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OPERATION
SeedbedPreparation
Pdor to planting, be sure the soil
is as loose and finely textured as
possible. About two or three weeks
before planting, till the garden two or
three times. Then, till once more
before planting.
When preparing the soil, till a
fresh path on each pass rather than
overlapping. This gives the wheels
maximum traction on undisturbed
soil. See Figure 3-15. Dig as deeply
as possible on each pass without
overloading the engine. Later pass-
es can be overlapped. After going
up and down the rows in one direc-
tion, make a second pass at a right
angle across your earlier rows, See
Figure 3-16. In very hard ground,
additional passes may be needed.
Don't till when the soil is too wet.
This produces large clumps which
later dry out and become hard. If the
soil compresses easily into a ball, it
is still too wet to be tilled.
Cultivating
When planning your garden, keep
in mind that the tiller has a tilling
width of approximately 14". Allow at
least this width between rows in your
garden-- plus additional width for
plant growth. Take into account that
bushy plants like beans and toma-
toes need more width.
When cultivating, use a shallow
Depth Regulator Lever setting. Do
not cultivate deeper than 1"-or-2".
Shallow cultivating keeps weed
growth to a minimum and doesn't
damage plant roots.
For best results, begin cultivating
as soon as seedlings appear, and
then cultivate as often as once a
week. The day after a light rain is an
excellent time to cultivate, as long as
the plants are dry. Avoid working in
the garden when plants are wet.
Diseases, blight, and rust can be
easily spread among wet plants with
your hands, clothing or even the
tiller.
AvoidMakingFootprints
When tilling, always try to walk
alongside the tiller on the side that is
yet to be tilled. This prevents re-
planting weed seeds and leaves a
nicer appearance.
Figure 3-15: Initial tilling pattern.
_d
°1
l
i= • • •
Figure 3-16: Second tilling pattern.
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