurance of a good crop as I can get - and for me that is in rows.
Like Foggy said soybeans are much easier to grow via broadcasting and are cheaper so the additional quantity needed for broadcasting isn't as prohibitive than corn. I have always done corn in rows - it's expensive, picky and requires a totally differet fertilizer (moe expensive) than beans - so with the higher inputs I want as much insurance of a good crop as I can get - and for me that is in rows.
wiscwhip
5 year old buck +
This is why you use it behind a garden tractor. The ground speed of ATV's are generally not as consistent or easily controlled as a garden tractor. Idle it down in first gear and it will crawl along nicely. We also found that the Earthway was not as forgiving with smaller seeds as well. There are some work-arounds on Youtube for some of the different size seed plates and such, not sure if they pertain to turnips or radish though. It is also why you use it with a lift hitch on the rear, either a sleeve hitch or 3 point.
Bluecollaroutdoors
5 year old buck +
Those planters are great in well worked soil. Not so good in uneven soil or anything with alot of thatch. If you have really uneven soil set the seed depth deeper or you will be looking at seed just a hair under the surface. I would be afraid something would snap pulling it behind an atv or a truck. No give and its only light metal and plastic.
Shawn and Foggy, when I first started planting corn and bean plots(3.5 acres) I used a tractor to disk the plots, then drug a drag over them, smoothing out the seedbed, I then used my 4 wheeler and pulled a horse drawn 2 row planter and planted the plots. After planting I then went over the plots with the drag again. The three years I used this method it worked great. I sprayed with my four wheeler and life was good. I see these horse drawn two row planters with fair regularity on our craigslist(omaha) for under 200 dollars. Perhaps if you want to go this route you could find these in your area.
I quit using this planter when I found a deal on a jd flex 71 2 row on craigslist. I now have 6.5 acres of corn/beans. My rotation is 2 years beans, 1 year corn. With this rotation I started with beans, no tilled beans the second year, no tilled corn into them, then shred the stalks, disk and plant beans and repeat.
The horse drawn planter was bomb proof and I never had a problem with it. I was able to plant at 8 miles and hour with the atv, then drag as fast as was efficiently possible. There is no way to use this planter effectively without first tilling and smoothing the field though.
I quit using this planter when I found a deal on a jd flex 71 2 row on craigslist. I now have 6.5 acres of corn/beans. My rotation is 2 years beans, 1 year corn. With this rotation I started with beans, no tilled beans the second year, no tilled corn into them, then shred the stalks, disk and plant beans and repeat.
The horse drawn planter was bomb proof and I never had a problem with it. I was able to plant at 8 miles and hour with the atv, then drag as fast as was efficiently possible. There is no way to use this planter effectively without first tilling and smoothing the field though.
