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Agriplow keyline

Posts: 182

Location: The Ozarks

posted 12 years ago

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I just ran across this alternative to the Yeomans plow.

agriplow

This is another Australian company and I have no idea how the cost compares. It still seems to have very limited availability in the US.

Heenan Doherty

Instructor

Posts: 44

Location: Eppalock, Victoria, Australia

posted 12 years ago

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G'day,

The AgrowPlow was originally developed by P.A. Yeomans nephew John Ryan. John was the joint winner of the Prince Phillip Industrial Design Award in 1974 with his late uncle and according to my sources his part was the design of the wombat point. Story is as I know that he had a disagreement with his uncle and then set up AgrowPlow. Its close enough to not infringe patents and is a very able implement and today AgrowPlow makes a whole range of implements from Seeders to Plows etc. If you have one or its what is available then it will do pretty much the same job as its 'cousin' however in my opinion is not as versatile and doesn't have as good a point design or shear pin assembly.

Thanks, Darren

HeenanDoherty
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Peter Hartman

Posts: 182

Location: The Ozarks

posted 12 years ago

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Thanks Darren,

Unfortunately neither is available any where around this area. We also have extremely rocky soil. I am not sure how well these would work in the Ozarks any ways.

You can see what you find in a typical hole in this picture:

R Scott

pollinator

Posts: 4148

Location: Kansas Zone 6a

328

posted 12 years ago

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It is hard to find them here, at least in a homesteader size. They are either tiny cheap things made for opening up a 30x50 garden that don't go deep enough or a multipoint big-ag rig that requires 200+ HP.

The only middle-sized ones I have found is at the bottom of this page: http://www.worksaver.com/product/ts.html

The worksaver is $800-1000, but the only 1-point rig I have found that will go deep.

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Heenan Doherty

Instructor

Posts: 44

Location: Eppalock, Victoria, Australia

posted 12 years ago

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Thanks Peter, I would call that stony ground not rocky and we have some parts of our place and many in our region that are much stonier and rockier than this and still apply the use of the homesteader's plow (the broadfork) or the keyline plow itself...Most important thing to realise is that if you want to build soil quickly its the interaction of the plants and the soil biota that make this possible. They don't like compaction and most importantly they don't like it when you keep the pasture short as this keeps the roots short. Simple as that. So if you have no access to a plow or a fork or any other device then let pasture (lawns let to grow are pastures!) grow to just before flowering and then cut or graze them, preferably the latter so that you get production and manure/urine return. Want to garden this next or grow some trees? Then heavy mulch to kill the pasture and/or lasagne bed it up and you'll be away...Not hard especially in the humid zones of the US or anywhere else...All the best, Darren

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Heenan Doherty

Instructor

Posts: 44

Location: Eppalock, Victoria, Australia

posted 12 years ago

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G'day R. Scott,

The workmaster type rippers are fine provided the foot angle is set to between 8-11 degrees (limiting soil inversion) and you get to the shank face with a grinder to put a knife edge on it reducing disturbance and HP requirements. Also only go about 2-3mph so you don't glaze the subsoil. Otherwise all the same keyline soil renovation processes apply...

Remember too that Yeomans spent over 20 years using the humble and common chisel plow (a US invention!) and built soils just fine with it even though it doesn't have the cleanest effect. The secret to the whole thing is the process and whilst there are implements that do better jobs than others it is the process that is key to success...

All the best,

Darren

HeenanDoherty
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R Scott

pollinator

Posts: 4148

Location: Kansas Zone 6a

328

posted 12 years ago

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8-11 degree point--that is flatter than many of the cheaper models out there. But not all.

2" deeper than root depth--OK, that makes sense. Little bit at a time. I could get away with one of the cheaper models for years before I hit the max depth problem for that tool.

SLOW--That makes sense, too.

Cool. Now I just have to understand WHERE

Heenan Doherty

Instructor

Posts: 44

Location: Eppalock, Victoria, Australia

posted 12 years ago

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Thanks R. Scott, Did you catch this video: https://vimeo.com/13323213 ? I reckon that it'll help a bunch. All the best, Darren

HeenanDoherty
family.ag.edu.media.com

R Scott

pollinator

Posts: 4148

Location: Kansas Zone 6a

328

posted 12 years ago

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That video is AWESOME!!!

THANKS AGAIN

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