Trouble brewing need advice

So the wife says I got to do it now, (put the lawn in) or there's gonna be trouble, big trouble!

I need some friendly advice. I've never run a tractor before but I figured a tractor would come in handy for this lawn job so I bought an old Ford 801 with a front end loader. I got six large dirt piles with tree debris and stumps to clear. I want to reclaim all the top soil from these piles for the lawn.

What implements would be best for this task, keep in mind I'd like to clear a field or two later and try my hand at some farming too.

The land is heavy clay in the cleared area around the house and I'l need to do some grading. There's about 8 to 10 inches of top soil in the undisturbed areas.

Thanks

First, if you're planning on using the tractor on the rest of the land anyway, get a little 3-point disk, maybe 6 ft, that should be a good match for the little Ford. If it's not cutting well enough, you can throw a little weight on it. Go over it (and over it, and over it...) until you get it ground up fine for a good seedbed. You don't have to plow it deep for grass, but you'll want to get it as smooth as you can for the yard. If you have a lot of rocks or trash, the rock rake is a good idea, they're handy. I've used one to clean out our hay barn.

The bedsprings are a good idea for a harrow, but old tires are much easier to find. Tie the tires together with some good rope, in the shape of the Olympic rings - 2 in the front and 3 in the back. Pull it with a chain behind the tractor, at a fairly brisk pace to throw it around a little. use a long enough chain that it won't raise up in the front when you pull it.

Throw out your seed, then go over it with the tire-harrow again to cover it up, don't cover it with the disk, it will be too deep. Then just water it and watch it grow. I did this last year at our house and I've got full coverage this year with common bermuda.

Oh, and on the stumps - PLEASE try some other way. Unless they're pretty small stumps, that's an awfully light tractor to try to pull stumps with, and easy to flip. Be sure to hook the chain as low as you can, preferably on the drawbar. DON'T hook it around the rear end, that's too high and it makes it too easy to turn over.

Have fun with that Ford, it's a great machine, first tractor I ever drove!

Kerry

Matt

My advice is to get some seat time on your rig, then when you are ready come back here and get some spacific advice on pulling stumps.

To seed the yard: You will need to pay attention to how much sunshine you get on your yard. Then scope around and find out what the best local grass is for your area that grows well in your amount of sun (if you are in the middle of tall woods and only get a couple hours of direct sunlight per day, that makes a huge difference in what will thrive).
Then find out the best time to plant / sow that selected best grass/ground cover. No amount of surface preparation will compensate for trying to plant during the wrong season.
For most direct seed applications: 1) work the ground and smooth; 2) apply vertilize and drag in; 3) sow seed; 4) apply mulch; 5) cultipack mulch/seed to make good soil contact; 6) water as needed.
The reason for the mulch is to keep the seeds moist and keep the surface of the soil at a more even temperature and moisture. Avoiding the extremes increases the germination rate and the survivability of young grass.

We've been in our house for 2.5 years now, and just re-seeded our trouble spots for the third time. Patience and persistence. But you gotta get the seed down!
Good Luck.

To seed the yard: You will need to pay attention to how much sunshine you get on your yard. Then scope around and find out what the best local grass is for your area that grows well in your amount of sun (if you are in the middle of tall woods and only get a couple hours of direct sunlight per day, that makes a huge difference in what will thrive).
Then find out the best time to plant / sow that selected best grass/ground cover. No amount of surface preparation will compensate for trying to plant during the wrong season.
For most direct seed applications: 1) work the ground and smooth; 2) apply vertilize and drag in; 3) sow seed; 4) apply mulch; 5) cultipack mulch/seed to make good soil contact; 6) water as needed.
The reason for the mulch is to keep the seeds moist and keep the surface of the soil at a more even temperature and moisture. Avoiding the extremes increases the germination rate and the survivability of young grass.

We've been in our house for 2.5 years now, and just re-seeded our trouble spots for the third time. Patience and persistence. But you gotta get the seed down!
Good Luck.

Any time you pull with a tractor remember to pull
from the draw bar. Also, do not put a chain around a trailer hitch ball because they have been
known to break and send the ball shooting out like
a bullet.

When you pull something like a stump keep your foot over or touching the clutch so you can hit the clutch if the front end starts to come off the ground. If you are pulling from the draw bar
the front end should stay on the ground, but just
in case it doesnt be ready to use the clutch.

One time I used a large size clevis hitch on the
drawbar on my tractor to put the chain thru and
tried to pull a stump that was'nt ready to be pulled. The tractor wheels just spun and nothing
happened.