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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:55:15 AM EDT
[#1]
My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:55:16 AM EDT
[#2]
Id say you are correct. At least for most dirt around the USA.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:55:46 AM EDT
[#3]
Garden tractors of 30 to 40 years ago weren't the "riding mowers" of today.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:56:36 AM EDT
[#4]
shit. just get a good ztr. plow, disk or blade anything you want then
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:56:50 AM EDT
[#5]
"Riding lawnmower" is a more accurate name, for sure.
If it doesn't have a PTO that can twist a guy's arm off in 5 seconds, it's not a tractor 
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:58:00 AM EDT
[#6]
My BX series Kubota can turn over some dirt so long as I run an appropriately sized tiller.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:58:44 AM EDT
[#7]
I have a 26HP tractor Mahindra 2615 HST with a front end loader that can move two round bales (front and back) at the same time, but I till my garden with a 5hp front tine craftsman tiller because I got it for free, it won't die, and I like the retro feel of tilling like it was when I was a kid in the 80s.
I don't see any reason why a "garden tractor" 18-22 hp would have trouble tilling a garden at all, but I've never used one. I borrowed a PTO tiller for my Mahindra one year and it worked very well, but the friend I borrowed it from passed and his kids took all his stuff to auction. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 10:59:01 AM EDT
[#8]
No doubt a point of semantics. But I have a JD 1025r which is a scut. 18hp pto. I've got a tiller for it for my garden and I was surprised how well it did in my heavy clay soil. The garden has been tilled before, but it's always such a struggle with the heavy soils here.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:00:38 AM EDT
[#9]
You ever get a fast food burger that looks like the one you saw on a commercial?
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:01:11 AM EDT
[#10]
Sadly OP, with our heavy clay soil you make a good point. That's why I didn't buy one.
My neighbor across the street does have a big regular farm tractor and he said if I ever need any stuff done to just ask him. So I got lucky.....he has pulled some old dead stumps out of the ground so I can get back to the runoff rain ditch and mow the grass back there. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:01:40 AM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryQuoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. This is what my grandad did too. I do it too, just on a smaller scale. Garden tractor for mowing and light clean up with a trailer. Compact tractor for heavier work. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:03:42 AM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryQuoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:06:08 AM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:07:20 AM EDT
[#14]
I have a full size tractor for use on my property. I could use a garden type tractor for actually gardening if I wanted and people around do. Really sandy soil. The toughest thing is the grass in the pasture to start and that can be mowed down or burnt off.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:08:18 AM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted: shit. just get a good ztr. plow, disk or blade anything you want then With a zero turn? Lol no. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:10:05 AM EDT
[#16]
Meh, it depends on what you expect
I’ve broken ground with an ariens garden tractor with a single 10” moldboard plow Worked just fine, just not fast, but not slow either for a vegetable garden sized area I also used the ~32” tiller on the back of it, and that works great, no different results than the 50” gear driven one on my Kubota B series CUT |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:12:23 AM EDT
[#17]
I have one of the smaller BX's that runs a 48" roto-tiller just fine.
Sucks as a mower though unless you've got plenty of time on your hands. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:15:19 AM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house I've got the JD 1025r....which I think is the equivalent to the BX series. I've got all the attachments you mentioned plus the backhoe....I grew up on a farm around big tractors....for the most part my little JD will do everything, just a little slower or with more trips due to the smaller bucket. Obviously there's a limit, especially the backhoe....you're not gonna rip out a 24" stump with it. I've more than gotten my money out of it while building my house and after. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:15:57 AM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:16:38 AM EDT
[#20]
I don’t know OP but I will say that a 75 hp and up tractor feels fucking good to have and it’s every sane man dream since childhood
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:18:28 AM EDT
[#21]
Ground engaging I'd say no. Running a small tiller, moving loose material with a FEL, light trenching with a backhoe , sure. The cost of those things on a compact tractor is pretty high and you'd be better off renting or hiring it done for occasional big DIY projects. Wanting a sub compact was good enough reason for me to buy one though.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:22:38 AM EDT
[#22]
Quote HistoryQuoted: shit. just get a good ztr. plow, disk or blade anything you want then Nicely done. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:24:43 AM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I don't know OP but I will say that a 75 hp and up tractor feels fucking good to have and it's every sane man dream since childhood Smallest I'll go down to is a 25-30 horse L or my old Johnny Poppers, or a 3 cylinder Ford. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:25:02 AM EDT
[#24]
Quote HistoryQuoted: Garden tractors of 30 to 40 years ago weren't the "riding mowers" of today. This. Look at the old pre-MTD Cub Cadets. Real transmissions, wheel weights, nose weights, PTOs, 3 point setups, plows, seeders, hydraulics, everything. You can genuinely run a 1-2 acre garden with one. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:25:09 AM EDT
[#25]
"Garden tractor " in todays terms is essentially a glorified lawn mower.
