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CLEARING THE TINES
Beforeclearingthetinesby hand,stoptheengine,allowall moving
partsto stop and disconnectthe sparkplug wire. Failureto followthis
warningcouldresult in personalinjury.
* Thetines havea self-clearingaction whicheliminatesmostof the
tanglingof debris. However,occasionallydry grass,stringystalks
ortough vinesmay becometangled.Followtheseproceduresto
helpavoidtanglingand to clearthe tines, ifnecessary.
* To reducetangling,setthedepth regulatordeepenoughto get
maximum"chopping"actionas the tineschopthe materialagainst
the ground.Also, try to till undercrop residuesor covercrops
whilethey are green,moistand tender.
* Whiletilling,try swayingthe handlebarsfromsideto side(about
6" to 12").This"fishtailing"action oftenclears the tinesof debris.
TILLING TiPS & TECHNIQUES
Beforetilling,contactyourtelephoneor utilitiescompanyandinquire
l ifundergroundequipmentor linesare usedon yourproperty.Do not
[till nearburiedelectriccables,telephonelines, pipesor hoses.
Tilling Depth
* Thisisa CRT(counter-rotatingtine)tiller.As thewheelspull
forward,the tines rotatebackward.Thiscreatesan "uppercut"
tine actionwhich digsdeeply,uprootingsoilandweeds.Don't
overloadtheengine,but digas deeplyas possibleon eachpass
On laterpasses,the wheelsmay tendto spin inthe soft dirt. Help
themalongby lifting up slightlyonthe handlebar(onehand,palm
up, worksmosteasily).
* Avoidthetemptationto pushdown on the handlebarsin an
attemptto force thetiller to digdeeper.Doingso takesthe weight
off the poweredwheels,causingthemto losetraction.Withoutthe
wheelsto hold the tiller back,the tineswill attemptto propelthe
tiller backward,towardsthe operator.
Whencultivating(breakingupthe surfacesoil aroundthe plants
to destroyweeds,See Figure15),adjustthe tinesto dig only 1"
to 2" deep. Usingthe shallowtillingdepthhelpspreventinjuryto
the plantswhose rootsoften growcloseto the surface.Ifneeded,
liftupon the handlebarsslightlyto preventthe tinesfromdigging
too deeply.(Cultivatingon a regularbasisnot onlyeliminates
weeds,it also loosensandaeratesthe soil for bettermoisture
absorptionandfasterplantgrowth.)Wateringthegardenareaa
fewdayspriortotilling will maketillingeasier,aswill lettingthe
newlyworkedsoil setfor a dayor twobeforemakinga final, deep
tilling pass.
Figure15
Choosing the Correct Wheel & Tine Speeds
Withexperience,you willfind thetilling depthand tillingspeed
combinationthat is bestfor yourgarden.Setthe enginethrottleleverat
a speedto givethe engineadequatepowerandyet allowit to operate
at the slowestpossiblespeeduntilyou haveachievedthe maximum
tillingdepthyou desire.Fasterenginespeedsmaybe desirable
whenmakingfinal passesthroughtheseedbedor whencultivating.
Selectionof the correctengine speed,in relationto thetilling depth,
will ensurea sufficientpowerlevelto do thejobwithoutcausingthe
engineto labor.
14
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