In our country, many families traditionally have private farming. For many people, this is not just a way to minimal costs receive healthy and tasty food, but also a good option for additional income.
Even residents of large cities with the arrival of spring go out to their land and start cultivating their gardens. One of the most popular crops, of course, is potatoes. Potatoes are tasty and nutritious, but planting them is a labor-intensive process that requires significant physical effort.
But small gardens still, like centuries ago, require heavy manual labor. Digging up and planting potatoes manually on a plot of, for example, ten acres requires the gardener to shovel almost 15 tons of soil. Such “exercises” are not for everyone.
Therefore, many try, where possible, to simplify their work by using various ways mechanization and simplification of the planting process. One of the simplest devices for manual mechanization of the process of planting potatoes is.
With the help of this simple device, which, by the way, anyone can make for themselves, gardeners in all corners of our country every spring simplify the process of planting potatoes and save energy for other equally important garden tasks.
In our article we will try to describe the structure of a manual potato planter, tell you what it is made of and how to make it, and give some tips on how best to use it.
For more information about a homemade manual potato planter, watch the video:
Having asked yourself the question: how to make a manual potato planter with your own hands, you must first of all look at its diagram. You can easily find drawings of a potato planter on the Internet. They show that the design of the potato planter is essentially a hollow pipe with an open top and a sliding valve at the bottom.
The lower end of the pipe is cut with a bevel so that a handle pointed at the bottom is formed, and the entire structure can easily enter the ground.
A sliding valve is attached to the beveled lower edge, which opens at the moment when the device with a potato tuber inside is stuck into the ground to the required depth.
To ensure that the potato planter sticks in at the same desired depth all the time, a flat stop is welded at some distance from the bottom edge. With its help, it is convenient to stick the potato planter into the ground, pressing on it with your foot. The top edge of the potato planter is open.
You can attach a container to it small quantity potato tubers for planting and the simplest for directing them one by one towards the bottom of our device.
Necessary materials
You can either purchase a snow blower, such as, for example.
Or try to do it yourself. you will find drawings of a snow blower for the walk-behind tractor.
How to do it yourself
How to quickly and easily make a manual potato planter with your own hands. When all the materials are prepared and collected in one place, we take our pipe and use a grinder to cut off the lower part with a bevel so that a certain point is formed downwards.
We cut out the valve cover so that it covers the hole formed at the bottom of the pipe with a margin. Attach the hinge (loop) to the pipe body. We attach our valve cover to the hinge. At a distance of 20-30 cm from the bottom, we weld the footrest to the pipe.
It is best to make its length equal to the distance between the bushes future potatoes. In this case, during the planting process, the end of the step will rest against the ground where the next tuber needs to be planted. On top of our pipe we attach handles for ease of use and a basket for potato tubers.
You don’t have to use a basket, but then you’ll have to carry a bucket of planting material with you everywhere and constantly bend down to take one potato for each hole. The basket should not be too large and bulky.
A huge basket will complicate the planting process and will interfere with the gardener when manipulating the device. And carrying a lot of heavy potatoes everywhere is also not very fun.
The size of the basket is selected individually, so that it is convenient to use the potato planter, and you do not have to add a new portion of potato tubers very often.
Fastening the footrest, handles and valve is best done by welding. Fastening structural elements with bolts or self-tapping screws may be no less strong, but in those places where their ends stick out inside the body, obstacles will form for the passage of potato tubers.
Before assembling the entire structure, make sure that the total weight of all elements will not pose a problem for you during operation.
The device should not be too heavy, otherwise you risk not making your work easier by slightly mechanizing and speeding up the process of planting potatoes, but on the contrary, complicating your life by moving a non-lifting device.
At the same time, the pipe body must be strong enough to withstand many cycles of inserting and removing the device from the ground. Individual elements The designs of a manual potato planter, depending on the preferences of a particular designer, can be made in different ways.
So, for example, the valve can be made not folding, but sliding. Also, as a rule, everyone has different designs of baskets for planting material and a method for feeding potato tubers into the supply pipe.
Some equip the valve mechanism with an additional hook so that you can reliably control the process of opening and closing with your foot. This is, of course, the simplest and most primitive agricultural tool. However, this is where its beauty lies.
Anyone can make a potato planter; the material for this will probably be found in any household, and the efficiency of the device is very impressive.
Separately, I would like to talk about one more design homemade apparatus for planting potatoes. This is a box on top of which is placed for tubers prepared for planting.
In the lower part, between two running wheels, there is a device for uniform feeding of potatoes into a pre-prepared furrow. Such a cart rides over the furrow and, while moving, lays out potato tubers at regular intervals.
A shield covering the furrow can be located behind such a device, but in this case, moving the cart will require more effort, or the help of a second person.
Such a device can hardly be called a manual potato planter, but it is also simple homemade unit, which can collect each of the old and unnecessary items.
Some craftsmen make a potato planter from ordinary one-wheeled wheelbarrows. To do this, a hole is made in the bottom of the wheelbarrow trough, into which one potato can freely pass, and in the wheel, the top point of which is located just under this hole, recesses are made at regular intervals.
