Hi Andy,
A garden 75’ x 150’, it sorta puts you in the boat with me. I find my 10 acre “farm” too big for a garden tractor and too small to justify the purchase of the farm implements needed.
As far as advice, a warning in the beginning might be in order. When you ask for advice about how to garden or farm you will get a lot of advice that won’t work in your situation or is to expensive for the returns you will get. That said here is some advice--------
That low-cut grass where you are about to garden, if it is Bermuda grass, you are going to have a problem getting it turned over with your turning plow but, that needs to be done and done now. If it is a grass like Bermuda, you might lightly rake over the plowed ground with your landscape rake a few times to remove as much of the grass as possible. Try not to rake off too much dirt. Since a landscape rake is the closest thing you have to a harrow, you are going to need to do this anyway.
Note:
You will have a problem this year with grass, perhaps, you should consider spraying Roundup this fall after your garden is finished and before the grass goes dormant.
After you have the ground plowed up a few days, check for deer tracks. If you have any of these, you might look in the archives of this fine site for what to do about deer. You will find a very well thought out rendition on what to do about deer posted by a
very intelligent fellow . He is probably still around should you need for him to fill in any little nuances he left out or, has learned since. If you are going to have to take any deer countermeasures, do so immediately after planting if not sooner.
After you have the ground plowed up and a deer plan worked out, before you lay off any rows, maybe, you should consider how you are going to cultivate your garden.
The only equipment you listed that could even come close to plowing the middles is the box scraper (my brother-in-law used to use one for this. He doesn’t garden anymore). In this case you will need your row spacing a little wider than the box scrape is wide.
I don’t recommend a box scrape be used a cultivator
With the equipment you’ve listed as having, I would lay the rows off with the middles wide enough to run the narrowest lawn mower I have down the middles. This way cultivation can be accomplished with a hoe. Unless you can spring for a rotor tiller, mowing the middles will save a lot of sweat.
I ain’t going to use this cultivation method on much of my garden.
Soil sampling is a good idea. But then you have to decipher how much fertilizer to put in each row so, when you get down to the nitty gritty, it is pretty much a wag. Unless you already know what is right for your area, just put down a little 10-10-10. You ain’t likely to put too much. Fertilizer cost money and putting it out seems like plowing money into the ground.
I lay my rows off with a pair of Covington Planters on a two row Pittsburg cultivator frame set up for 36” rows. If I want wider middles in order to get a rotor tiller or mower down them, I just plant every other row. This will make 72” rows. As far as the north/south business, I start my rows to run down the longest straight side of the plot without regard to direction, somehow, in spite of my best efforts to stay straight, I seem to manage to wander around and wind up going through all points of the compass before getting to the end of the row. My corn don’t know or (as far as I can tell) care which way the row is running or, for that matter if it is even in a row, just as long as it has a little moist dirt in which to grow; it seems to do fine.
I’m planting my corn this year 8.5 inches in the drill.
Beans - I like to plant the half runner variety and give them something to run on. I use metal T post (the tall ones) and hemp baling twine. If you try this, don’t drive the T post too deep so your 8n won’t have to grunt too much next fall when you pull them up.
Zucchini - this is important - listen close -
don’t plant more than three hills. When they start to producing, check (gather) at least once a day. Keep some Roundup at the ready.
The picture below is a little push planter I like to use on small plots. It comes with plates that will tell you what seed they are for and so the spacing is already figured. Another nice thing about the planter is the small seed hopper. It doesn’t take many seeds to keep it full enough so that it doesn’t skip for like of seeds to pick up. Plus it is easy to empty in order to change seeds. Just pick the whole thing up and pour the seeds back in the sack. Get one if you don’t already have one. Planter that is, you’ll get a sack when you buy your seeds.
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Irrigation - I’m finding the best method for my needs is a soaker hose. I don’t water everything in my garden. Plants that I think will need a little watering, I plant in the row with the other plants that will need water and/or in adjunct rows. When watering, I turn the water on so as to get a slow release of water. I even move my hoses across middles once a row has enough water. It is easy done and cuts down on the amount of hose I have to buy. I don’t water but about twice a week.
Should you not have noticed by now, I have attempted to write this pretty much tongue in cheek. Gardening should be fun, if it isn’t, stop gardening, go to the grocery store for your vegetables - less work, cheaper and, more than likely, you’ll meet more of your neighbors there, than in your garden.
So, fire up the 8n, sharpen your hoe, and Laissez le Bon Temps roullez.
