Potato routine

[RussellRay]

Hello all

Compared with most posts on this forum, this is, I realize, a really small-scale question.
I am an amateur gardener growing my own fruit and vegetables on about half an acre of ground in France.

I grow potatos on a separate patch about 25 x 12 yards.
Usually I have 10 rows lengthwise with about a yard between rows.

Previously I have done all the potato work - preparing, furrowing, planting, hilling, weeding, harvesting - by hand.

I am thinking of investing in a BCS 738 two-wheel tractor (Honda GX340 petrol, 5x10 wheels) with tiller, single plow, ridger, and potato lifter.
I am now wondering how best to use these to do all this potato work using the tractor. What is the best routine for potatos ?

I am also considering the Berta rotary plow. Do I really need one ?

Best regards
Ray

 

[Ford850]

I use my BCS tiller to prep the soil. Then I plant the potatoes. I till between rows when they are a few inches tall and either hand hill the loose soil, or use the hiller/furrower to hill them. I try to get them tilled and hilled 2 times during the season, but sometimes only once. I used to hand dig them, but now use my larger tractor to 'plow' them with a middlebuster. My clay soil is too dry and hard by digging time, and the root digger plow for the BCS would not work.
I don't have a rotary plow, but my dad had a Gravely with rotary plow. We used that to plant potatoes for years. Dad would make a few passes with that plow, then we would walk down the furrow and plant a row of potatoes close to the top of the fluffy soil ridge, but still down on the furrow side slightly. Then he would make a few more passes, the first pass would cover the potatoes we just planted and the next couple would be for the space between rows. We would continue that for the width of the potato garden. That process produced some bumper crops.

 

[RalphVa]

Most people use a plow with 2 sides to it to plow up potatoes. Not sure the BCS will pull it. Depends on type soil you have.

The Berta rotary plow is probably similar to Gravely's old rotary plows. They're great for plowing up new ground and could even be used to dig your potatoes. It'll toss the soil good. That would include any potatoes in it.

I used my Gravely rotary plow to break a new garden plot totally covered in very thick tall fescue grass. Then I used it to make raised rows. Did pretty well. My 4wd JD bought 4 years later did a much more even job though with some big disc hiller rotary discs.

Then I never used the rotary plow again or even the soil ripper I had for the JD, as I went no till. I used plastic left over from whatever (old pool cover, etc) to keep weeds out from between the rows.

Ralph

 

[HEC]

I use to have a bcs Like Ford850 above and used it in a similar manner . They are a very good machine and I don't think you would need the rotary plow as I never did . Now that I have the B2650 I use that instead and sold the bcs .

 

[farm23]

I have 2 acres and use a BCS 853 for most of the work. I have a rotary plow and find it makes great raised beds. Here in the mountains with the rain we get a raised bed makes a lot sense. I have tried a number of way to harvest potatoes and at this time I use a potato plow on the front of my larger tractor and it works ok but not great. The potato plow Joel at Earth Tools has may be something to look at to get some ideas. Joel sometime checks this site and he may jump in.

 

[cmyoung2]

I used a layoff plow-furrow to plant my potatoes, just dug a trench, planted, then covered with a walking push plow. Just finished digging the potatoes with the BCS potato plow. worked great. Our soil is fairly heavy clay, and this year we did not do a good job of weed control, so we were having to deal with grass. BCS 850 with duals and about 75 lbs of weights. Beats a shovel by a long shot. Potatoes just rolled out of the ground.