When moving the wheelbarrow, potato tubers fall into the recesses on the wheel and with the movement of the wheel they move down into the prepared furrow. To prevent the tubers from falling out along the way, there is a protective wing in front of the wheel.
Shovel-harvester
Another design used for planting potatoes is called a harvester shovel. These are two handles that can move closer and further away from each other, opening and closing a cone-shaped container into which potatoes are placed for planting.
When closed, the container is stuck into the ground, after which the handles are brought together, the container opens and the potato tuber ends up in the ground. It’s convenient, but you have to bend down and put one potato into the cone each time.
As you can see, people have come up with many convenient and practical devices that make life easier for gardeners. Some of them can be called successful, some not so much, but they all help and, with varying degrees of success, replace the classic shovel.
User manual
Using such a device for planting potatoes is not difficult. The potato planter is inserted into the ground at the selected location and, by pressing the foot on the footplate at a slight angle, is buried to the required depth.
A potato tuber prepared for planting is fed into the device. After this, using the handles, the body of the potato planter is tilted in such a direction that the valve at the bottom of the device can open and the potatoes fall into the ground. After this, the device is removed, and the potatoes remain in the ground.
The operation cycle of the potato planter can be repeated again. At proper organization process, 1-2 hours is not very difficult work you can have time to sow an area of 10 acres or more. This device is especially convenient because when using it you do not need to constantly bend over.
People with bad backs appreciated the convenience and efficiency of using a manual potato planter. The entire work process takes place in upright position, potato tubers are also on top, in the basket, and you don’t need to bend down for each new potato.
When using the device, you need to get used to inserting it into the ground so that the outlet valve does not open. If you hold the valve side down, it will open simply under the influence of gravity.
Therefore, before feeding new potatoes into the potato planter pipe, you need to ensure that the valve is turned with the lid up.
Conclusion
As you can see, a manual potato planter is not a complicated device at all, either to manufacture or to operate. The materials for its manufacture will probably be found in any owner’s barn. The only difficulty in its manufacture, for some, may be the need to use welding.
But this issue is not difficult to solve, especially since everyone can master welding skills at a level sufficient to create simple welding seams, and modern welders(meaning inverter-type welding machines) do not require any specific complex skills from the operator to work with them.
As a last resort, you can always turn to a welder you know for help.
Using the potato planter is very simple. It is especially effective to use it on a potato field that has been previously plowed, say with the help of a walk-behind tractor (for example), or a mini tractor (for example,). With its help you can quite quickly and without special effort plant potatoes over a large area, saving your time and effort.
The advantages provided by the potato planter are facilitating and speeding up the planting process, maintaining the same depth when planting tubers. We hope that you found this article interesting and helped you in designing and creating a manual potato planter.
Planting potatoes is a labor-intensive task. To make work easier, craftsmen are constantly coming up with new devices that can be used to short term and cope with the sowing season without any extra effort. A marker for planting potatoes is a device designed to facilitate manual labor and make the beds straight, with evenly distributed holes for tubers. Potatoes planted under the marker can subsequently be easily processed using attachments for mini tractors, walk-behind tractors, hand and mechanized cultivators.
There are ready-made products on sale, but the advantage of a homemade marker is that the distance between the nearest stakes (cones or plows) to form holes or grooves for planting material will exactly coincide with the distance between the wheels of your walk-behind tractor or mini tractor.
Types of markers for planting potatoes
Markers can be both very simple and quite complex. These devices are often made from scrap materials. Some found wooden stakes and strong boards, while others used profile or round steel pipes. It doesn’t matter what the tool handle or frame is made of, only the distances between the elements that punch holes are important.
The simplest marker
It is a wooden stake about 90 cm high and approximately 60–70 mm in diameter. The crossbar, attached at a height of 150 mm from the tip, serves as a stop that limits the depth of the hole. To work with such a tool, you need to mark the locations of future holes using cords: they are pulled along rows at a certain distance from each other (40, 50, 60, 70 or 80 cm).
The distance between the cords depends on whether weeding and hilling is planned manually or using a walk-behind tractor. The gap between the bushes is chosen in the range of 25–30 cm, depending on the size of the planting material and how powerful the stems are characteristic of a given variety.
Marker for planting potatoes using the Mittlider system
A more complex marker model is presented in Fig. 1. This device is made from 1/2″ metal pipe (with an outer diameter of 21 mm). A cylinder with a conical end (hereinafter referred to as a cone), which punches holes, is made of a pipe with a diameter of 55 or 65 mm and welded to the frame. A pipe pin (Ø 21 mm) is designed to mark the next hole at a distance of approximately 29 cm from the previous one.
Rice. 1. Marker for planting potatoes with markings according to the Mittlider system Starting the first row, the frame is placed parallel to the cord stretched along the bed and pressed forcefully into the ground. Then a cone is stuck into the hole marked with a marking pin, and so on, until the end of the row. Having moved to another path, they make holes in a checkerboard pattern on the other side of the bed. If you plant potatoes according to the Mittlider method, using such a device, you can grow a substantial crop in a small area: up to 1000 kg per hundred square meters (100 m2).
A marker that punches three holes at once
The assembly diagram is shown in Fig. 2. Consists of a frame made of steel pipes and three cones.
