MTD 250 Operator's Manual page 10

Operating
Your Tiller
WARNING
Be sure no one other
than the operatoris
standingnearthe tiller
whilestarting engine
or operatingthe unit.
Neverrun engine
indoorsor in enclosed
poorlyventilated
areas. Engineexhaust
containscarbon
monoxide,an odorless
and deadlygas. Keep
hands,feet, hairand
looseclothingaway
from anymovingparts
on engineand tiller.
Referto the engine
manualfor detailed
instructionspertaining
to the enginecontrols.
Controlling Speed and
Tilling Depth
Whentilling,leaveapproximately e ightinches of
untilledsoilbetween thefirstandsecondtillingpaths,
thenmake the thirdpathbetween thefirstandsecond,
Figure44 Insomesoiis,the desireddepthis obtained
thefirsttimeoverthegarden,in othersoils,the desired
depthisobtainedbygoingoverthegardentwoorthree
times Passesshouldbe madeacrossthe lengthand
widthof thegardenalternately. R ocks whichareturned
up shouldbe removed fromthegardenare&
f --._
i:_: _ ::_::! i"!i _:::_:i, +_i_:,!_:,_i _,!
_:i:iii::i:i: :_ i:/::: i:;J__ i::;::: ¸
5
Figure 4-4:Recommended t illerpaths
Handle Pressure
Further control oftillingdepth andtravel s peedcanbe
obtained byvariation of pressure on thehandles.
A downward pressureonthe handleswillreducethe
working depthandincrease theforwardspeed.An
upward pressure on thehandleswillincrease t he
workingdepthandreducetheforwardspeed.
Thetype ofsoilandworkingconditions willdetermine
the actualsettingof thedepthstakeandthe handle
pressure required.
Cultivating
Forcultivating, a twoto threeinchdepthisdesirableWith
theoutertines installed,theworking widthofthe machine
is 22 or 24 inche&
Forcultivation, thetinewidthcan be reducedto13inches
by removing the outer t ines,referto theAdjustment S ec-
tion.. W henlayingoutplantrows,be suretoallowenough
widthto permitcultivation between the rows in growing
cornor similarcrops,check-row plantingwillpermitcross
cultivation andpractically eliminate handhoeing,Figure
4-5.
Figure 4-5: A llow enough area between r ows
The tillerhasmanyusesotherthan tillingandcultivating
a garden One oftheseisthe preparation oflawnareafor
seeding. T hetiller willprepare a deepseedbed whichwill
be freeofharduntilledspots,allowinga betterstandof
grassto grow Thetilleris veryusefulfor loosening hard
soilforexcavation with a shovel;Notedioushandwork will
be necessaryYourtiller maybe used for mixingcompost
inthepile or for mixingit with the soilin yourgarden This
shouldbe doneafterthe soilhasbeenbrokento thefull
working depth.Thecompostshouldbe workedin to a
depthofsix to seveninches.This maybe donebywork-
ingthelengthof thegardenand thenby makingseparate
passesacrossitswidth.The additionof decayed organic
matterwillsubstantially increase thefertilityofyour
garden_ Forproperdecaying action,fertilizer s houldbe
appliedandworkedinwith themulchmaterials. B reaking
up leaves and strawandmixingit with several i nchesof
soilallowsproperaerationofthe plantrootsystemand
retards the growthof weeds..
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