Welcome! Please use the navigational links to explore our website.
PartsASAP LogoCompany Logo Auction Link (800) 853-2651

Shop Now

   Allis Chalmers Case Farmall IH Ford 8N,9N,2N Ford
   Ferguson John Deere Massey Ferguson Minn. Moline Oliver

Discussion Forum

Do moldboard plows cause hard pan?

Welcome Guest, Log in or Register
Author 
martin

06-16-2000 19:41:50




Report to Moderator

the other night a guy made the comment that plows cause hard pan by their nature. I can understand how rototillers.

but I do not understand how a plow could




[Log in to Reply]   [No Email]
marvin

06-19-2000 10:35:11




Report to Moderator
 Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to martin, 06-16-2000 19:41:50  
I have taken a canoe trip down the Willamette valley where there are many good farms. While canoeing past some fields that the rive bank had cut into, you could very destinctly see where the plw had been. That was a line of compaction in the soil where the bottom of the plow had ran across the soil. The cause has be weight of teh soil pushing down on the plow as the plow tries to break the soil and push it over. It is not just the weight of the soil but also the strength of the grass roots of what ever you are plowing. So I would guess that you would get more compaction in some crops than others and also some soil types will cause more compaction, i.e., clay, than others.The tractor will carry some the weight of the plow and soil and grass roots, but the majority is borne by the soil directly below the plow. Another way to look at it is when you take a chisel to a piece of wood or metal and drive to shear off the metal or wood piece, therre is equal force applied to both sides of the chisel until the metal or wood fibers final break and give way. This is the same as plowing. The plow is acting like a chisel has it moves through the soil in a horizontal position.
Is this clears as mud?

[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
Subsoiler

06-17-2000 05:48:52




Report to Moderator
 Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to martin, 06-16-2000 19:41:50  
Martin: When I was a teenager I took a moldboard plow beam and attached it to our M so that it run about 2 foot deep as a subsoiler. We had a 10+ acre low spot that just would not grow corn well. I ran from the lowest spot where the drain tile was outward in a 360 degree FAN pattern so that all water just below the surface would have a path underground to the drain tile.. Man-o-live did that change that area. We got some of the best yield off that area than the rest of the farm. It needed to be done every 3-or 4 years. That was almost 50 years ago and was quite an interesting thing to do at that time. The area was somewhat wet a lot and hardpan was a result of just driving across it. Cheap plastic tile wasn't yet invented. Hardpan can be a real problem in some soils..harvey

[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
Tim W

06-17-2000 03:15:43




Report to Moderator
 Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to martin, 06-16-2000 19:41:50  
Louis Brumfield, in his book, From The Earth, says that the downward sucking pressure, from the points that keeps the plow in the ground, and plowing at the same depth is a cause of hardpan.



[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
paul

06-16-2000 21:05:28




Report to Moderator
 Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to martin, 06-16-2000 19:41:50  
If you run a heavy tractor in the furrow in wet ground, over the years that will pack the subsoil which never gets sturred up because you don't go deeper with the plow.

--->Paul



[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
tim[in]

06-17-2000 01:58:07




Report to Moderator
 Re: Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to paul, 06-16-2000 21:05:28  
actually a hard pan can be caused by a chisel plow too !! if you plow in the same direction each year and dont plow at a different angle the smaller plow pans caused by working the soil a little too wet can form and the chisels will follow the same ruts as before. that's why you should make sure it isnt too wet when you plowand work at different andles if possible. some plows have a little landside type subsoiler to help break up any hard pan while you moldboard plow. plus heavy harvest equipment and normal end of row travel can form hard pans too !

[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
Tim(nj)

06-17-2000 19:18:50




Report to Moderator
 Re: Re: Re: Do moldboard plows cause hard pan? in reply to tim[in], 06-17-2000 01:58:07  
I know someone with a White plow bought new in the mid-70s, had those landside subsoiler point attachments. He says they weren't much good, used them a couple of years, then took them off.

I remember back in the eighties, in an effort to keep moldboard plow sales up, Deere offered a conversion kit for the 2800 autoresets where you could take the plow frogs off of the standards and install subsoiler points. Don't think it went over very well . . . .

[Log in to Reply]  [No Email]
[Options]  [Printer Friendly]  [Posting Help]  [Return to Forum]   [Log in to Reply]

Hop to:


TRACTOR PARTS TRACTOR MANUALS
We sell tractor parts!  We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]

Home  |  Forums


Copyright © 1997-2023 Yesterday's Tractor Co.

All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy

TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.

Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters

Website Accessibility Policy