Rice. 2 Marker for planting potatoes, designed for 3 holes in a row The welded frame of the device is made of profile pipe 25x25x2 mm, light and durable. You can use available materials, for example, a steel water and gas pipe with a diameter of 32 mm. A duralumin pipe is also suitable, but steel is better suited for welding. It is recommended to make cones from aluminum or dense wood: acacia, oak.
A hole is made in the upper (cylindrical) part of this part and an M8 thread is cut. There are 3 drilled in the pipe through holes with a diameter of 9 mm, through which the cones are tightened with M8 bolts to the lower crossbar. Using bolts with a length of 40 to 80 mm, you can adjust the depth of the hole. The distance between the cones is 450 mm. The open ends of the support pipe must be closed with plugs. Dimension B* varies depending on the hole depth required: the longer the fixing bolts, the more options.
Wooden cones need to be polished sandpaper, cover with varnish or drying oil so that the earth does not stick. Metal parts must be protected from rust: they should be painted. Everyone chooses the height of the frame according to their height; the given size is convenient for a person with a height of 160–175 cm.
Marker that allows you to adjust the distance between holes
Let's consider a marker, the design of which provides the ability to change the distance between future potato bushes at your own discretion. In Fig. Figures 3 and 4 show a drawing and operating diagram of such a tool.
Rice. 3 Drawing of a tracer-potato planter with two cones (2 holes in a row) 1 – load-bearing beam (water and gas pipe with a diameter of 60 mm, a wall thickness of 3 mm, a length of 565 mm) – 1 pc.
2 – conical tip – 2 pcs. They are made by developing a conical element (position 2 in the drawing field) from steel sheet 1.5 mm thick.
3 – cylindrical body (pipe Ø 60x3 mm, length 100 mm) – 2 pcs.
4 – marker (pipe Ø 21x2.5 mm, length 250 mm) – 3 pcs.
5 – retractable bracket for marker (pipe Ø 21x2.5 mm, length 330 mm) – 2 pcs.
6 – guide sleeve (pipe Ø 27x3 mm, length 65 mm) – 3 pcs.
7 – M8x40 bolt (fixing) – 3 pcs.
8 – M8 nut (welded) 3 pcs.
9 – bushing for the stand (pipe Ø 27x3 mm, length 120 mm) – 1 pc.
10 – welded stand of two parts (pipe Ø 21x2.5 mm, length 1500 mm) – 1 pc.
11 – M10x20 bolt (clamping) – 1 pc.
12 – retractable bracket (pipe Ø 54x2.5 mm, length – 560 mm) – 1 pc.
13 – plug – 2 pcs.
TO load-bearing beam(item 1) weld a bushing for the stand (item 10), a nut (item 8) and two guide bushings for the brackets (item 6), as well as two pre-made elements that punch holes. To make them, cylinders and conical tips are welded together (items 2 and 3).
Two of the three markers are welded to the brackets (item 5), the third - to the retractable bracket (item 12), and then fixed at a distance of 500 mm from the outer cone.
Bolts (pos. 7) are screwed into the nuts (pos. 8), welded to the bushings (pos. 6) and directly to the beam, to secure the retractable brackets (pos. 4 and 12).
The stand (pos. 9) is inserted into the bushing (pos. 10) and secured with a clamping bolt (pos. 11). Plugs are welded to the handles (item 13).
The design of this marker differs from the previous ones in that the pins marking the next row of holes are made retractable, and the distance between the holes can be changed. The dimensions determining the distances between the cones (500 mm) and the height of the stand (870 mm) can be changed during manufacturing, taking into account the row spacing and the height of the worker. In Fig. Figure 4 shows a diagram of the operation of such a tool.
Fig 4. Operation diagram Before starting work, set the required length of the brackets with pins for marking (this will be the distance between the holes), then they are clamped in the bushings with fixing bolts. After this, the device is installed at the beginning of the row, touching the cord stretched along the ridge. They punch the first holes, rock the tool to compact the walls of the hole, and move it forward so that the cones hit the marks left by the marking pins.
They continue to move in this way, leaving even rows of holes on the bed, made at the same distance from each other.
The straight lines of potato bushes look very beautiful, showing order and creating comfort for self-hilling or using a cultivator. An unpleasant routine activity with the help of certain devices for self-landing can become a fun, unpretentious and a pleasant activity, and designing your own necessary manual equipment is a process of technical creativity.
Today there are special devices - marker, scriber, hedgehogs, plow for planting and weeding potatoes. They will greatly facilitate the work of the gardener. The work, when using these simple devices, happens much faster, and the result is the same effective and high-quality if it was done by hand.
Marker for planting potatoes
A marker is a device that is necessary to facilitate manual activities when planting, as well as to ensure that the beds are level, with evenly distributed holes for potatoes. Subsequently, such beds are not difficult to process using mechanized or manual devices.
Today you can buy ready-made markers, but it is better to make a homemade device, then the distance between adjacent plows, for organizing holes for planting, will fully correspond to the distance between the wheels of a motor cultivator or tractor.
Markers can be basic or very complex. You can make them from any material you have at hand:
- Wooden stakes;
- Durable board;
- Special or round pipes made of metal.
