I’m now sold on the idea of our purchasing a tractor. Andre came over today with the Kubota 2230 and gave Pete and I a demonstration, showing us what this machine can do. He first moved the compost/manure/brush pile, which is the mound that was formerly in the one remaining compost station, up into his trailer – he did this in about a half-hour. Then he cleaned the surrounding area. Then he leveled the site, using the tractor bucket. Then he moved railroad ties over to the fence line, putting three in a cleared out spot.

Pete was the tractor’s right hand man – one minute he was on top of the trailer, moving manure, and the next pushing stuff into the bucket. And he helped move the railroad ties.

I watched this all go on and realized that doing this work by hand would be more labor intensive than I first thought. There was considerably more manure/brush/compost there than I realized. And the area near the fence contained moldy hay that was embedded in the ground. And the railroad ties were far heavier than they looked.

Andre and the Kubota saved both Pete and I a lot of time, time that I would have spent (so to speak) in the trenches. Now, theoretically, I would have spent the afternoon working on this project. Instead, I went riding. Pete, Rae, and I went over to Vickie’s and checked out her trail system. We rode for a few hours, on a cloudless, sunny afternoon. I rode Tinni, Pete rode Siggi, and Rae rode Raudi. Quite obviously, this was time well spent.

Yep, our getting this tractor is a good idea. I’ll be able to turn compost quickly. And because it will be under a shed roof, it will stay dry. This is the right thing to do.

Next: 264. 08/29/12: New Home for Young Horse