BCS V-Cultivator

Description

BCS V-Cultivator (Spring Tine Cultivator)

Close-spaced crops such as carrots, lettuce and onions need weeding long after a tiller can safely work between them. The V-cultivator, also called a spring tine cultivator, handles that job. Its five spring tines adjust in height and position, its wings fold in or out, and it can work between as many as six crop rows in a single pass.

Variable Width Set With One Wing Nut

The cultivator’s bars collapse or spread to a maximum width of 31 inches, and a single wing nut in the center of the implement sets the spread. BCS points out that this is quicker than changing the width of a tiller, which makes it easy to match the tool to each planting during a weeding round. Each tine is 13 inches long and can be moved along the bars to suit the row spacing.

Stones Glance Off

Because the tines are sprung, a stone that strikes one deflects it briefly and the tine springs back, rather than the stone jamming in the implement and dragging through the crop. That makes the V-cultivator a safer weeding tool in stony ground than a rigid shank, and it leaves a loose, weed-free surface between the rows.

V-Cultivator Specifications

• Tines: five, removable, 13″ long
• Maximum width: 31″
• Rows per pass: up to six
• Included: removable transport wheel
• Tractors: all BCS models on a Tool Carrier Kit; HD 2-bolt bushing on the 750 and 889

Weeding at the Thread Stage

Spring tines kill weeds most effectively when the weeds are tiny, at the white-thread or first-leaf stage, and the soil surface is dry. Cultivating a few days after rain, before weeds root firmly, does far more than a later pass on established growth. Wheel weights help on lighter tractors. Coverage is three years residential and one year commercial.

Cultivating Options

The tiller in its second gear cultivates single wide row middles and chops residue as it goes. The ridger moves soil into hills rather than scratching the surface. For many beds of small crops, the V-cultivator is the quicker and gentler choice.