Bought 43 acre farm - Need Tractor

[TNJOHN1533]

So I've bought a 43 acre mostly level (gentle roll) farm in southern TN and need help figuring out what size tractor and related implements I need. It's probably 38 acre pasture, fenced and cross fenced and the rest in woods around the perimeter. Pictures below. My plan is to initially lease out some fields 25-30 acres to cattle or hay farmer so I don't have to maintain it at first. My plan with the rest initially is to plant black walnut trees, followed by growing some veggies for farm2table restaurant and road side stand, sunflower field, start pumpkin patch, grow corn for a corn maze and give tractor rides. Obviously as I expand what I'm doing I'll be leasing out less and less land and may also expand the farm as time goes on. I'll be doing one thing at a time so all these activities will take years to accomplish but this gives y'all an idea on my tasks.

Bush hogging will definitely be done on the areas not leased out and I'll need to decide on tiller vs plow and disk and then figure out what other attachments I'll need for the veggies/cover crops/sunflower/pumpkin fields. I was planning on a 50-60hp tractor w/FEL and I know I want HST (I've had a Kubota L3200 and Kioti ck20 on my little 2.3 acres). I don't really want a cab due to cost, visibility and ease of on/off. My budget for tractor w/FEL is 25k and I'd prefer something without the emissions (pre 2014?) though if the concerns with the emissions aren't warranted I'd be fine with it.. it's just a stigma in my mind and not sure if it's warranted or not.

Brands I don't want JD only because of price and my dad designed round balers and combines for NH so I just couldn't go Green LOL.
I'm looking for suggestions on whether the size tractor I'm considering is correct, suggestions on models (used/new... for example is a Kioti DK45SE big enough?) and what attachments I should consider for the pumpking patch/cover crops/veggies in terms of installation and maintenance. I have Kubota, NH, MF, LS, Mahindra all within 30-45 min and then Kioti and Branson within 2hrs. Thanks everyone.

 

[jeff9366]

So I've bought a 43 acre mostly level (gentle roll) farm in southern TN. It's 38 acres pasture, fenced and cross fenced and the rest in woods around the perimeter.

My plan is to initially lease out some fields 25-30 acres to cattle or hay farmer so I don't have to maintain it at first.

My plan is to plant black walnut trees, followed by growing veggies for farm2table restaurant and road side stand, sunflower field, start pumpkin patch, grow corn for a corn maze and give tractor rides. As I expand what I'm doing I'll be leasing out less and less land and may also expand the farm as time goes on. I'll be doing one thing at a time so all these activities will take years to accomplish.

I need help figuring out what size tractor and related implements I need.
For example is a Kioti DK45SE big enough? I have Kubota, NH, MF, LS, Mahindra all within 30-45 min and then Kioti and Branson within 2hrs.

What attachments I should consider for the pumpking patch/cover crops/veggies in terms of installation and maintenance.

Yes, a Kioti DK45SE, 4,500 pounds bare tractor, is ample for 40 acres, mostly pasture, especially for moving round bales of hay.

I would start with a 1,700 to 2,800 pound (bare weight) tractor with less than 25-horsepower. Every tractor manufacturer has several models in this weight range. Ample for vegetables, Sunflowers and a corn maze. With a Middlebuster, ample for establishing Walnuts.
CK2610 HST Compact Tractor | Kioti Tractors
Tractor Potato Plow | Middle buster

It is hard for me to imagine using more than two (2) acres for vegetables, including pumpkins. An acre of vegetables will require twenty (20) man hours (20) per week. Do you have the time?
growing pumpkins site:tractorbynet.com - Google Search


Are you planning Sunflowers as a crop?
growing sunflowers site:tractorbynet.com - Google Search

Implements: PTO powered roto-tiller, bedder, cultivator, sprayer, possibly fertilizer spreader.
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[searcyfarms]

I think you are spot on with the kioti 45/55 unit, there are some used ones around here for GREAT prices in Gear drive/shuttle I would consider if I was in the market - I have a 65hp tractor for sale but you are far away and it doesn't have a loader

 

[Tractorable]

Beautiful property! Looks like you’re going to need a tractor and a good zero turn mower. I might be looking in the utility tractor range if I were you. I always liked the New Holland Workmaster 55 with the Shibaura engine but it’s a shuttle shift. They can be found for ~$20-23K.