It doesn’t matter what the device’s handle or frame is made of, the main thing is the distance between the components that make the holes.
Elementary marker
This is a wooden stake approximately 90 centimeters high and about 60-70 millimeters in diameter. A horizontal rod, which is fixed at a height of about 150 millimeters from the base, will serve as a support that limits the depth of the hole. Before you start working with this device, you need to mark out future holes using twine. It is stretched along the length of the rows at a distance of approximately 40, 50, 60, 70 or 80 centimeters between the beds.
The distance between the beds depends on the subsequent method of tillage, manual or mechanized. The gap between the pits in a row is about 30 centimeters, depending on the size and variety of potatoes that will be planted.
Mittlider Marker
It's more difficult option marker, which is made of pipe, with an external Ø 21 millimeter. The distance between the holes will be 29 centimeters. The cone with which the holes are made is made from a pipe Ø 55-65 millimeters. It must be welded to the frame.
On the initial row, the frame is placed parallel to the twine and, applying the necessary force, is immersed in the soil. Then we place a cone in the hole that we have marked, and continue like this. In another row, holes are made as in chessboard. A marker made using this method allows you to plant potatoes in small areas, while obtaining a high yield.
Three holes at once
This model consists of metal pipes and 3 cones.
The welded frame of the marker is made from a special light and strong pipe measuring 25x25x2 millimeters. To do this, you can take a regular steel pipeØ 32 millimeters, which is used for water supply or gas pipelines. Cones are made of aluminum or acacia wood, oak.
A hole is made in the cylindrical part and an M8 thread is cut. Three such through holes Ø 9 millimeters are made in the pipe. Through these holes the cones are attached to the frame with M8 bolts. Using bolts measuring 40-80 millimeters, you can adjust the depth of the hole. The distance between the cones is 45 centimeters. To avoid injury, plugs must be placed on the open ends of the supporting pipe. The height of the bolts may vary. This will depend on the depth of the hole required. The larger the bolt, the wider the possibilities.
Wooden cones must be sanded, varnished or drying oil applied so that soil does not stick to them when working. All metal components must be treated against corrosion. The height of the frame must be adjusted to your height. The values indicated in the drawing are suitable for a summer resident with a height of 175 centimeters.
Scribbler for planting potatoes
Planting potatoes using a scriber will shorten this process several times. Everything is done easily and without straining. It is not difficult to make; any man can do it and it will take no more than 2 hours.
To make it you will need two stakes Ø 10 centimeters and two boards one and a half meters long. The stakes are made from dried bars or thin spruce trunks. They need to be processed, edges sharpened and handles made. Then nail wooden crossbars to them.
It is necessary to make the required distance between the stakes. If subsequently the potatoes are processed with a mini-tractor, then the distance should be approximately 65-70 centimeters; if with a cultivator, then a distance of 60 centimeters would be rational. At manual processing, the stakes must be placed at intervals of 45-55 centimeters.
The board from below must be nailed with a margin on which you need to install a note from a narrow strip. It is done at the same distance as the stakes. With its help, the beginning of the pits is determined.
You need to make handles for yourself so that there are no problems when working later. The board from below must be installed so that, when pressing on it, a hole is formed, approximately 10-15 centimeters deep.
The idea of working with a scriber is as follows: When placing it on the edge of the area, you need to hold it with your hands by the handles in front of you. Then press on the board from below, while the stakes sink into the soil, and the mark leaves a mark. Then they move it with their hands, making movements back and forth, in order to enlarge the pits. There should be two ridges of holes, and the third ridge will be a mark from which you need to follow, but in the other direction, placing a stake on the mark.
At the same time, behind the marker a man is walking who plants potatoes. The whole process is quick and easy. Use this technique and make your work on the site easier.
Homemade hand plow
When the time comes to plant potatoes, summer residents act according to the following scheme: they make markings for planting, dig holes with a shovel, put potatoes in them and then fill them with their hands. While the potatoes are growing, they need to be hilled, More often this is done with a hoe. This takes a lot of time and effort. Today this process can be simplified as much as possible.
The hand plow is very simple device, with which 2 people work simultaneously. It consists of:
- 2 dump bodies for operation, with a knife for trimming;
- Front pull, in order for one person to pull it forward;
- Handles at the back to control a second person.
It also performs work on cutting rows for planting, helps with hilling potatoes, and also loosens the ground.
In order to make such a device you will need:
- Hollow pipe for vertical stand Ø2.5 centimeter, about 1 meter long.
- A piece of hollow pipe Ø3/4 inches for making traction front and rear;
- Section of sheet rod 2 mm thick, for making dumps;
- To connect the front rod to the vertical post a lanyard will be needed, which can be replaced by metal plate with holes, to adjust the angle of attack;
- Blowtorch or gas-burner for heating metal on bends;
- Welding equipment;
- For processing joints you will need a grinder.
The long pipe must be bent at a distance of about 30 centimeters from the beginning, the angle should be 10-15°. A pipe bender will help to make bends. If it is missing, you can make a bend using the following technique:
- Filling the pipe sand;
- We put it on the edges of the pipe stubs;
We heat the expected bend location blowtorch and start bending.
