Sicklebar Cutter

I've got a 48 8N with both brush hog and a sicklebar mower. I bought a hilly, very overgrown farm about 2 years ago and have been working ever since to recover the land.

Sicklebar is great for cutting grass (making hay) on relatively flat or moderately sloping land; brush hog is better for the steep hills and rough stuff; on my steepest banks (after lifting the front end of tractor many times and almost rolling it several) I got 5 goats and they do a great job. They prefer rough stuff--honeysuckle, wild rose, poison ivy--over any fine grass and do a great job on the steep slopes...plus they're fun to have around (better 'n a dog).

So unless you can buy a bigger tractor with some expensive implements my suggestion is: 'get a goat'. :-)

Good luck,
Tom

Sounds like Paul has problems where he is but we don't have those livestock laws here yet.

I keep about 30 Tennessee fainting, Nubien cross goats here that there whole function in life is to keep the fence rows clean and the brush out of my pastures.

From what experience I've had the goats will clean down to the waters edge and then they won't get in the water to cross a stream. If it's narrow enough they will jump, but they won't swim or wade the stream.

As far as fencing I have 4 strand barbed wire. So for the goats I put 1 electric wire in between the bottom and 2nd strand of barb wire and they won't attempt to go through the barbed wire fences.

Basically any livestock like cattle will work over the vegitation as well - they might take a little longer on the woody stuff, but will kill it down eventually. Now, if we could just take care of the govt.... ;)

A mower will reach down 7 feet from where you can safely drive. This often doesn't really help much. Sometimes we compromise 'safely drive' to get an extra foot or two. This game becomes dangerous real quick. There are special mowers that could do it, but as mentioned you don't have the tractor for these, and they cost as much as a new car.

Now, in my state, if there happens to be a cattail or other aquatic plant, you can't legally cut the 'wetlands' anyhow, so you end up parking the mower.

None of the answers you wanted to hear, right? :)

--->Paul