Home-Built Potato Hiller
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I grow about an acre of potatoes every year and got tired of using a hoe to hill up the rows (potatoes have to be hilled so that they don't sunburn). I didn't want to spend the money for a commercial potato hiller so I built my own, mostly out of scrap metal. It's equipped with a pair of 6-ft. long, 1-ft. high, 3/8-in. thick steel plates that angle back toward a 16-in. wide opening. The back part of the blades is supported by a frame made out of 2-in. sq. tubing. The front part of the blades, which fits just inside the tractor's rear wheels, can be raised or lowered by adjusting a pair of threaded rods.
I use the implement with my little Deutz tractor and usually dig 2 1/2 to 3 in. deep, although I can dig up to 5 in. deep. It saves a lot of work. I plant my potatoes in rows 5 ft. apart so I've got plenty of room to maneuver. I also use the rig to hill up sweet corn so stalks won't blow down in high winds.
The entire machine is welded together except for the top link arm, which bolts on. I use that arm with my 3-pt. planter. My only cost was the $60 I spent for the metal used to make the blades. (Floyd Keller, Osage, Sask., Canada S0G 3T0 ph 306 722-3741)
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Home-Built Potato Hiller PLANTERS Planters 25-5-34 I grow about an acre of potatoes every year and got tired of using a hoe to hill up the rows (potatoes have to be hilled so that they don't sunburn). I didn't want to spend the money for a commercial potato hiller so I built my own, mostly out of scrap metal. It's equipped with a pair of 6-ft. long, 1-ft. high, 3/8-in. thick steel plates that angle back toward a 16-in. wide opening. The back part of the blades is supported by a frame made out of 2-in. sq. tubing. The front part of the blades, which fits just inside the tractor's rear wheels, can be raised or lowered by adjusting a pair of threaded rods.
I use the implement with my little Deutz tractor and usually dig 2 1/2 to 3 in. deep, although I can dig up to 5 in. deep. It saves a lot of work. I plant my potatoes in rows 5 ft. apart so I've got plenty of room to maneuver. I also use the rig to hill up sweet corn so stalks won't blow down in high winds.
The entire machine is welded together except for the top link arm, which bolts on. I use that arm with my 3-pt. planter. My only cost was the $60 I spent for the metal used to make the blades. (Floyd Keller, Osage, Sask., Canada S0G 3T0 ph 306 722-3741)
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