Colt Case Ingersoll Garden Tractors

First and foremost these tractors we like so much are called what? GARDEN tractors! A garden is a wonderful thing, but also a lot of work. Our tractors with the right attachments can do away with much of the heavy work. When I first started our vegetable garden I did everything with a shovel and hoe. My back still hates me for that.

Let's inspire each other, let's learn from each other, Please share your experience!

As for myself, don't know how much time I can put into the garden this year with two children under two. But that doesn't stop me from trying! Look, the garlic is strong!
Some parsley we just left there came back again

We have a bush of lovage. We use the leaves in sour soups, very distinct taste.

Here it is, starting up!

I love gardening too. Currently mine is under water since this past thunder storm. I'm planning on doing some trenching this summer to stop the flooding and maybe a little pond way in the back, a place for the water to go. I'm sure I'll be posting some pics as gardening season comes to my backyard.

Keep the Peace
Harry

Last weekend took the straw, shavings, and chicken/duck manure and spread it over the garden . Disked it in 3 times over the week . Today we are planting garlic from seed we harvested . The birds go crazy when I turn the garden . Next week prepping the squash mounds for planting. Need to get more plastic snow fence to keep the chickens and ducks out of the new planting until plants are big enough . Small price to pay for the bug control they provide .
Happy playing in the dirt guys .
Dave

The winter rye grass really took off.
At this point I pulled out the old scythe and proceeded to cut it down.

With the lift cylinder fixe mean boy is back in business. It can pull a plough! So the earth got scratched a little.

Nice setup Eugen. Wish I had dirt like that around here. My development was stripped of nice farm top soil and filled when it was made. I've got 60,000 square feet of lawn that I attempt to grow with poor quality fill soil. No food gardens here... Still working on my mulch.

Thanks Matt, it's a small garden about 36x28 ft and the soil when I started only 4-5 years ago was clay that's like cement when it dries up. We had a triaxle of top soil (10 tonnes) mixed in, and several tractor buckets of composted manure brought in. Then all that remained after the failed crops, goes into this soil. This is the second year of winter rye aka green manure, very cheap at $20 for a big bag. It's supposed to ammend the soil.

Of course it's not cost effective for us, produce in the store will be cheaper. The garden is happy thought for me, more of a hobby. Plus the few tomatoes we got from the garden last year were so tasty, so were the cucumbers. Nothing in the store compares, and we bought mostly organic produce.

From what I hear everything is much cheaper, including the soil delivery. Well, not sure what you can do about the 60,000 square feet of lawn. If I had that I'm sure I'd be thinking of making it an orchard. I like the idea of plants that give us something. Or garden like the old English estates have, flowers and paths going around bushes, and benches for old people and young couples alike, to hide from the oldies.

Never give up hope I say! Taking advantage of a few days off work and will put a few potatoes in.

The tomatoes have started to get red.

We have lots but still very green . Hopefully by next week will start to ripen. When they do , there will be a lot of canning happening .
Dave

My Sweet 100 (cheery) are doing the best, have gotten 10 so far from the Sun Sugar, and 12 from one called Little Sicily, One Beef steak has started turning red. Cucumbers are doing well. the green zucchini is going strong but the yellow one's stem grew up at about 45* angle and snapped off so it is done

Sweet 100's.

I lost 4 squash plants to bores, and one pepper plant had a bore also but only lost 3/4 of the plant which shot out 2 new stems.


Gordy

I’ve been trying for years to attract Purple Martin Swallows to my property. Last year I had a few move in and build nests but they didn’t stay the summer. The other day I put the plastic gourd houses back up and the next day the Martins were back. I hope they stay long enough to nest and produce young birds. Then the following year the family will return with more birds. Harry

That's neat! Thanks for sharing the photo / story - I hadn't seen the gourd style purple martin house before.

Around here it seems to be mostly the traditional boxy condominium style. We are hoping to encourage the bird population at our property up north. We've seen bluejays, woodpeckers and heard the occasional croak of ravens hiding further back in the woods. Our neighbour with the stocked trout pond next door told us he had to "discourage" a pair of loons from setting up home on his pond last year...

Good luck with the swallows Harry. We get a few what I'm told are barn swallows. Very agile birds. Also had 26 Canadian Geese yesterday

Never seen a swallow here in my 32 years in Canada. They were everywhere in Eastern Europe where I grew up.

Good luck Harry, I hope they stay around for you. We have swallows around most years, I think they are barn swallows. They come out when I mow the grass. It’s fun to what their acrobatics, grabbing the bugs the mower scares up.