"SUV" in todays terms is essentially a glorified station wagon. Marketing sleight of hand. Like those tiny new Broncos. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:27:57 AM EDT
[#26]
My 10hp farmall cub can plow a garden well. But it’s no “lawn tractor”
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:29:15 AM EDT
[#27]
My garden tractor makes my 2.5hr lawn mowing chore into a 45min chore. No foolin
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:29:15 AM EDT
[#28]
In the last month, I have hauled 10 tons of rip rap and 6 tons of top soil in dump carts behind my garden tractor. I am still rebuilding the 10' of my backyard that Hurricane Sally took out. I think buying it 6 years ago was money well spent.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:31:02 AM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. Yeah that's what I need, a small tractor, it would also be super useful to move my offshore cc around. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:32:28 AM EDT
[#30]
I like the old John Deere 318/322/332 series garden tractors. All the features of a big tractor in a small package. (Yes they had a PTO that would twist your arm off) the frames and drivetrain are very stout and they had no issue doing their intended job, whether it was plowing, tilling, mowing, lifting. I have seen people routinely use these old workhorses well beyond their stated limits.
 
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:33:19 AM EDT
[#31]
Quote HistoryQuoted: I've got the JD 1025r....which I think is the equivalent to the BX series. I've got all the attachments you mentioned plus the backhoe....I grew up on a farm around big tractors....for the most part my little JD will do everything, just a little slower or with more trips due to the smaller bucket. Obviously there's a limit, especially the backhoe....you're not gonna rip out a 24" stump with it. I've more than gotten my money out of it while building my house and after. My old man has one, and for serious Johnny homeowner stuff it is more than capable. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:34:05 AM EDT
[#32]
Two grades
Garden Tractors can pull small harrows and plows. Lawn Tractors can pull rollers and carts. It is primarily a mower. Most people have lawn tractors. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:37:14 AM EDT
[#33]
I've got a Deere 425. I'd say that's the bottom end of what can be used for that kind of work. That was the "top of the line" retail mower in the 90s. The equivalent of the 7-series mowers/tractors today.
Full hydraulics, optional rear PTO, can take a Cat0 or Cat1 3-point. Deere makes a front end loader for it, as well as both a PTO and hydraulic tiller.  John Deere 425 mower with tiller If I was to get back into gardening at the new house, I'd probably be inclined to get something like a Troybilt Horse, as opposed to spending the serious coin on the tractor-mounted tiller. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:38:34 AM EDT
[#34]
A few gallons of diesel does a lot of work....
     
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:38:51 AM EDT
[#35]
Pap put in 1/4-1/2 acre garden every year with a 10hp Gravely walk behind. It tilled, plowed, pulled a spreader, cart, roller, and brush hogged just fine. Still does in fact although finding parts is getting difficult.
My 1025r does all that too but faster and with less effort. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:43:43 AM EDT
[#36]
Anything ground engaging, you really have to be aware of the soil composition. We have clay soil here and I think anything for ground work, you would have to have a diesel tractor with a solid PTO. I have a 1025R and a 4' tiller that did great busting up sod for our garden. I think I would have killed a gasoline garden tractor doing that.
I'd say a garden tractor is for the suburbs for lawn mowing and a trailer to haul flowers and having a small raised garden. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:50:32 AM EDT
[#37]
If I'm turning over dirt, I'm using my 75 horse utility tractor.
For yard level things like spreading fertilizer, towing a 20 gallon spot sprayer, mowing, etc the ZTR gets it done for me. Just put a big enough gate on the garden to get a real machine in for the dirt work and then use the more convenient machine for the finery. ETA: Never tried it, but my perception is that anything short of 25-35 PTO HP would have a really hard time breaking up the hard-assed ground we have where I'm located. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:53:20 AM EDT
[#38]
I really hope to buy some property in the next few years, mostly because I want a bigass tractor. I don't really have much planned to do with it, I just want to drive it around and knock things over.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:54:42 AM EDT
[#39]
Garden tractors can get a lot of work done at small scale, they're a different machine than a riding mower though. The biggest handicap is weight, they don't weigh enough to move much dirt, but they beat the hell out of a pick and shovel.