 

[Cat_Driver]

My advice always go bigger than you think you need it will save you the headache of buying a tractor twice. A lot of people get a smaller tractor and then they get better at handling the tractor and start to be more creative with its use and then need/want a bigger tractor. It's happened to me and a lot of us. Often times you find a bigger tractor works less hard at the same tasks as a smaller tractor, plus that fact that you can work faster with a bigger tractor. I went from a small tractor to a big tractor and I was much happier and did a lot more work with the bigger tractor. Then I got out of tractors and sold everything. Then I got back into tractors as I needed one for the property so I went with a smaller one again. I'm sorry I went against my own advice as the smaller tractor takes twice as long to do the same jobs as the bigger tractor. It's all about pulling power and lifting capacity. There are no jobs I just simply can't do because the current machine just doesn't have the lift capacity to accomplish certain tasks. So I now need to rent a bigger piece of equipment to accomplish what I need costing me a lot of wasted money

 

[TomIre]

Congratulations on what looks like a beautiful piece of land. Mostly flat? I'd sure want a bar wing bush hog if I was cutting that much.
BTW, you may already know this but black walnut trees drop juglone in their nuts and leaves. Vegetables will really struggle to grow within 50 yards of so of a black walnut.

 

[newbury]

So I've bought a 43 acre mostly level (gentle roll) farm in southern TN and need help figuring out what size tractor and related implements I need. It's probably 38 acre pasture, fenced and cross fenced and the rest in woods around the perimeter. Pictures below. My plan is to initially lease out some fields 25-30 acres to cattle or hay farmer so I don't have to maintain it at first. My plan with the rest initially is to plant black walnut trees, followed by growing some veggies for farm2table restaurant and road side stand, sunflower field, start pumpkin patch, grow corn for a corn maze and give tractor rides. Obviously as I expand what I'm doing I'll be leasing out less and less land and may also expand the farm as time goes on. I'll be doing one thing at a time so all these activities will take years to accomplish but this gives y'all an idea on my tasks.

Bush hogging will definitely be done on the areas not leased out and I'll need to decide on tiller vs plow and disk and then figure out what other attachments I'll need for the veggies/cover crops/sunflower/pumpkin fields. I was planning on a 50-60hp tractor w/FEL and I know I want HST (I've had a Kubota L3200 and Kioti ck20 on my little 2.3 acres). I don't really want a cab due to cost, visibility and ease of on/off. My budget for tractor w/FEL is 25k and I'd prefer something without the emissions (pre 2014?) though if the concerns with the emissions aren't warranted I'd be fine with it.. it's just a stigma in my mind and not sure if it's warranted or not. <snip>

Figure out the biggest heaviest thing you are going to have to transport. For example a 10' long 16" diameter walnut log weighs about 800 lbs, so be ready for that in about 30 years!

For everything else I have to agree with Jeff for the most part. You don't mention horse, round bales, haying or anything requiring 50 to 60 hp. I would think something the size of your Kubota L3200 would be great.

I've a B7610 (23HP) for small tasks and a M4700 (50HP) for large tasks, like lifting 12' long 20" diameter oak logs.

The more bush hogging you need to do the more horsepower you may require. How many acres do you envision bush hogging and how often?

How many acres of Walnut?

 

[Mike Madison]

My preference would be to look for a 20 -30 year old diesel tractor with 2-3,000 hours on the clock, well maintained, kept in a barn. Mid-size tractor (50-60 hp) should have a working life of 8-10,000 hours if well cared for. They're around, but it takes patience to find one, and you might have to haul it a ways. I think that's a much better value point. Spend the extra money on more implements., or a separate cultivating tractor, like a Farmall Super A, for the vegetables. Ford 4600, Kubota M8000 come to mind as good choices. For vegetable ground, starting from a cover crop, my sequence is flail mower, chisel plow, disk, pre-bed with shovels on a tool bar, rototiller/bed shaper. There's a bunch of implements you'll want right there.

 

[TNJOHN1533]

Jeff, I'm planning a 2-3 acre pumpkin patch to allow a pick-your-own business and then sell the rest/donate locally. The sunflowers I'm planning just a cover crop and something cool to look at including for during tractor rides. For veggies I'm planning to start with an acre but figured with running plow, disc etc I'd need something heavier than a 1700-2800lb tractor. The corn I would do about 3 acres for the maze and to sell the stalks at Halloween/Thanksgiving.

 

[TNJOHN1533]

Thanks Tomlre, I'd love a bat wing but that will have to wait. For now I'll probably get a 6' bush hog to maintain the fence lines and cut what I'm going to cut. I'm a planner but I feel like It's going to partly be a figure it out as I go kind of thing. I did know that about the black walnut trees and certain things not growing around them but thanks for reminding me! I'm also going to co-plant white pine with the black walnut as they're nitrogen fixers and will help the walnut.