I am new to this forum and relatively new to Columbia. I am trying to convert a decent portion of my backyard to garden. After turning things by hand for my small fall garden I was hoping to find information on any local business or individual that tills gardens for a reasonable price.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Best,
--jschaffe--
Someone Who Tills Gardens in mid-Mo?
Jschaffe------ I feel sure you should get a taker on here for a tilling job. Most people on this forum are veggie growers and own tillers. I raise flowers and only have a mini tiller. I will not do the job you want.
I don't tills until April if ground is too wet to do wait until it moist I can till on ground.
Call the Ag Department at the University - someone there will help you.
Watch the local newpaper classifieds. There will start to be ads in there by people who do tilling. Most are reasonably priced I think. I too only use a mini tiller(Mantis) but it has done some pretty good size jobs. Holly uses Kris's larger tiller and we have one to pull behind the tractor. But we are 60+ miles from you.
Often you can rent a tiller and do the area up right! Acually I enjoy running my tiller and wish we were closer and I would help you out. Don't push getting it done when it's too wet because it will create more problems than you want. Let the soil warm up some and dry up if wet. You will enjoy your garden in your back yard I'm sure.
Cuckoo
I agree with Cuckoo, the soil is too wet right now to till. Give it some time to dry out. There should be a lot of ads in the paper soon for people that do tilling. Another thought would be to come to the Farmers Market and ask some of the vendors whom they would recommend. We are going to have a round up and get together at the end of next month. You should come. :^)
i use raised beds for my veggies. i just put a bunch of well rotted manure on my beds and they are to wet now to till. if you work the soil now it might just clump up and make a mess. i usually ask neighbors if i need help with a big rototiller. i just have a small tiller, which is great for the raised bed. i would wait untill mid april or may. i live in illinois near the wisconsin border, last 2 years i wasnt able to put my veggies in the ground till mid may, due to frost warnings. i usually till right before i put in my veggies.
TettlyTuna would be your best advisor on this thread as she lives very close to you. She probably knows the soil and weather conditions better than any of us who have replied so far. But the renting and asking vendors at the Farmer's Market are really top ideas.
I don't know how large an area you need to till, but unless it is quite large, a Mantis tiller will amaze you. It can rip up virgin soil great. Large root clumps are best removed first but that is true with most tillers. You might want to consider wide row planting with heavy mulching or layers of paper or cardboard between the rows. Doing that a Mantis is the best. It tills a 9" wide row. Enough room for a double row of green beans, lettuce, beets, etc. Or a nice wide row for tomatoes, peppers, etc. with room for mulching with compost around the root area and planting some marigolds or other compatable flowers or veggies between, in front of and behind the plants.