The smaller pipe, like the perpendicular stand, must be bent. To adjust the height, we make holes on the top edge and the same holes on the vertical section of the proposed fork.
By changing the location of the bolt in the holes, you can change the height of the stand for the comfort of the summer resident.
The pull rod at the front looks the same as the one at the back, but is different in size. The height of the handle should be such that the person walking in front can easily stand between the handles, grasping them.
The height of the vertical part should be 60 centimeters, it must be made flat at the ends and holes must be drilled to connect to the vertical section.
At a distance of 30 centimeters from below, an angle for front traction is attached to the vertical post. Then, at a distance of 25 centimeters from this hole, the same corner measuring 25x25 is welded to the fork. A hole is also made in it, and it is welded to the stand above the first corner.
2 moldboard plow
You will need 2 identical plates 2 millimeters thick. We round the bends on them. Using welding, with even seams, we attach the 2 halves of the plow to the perpendicular stand. We sand them with a grinder so that they are sharp.
Pruning knife
We take the strongest carbon steel. We cut the knife in the shape of an arrowhead and sharpen it at an angle of 45°. This angle will keep the knife sharp for a long time. Using welding, we attach it to the vertical post from below and sand it.
The manual plow is ready for work on the site!
Hedgehog cultivator for weeding
They remove grass with roots, unlike flat cutters, which only cut the stems. Hedgehogs rake the soil between the rows, which creates distinct rows and beautiful beds. Loose soil allows oxygen and liquid to pass through well, which increases the growth of potato roots, and this is a guarantee of an excellent harvest.
Weeding with a walk-behind tractor is done using certain paws or a rotating cutter. The cutter is rotated by the power take-off shaft. The advantage of the paws is ease of installation and thoroughness in loosening the soil. They loosen the soil at a depth of 4-7 centimeters, depending on its condition.
To operate, the presser feet need to be secured in certain fasteners at a distance equal to the width of the row. The fastener should have a slight overlap that will cover both legs. Devices can be either single-sided or double-sided. If the device is one-sided, then the legs must be attached so that the blades are located towards the row spacing.
The paws, which have one-sided blades, can be installed in another way, which makes it possible to process the bed on both sides simultaneously.
There is another device for manual weeding called a weeder. This is a frame, with a knife and a drum. Its wheels are placed between the rows, the knife chops the grass, and the spinning drum catches it and throws it back.
There are manual and electric cultivators with a gasoline engine. For weeding, devices with 2 knives are used, which are attached at an angle of 45°. It is best to carry out weeding with a cultivator, which has three-pronged mini forks installed instead of knives.
For comfort, these devices are installed on wheels: the summer resident pushes him, pressing him as close to the garden bed as possible.
Using a device with a hedgehog attachment, they immediately weed and hill up the potatoes. The hedgehog consists of 2 cones mounted on a frame. The cone is made of 3 steel wheels having different diameter. Pointed spikes are welded onto the wheels. 2 hedgehogs are attached to the frame, spinning, they hook the grass in parallel and rake the soil from row to row.
Electric cultivators are more dynamic and are used for small gardens. Their main drawback is the need to pull the cable from the outlet, which is not always comfortable. It is more rational to use cultivators with a gasoline engine. But such cultivators are less dynamic than manual ones, but the most productive. All types of cultivators are equipped with hedgehog attachments. The strength of the engine is selected depending on the condition of the earth; the heavier it is, the stronger the device.
Weeding attachments using a trimmer
For weeding, use a trimmer with an electric motor located on top. Between the rows they are often weeded with a trimmer head and fishing line.
It happens that a knife with 3 blades is used to remove grass. Steel knives are mounted on a trimmer with a level stand. If the stand is crooked, then plastic attachments are attached. If the knife hits any obstacle, the device will be thrown back or broken.
You can buy it at the market or in a store trimmer attachments with earth cutters, which have the shape of disks with curved blades, and are mounted on a single axis. More often there are 4 cutters in one attachment.
The size, diameter and number of cutters depend on the power of the brush cutter engine. The instructions for use for the attachment indicate which lawn mowers it is suitable for.
You cannot make the attachment yourself, because... it is difficult to choose the width and diameter so that it does not break the device. You cannot weed with a trimmer on difficult, clayey soils.
Before using the trimmer, professional summer residents treat all rubbing elements with silicone lubricant.
Rules for processing potatoes using a trimmer:
- Before processing you need protect your eyes and s, since during weeding the cutters rotate at high speed, raising dust and dirt into the air.
- You need to treat the area for weeds when the grass is still small. Treatment should be done once every two weeks.
- It's better to weed in the morning, then during the day the grass will dry out and turn into straw.
- No need to immerse cutters to a depth of more than one and a half centimeters. With this technique, the land is cultivated, and the soil receives oxygen and nitrogen, which has a great effect on potatoes.
- You can’t immerse cutters also because it may damage the device.
- If the engine on the device is not very powerful, then you need to take a break every quarter of an hour.
- At the end of the summer season nozzles must be treated with a disinfectant, to remove all germs.
A broken cutter can be replaced with a cutter made by yourself. To do this, you need to carve a circle from a steel sheet and bend the cavities. The diameter cannot be larger than that of the cutters used. It is prohibited to put additional cutters on the trimmer axis.
