How to till without a tiller better than a tiller can till
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- Опубліковано 27 вер 2024
- This is my go-to human-powered tool for breaking new ground.
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Tilling without a tiller is difficult with hand tools. We used to double-dig with a fork and a spade, but now we use a broadfork to till new ground. The Meadow Creature broadfork is the only one I use, since it's indestructible.
Gardening without gas is important in hard times, and I have tested this broadfork extensively and it's never failed me.
Over a five year period, using a broadfork and cover crops, my soil has transformed from heavy clay with a plow pan to dark loam. The Meadow Creature long fork is pretty incredible
My dads autotiller broke so its time for broadfork.
I have a Meadow Creature broadfork and I love it for breaking up my rocky clay soil and tenacious sod.
On a side note, Tenacious Sod would be a great name for a bluegrass band.
I bit the bullet last year and bought a Meadow Creature after watching you use it on several videos. I was hesitant about the price but I did it. It was a great investment. I'm able to turn over ground to a depth that would require a tractor with a disc harrow, and that's with heavy clay soil. I've got 6" of good topsoil and nothing but hard, red clay underneath. The meadow creature rips through it like it's nothing. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to break ground for any reason.
aaah yes!! this is what i need. i just can't afford to keep repairing my tiller and my husband is sick of keeping up on it. i have clay soil too... can't even take a shovel to it.
What size do you recommend?
I'm so glad that you found a place that has soil that doesn't require dynamite.
My friend made me one from scrap iron. Love it.
Good friend!
OMG 😲. SO GLAD to see this. Lol I primarily use my broad fork to help keep my chicken run, and duck pens of deep bedding aerated, and sometimes I forget to use it elsewhere. 😅
A tool I like to use for removing Bermuda grass is a garden turner. Four prongs with a post and two handles that you just stab and twist.
Meadow Creature is definitely worth every cent. I went through 2 other brands that didn't even last 100-200 sq ft including the free replacements. DTG's original video popped up while I was researching and sure as 💩I was able to broadfork over 5000 sq ft of rocky decomposed granite and clay. It took a few weekends due to the hardpan but the fork definitely seems indestructible.
I have a steel broad fork and was absolutely amazed at how easily it can turn soil.
YES!!! the broad fork is like magic!! we got our first one this year. We now have aerated loose garden areas for the first time!!
Chevy brand broad fork, like a rock
Here's a pro tip, anytime you have to dig in a fallow field, do so after you've had a little rain, but not the same day as the rain. You want the soil wet, so the blades will sink in, but not muddy.
Outstanding - THANK YOU!
As a welder/handyman with a TON of scrap steel, and strapped for cash, this is a dream come true! Much appreciated!
I see them selling for 100-300 each if you wanna jump on that action.
I just purchased compost everything! It came in yesterday can’t wait to read it!
Thank you.
Here in SW MO those rocks make the wall for my garden beds.
I use the LAM broadfork. It’s solid steel and pretty cheap.
I have seen a model like that before.
Hey, thanks for your comment! I’ve never heard of this broadfork until now. I looked it up out of curiosity and it’s made in Ohio with American steel. No paint on it which I honestly prefer, and significantly cheaper than the Meadow Creature.
The MC is a trusted heavy duty tool, but it’s great to have the option to support an independent craftsman who makes quality tools at an affordable price. I’m torn between the two at the moment!
@@zaizen4359 Yeah, I like the design of the meadow creature but to be honest broadforking is a one time thing for me since I’m using a no-till approach and releasing worms into the garden. I didn’t see the need to spend the extra $150. Granted, I have very sandy soil here in florida so I didn’t need the sharp tines in order to penetrate the compacted layers. If I had clay soil I might have bought the MC.
Would you do a video on the absolute most necessary gardening hand tools?
“How do you prepare garden beds without a tiller??” Haha, we dug up a huge garden (~1,000 sqft) with a WEEDING hoe in Midwestern black dirt as kids (I know that makes me sound old but I promise I’m only in my twenties). I remember the first time we borrowed a tiller from someone and watching it just chew through ground that took us days to work. Moral of the story is- where there is a will there is a way but use something better than a weeding hoe to break sod.
