Hillsides - how steep?

AC_IH_MF

Member
How steep of a slope do people still farm/mow, ect? I have some hills approaching 30 degrees that the prior owner mowed ACROSS but that just seems dumb.

What about old farm tractors with the wheels out ~8 feet? Curious what the upper end with a regular farm tractor is.
 
I know a guy who learned the hard way not to brush hog a hill side by going along it. He wrapped and 8N for around a tree and went to the hospital. The tree saved him from rolling it over and down the hill. If you mow a hill side you do so by going up and down and turn around at the top on flat ground
 
I have a slope in a rental yard.
I feel comfortable using the Jubilee to mow.
I had a pucker factor of 10 when using the Kubota, ripped the
seat cover and won't even try moving the slope.

How Steep? Depends on the pucker factor, less than 10.
 

Sure, but what scenario are people actually doing? Are people farming 20 degrees? 25? This guy mowed a dam that is 30 degrees going across on a MF1240. 20 is my comfort limit.
 
(quoted from post at 15:39:49 05/13/22) Every hill/tractor/situation is different.

And the operator is also a factor. If someone is not comfortable, even if its a 5 degree slope, they shouldn't be on it.
 

That can go the other way too with people not realizing they are on the edge of rolling being complacent.
 
I have hill sides that I have to mow across because going downhill the tractor would just slide on the juicy clover grass. Don't know how many degrees.
 
The embankments along freeways look way steeper than I would try, but I see
them doing it all the time!

I think they use special low center gravity tractors too.
 
I have been mowing the road ditch with the Allis C for years where in the steepest part I ride the high side brake to keep the front
wheels from sliding down. I just mowed one pass yesterday and when I started back on the second pass I decided to take it up on the
road and skip where I had always mowed. I guess it was the pucker factor got me. The State of Ohio will come by twice a summer and
knock it down. The neighbors and I have kept about a 1/2 mile mowed with the lawns for over 20 years. Mostly new neighbors now so maybe
one of them will take pity on me and mow it.
 
Years back there was a farmer out east of our place . Very hilly there and he used a doodle bug to farm with. One year on a side hill he rolled it over.
He said it rolled 3 times before dared to jump off. Give me flat ground anytime.
 
no idea the actual grade but my tractor (1070) slides if I go across and not up and down. 2470 will spin out going strait up if I try to
scratch the ground with the cultivator. I go up on a lesser slope and come down the steep part. do the same when making hay on it. It is
best for pasture but the owner doesn't allow.
 
20 percent makes me nervous in the
combine. Doesn't matter whether I'm
looking up or down when I'm on the
contour. always hang a butt cheek over the
seat. Older Deere sidehill machines
couldn't quite level up they only went to
18
 
Well, I believe a good operator knows how far to go. I'm very cautious with grades. That's how I've trained my guys. We have very few steep grades and then again we've had no accidents.
Thank goodness for that!
 
You're asking a question that doesn't have a definite answer. There are too many variables. I have two tractors that are nearly identical, but one of them has 1200 pounds of wheel weights added on the rear. There is no comparison between the two tractors.
 
Dew on the grass, a little bit of greasy mud, a fox hole, a hidden stump, 23 degree vrs 45 degree rear tire lugs, a little too much speed, a little too much acceleration or brakes, etc. can all change what is safe to unsafe. Be cautious and try a little bit more at a time to be safe.

Dumb question:
If you are not cutting the hillside for hay, do you really need to mow it? There are millions of miles of steep road ditch, back slopes of terraces, drainage ditches, creek banks, etc. that never get mowed. They are covered in dense grasses that dies off each winter and regrows through the thatch every spring, just like the prairies did for thousands of years.

In Iowa brome grass and perennial rye grass are good ground covers. Your ASCS office should be able to tell you what ground covers work well in your area. To establish a new stand, sometimes a fast growing cover crop like oats will control soil erosion until the permanent cover crop gets established.
 
My riding mower will slide down the bank behind my garage. If the grass is dry I can drive up the slope, but it will spin a little if I don't lean back in the seat. Going across the slope will not have a harmonious outcome either. You can only do what the machine can handle and that is open to the operator's skill and risk taking.
 
This is my steepest slope. No problem when dry in 2wd. If damp I use 4wd. When the pond is dry, I go up and down. My ZTR would slide sideways sometimes when going across.
cvphoto125696.jpg


cvphoto125698.jpg
 
There is no answer that fits all. It depends on the driving speed, center of gravity of the implement, width of the implement, the coefficient of friction of the grass/tires, operators skill set and
smoothness of the slope. It may be just fine to operate on a slope that is smooth but if your downside wheel encounters a hole or low spot, you may exceed the operating limits and roll the implement.
 
I guess it depends on the comfort factor. I farm a couple short grades with probably close to 25% slope. These are only a 50 foot or so length along an old Trolley car rail bed that went through the place close to 100 years ago. Some of the slope is that steep at the edge of the field most of it is up or down hill. I just spread fertilizer on it and have to turn at the side of the hill for a couple turns. I do slow down in gearing and leave throttle alone since it controls the pattern. Been working that since I was a kid. We also have a whole field that the first time in 40 years since it has had anything but pasture on it. I planted corn on it the last 2 years. It is going into Oats and alfalfa this spring. I remember working it as a kid we even dug off some of the hills for fill and flattened the slopes on a couple hills. I think the Soil book calls them 12-15 or a bit more on some of it. Like in the 18-25 range maybe .I would have to look for actual slopes by them. The rest if pretty flat compared to those couple places.
 

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