I often get asked what the heck is all that farm equipment for? Do you really need all that stuff? Well yes and no. I do use much of it and some of it is for repairs and backups and some of it is for future use. The average farm keeps some 30 pieces of farm equipment. A diversified farm more than that. Here where I use both horses and tractors some equipment repeats because it has to be smaller for the horses.
Ideally, I would have a big drive in barn for the gear because I can't stand to see it rusting and rotting outside but budget remians a budget. Max tells me the old Bower equipment left when Vic came on the place--most of what was left ruined anyway.
Recently I moved every piece of equipment, mowed and moved it back. I would like to finish the drive through by the granary this year. But the bathroom is hitting me hard and I am trying to hire a man to build it for me.
At any rate, this is what I have:
This is the granary and future site of the drive through.
Stock trailor for moving almost anything, even plants from Florida or as temporary housing for pigs one year.
This is an antique spike tooth harrow from dick weese's auction from the 1800's. I bought it becauase they are rare but ruined it by keeping it outside. It is going underneath the granary with the old horse hitches left there from before me.
This is a newer spike tooth harrow for three point hitch. It is useed to break up sod clumps more finely than a disk or springtooth harrow can. I use it for fine seed seed beds.
This is a horsedrawn cultivator. I used it to cultivate/weed the plants in the bottom field and back garden. I have a second one set up for hilling potatoes.
This is one of several horse disks. I have yet to use them but hope to. Usually I get in such a rush that I pull out one of the two tractor disks.
This is one of two drop seeders. I used it with the horses and less often with the tractor to seed the bottom fields. I later bought a broadcast seeder that can be used with the tractor when precision isn't important. If I were to going to precisely seed a large bed this would be the ticket again.
This is a forage chopper I bought to convert to making chopped mulch from old hay bales. The mulch spreads easier and is more occlusive to weeds. However I bought it right before Hurricane Charlie and we haven't mulched in the meanwhile. This may have to go as I am more interested in green mulches now.
This is a potato digger. I used it the year we had potatos in the middle bottom field garden.
This is a springtooth harrow. I use it before the spike tooth harrow and after disking--yep, I harrow three ways.
This is a log drag left here by another farmer that I adopted to mix seed into sod when I overseed into the fields.
Antique walk behind cultivator that will go under the granary.
This is an elevator I use to load square bales into the barn.
This is a horse or tractor stone boat that I use for carryin g round bales or field st\one or anything I don't want to lift more than 1 ft. It is also the primary horse training tool as it drags and provides resistance. I don't like it to be used with a truck.
This is a field drag. Dick Weese told me I'd use this more than anything but I don't. Frankly, not using too much pesticide keeps the dung beetles active and tearing the poop apart which is its main purpose. I have used it to open sod before over seeding. Or smoothing out soil.
I use these for moving square bales. I wish I had 2 or 3 more of them so I could finish removing hay in field before loading up barn. I also use them to move hay off farm to neighbors.
This is the primary farm wagon. Built by Max, rebuilt by me it carries everything including three round bales on asphalt roads to neighbors. Hooked to a forecart with brakes I use it with the horses as well.
One of 2 1/3 tractors I own. I would have another if I could. I would rather have several old tractors than one new one. My new farmer friends so foolish as to buy a new tractor experience the same number of breakdowns as I do but have no backup and new tractors are much more difficult to repair.
This is a chattanooga two-way disk plow I used once with the horses. The seat is so loose as to be scary and needs a new custom bearing. Disk plows are better on rocky soil. I keep it because it is quite rare--i know of only one other in a museum in virginia.
One of two tractor travel disks I use. These are used often and they break often.
This is a cultipacker that is used to press seed into the seed bed. I use it on nearly every large seed bed and also as a final roller before seeding.
This is a shovel used on 3-point hitch in lieu of a front end loader. It doesn't work well and I will get rid of it.
One of two hay rakes. In haying I have to have two of everything. When the weather is right I can't be stopped because of equipment failure.
One of two manure spreaders that I use to spead horse manure or rotted haylage. The other spreader has been stripped of gear to use as a horse wagon.
First horse equipment I bought. This dump rake is complete which is unusual. I haven't used it yet. I went to a side delivery rake. Am told it makes a great garden cleaner.
This is one of two transplanters. This is a furrow or tobacco transplanter. I use it for plants and root crops that I don't put under plastic. The other transplanter punches a hole in plastic. The tank drops water onto the plant.
This is a square baler it took two years of repair to get working right. It is my only square baler and did several thousand bales this year. Also have round baler for the big bales.
This is a field sprayer I bought because the tank was new and so could be organic. Waiting to be used when we do big gardens again.
This is a hole digger that has saved me often. I even use it for trees.
This is one of three horse mowers and I have a tractor mower as well. Sickle bar mowers cut cleanly for hay. I have 500 dollars in parts waitiing to be put on this mower. Since I broke a casting on the Big No 4 mower this year I will have to rebuild this McCormick Deering #9--this is the favorite mower for modern horseman. In this state i paid 400 for it. When I finish rebuilding it it will be worth 1200 to 1500.
I use this flat trailor for moving equipment with ramps to roll it on. I modified a boat trailor and it works well.
This Oliver two-bottom plow along with Max's plow are used to plow gardens. Thirty years ago plows were in disrepute in favor of sod seeders and roundup. In another twist of knowledge modern research now shows that sod seeders create more erosion and compaction than plowing. Of course, the Amish have plowed all this time with acdtual soil buildup but researchers were slow to study them. The newest method is to seed into rolled green mulches but for seed that needs a fine seed bed. Deep plowing is not necessary if standard plowing is done properly and at the right time.
One of two bale picks used to move round bales. This one goes on the loader bucket on the front-end loader.
One of two garden tractors we use for mowing and hauling. I have used this to mow between rows in gardens when I have sod islands between seed rows. The kids mow with these.
The loafing shed has an antique hay loader and grain binder. Everyone I met who has used a hay loader hates them but loose hay is still the best so will make a buck rake instead. The grain binder allows me to pull grain with horses but have yet to do that yet but will. The granary has two old corn planters--one in museum condition the other a knot type cross planter which is just too difficult to explain here.
I also missed the horse forecart which is a means of using horses to pull tractor equipment--for example, I have a 3-point hitch attachment for the forecart. It also makes a good ride. I once took Zeke and Ashlyn on a cantor in the fieldas and it felt like flying. Not dangerous at all and thrilling. You just must know the field so you know the stretches that are free of ground hog holes--the only time the horses have walked intoa hole is when walking over fresh cut hay. Otherwise they seem to have a sixth sense about them.
Well that's it. I am sure I have missed things but it is a good survery. Wish I had an old combine but they are just too expensive.