I like no till gardening.
@@anbb5114 While no till does have advantages, there are many disadvantages.
Deep tilling can kill off insect eggs that overwinter (hornworm and Mormon Cricket comes to mind).
Tilling can help loosed heavy/clay/compacted soil.
50% of a plants energy goes into root growth. Harder the soil the more energy is used to grow roost, not plant and fruit.
You can till in soil amendments to add tilth to heavy soil.
Tilling also aerates the soil. Roots need oxygen.
No till can be done well after the above has been done with better results.
If you dug a hole in hard heavy soil and planted a tree, the hole walls act like a pot and you can get root circling.
@@anbb5114, no-till, is a goal. It should not be a religion, as too many youtubers have made it. It can take years to get soil ready for no-till.
Tillers can only do so much I got that red Georgia clay and it just bogs a tiller up. I have to have my father in law use his tractor from time to time and bust it up with one of those cutter implements.
@@dl8619 I have hardpan. Soil as hard as concrete. Tiller can only go a few inches deep. I then have to soak the ground, wait a day or two, then till another few inches.
NO FUN.
Digging with a shovel is really difficult.
Usually once I get the tilling done, I put something in and till it to mix and fluff everything.
Still a battle as it wants to harden back up.
There are times I have to remove that soil and bring in good soil.
Another time I built a Hugelgarden on top of the soil just to plant something.
I found d that with this method, running a wheel hoe with 2 tines helped rip the grass out nicely while leaving the soil behind. Then rake the rest.
Had mine for a few years, I was glad to find one in New Zealand made by the Crafty Gardener, it was expensive but soon paid it way, been breaking new ground with it since. Sometimes I use a long blade hoe that is solid steel to chop away grass first. Until I broke it today. So, back to just broad forking.
That is a huge area to broadfork David, but at least you have an army of helpers in the family.
Very nice! From where I come from, we use good old shovel and rakes method. You just have to use a shovel to flip each chunk of soil in the air and drop it down from high enough so that it breaks apart on impact. Most weeds end up up side down; then you use rakes to smooth out the surface and grab any remaining small rocks or bigger weeds. But still, I would prefer your method here to till some very rocky or compacted soil, because doing it with a shovel is a bit of a nightmare if anywhere you dig there's a rock and you get constant sparks. As always, thanks for great tips, David!
They definitely aren't cheap at a few hundy each. But then again tractors start at ten grand. I could pay for one and have some kid do all the work for cheaper than a tractor. I've always had a leaning towards human powered tools. People think about how much labor mechanization saves but they don't factor in the cost of buying the machinery. I can get to my local grocery store almost as fast as a car on my mountain bike but I don't spend hours each week paying for a car so in the end I come out way in front on the overall time expended.
Yeah, I agree. And even if I had the tractor, I like a backup.
I don't put the dry weeds in a compost pile...I burn them and put the ash from them either into the compost or on the garden bed. Broadforks are expensive for the small gardener but it seems they are worth the expenditure...and...you get exercise too! Thanks David for the video encouragement.
That works, too!
I LOVE mine! I showed it to hubby several years back and told him he could make me one. He welds and we had a couple old pitch forks that didn't have handles. So he put those together and made the thing you step on and welded them to it and put handles on it. To start out when he made it the thing weighted a ton. lol so he took some of the metal off it and now it's perfect!!!
Hello southern how are you feeling today
Would the 16 inch broadfork be much of an advantage over the 12 inch?
Wondering the same
Goodness I love this guy. He takes the snootyness out of gardening. It isn't a recreational pass time. If you're not a billionaire, it's self preservation. It's so nice to see modern day agricultural science in the hands of folks like us. Thanks man, hope you and your family stay and accelerate your prosperity
Thank you - that is kind of you.
My husband says your sidewalk to nowhere must be a government project😁
Build Back Somewhere or Other
I'd love to have a broadfork. I don't know about clay soil but, in glacial till, which is full of stones, a tiller is a hundred pound beast that will wear you out!
I used a tiller to beat the sod apart. After that, it's a digging fork to loosen the native soil. Soooo much more relaxing!
