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Homemade hoes for garden work. Basic Weeding Tools DIY Weeding Tools

To date, potatoes are one of the basic crops that form the basis of the diet of people. It is found in almost any dish as a main or additional ingredient. Therefore, it is important to know more about the technique of its cultivation, in particular the technique of weeding, without which it is impossible to obtain decent harvest potatoes.

How to weed potatoes with a trimmer

Exist various methods potato weeding - from traditional manual weeding to mechanical weeding. Each of them has its pros and cons, and experienced specialists say that best effect obtained when these methods are used in combination. The main tools with which you can weed potatoes include a trimmer (motor scythe), a chopper.

Trimmer- this is a lawn mower, which is powered by electricity or by burning fuel (gasoline, diesel fuel). As cutting tool fishing line, plastic or metal knives, cutters are used. The advantage of the trimmer is the speed of weeding potatoes, which cannot be achieved with manual weeding. At the same time, with the help of only one scythe, it is impossible to spud potatoes.

Important! It has been noticed that if a rounded fishing line is used in a motokos, rather than a faceted one (in the shape of a star), the results of weeding will last for a longer time, since weeds grow more slowly after such treatment.

The trimmer is used primarily by fans organic farming. They believe that it is impossible to hill or loosen the soil too often, and even more so - to take cut plants from the garden, as they are taken with them nutrients that they have obtained from the soil. On the contrary, proponents of organic farming believe that trimmed weeds should be left in the garden. At the same time, they perform the following functions:

• act as a mulch, prevent the next weeds from growing for a long time and retain moisture;
• attract worms and microorganisms that process weeds into nutrients, thereby fertilizing the soil.

Trimmer weeding should be done when the weeds are still small size and easily cut with a knife. At the same time, it is important to follow these weeding rules:

• work should be in a respirator and goggles, since when the trimmer is working, dust is formed, and small pebbles fly around;
• you can not work when other people are in front of the trimmer;
• the trimmer knife can be deepened into the ground by no more than 1-1.5 cm;
• you can work with a trimmer when the first shoots of potatoes have appeared, otherwise there is a risk of cutting them off;
• if the trimmer is low-power, every 10-15 minutes you should take a break so that the engine cools down;
• at the end of the season, the knives and working surfaces of the trimmer must be treated with fungicides, as there is a risk that pathogens of potato diseases remain on them.

How to weed with a chopper

Hoe is a more traditional hand weeding tool that is a hybrid of a hoe and a shovel. The advantage of a chopper is that it can be used not only for weeding, but also for hilling potatoes. The disadvantage is that the work of a chopper requires considerable physical effort and time for processing.

Important! The chopping body of the chopper must be made of high-quality steel and always sharpened.

When weeding with a chopper, it is important to follow these rules:

• before work, you should check the serviceability of the blade, the reliability of its fastening to the handle;
• it is better to work with gloves, as calluses are quickly rubbed;
• weeding should be combined with hilling bushes;
• the impact technique is important - the sharp edge of the chopper immediately enters the ground, then this action continues with a cutting movement towards itself;
• weeding and hilling should be done so as not to turn out the wet layers of soil;
• weeded weeds are best left in the ridges of the beds;
• the beds should not be sharp, it is better to leave a groove in the middle, into which rainwater will collect, thereby additionally feeding the bushes.

Terms of weeding potatoes

Potato seedlings, as a rule, appear in 2-2.5 weeks, at the same time, the appearance of weeds on the site can be observed as early as 5-6 days after planting potatoes. Therefore, weeding should be carried out from now on. For the first weeding in an area with a smooth landing, it is still better to use a chopper or flat cutters, since the rows are still hard to see and there is a risk that the trimmer or harrow will cut off the potato sprouts that have not yet broken through to the surface. If the potatoes were planted using a mechanized method with cutting the ridges of the beds, trimmers and walk-behind tractors can be used for weeding. After the first weeding, its further frequency is set independently, based on the growth rate of weeds. On average, the frequency is once every two weeks. When the potato bushes get stronger and become such that it will be impossible to walk between them, weeding is not required.