How to make hedgehogs with your own hands, drawings
If a summer resident likes to work with tools and at the same time save a lot, then you can make hedgehogs for weeding with your own hands or order them from a metal working organization. First of all, you need to understand how the hedgehogs will work, draw a few drawings. They can be used both on a cultivator and for manual work..
Hedgehogs for manual work can consist of a loosening device, a frame and a holder. The ripper is a hollow pipe with steel teeth welded to it. It is secured to a spacer frame and a wooden handle is attached. Using it you need to roll the soil back and forth, which requires certain physical strength.
There are many versions of hedgehogs for walk-behind tractors and cultivators. Many developers made their own individual devices. The traditional version of the hedgehog is made using steel discs. You will need 3 disks of different diameters:
- 100, 200, 300 mm;
- 240, 180, 100 mm.
The device is assembled on a pipe Ø25 millimeters. Using jumpers, steel disks are fastened together, starting with the largest and ending with the smallest. There are developers who use 5- and 6-sided disks instead of disks. The distance between them should be 18 centimeters, and the maximum disc Ø 36 centimeters. For the teeth, a steel rod is used, cut into 40 pieces.
Approximately for the design you will need 5 pieces of spikes for a small disk, 10 pieces for a medium one, 15 pieces for a maximum one. It happens that welding of auxiliary studs onto the axle is required. The length of one spike is 14 centimeters.
Today there are several varieties of hedgehogs:
- Rotary. The main task of such hedgehogs is weeding and hilling. They will suit any device.
- Conical. Required to remove grass before germination.
If we summarize the results, it can be noted that the use of devices for planting, harrowing, weeding and hilling potatoes summer cottage will make this process easy and not labor intensive. By using a variety of samples, we can say with confidence that the harvest will be plentiful and will delight the gardener.
The post Making devices for planting and weeding potatoes with your own hands first appeared About the farm.
TaggedPlanting and caring for potatoes is a difficult and tedious process. Typically, the areas allocated for potatoes are quite large, so planting, hilling and harvesting potatoes requires a lot of time and effort. And, of course, this process needs to be automated. There are many devices that make the life of a gardener easier. These include both mechanized devices and manual equipment. There are plenty to choose from, given the area of the plot and financial capabilities.
Cultivators for planting potatoes
Devices for cultivating land are called cultivators. The cultivator can loosen the soil, plow the ground, remove weeds, apply fertilizers, plant, and hill up.
Motorized equipment used on personal plots And farms, are divided into three types: motor cultivators, mini-tractors. They differ in power and scope of functions.
Motor cultivators are divided into classes depending on weight. Mechanisms up to 30 kg belong to the first class and are designed to operate on Not large areas. Motor cultivators up to 60 kg belong to the second class and work over large areas. Units up to 100 kg belong to the third class. For work on personal plots, second-class cultivators are purchased, and attachments are purchased separately.
Table: comparison of motor vehicles
Photo gallery: types of cultivators
A motor cultivator is lighter and more maneuverable than a walk-behind tractor and is used in small areas 
The walk-behind tractor has drive wheels, the most popular equipment among summer residents. The mini-tractor can work on large areas, is easy to use, and is the farmer’s main assistant.
For all types of cultivators there is a set of attachments for performing various tasks.
Hillers are used to hill up potatoes and create a furrow during planting. A potato digger makes harvesting potatoes easier. Mounted mowers are used to mow the grass. A potato planter will help when planting potatoes. Pumps are used for irrigation land plots. Large areas of land are plowed with a plow.
Hedgehogs for planting, equipment features
The hedgehog device consists of two parts, each of which is a set of disks fastened together at a certain distance different sizes with spikes. These two disc structures are connected to each other in such a way that they form an angle. The presence of an angle allows you to form an earthen ridge when moving the cultivator.
When processing beds, structures are used either from one hedgehog or from several, fastened together by a frame.
Photo gallery: varieties of hedgehogs for weeding potatoes
The main function of hedgehogs is weeding, loosening, and hilling potato plantings. Two weeks after planting, when there are no potato shoots yet, it is recommended to carry out pre-emergence treatment of the field with hedgehogs. The hedgehog removes weeds with roots and loosens the soil. After such treatment, the growth of the root system is enhanced.
Hillers for planting
Hiller is a device for a cultivator designed for planting and hilling potatoes. This device can be single-row, double-row, three-row or have more three rows. The greater the number of rows, the higher the productivity of the cultivator. Technique for using hillers with big amount the rows should be more powerful.
Photo gallery: varieties of hillers
Single-row hiller for motor-cultivator Double-row hiller for walk-behind tractor 
Three-row hiller for mini-tractor
Models of hillers come with a fixed or variable working width. With a fixed working width, potatoes are planted with a width between rows of at least 70 cm for ease of hilling. If the hiller adjusts the working width, then the row spacing can be any width.
The technology for using a two-row hiller when planting potatoes involves using a marker for marking. The hiller is installed at the marking and the furrows begin to be cut. After turning, one hiller can be lowered into the cut furrow, or you can continue cutting furrows along the marked lines. After cutting the furrows, planting of potatoes begins. The tubers are placed in furrows at a distance of 35–40 centimeters, then the furrows are filled with earth.