Maybe they can weld handles on the inside part of the posts so one can do dips while digging! 😀
I've been doing the same with my compost fork. Twice as much traveling around but quite good still. Saves me from spending on another tool for now too. A garden fork would probably be better but I use what I already have :)
We have VERY rocky soil and are by a busy road so I am afraid a rototill could be quite dangerous. It's bad enough when the lawnmower finds a rock. Also just kind of excessive for a small backyard plot.
Hardpan requires DYNAMITE to break loose. It is literally rock hard.
That's what settlers had to do.
If you did that tilling in the fall, then turned that sod upside down, by spring time you have great soil and little to no weeds. Worms are deep in the soil by then.
Fun fact: modern tilling nearly made the Mormon Cricket extinct. And that is a GOOD thing.
No-till is a great goal, but too many youtubers have made a cult of it. It can take years to have soil ready for no-till.
@@mosheshekelsteinspanbergbl5624 Have you seen a commercial grade no tiller?
Funky looking thing that punches holes int he soil, drops a seed, and covers in one process.
It is used in formerly tilled fields.
I have been working on my soil for years already. Gypsum is my friend lol
And still is gets hard as a rock.
But getting better though.
Bought some night crawlers to put in the garden. Had to use a drill and bulb auger just to make the hole to put them in. And still could not go in very deep.
Back to Eden is a great way to help the soil.
@@crazysquirrel9425, perlite will lighen your soil. You may have to dig and remove some clay to be able to sink topsoil, sand, and perlite deep enough. I don't only use a tiller to break soil, but to thoroughly mix it. I'm familiar with the back to Eden method, but it won't sink good soil into clay on a hill for any significant depth. It will be good for maintenance, once proper soil depth is established.
I can vouch for the Treadlite broadfork with the steel handles in compacted light clay. It's solid!
I have the treadlite all day broadfork. Im a senior. I live in georgia on a new property thats nothing but HARDpan sandy clay once youre about 4 or 5 inches down. The bf is great! Works BETTER than any tiller and even at my age,using it is manageable.🙂
Great tool easily pulls up large running bamboo rhizomes, in 5 years have only bent the handles a little. still works great!
The sound of the roots breaking at 1:00 would make a good ASMR video. You know, for weirdos.
John Jeavons double dig I met him at one of his demonstrations in Austin, Tx and also did a 3 week class with Bill Mollison in Half Moon Bay🥰
Yes, I have done that.
I bought one, was abut $100 on amazon, its junk, to light for anything.
So spend the extra and get a good heavy broadfork....
I used a two wheeled tractor spent this year collecting obsolete cultivators etc for it,
My favorite is powered with an 80cc $100 HF engine, it started as a tiller.
then in a lot of antique junk, I found one with the same chassis, BUT HAD wheels.
and a middle buster plow. So over the next few months I manged to find
a few more of the iron V cultivators to go behind it. My rocky soil, has basket ball
sized flat rocks and its a challenge. Love you videos David, great inspiration,
I share them to gab in the homesteading off grid group.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Good 🏃 exercise. Nice intro. Love the sound of the cows 🐄
Looking good bro!
Good morning!
Wait, you can get your broadfork to go all the way into your soil? Maybe I should stop this carnivore diet and gain some weight!
A tip for novices with the broadfork. Don't do it in bone dry soil. Best after some rain. :)
Loving seeing you start this all from scratch again! Everything you’ve shared has been really helpful. Future video ideas:
1. How to interpret the soil test from Logan Labs.. some categories said what the amounts should be with acceptable ranges, but others didn’t. What does it all mean and what should our next steps be?
2. A video with a list of plants that are helpful in unexpected ways.. like things that are not necessarily edible, but help the edibles because they are nitrogen fixing, great for biomass, etc. I know you have a bit of these fun facts mixed in with every video, but it would be cool to see a top favorites list.
To answer #1 buy Steve Soloman's book The Intelligent Gardener, in it he explains how to read a Logan Labs soil test and what to do about it and so, so, much more.