How to quickly weed potatoes

In any case, weeding potatoes will require some effort and time. At the same time, there are ways that allow you to do it faster, while weeding with a regular chopper is the slowest way.

First of all, it is important to remember that it is better to shed the earth 2-3 days before weeding, since it will be harder to weed into dry soil. At the same time, you should not flood the site so much that dirt remains on it for several days - this will not only delay weeding, but may also adversely affect plant health.

From hand tools faster weeding will be provided by flat cutters of the type "Swift", "Gardener", which can additionally be equipped with star-shaped wheels to facilitate movement. Weeding is carried out with translational movements away from you, deepening the blade of the tool by 2-3 cm.

From mechanical tools, a trimmer or walk-behind tractor will provide quick weeding. As mentioned above, the trimmer can only weed, but not hill the beds. At the same time, a V-shaped nozzle can be installed on the walk-behind tractor, which will ensure cutting high-quality ridges on potato beds.

Is it possible to weed potatoes during flowering?

Regarding this issue, experienced agronomists and amateur gardeners are divided into two camps: some believe that potatoes should in no case be overgrown with weeds even during the flowering of potatoes, others believe that at this stage, overgrowing potatoes with weeds will no longer harm the crop, so weeds it is already possible not to weed, but to mow along with the tops when harvesting.

At the same time, everyone agrees that weeding potatoes during flowering will not hurt him. First of all, this will keep the beds clean until harvest. In addition, when weeding, the earth loosens and saturates it with oxygen at the same time. Since potatoes love loose soil and oxygen, weeding potato bushes during flowering will only have a positive effect.

Interesting! Some gardeners talk about the experience when even unweeded potato beds gave excellent harvests. At the same time, there are no unequivocal conclusions about such a "technique" of cultivation yet, and it is subject to further research.

Mechanisms for weeding potatoes

It cannot be argued that there is an ideal mechanism for weeding potatoes that would satisfy the needs of any farmer. Therefore, in order to choose the right mechanism for weeding potatoes, it is important to know about the existing mechanisms and the cases in which one or another mechanism or nozzle is used for it. In the video below, you can learn how to weed potatoes using a walk-behind tractor.

Motoblock with rotating cutters

The walk-behind tractor is a multifunctional mechanism that, depending on the type of nozzle, allows you to perform operations such as cultivation, weeding, milling, transporting small carts, digging up root crops.

The main components are the frame, engine, transmission, working shaft and guide handles. In addition, there are various nozzles that perform a specific function. Motoblocks run on an internal combustion engine, while they are two- and four-stroke.

Important! Motoblocks with four-stroke engines are more powerful and more economical in terms of fuel costs.

For mechanized weeding (cultivation) a special nozzle is used - a cutter. It consists of a series of sharp star-shaped plates that are put on the working shaft. During operation, they rotate, grinding and tearing weeds from the ground. The same nozzle is suitable for mixing organic fertilizers with soil.

Walk-behind tractor with lancet paws

Another nozzle for a walk-behind tractor suitable for weeding potatoes is lancet paws. The nozzle is a frame to which small V-shaped plows are attached. When weeding with this nozzle, the plow blades should be deepened 2-3 cm into the soil.

Weeding method - cutting weeds. Allows you to perform high-quality weeding in a small amount of time. The advantage of the shares in comparison with the cutter is that the shares are gentle on the soil, do not twist its wet layers and do not form dense clouds of dust during operation.

Weeding potatoes with a trimmer

We have already mentioned the effectiveness and rules of weeding potatoes with a trimmer. At the same time, the device of the trimmer and nozzles is so simple that it allows you to make nozzles with your own hands. At the same time, the lawn mower will not lose its effectiveness, but on the contrary, it will be more gentle on the beds.

