harley rake/orchard prep

[SolarAndWood]

I have been picking away clearing the brush out in the lower part of the yard for a few years now. The idea is to use it for hops and a small orchard. I have it graded about as far as I am going to get with my small tractor and the boxblade mostly because there is little soil and boulders near the surface compliments of the glaciers. I'm thinking that I am going to rake what is left and then bring in top soil to fill any low spots. Is there a better way to make it mowable? I'm pretty sure I would destroy my light duty 3 pt rototiller if I tried it. I've been told that a Harley rake is the right tool but have never used one. Anyone used one with a small tractor?

 

[BucksCoBernie]

sorry I cant help you with the raking situation but I do admire your intention to plant an orchard. What type of trees are you planting? how big of an orchard? if you're going organic you could get a few guinea hens to eat the bugs at the base of the trees. also planting garlic or something in the same family will help with pest also. Comfrey is also a great herb to plant at the base of the trees...its nature's compost booster.

 

[SolarAndWood]

The area is 120x100, not sure how we are going to use it yet. Folks seem to have good luck with apples and cherries in the area. Many varieties of hops also do well here. Grapes are also an option. It is probably a stretch to have it in this year, but I hope to at least have it graded out and mowable. If nothing else, I'm glad to be rid of the scrub.

 

[LLigetfa]

Not sure what you mean by a small tractor. You mention 3pt so I'm guessing it's larger than your average riding lawnmower and has a PTO to drive the rake. What category 3pt is it? A local landscaper has a harley rake that he uses on his ASV skid steer.

 

[SolarAndWood]

A couple ton 4wd 30 hp at the pto. Cat 1 I think? Hydro flow is low like most older machines so would have to run the rake off the pto.

 

[LLigetfa]

Here is a video from www.everything-attachments.com showing a larger 6 foot model on a 30 HP tractor. They also make 4 foot and 5 foot models.

http://www.everything-attachments.com/Videos/HarleyT6Rake/HarleyRake-2-1.swf

 

[SolarAndWood]

I'll have to keep my eye out for one. The rental places here have them for skidsteers for $150/day $450/wk but I haven't seen them for a tractor. If all else fails, I'll hit it with the york rake and then go slow with the rototiller set shallow and try to steer clear of the boulders.

The thing I worry about is how little soil we have and the size of the boulders. This one was barely below the surface where I was digging a drain.

 

[LLigetfa]

Ja, I have boulders like what you show in that pic too. Plucked some of them when I had a big hoe putting in my driveway and septic field. There are still lots of them that stick up just high enough for the mower blade to hit. The ones that were small enough to remove by hand, I did. Some I beat on with a 12 lb sledge to chip off the exposed top and others I've been raising the grade around so the mower will clear. I beat on them to get a feel for how big they might be before attempting to dig them out.

I would have loved to run over the place with a harley rake to even up the grade a bit and to get rid of smaller roots and stumps, but those boulders are no match for it.

 

[SolarAndWood]

That is my dilemma. I could take the excavator down and dig them out but I think I would just make more of a mess. But, I don't want to me mowing around them for a half century. So, I guess fill it is.