@@makettlekettle7148 thanks, it’s on my list! I had a feeling that would be the answer..haha
I have Bermuda grass (I hate it!), I don't have a broad fork but I have a pitchfork. I'm gonna try this, thanks for the video!
Yes! The broadfork! We have hard clay and rock. 🤦♀️
I knew it'd be the broadfork 😂 So cool. Who needs to pay for crossfit?!?!?!
Thanks for the video was dying outside digging lol
Till next time...
Still have shards of fiberglass in my arm from 5 minutes of use of one bought at walmart. Somewhere a chinamen is LHAO.
Never lose the trademark white socks 😂💖
Hi David, wondering if you put a semi circle / bow shaped above the cross beam on the handles, to give greater lifting leverage and lifting height,.(Pivot point) They may need to be broad for for soft ground ? Like the sound of the calf in the background.
You broke my heart when I realized you needed a driveway or a sidewalk. Well my search continues. Thanks anyways dang it!
Great info, thanks. Sounds like you have very happy cows : )
I really like your soil, it looks very rich.
That broad fork is amazing David. Someone like me could use body weight and leverage to hand till a space. Relatively little strength could be required. Where did you ever find such a tool David? I was born with genetic neuromuscular illness and super hypermobile joints and connective tissue issues. This broad fork would drastically improve my gardening life and I am VERY interested in learning from you where you aquire such wonders please.
I got mine from MeadowCreature.com. They make a lighter 12" tine model, too, which is easier to use. This is the 14".
I need this in my life.
It’s nice but it will work the snort out of you lol. I have one so I know. Smh
i have one and used it a few times, mainly it is a standby now as my most excellent man brought over his ancient tiller that he rebuilt with a used motor that he hand tooled to fit it...running a white with a rebuilt honda😍 the man is a better prep than the meadow creature! but if there is no gas...i can do the fork, it'll take two days to do what the tiller can do in 30 min...
@@evelynkorjack2126 maybe so, but it will not break and do it without gas. Please don't get me started on the man thing.
I use blue tarps to kill weeds and kill the seeds in ground. A week or two and everything is dead under a blue tarp. We have a thin layer 2" of top soil with white sand under it in northern MI. Tilling don't work for us, because we loose our top soil into the sand. Found it better to leave all nutrients where they are at.
i sharpen a spade and cut a line of turf, and stack it to my left .
most worms remain and you can build a composted mound with grass on top on the left. worms still in that pile too. you can use a tiny hand held shovel to cut tiny half cell size holes for seed. scrape fine soil to plug the holes.
keep the watering can to left so you can just water the hole as u go.
if you get potatoes for example you can dig a small hole and plot in the potato. to mound up just roll the turf upside down leaving a bit of gap etc. can do the same with other plants like cabbage, celery …
big plants like brassica reach into the turf mound.
grass breaking down brings life. life is intact on the grass paths and most still on the bed as you only took a bit of turf.
can’t really do it for carrots unless you know the soil type structure what’s underneath etc. carrots don’t like rotting grass underneath so lazy bed grass flip don’t work. in that case i just do a single thorough till as deep as can about 40cm. might put real compost on top in winter.
can decide to flip turf for grass growth or grass decay. make a grass sandwich with soil to sun.
I priced the broad fork I need. 289$ I'm gonna plant some plants to sell.
Where are you planning on
buying your tool from that
it's that expensive?
If you plant prairie grasses, their deep roots will break up soil.
The following year or two, you should have decent soil.
If it's indestructible sounds like it's worth the money. Rather that then keep replacing the cheaply designed ones. Would probably save money in the long run.
Yeah, that's why I bought a Meadow Creature for my sister. She had a cheapie and it broke on her. I know this one won't.
My tiller broke, just in time for spring planting! I've broken digging forks in my clay soil before; we'll see how my broadfork fares. 😅
I have a different brand broadfork that's pretty good but the handles bolt on, are fiberglass over wood, and I'm afraid I'll break them eventually. My soil, if you can call it that, is clay with virtually no organic matter. Trying to cover crop and get some production at the same time. Plus new area, climate, and pests. Will consider their 16 inch model.