Mini planters
The mounted potato planter consists of several blocks:
- a small plow for cutting furrows;
- potato compartment;
- special hillers for filling potatoes with soil.
Just like hedgehogs and hillers, potato planters can be uniform and multi-row. The use of one or another modification depends on the power of the equipment and the composition of the soil.
Photo gallery: varieties of potato planters
Single-row potato planter for a motor-cultivator or walk-behind tractor Double-row potato planter for a walk-behind tractor A four-row potato planter is capable of planting potatoes on an area of 2 hectares in one hour of operation
To land you need rubber wheels replace with lug ones. When a potato planter passes through a plot, all operations are performed simultaneously: grooves are made, tubers are laid, tubers are covered with soil. Simultaneously with planting potatoes, you can apply fertilizer if you use an additional device.
Planting with a mini tractor
The mini-tractor is used in areas with any terrain.
Of course, such a technique is not suitable for a small area; there is nowhere to turn around. Such a mechanism must be purchased if the area of the plot is more than 50 acres. Mini-tractors are divided into light (power up to 14 hp), medium and heavy (up to 35–45 hp). Using a mini-tractor you can perform the following work:
- plow;
- plant;
- cultivate;
- apply fertilizers;
- mow the grass;
- clear the area of debris;
- remove snow;
- fill up holes and trenches.
For planting using a mini tractor, it is preferable to use a potato planter. The hiller is not suitable in this case, because the width of the furrows differs from the tractor track width, and during subsequent hilling the tracks will not match. Experienced farmers use an unusual technique. For the first pass, only two hiller bodies are used, placing them at a distance of 30 cm from the middle of the wheels. Lay out the potatoes. Then they add a third hiller, walk along the first track and bury the potatoes.
Devices for planting potatoes manually
Among hand tools can be distinguished hand plow, markers and a hand cultivator.
Very convenient device- plow “Vyatka plowman”. Planting potatoes is done in this way. Furrow No. 1 is dug and tubers are laid out in it. They begin to dig a second furrow, while burying the first. Furrow No. 2 is used for laying fertilizers. When digging the third furrow, the second one is filled with earth. Tubers are again placed in furrow No. 3. And the whole procedure is repeated. The row spacing for this planting is 60 cm.
The instrument is height adjustable.
Another device for planting potatoes is a marker. Very useful and convenient thing. The material from which the marker is made is high-quality steel. The width between the cones can vary from 10 to 50 cm.
Hand cultivators are available for sale. By using hand cultivator“Digger (6 in 1)” can perform several types of work:
- planting and hilling root crops;
- loosen, weed and trim weeds;
- sow seeds of almost all agricultural crops;
- loosen the crusts on the surface of the ridge before planting.
Homemade equipment for planting and hilling potatoes, diagrams
The range of homemade equipment for processing potatoes is huge. And although there are many devices on sale that can be used to plant and hill up potatoes, craftsmen are constantly creating new devices to make the work easier and faster during the sowing season.
The simplest device is a marker. Its purpose is to mark the ridges in such a way as to make the plantings even and suitable for subsequent processing with motor cultivators. For homemade markers, the distance between the cones coincides with the track dimensions of the existing equipment that will subsequently be used to process the plantings. Homemade markers can be simple or complex, made of wood or metal. The main thing here is how far apart the cones that punch the holes are from each other.
DIY markers for planting potatoes
Markers differ from each other in the number of cones for punching holes.
Single hole marker
The simplest marker is a wooden stake about 90 cm high and 60–70 mm in diameter. A crossbar is fixed perpendicularly at a distance of 15 cm from the tip. This is a stop to limit the depth of the hole. The locations of the holes are marked using cords.
Three hole marker
The three-hole marker consists of a frame and three cones. The distance between the cones is 450 mm. The cones are attached to the bottom bar of the frame with bolts that allow you to adjust the depth of the pits. Materials used:
- profile pipe 25x25x2 mm;
- aluminum or dense wood for cones;
- M8 bolts 40–80 mm long.
Marker with adjustable distance between holes
The distance between the holes depends on how the marker pins are extended.
To make a marker with an adjustable distance between holes, you will need the following materials:
- water and gas pipe with a diameter of 60 mm, a wall thickness of 3 mm, a length of 565 mm for the load-bearing beam;
- steel sheet 1.5 mm thick for conical elements;
- pipe 60x3 mm, 100 mm long for a cylindrical body;
- pipe 21x2.5 mm, 250 mm long for marker;
- pipe 21x2.5 mm, 330 mm long for a retractable bracket for a marker;
- pipe 27x3 mm, 65 mm long for the guide sleeve;
- bolt M8x40 (fixing) – 3 pcs.;
- nut M8 (welded) 3 pcs.;
- pipe 27x3 mm, 120 mm long for the stand bushing;
- pipe 21x2.5 mm, 1500 mm long for a two-piece welded stand;
- bolt M10x20 (clamping) – 1 pc.;
- pipe 54x2.5 mm, length - 560 mm for a retractable bracket;
- plug - 2 pcs.
The procedure for making a marker.