DIY trimmer attachments

Craftsmen suggest many options for making trimmer nozzles with their own hands. Here are some examples.

To make a “three-layer” hedgehog blade, you need a piece of tin 5 mm thick. Using a marker, draw three circles with a diameter of 320, 220 and 110 mm. Next, you need to cut these circles with a cutter, and make a hole for the working shaft in the center of each circle. With the help of welding and fittings, these "knives" are connected at a distance of 1-2 cm. Nails are welded to the disks. The result is an excellent hedgehog attachment for a walk-behind tractor.

There is another option. For this you need:

• a rectangular piece of perforated metal 100 mm wide, up to 5 mm thick;
• 4 nuts;
• 4 large and small washers;
• 2 hacksaw blades.

To make a nozzle, a square of 100x100 mm is cut out of a piece of metal. A hole is drilled in the center for the working shaft. Next, the hacksaw blades are cut along the edges and grinded from the outside until they acquire a rounded shape. The resulting blades are screwed to the corners of the square with the cutting side in the direction of the trimmer. To do this, the bolt is inserted into the holes of the plate and the blade of the knives from below. First, they put a large washer on top, then a small one, and on top they tighten it with a nut, which is not tightened too much so that the knives move freely.

Important! In any case, when using homemade nozzles follow the safety rules, in no case do not remove the protective cover of the trimmer.

Nozzles for walk-behind tractors

In addition to the above nozzles for walk-behind tractors, there are others that you should pay attention to.

Rotary hedgehogs

Rotary hedgehogs are a nozzle, on the sides of which there are three metal disks different diameter- from the larger diameter disc on the inside of the nozzle to the smaller diameter disc on the outside. Metal pins are placed along the edges of the disk. This nozzle is suitable for almost any type of walk-behind tractor, perfectly fluffs up and weeds beds with a width of 50 to 70 cm.

In the next video, you can learn how to weed potatoes with hedgehogs.

cone hedgehogs

According to the principle of their action, conical hedgehogs for a walk-behind tractor are similar to rotary ones. But, unlike rotational ones, three metal disks are replaced by a lattice metal cone, on the lattices of which metal pins are also welded. It should be noted that weeding beds with cone hedgehogs is the least time-consuming method of weeding.

cutter

This nozzle can be used not only for weeding, but also for loosening the earth, digging the soil with fertilizers and other purposes - it is not for nothing that this nozzle has vernacular name"soil cutter". The shape of the nozzles can be different - from discs with smooth edges, to star-shaped, pin-shaped nozzles. Main principle work, however, is one - the cutter rotates, grinding the soil along with weeds and fertilizers. The main advantage of a nozzle - multifunctionality.

Do-it-yourself potato weeding equipment

Recently, it is quite difficult to find a quality factory tool for inexpensive price, which forces farmers and gardeners to make their own weeding tools. At the same time, the tools are metal, so without the use of a welding machine and skills welding work they will be hard to make.

So, for manual weeding are very popular homemade products by type of flat cutter. The working tool is a sharpened square frame, in front of which a hedgehog-type nozzle is attached, which facilitates the movement of the tool during weeding. The finished nozzle is attached to a wooden nozzle. This product is easy to make yourself using welding machine, as well as existing fragments of metal and factory samples of tools that have become unusable.

To make a device that can simultaneously weed and hill potatoes, you can take the frame of an old bicycle, leaving one wheel on it. On the other hand, a V-shaped plow attachment should be attached to the base of the frame.

Method of growing potatoes without weeding

Particularly radical adherents of green farming argue that potatoes should not be weeded at all without damaging the future crop. At the same time, this method was invented in the 19th century and is actively used by some agronomists. Weed control is also present in this method, but it has a different form.