That title is reminiscent of: "How would a woodchuck chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood? A woodchuck would chuck wood if a woodchuck could chuck wood!".....LMAO
My first garden was in Denver. I used a garden spade and a rake. LOL
That's an awesome tool. I have not seen one before. I'm not sure if we have one out here at the settlement. Thanks David!
Oh my. Looks like a lot of work!
Sure hope you can find a close neighbor with a tractor to begin this huge garden space quickly and for more easily then by hand.
I recognized that sound at 5:50 as the sound of a hot humid day beginning. No fun.
Do you have a link for the meadow creature? They need to know that you endorse them heartily.
They know me - I ran ads for them for free for multiple years, because I love their tools. The website is meadowcreature.com. Good people.
I love the sidewalk to NOWHERE ! David, how much land are you going to broadfork?
Probably 5,000 ft2 or so.
Thanks David, that's awesome!
Now that’s a forking Good apparatus 🔱✨✅
Good Sir, (David the Good Sir) Strange Question.
If your put a bunch of seed potatoes in a field, and just left them alone, for a few years, spaced out a little bit... Would the field slowly become a factory of emergency potatoes and keep spreading and spreading?
In my area (zone 3), the answer is no. The potatoes which are not harvested freeze, turn to mush, and feed the soil but do not grow again the next year.
I'm in Michigan and I've heard people say potatoes came back on their own after winter. I've also read that potatoes are somewhat hardy perennials but are grown as annuals because otherwise they become overrun with pests and blight
Ive left potatoes in the ground like that for an emergency survival crop. Doesnt take long for the potato worms and beetles to decimate everything. I agree with the previous comment that while they can be grown as perennials, they should be treated as annuals. Sweet potatoes however; are much more resistant to pests when used as a perennial (in the south).
At the beginning of your video, I thought cows had something to do with the tilling, judging by the sounds in the background.
They were complaining that Rachel wasn't out there.
Can’t wait to buy one. Need to save up. Awesome tool 👍
Would this be an effective tool to use on recently cleared land still populated with roots and small shrubbery? The goal is to seed a simple lawn area on the side of the house. Thx.
Thanks David I'm so gonna get 1 have a blessed day 🙏 ☺ 🇺🇸 👍
“Moo” 🐮.
I like that sound
DO NOT, people, buy that $100 amazon broadfork. I got that for Christmas. It can NOT handle crab grass or the random boulder/chimney bricks. I was so traumatized (omg my back) that I bought a 2 pk of meadow creature broadforks. It's WORK. Make no mistake. WORK WORK. But it's worse when you get the job half done and then the yard reclaims the work you did while waiting on the replacement tool in the mail and you have to start over.
Also, the easy digging grub hoe.... survived my finding the kids had left it out in a side yard with a john deere riding mower. The MOWER didn't, but the grub hoe is still trucking.
Yes . My meadow creature has dug up over200 bricks and concrete pavers that were 5 inches under my now 2000 square foot garden
What size did you get?
I only have a shovel but it seemed to work OK. But pulling the weeds seems to be what takes the most time. Trying to till 2000 square feet of my yard that's full of oxalis and creeping charlie to grow new Grass but it took me over an hour just to do 20 feet. Any suggestions? 😢
Beautiful soil 👍👌
Best content: the cow trolling us in the background 😆
What would happen if a 200# 65yo grandmother tried using the meadow creature in Florida? Anyone with experience?
I bought a broad fork over summer so I can expand my garden space this next year. I’m excited to try it out, but we have clay soil, so I know it’s going to be a chore!
Question: We tilled soil this spring, cover cropped (some grew, but mostly weeds grew) and have just chopped and dropped it all. Now I’m letting it decompose a bit and and thought if I broad forked it, so that some of that got down into the clay, that it would improve the soil. Am I on the right track, or do you have a better suggestion?
My friend Elizabeth did that, and threw more chicken run compost on the ground, and it improved her bed. Made little pockets of compost deep.
Mary on Richard's phone from your home state of Florida if I was to use that tool all I would get is any greenery that's there no dirt the sand would fall right through
What do you do with the soil after broadforking, if you have many clumps still left?
