Big or Small: ATV vs. Tractor

Original Article Big or Small: ATV or Tractor Article Posted by Whitetail Unlimited

One of the most frequently asked questions we get is Can I use my ATV to plant food plots, or should I invest in a tractor? The condition of the ground to be broken up, the power of your ATV, and the equipment you have to break the soil all have to be taken into consideration to answer that question. Breaking the ground on a food plot is where an ATV may be questionable, but smoothing, liming, fertilizing, and planting the seedbed is not as taxing on a machine and can be done with a powerful ATV in most cases.

The Plot Site

Let's begin addressing the question by considering the condition of the plot site, the soil type, the condition of the soil that has to be broken up, and how long, if ever, since the plot has been tilled. This is especially important for new food plot sites that have been carved out of woodlands. These are often the most difficult due to stumps and large roots being present.

Breaking the ground of a food plot can be a major chore if the plot has never been plowed or is littered with roots, rocks, fallen limbs, or logs. Also, if the field is covered with weeds, vines, scrubs, and so on, they must be killed and plowed under or removed. Thick weeds will form a mat that will prevent a disc from cutting the soil.

Farm TractorIf the food plot is to be created in former woodlands, a farm tractor with heavy ground breaking equipment is the best choice because of the heavy roots, stumps, etc. present in the proposed seedbed.

The first rule of tilling is to clean a new or existing food plot as much as possible so you can better evaluate what type of machinery will be required to break and prepare the seedbed. This needs to be done a couple of months before the planting season. Using your ATV with a trailer is a convenient way to remove ground litter by hand. The trailer can be kept close by, keeping cleanup time to a minimum. Pick up everything you canrocks, limbs, logs, etc.you want to evaluate the bare ground.

If weeds and other vegetation cover the plot, the ATV with an herbicide sprayer attached makes it quick and easy to kill the invasive plants. Once dead they can be removed by hand, burning, or plowing under. Be sure to check with your county agent before spraying. He or she will be current on herbicide regulations, and can make specific recommendations.

Once the food plot is cleared, it will be easy to see what you are dealing with when it comes to getting the plot tilled and seedbed prepared. Ask these questions:

•  Is the food plot site new?
•  Is it in an old logging road-bed or log landing?
•  Is the site an old, overgrown field?
•  Are there a lot of stumps and roots in the plot?
•  Are there rocks as large as grapefruit, or larger, present in the plot site?
•  Is the soil a tight soil such as red clay?
•  Is the plot more than three acres in size?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you had better plan on purchasing a tractor and plow, or contracting with a local farmer to break the plot for you. Trying to use an ATV in most of these situations can be dangerous, hard on the equipment used, and frustrating to youresulting in a less than desirable crop. It's simply more than an ATV was designed to do.

However, if the plot is an established food plot that has been broken annually and planted in annual crops, or is in an area free of roots, stumps, and large rocks, and the ground is a loose soil that has not been compacted by heavy truck traffic, then you can probably use your ATV. This is assuming your machine meets the requirements to pull a heavy set of disc to break the ground and a harrow to prepare the seedbed.

Is Your ATV Right For Tilling a Food Plot?

Experts agree that for an ATV to be suitable for working a food plot, it needs to have at least a 450cc engine and larger is better. It needs to be equipped with a low range gear, aggressive tire tread, 4X4 drive, and a strong hitch mount. It requires a lot of horsepower to pull a plow, harrow, or set of discs through the soil, occasionally hitting roots or rocks. Also, ATV farm implements can weigh up to 600 pounds, and pulling that weight through the soil can require a lot of muscle. You want enough strength in your ATV so that it can do the job without straining or overheating. Often this requires being in 4-wheel drive and running in low gear.

ATV Hitch AreaThe weak link in heavy food plot work can be the hitch between the ATV and implement. Under hard pulling, a weak hitch can break.

Match the size of your farm implements to the size of your ATV. One of the most common mistakes I have seen hunting clubs make when using ATV's to break their food plots is to use a set of disc or a plow that is too heavy or big for their ATV. A set of disc made for a farm tractor is usually too much for even the largest ATV to handle.

The Weak Link

One of the most important lessons I had to learn when I first started using ATV's to work food plots was to use only the strongest hitch mount to hook implements to the ATV. The hitch mount can be the weak link in your food plot farming program. I started out using implements that simply required a drop pin to hook a set of disc to the ATV, but when the pulling became hard, the pin broke. I once had a self-propelled mower break loose from my ATV while mowing weeds in a food plot. It was a frightening sight to have the mower, running at full speed, roll up beside me.

Today I like to use an ATV that has a truck-size channel hitch solidly mounted to the ATV frame, and farm implements that require a 2-inch ball to connect to the ATV. This is a strong connection between the hard pulling ATV and the deep ground breaking tiller.

You Want the Perfect Seedbed

Deciding whether to use a tractor or ATV to prepare a wildlife food plot is a big decision to make; your decision may be the key factor in the success or failure of the food plot. When the decision is made to go ahead and use an ATV even though the ground is not suitable for it, the result is usually a very poorly prepared seedbed. I have seen many food plots that were barely scratched with an underpowered ATV, and then expensive seed and fertilizer were scattered and barely covered the ground. The resulting crop offered very little food for deer and other wildlife, and the seed was blamed for the poor crop.

I have written many times that one of the most common mistakes made by those who plant wildlife food plots is not preparing a good seedbed. I consider poor seedbed preparation second only to not following a soil test as the reason food plot crops fail. Keep these thoughts in mind as you prepare to plant your new or existing food plots, whether you use an ATV or tractor:

•  Remove all weeds, because young seedling plants cannot compete with weeds
•  Remove all rocks, roots, limbs, and other debris from the plot
•  Break up the hard soil and reduce clods to a fine soil texture
•  Level the plot
•  Remember good seed to soil contact is essential for a productive food plot

Once the soil is broken up, the next step is to level and smooth out the seedbed.

If the food plot has been broken up annually, such as an existing food plot, then the ATV can probably handle the breaking and planting.

Using a drag-type harrow, sometimes called a chain harrow, attached to an ATV (450cc or larger with four-wheel-drive), drag the food plot several times with the longer tines down to break up small clods, and remove weeds, rocks, and other debris. This dragging will also help level the plot, aerate the soil, and help dry a damp plot.

Next, turn the harrow over and use the short-tine, or tine-less side, to drag the field several times to level the field for seeding. It is often necessary to make three to four passes in different directions to harrow a plot properly.

Using a drag harrow takes time, since the tines will need to be cleaned of weeds, grass, rocks, sticks, and so on from time to time. However, when you have completed the seedbed preparation you can look at a clean, level, fine-textured field and know your seeds have the best bed possible to begin life. The results will be a food plot that is a wildlife dinner table fit for a king.

ATV or tractor? It is a big decision but by taking the time to match the equipment to the food plot site, it won't take you long to decide the best course of action. The results will be a good seedbed and, with some rain, the deer on your property will be glad for your decision.