- Make elements for punching holes. Weld together the cylinders and conical tips (2 and 3).
- Weld a bushing for the stand (10), a nut (8), two guide bushings for the brackets (6) and two elements for punching holes to the supporting beam.
- Weld two markers to the brackets (5).
- Weld the third marker to the retractable bracket (12), fix it at a distance of 50 cm from the outer cone.
- Screw the bolts into the nuts (8).
- Insert the stand (9) into the bushing (10) and secure it with the clamping bolt (11).
- Weld the plugs to the handles (13).
Photo gallery: types of markers for planting potatoes
DIY shovel-harvester
Another device is a shovel-harvester. It's designed this way. Two triangle-shaped shovels are attached to the handles. When closed, the shovels resemble a beak. The shovel goes deeper into the ground by pressing the “beak”, the handles are brought together, the shovels open underground, and a tuber is thrown into the resulting hole. Then the shovel is removed from the ground without covering it. The tuber remains in the garden.
Photo gallery: shovel-harvester
Drawing of a shovel-harvester A shovel-harvester is a simple device for planting potatoes
Do-it-yourself potato planter for walk-behind tractor
People's engineers even make accessories for motor cultivators with their own hands. Many authors who published descriptions of their homemade potato planters used drawings of factory-made units. The principle of operation of the mechanism is that when a mini-tractor or walk-behind tractor moves, the wheels of the unit spin, and the axle with the drive sprocket rotates. Above the leading star is a small star. The stars are connected by a chain. Cups are welded onto the chain for removing potatoes from the hopper.
Factory potato planter (assembly drawing): 1 - counterweight; 2 - unit; 3 - bracket; 4 - tensioner; 5 - conveyor; 6 - hopper; 7, 9, 16, 23, 24 - bolt; 8 - stand; 10 - sector;11 - disk;12 - ridge height;13 - planting pitch;14 - furrower;15 - planting depth;17 - hitch;18 - track width;19 - bracket;20 - drive drum shaft;21 - conveyor; 22 - angle of attack
Frame for homemade potato planter assembled from channels. A hopper made of plywood or metal is installed on the frame; the hopper is equipped with a feed elevator. The elevator is assembled from special cups. The cups are attached to the chain at a distance of 270 mm and move with the chain.
Photo gallery: device for feeding elevator in potato planter
What tools will you need:
- welding machine;
- Bulgarian;
- drill;
- hammer;
- a set of keys;
- screwdriver;
- wire cutters
Work order:
- Cut the corners and channel to size.
- Weld the structure.
- Attach the axle with gear to the frame.
- Make scoop cups.
- Secure the cups to the chain.
- Weld vertical rods to the frame.
- Place the wheels on the axle and tighten the chain.
- Install a potato bin.
Photo gallery: stages of making a potato planter
Do-it-yourself hedgehogs for weeding potatoes
Some farmers make their own hedgehogs for hilling potatoes. According to the operating principle homemade hedgehogs no different from factory ones. To make hedgehogs you will need materials:
- steel sheet 4 mm;
- steel strip 20 mm wide and 4 mm thick;
- a metal rod 8 mm thick in diameter and 100 to 140 mm long;
- inch pipe;
- metal rod with a diameter of 20 mm;
- steel strip 70 mm wide and 4 mm thick, 200 mm long.
To make hedgehogs you will need the following tools:
- welding machine;
- gas cutter for metal;
- corner Sander(Bulgarian);
- set of locksmith tools.
Procedure for making hedgehogs.
- Cut two rings from a sheet of metal using a cutting torch. Outside diameter rings 300 mm, inner - 200 mm.
- In a circle with a diameter of 200 mm, which remains from a large ring, cut holes with a diameter of 100 mm.
- Cut out a third pair of disks with a diameter of 100 mm, in which holes for the pipe are cut in the center. The hole should be 1 cm larger than the diameter of the pipe.
- Cut 24 strips of at least 90 mm length from the steel strip.
- Of these, 16 will be needed to connect two pairs of large and medium disks, 8 (4 for each cone) - for medium and small ones.
- Connect large and medium rings with jumpers (8 pieces for each cone), this should be done according to the marks made in advance. First, draw two diameters perpendicular to each other, then, turning the ruler 45º, draw two more lines at right angles. On small drives, 4 jumpers are enough.
- Cut 80–90 pins 120 mm long from a rod with a diameter of at least 8 mm. Sharpen the pins on both sides at an angle of 45º. Remove sharp, uneven edges and burrs with a grinder.
- Weld 15 spikes onto large rings, 10 spikes onto medium rings, and 5 spikes onto small rings.
- Bend the bracket on which the axle will be attached. Weld the bracket or make 2 holes in it for bolted connections.
- Assemble the device: the large rings will be on the inside, and the small disks on the outside. The distance between the large ring and the small disk should not exceed 170 mm. Insert the ends of the axles into the holes of the brackets. The axles can be secured in the holes using nuts (if the axle is threaded) or by welding.
- Clean out all uneven surfaces and paint the structure.
There are many devices for planting and hilling potatoes. The choice depends on the area of the treated area. Many devices can be made independently. Each vegetable grower chooses the best option for him.
