Low-Cost Tree Planter Works Great

Low-Cost Tree Planter Works Great PLANTERS After planting 2 000 trees by hand Billy Williams decided to find an easier way He looked at the price of mechanical tree planters and then decided to build his own “They want $4 000 to $5 000 for a new one and I knew I could build one for a lot less ” says Williams He used 1/4-in 3 by 3-in angle iron for the frame including the 3-pt hitch mount The double angle iron frame is about 6 ft long with the 2 angle iron frame rails spaced about 3 in apart This provides enough space for the trees to drop down between them Williams mounted a 24-in coulter for a cutting blade It’s attached to angle iron braces that are positioned 15 degrees off center from the top link post He also attached expanded metal footplates for the operator on the braces He mounted a 16 by 20 by 12-in deep box at an angle to the top link post and the planter frame rails It holds about 500 to 600 seedlings at a time The plow-like row opener mounts directly behind the coulter Williams fabricated it from steel plates Each side is about 14 in long front to back and about 13 1/2 in high They come together behind the coulter spreading to slightly more than the 3-in spacing of the frame rails to which they are welded The added space ensures that once the seedling is dropped between the rails by hand it falls freely into the trench “I first made it 12 in deep but the trench wasn’t deep enough so I added another 1 1/2 in ” says Williams The frame rails are trimmed directly over the opener to make it easy for the seedling to drop into the trench between the opener plates Williams attached an old boat seat to the frame rails for the operator Directly beneath it is a pair of 4 80 by 12 boat trailer wheels They’re set at 35 degree angles to serve as press wheels firming up and pushing dirt against the seedling’s roots “The planter works great ” says Williams “We’ve planted up to 6 000 pine trees in a day with it All I have in it is about 10 hours of labor and $250 in parts ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Billy Williams 3141 Galilee Rd Barnwell S C 29812 ph 803 541-8503

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