For growing potatoes without weeding, the soil has been prepared since autumn. To do this, it should be cleared of weeds in advance, dug or plowed, but without loosening, so that the soil breathes better. After that, humus mixed with ash, urea, nitrogen and potash fertilizers which are detrimental to Colorado beetles and other pests. From above, the site is covered with a thick layer of straw.

During autumn-winter, the straw will perepreet, preventing pests and weeds from penetrating into the soil, forming a layer of natural mulch. Sprouted potatoes are planted without removing this mulch, fertilizing the holes with pre-prepared humus.

After germination, a layer of mulch prevents the appearance of weeds, maintains a favorable temperature regime soil and retain moisture.

Important! Instead of straw, you can use green manure (alfalfa, rapeseed, peas and other legumes), which are sown in advance in August. By September-October, they form a rather high grass cover, which is mowed for the winter. Thus, a mulch is obtained from hay grown in the same area.

Thus, potato weeding is an integral part of potato cultivation, although there are cultivation methods that do not involve weeding. There are also many devices for weeding potatoes - from traditional manual to mechanized. Undoubtedly, the use of modern mechanized tools greatly facilitates and speeds up the process of weeding potatoes.

7 country miracle helpers!

Unusual hand gardening tool (photo, video, drawings)

The flat cutter is a great achievement of the agricultural mind. This is the first truly versatile garden tool. Not just for cultivating the soil, but a tool for all-round cohabitation with cultural plant community and soil.

Fokine flat cutter "Swift"

2. Ripper Wonder-shovel "Plowman"

Ripper Wonder-shovel "Plowman" blueprints:

A shovel, which can be attributed to the category of cultivators-cultivators - "Plowman". The mechanism of the ripper Plowman is simple and quite effective. The raising of the earth is carried out by the work of a simple lever. The main load falls on the legs, with which the working forks are pressed into the ground. The lifting of the soil comes from the effort of the hands, which unloads the back and is therefore attractive to the elderly and gardeners suffering from back pain. Two opposite forks, passing one through the other, loosen the ground without wrapping it, providing a loosening depth of 15-20 cm.

Advantages of the design of a shovel or soil cultivator or potato digger

1. Deep tillage without seam turnover.

2.High productivity.

3. Significant physical effort is not required when processing the formation.

4.Available in production.

Mode of application:

A feature of tillage with a miracle shovel is that the garden is not dug across, but along. With both outstretched hands we take the miracle shovel by the edges of the upper bar, step on the platform (footboard) and it easily enters the ground. With a slight movement (can be combined with a slight shaking), stepping back two steps, we transfer the shovel from a vertical position to an almost horizontal one. After that, we take a step forward, pull the shovel back 30 cm, give the shovel vertical position, we drive it into the ground and repeat the cycles until the row ends. Then we proceed to the processing of the next row.

Materials: half an inch of labor, round timber (or hexagon) with a diameter of 15 mm.

For ease of transportation, you can make a collapsible design.

Miracle shovel Prokopenko blueprints:

Miracle pitchforks allow you to dig up the ground without loading your back at all due to the unique rotary way of working. Miracle pitchforks do not require you to bend down or squat. Efforts are applied only to the "steering wheel". At the same time, the productivity of digging increases by 3-4 times.

Miracle forks are adjustable in height over a wide range, which allows you to perfectly fit the tool to your height.

Miracle pitchfork swivel photo:

Miracle shovel of a monk - Father Gennady photos and drawings:

The Miracle Cleaver is a tool for easy and safe wood splitting. You can chop three times as much wood with the same amount of time and effort as with a regular cleaver. At the same time, even women and children will be able to chop wood, because the main work consists only in raising and lowering a kettlebell weighing 3.3 kg.

One Wonder Cleaver replaces four tools: Cleaver, Axe, Hammer and Chisel. If you follow the instructions for use, the tool is absolutely safe.

The Miracle Cleaver allows you to chop even very thick logs. However, it does not require any special skills and is very easy to operate.

