Tilling Hints - Craftsman 917.296351 Owner's Manual

HANDLE
FIG. 8
BREAKING IN YOUR TILLER
Break-in your belt(s), pulleys and fine control before you
actually begin tillingo
o Start engine, tip tines off ground by pressing handles
down and engage tine control to start tine rotation..
Allow tines to rotate for five minutes..
° Check tine operation and adjust if necessary° See
TINE OPERATION CHECK in the Service and Ad-
justments section of this manuaf_
TILLING HINTS
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CAUTION: Until you are accustomed to i
handling your tiller, start actual field I
use with throttle in slow position (mid- I
way between "FAST" and "IDt.E").
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To help tiller move forward, lift up the handles slightly (thus
lifting depth stake out of ground). To slow down the tilter,
press down on handles
If you are straining or tiller is shaking, the wheels and depth
stake are not set properly in the soil being tilled. The proper
setting of the wheels and depth stake is through trial and
error and depends upon the soil condition. (The harder or
wetter the ground, the slower the engine and tine speed
needed., Under these poor conditions, at fast speed the tiller
wilt run and jump over the ground).
A properly adjusted tiller will dig with little effort from the
operator.,
• Tilling is digging into, turning over, and breaking up
packed soil before planting. Loose, unpacked soil
helps root growth. Best tilling depth is 4" to 6". A tiller
will also clear the soil of unwanted vegetation,. The
decomposition of this vegetable matter enriches the
soilo Depending on the climate (rainfall and wind), it
may be advisable to till the soil at the end of the growing
season to further condition the soit,
• Soil conditions are important for proper tilling, Tines wilt
not readily penetrate dry, hard soil which may contrib-
ute to excessive bounce and difficult handling of your
tiller,. Hard soil should be moistened before tilling;
however, extremely wet soil will "ball-up" or clump
during tilling. Wait until the soil is less wet in order to
achieve the best results. When tilling in the fall, remove
vines and long grass to prevent them from wrapping
around the tine shaft and sfowing your tilling operation_
OPERA O
11
• You will find tiiling much easier if you leave a row
untilled between passes. Then go back over the entire
area at right angles (See Fig..9), There are two reasons
for doing this.. First, wide turns are much easier to
negotiate than about-faces Second, the tiller won't be
pulling itself, and you, toward the row next to ]t
° Set depth stake and wheel height for shallow tilling
when working extremely hard soil or sod, Then work
across the first cuts at normal depth.
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FIG. 9
CULTIVATING
Cultivating is destroying the weeds between rows to pre_
vent them from robbing nourishment and moisture from
the plants. At the same time, breaking up the upper layer
of soil crust will help retain moisture in the soil,. Best
digging depth is 1" to 3".
• You will probably not need to use the depth stake.
Begin by tipping the depth stake forward until it is held
by the stake spring,.
• Cultivate up and down the rows at a speed which will
allow tines to uproot weeds and leave the ground in
rough condition, promoting no further growth of weeds
and grass (See Fig. 10)..
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FIG. 10