Ok, I’m convinced. I found out a new garden area was a riding ring for horses in the past. Oops. It definitely has a hard pan layer. This should work, I hope
Which size is this, please? I've got my eyes on their biggest version, but maybe that's overkill. 🤔
i love my broadfork
Not sure if you'll see this David since this videos a year old but youve been an incredible wealth of knowledge for me! Im creating a new garden space in a slightly wooded area this year. I have a cheap chinese made electric tiller i was trying to use for this nearly 400 sq ft space. All it was doing was pulling the weeds (mostly english ivy and pachysandra) out and getting jammed. Although this thing seems expensive - i just pulled the trigger and bought this, since it had your seal of approval. I plan to flip the space with this broadfork and through some deep mulch to hopefully kill all the vines. Do you think id need to remove the vines as i go as you did with your turf/weeds?
Thanks for sharing the knowledge! Youre awesome ! Compost.your enemies! Will update afterwards!
Thank you! I think you will enjoy it.
Your music is awesome-I love fall into you. When are you coming out with a full Album? I don’t know how you have the time to do everything you are doing. God bless you & your family.
It's on the "eventually" list.
David the good! My favorite gardener. I am only a hop skip and jump away from you in Milton. Please! Help!!!! What do I do about these stinkin nematodes?! Root knot nematodes are ruining everything in 2 of my garden beds. Other garden beds seem ok. My native soil is that construction dirt from your first Alabama homestead, maybe even worst 🤦🏼♀️.
Plant a cover crop of mustards and till it under. Also, definitely get more organic matter in the ground.
@@davidthegood thank you so much for replying! That’s exactly what I’ll do. I ordered the mustard seed and I’ll plant next weekend.
If you just smack the roots against the ground, the soil pretty much comes loose on its own much more easily. It's much easier to dig up an area after you have killed the grass by covering it with dark plastic.
Where can I get one like yours
I'm looking at the 14" Meadow Creature broadfork... says it's for "strong people .... easy for most adults 5'5" and over." I'm a 5'4" woman, early 50s, okayish strength and not shy about a bit of a challenge. Anyone know if I'll have a problem with this? Gonna be $303 with tax (plus more for shipping, I'm sure), so it would be nice to know before I drop that much dough! Thankees!
My wife uses it okay.
@@davidthegood Awesome, thanks!
Did you get the 14 inch? How do you like it? Can't decide between 12 and 14.
Are you able to use it comfortably or is it a struggle? Thank you
I'm curious if you've had experience with tarpinig and then broad forking.
We have done that.
The cow says mooooo....lol
But how much better is it really when it takes you that long to do that tiny area? I get it if your breaking hard ground.. but would a medium sized rototiller not be better and much faster in an established garden that just needs retilling for the season?
It's better on depth and doesn't tear up the ground as much. But a rototiller is fast and convenient.
Broadfork is insanly expensive for me. Would i be able to achive something similar with my old trusty spade ?
Sort of. The broadfork breaks the layers less, less inversion of the topsoil. But you do not need one to garden!
OK Tim.
I have some super dense clay. Yesterday I used my Meadow Creature and a grub hoe to "till" up about 40 square feet. Took me about an hour and a half. It's still super chunky.
I'd love to have a broadfork... I have to use a shovel and potato fork...cause my tiller crapped out last year.
I have done that.
I noticed you have a lot of shade where you say your garden is going. Hoping it was early morning or late in day? Otherwise you might have a problem there.
No - it's fine. The sun here is one million degrees.
Hey,David! where did you guys move. Lower Alabama, close to Florida?
Yes.
@@davidthegood welcome in the neighborhood 😉 we live in Molino. I bought a broad fork as You recommended in a last year video. Ordered in Home depot. The brand name Bully Tools. The handle unfortunately not metal but still very tough. Dug up around 2000 square feet
Sandy ROCK-FREE soil. Wish it worked on rocky glacial soils...
And it will go much faster with some offspring helping pull out the grass. They’ll love it, at least for an hour!
It's better to burn the grass with a small propane flamethrower.
Do you have a link for that broadfork