Miracle Cleaver photo:

6. Miracle potato hiller

The miracle hiller is designed for loosening the soil on potato ridges and hilling up the sprouted potatoes.

Thanks to an optimally calculated design, the new invention contributes to high-quality processing soil (loosening and hilling) and the correct formation of the potato ridge

Every summer resident is familiar with such garden tools as a chopper firsthand. By using simple device you can successfully destroy weeds, loosen the ground or perfectly aerate the soil on suburban area with your own hands.

Choppers are an indispensable tool for creating irrigation grooves before watering with your own hands, and not by automatic watering. An indispensable tool for hilling plants, since with the help of a long handle you can make loosening in the most remote areas. A summer resident's set always consists of several types of garden tools, for example, a chopper and its hybrid (hoe, cultivator) both factory-made and self-assembled.

Garden choppers are made in different variations, which allows you to easily do a wide variety of work on a successful site. Depending on the required work, choose a chopper with different blade widths, with pointed or rounded corners, trapezoid or triangle shapes.

The material from which the chopper is often made is carbon steel. Such material is easy to sharpen with your own hands, but it is most susceptible to corrosion. In order for such a tool to serve you as long as possible, after each work in the garden, carefully clean the remnants of soil and grass from the blade, and then lubricate with oil. Stainless steel choppers are more popular with summer residents, as stainless steel more durable and requires easy care. The only downside is the price.

A hoe is the same chopper, only its blade is made in the form of a hemisphere with a pointed end. This type is more suitable for hilling, creating holes for planting, as well as beds for potatoes, vegetables, legumes on stony soils.

The difference between a chopper-ripper hybrid and classic look consists in the presence of not bent ends, with the help of which weeds of creeping plants can be easily weeded out.

Technical features

If speak about technical specifications country tool, then, in fact, a chopper is a small metal shield, which is attached to a long wooden handle at an angle of 90 degrees. The shield is made in the following forms:

• ​rectangular;
• triangular;
• trapezoidal.

When buying, choose the type that is most suitable for the upcoming work. Pay attention to the material of manufacture metal sheet, since it is he who determines the quality of the purchased tool. Often, the farm needs choppers and shovels of various lengths and shapes for hilling, forming beds and removing weeds.

How to do it yourself

Today you can easily buy the right garden tools in any specialized store. But if you are a “homey” summer resident and like to do everything with your own hands, then why not make a chopper yourself.

So, let's look at how to assemble a garden tool from improvised means with your own hands. As a handle, you can use any long stick from the available tools, and for the blade, you can sharpen any hardened metal from what you have in the barn and is no longer quite working.

Video “How to sharpen a hoe”

Let's consider the use of canvas old saw to create a shield for a chopper, since it is his experienced gardeners who most often recommend for use. The material for the saw is of increased strength, but at the same time it is quite flexible, with increased resistance to wear. One such chopper, assembled with your own hands, will be enough for you for the season of active work.

Stage 1. Material preparation. We break off a piece of metal of the desired length from the old saw. The most convenient length is 25 cm, however, you can make a piece wider or a little smaller, thereby adjusting the tool for you. Next, using a grinder and the thinnest grinding disc, the blade is sawn at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the saw teeth so that this part is shorter. Such a simple technique will reduce the weight of the tool without reducing its working area.

Stage 2. Mounting holes. At a distance of 2 cm on the side of the teeth of the saw, drill 3-4 holes, leaving uniform distances of 3-4 cm between them. We drill the same holes in metal corner. As a result, the holes on both parts should match.

Stage 3. Mounting the holder. At this stage, you will need two parts with holes and metal pipe 25cm and 30mm in diameter. We hammer one part 4-5 cm inward and make two holes to tighten the corner. After that, it remains to connect all the details, and in the end you will get a hybrid of a chopper with teeth fixed on a corner that is connected to a metal pipe.

Stage 4. Wooden handle. The holder can be made of any material, like a shovel, with which it will be convenient for you to work: pine, maple, larch. The diameter of the handle is at least 3.5 cm. We grind one edge of the holder and hammer it into the pipe. To prevent the wooden holder from falling out, it can be fixed with a bolt, having previously drilled a hole, or hammered in a nail.

Stage 5. Sharpening of the working tool. As soon as the garden tool is almost ready, you will have to cut off the teeth with a grinder. If you make a tool for loosening the soil with your own hands, then the teeth can be left on the contrary. The grinding disc will help you sharpen the chopper, and then in the process we sharpen it with a regular file.

The second commonly used version of "home" production is a hoe from a shovel. In this case, you will need a bayonet steel shovel, which is no longer suitable for its intended purpose. We cut off the lower part of the shovel with a grinder and get a triangle. Using a file, we remove the burrs on the cutting side, then it is necessary to make two holes for fastening the metal holder with rivets. Now it remains only to insert and fix in the holder wooden handle, and the garden hoe is ready for work.

The third option for making garden tools with your own hands is a chopper from a piece of metal. If you do not have an unnecessary shovel or an old saw, but there is an unnecessary piece of metal, then making and sharpening a chopper is as easy as shelling pears. As a metal, it is best to take a steel sheet 2 mm thick, and then several stages of work:

1. cut out a rectangle 7 by 25cm by a straight cut. Process the edges of the canvas in order to avoid injury;
2. we knock down the usual corner 25 by 25 cm and weld it to the metal sheet;
3. with the help of metal clamps we fasten the stalk to the corner;
4. sharpen the chopper blade with a grinder, and grind the handle and varnish it.

This is how you can quickly and economically make a tool with your own hands from improvised means for working on a garden plot.

Video “Chopper from an ax and a shovel”

To understand how to make a simple hoe yourself, we recommend watching the following video. Garden tool will find practical use in a lot of things.

The carrot has just risen, and the weeds are already striving to flood the entire garden? Time to weed! With what? You can no longer walk among the crops with a rake or a big hoe.

What tool will be the most convenient? It depends on what kind of weeds you have to deal with.

1. Hand chopper with a solid blade (rectangular or heart-shaped). Classic variant. It is best suited for cutting annual weeds, both between rows of vegetables and on the sides of the beds. Fast and efficient. But if you have made your way to gout, wheatgrass or thistle, it will only make it worse by “crushing” their rhizomes into pieces, each of which will sprout.

2. Hoe with teeth or "scratch". She is just capable of defeating the wheatgrass. It also loosens the soil very well. But only if it is convenient for her to work: the width of the working part and the number of teeth fit your row spacing, and the teeth easily stick into your soil. Not every tool is able to meet these conditions. Choose the strongest and sharpest. Flimsy metal or plastic "scratches" are only good for commercials.

3. Mini-flat cutter with a working part in the form of a curved strip. It is convenient for its versatility: it can both cut weeds with a plane and pull them out with a sharp end, and at the same time loosen the ground deeply. You just have to turn the tool in your hand. But for this, its handle must be either rectangular in cross section, or have a non-slip coating, and the blade must be sharpened.

4. Scoop. It will help you get the most stubborn dandelion out of the garden. And at the same time - plant seedlings, transplant densely sprouted beets to a place freed from radishes ... but you never know what else. You can't do without an owl. And with some skill, it can be even more convenient to work with them on weeding than with a chopper. Especially if the scoop is narrow, well balanced in weight and has a fairly sharp edge.

5. "Fork". A tool for the real tidy. If your garden is not too large, but you are annoyed by the sight of weeds, albeit pruned or pulled out, but remaining in the garden, and you certainly want to put every blade of grass in a bucket, the garden fork will become the best assistant. You dig up the weed with a fork, and pull it out with the other hand. Not a single one will leave - neither with a creeping rhizome, nor with a taproot, nor with fibrous. Unlike a scoop, a fork picks up weeds, and does not cut.