The bigger issue is people who're still using conventional large scale farming methods at kitchen garden scales are creating more work for themselves than they're saving, a garden doesn't need to be tilled more than once. I own a 25HP compact tractor/loader and the only thing I'd ever use it for in my garden is carrying compost/mulch to it. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 11:59:04 AM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryQuoted: The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. JD has a hydraulic PTO on the x700 series, the x500 series has a belt driven PTO for a tiller. The x300s are heavy duty lawn mowers vs their big box 100 series. The 270 is a hybrid between the x300 and 100. Kharn |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:00:22 PM EDT
[#41]
One of the very few garden tractors.
 Attached FileThe Gravely Model L. There were a total of 70 attachments available. I took my grandfather's after he died and it was a monster. A single stroke engine with a piston literally the size of a coffee can. Nothing but a live pto with enough torque to do anything and absolutely no safety equipment. One beautifully dangerous piece of equipment. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:00:50 PM EDT
[#42]
I think back in the day they were direct drives, maybe tougher than a small hydrostat.
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:05:08 PM EDT
[#43]
My 27hp JD 4115 can do anything I throw at it. 4ft tiller, 4ft brushhog, 5 ft aerator, 9in augar, decent size disk harrow, 60in belly mower, subsoiler in hard red clay. It's my first tractor and I'm thoroughly impressed.
To hell with belts and gas engines. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:14:17 PM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryQuoted: JD has a hydraulic PTO on the x700 series, the x500 series has a belt driven PTO for a tiller. The x300s are heavy duty lawn mowers vs their big box 100 series. The 270 is a hybrid between the x300 and 100. Kharn Quote HistoryQuoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My granddad had both. The big tractor was for the fields. The garden tractor was for his garden. He had plows and attachments for breaking, covering, and tending the garden rows. Former employer was the same way, he had a large farm (for SC) in another part of the state with large tractors but had a John Deere garden tractor for around his house. It had a rear PTO and hydraulic hookups and he had several attachments for it and the rear tires were even water filled. I've known a couple of other people that used them around their houses and large gardens. As someone else said, I don't think the newer models have the frame setups and connections that allow for all of the useful attachments. The BX series from Kubota and what ever JD has all have a real deal 3 point hitch, you can have a front end loader on it too, then you can add a belly mower. They are very versatile if you don't need a 40 hp tractor or larger. When my little JD 130 dies I am going to get a compact tractor for my house The BX series is still a small tractor and JD's offering is the same. JD used to make the 317, 400 and some other models back in the '60s/70s/80s that looked like a riding mower but actually had factory options for a PTO, hydraulic fittings, frame mounting points for a front loader or blade, 3 point hitch, etc. They used to offer them in diesel versions as well. JD has a hydraulic PTO on the x700 series, the x500 series has a belt driven PTO for a tiller. The x300s are heavy duty lawn mowers vs their big box 100 series. The 270 is a hybrid between the x300 and 100. Kharn I'll admit I'm not up on their newer offerings but they don't appear to be on the same level as the older models which were heavier and designed to run implements. I think the small garden tractors (what used to be labeled garden tractors anyways, not mowers with a hitch) make a lot of sense for some areas such as the south but not for areas that have harder, rockier soils such as out west. They make sense for folks who are working an already established area as well. I know they were popular around here with folks who own small tracts and maybe have a large garden, you still see a fair number of them around so they obviously hold up well. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:16:11 PM EDT
[#45]
That’s what they farm with in Japan. 15-30 hp tractors with pto driven tillers.
Tractors for the Japanese market are set up a little differently than ones intended for the USA though, such as a three speed PTO. The tillers they use will break up any soil short of a rock. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:22:01 PM EDT
[#46]
The Deere 330, 420, 430, 425, 455 are what I consider "garden tractors." They were primarily mowers, but built heavy enough to do other work. They were essentially commercial grade. IMO if there isn't a PTO or 3 point, or provisions for them, it's a "lawn tractor."
They were still too light to do any "real" ground engaging work. I have a 430 - 20 hp Yanmar diesel. It weighs 1200 lbs. It has a differential lock, a Sunstrand hydro, front and rear PTO, and a cat 0 3 point hitch. While the snow blower will throw snow 30 feet, I have to put an additional 600 lbs of wheel and suitcase weights on it along with chains to actually move the snow blower. It will pull 2 rippers through sod(just deep enough to break through, or a single ripper much deeper for burying wire etc), or a single bottom plow with front weights. It's very effective with a PTO tiller compared to a plow. It has no problem pulling the kind of disc you see sometimes pulled behind ATVs and UTVs. You can grade gravel with a 4' box blade, but not with any amount of ripper engagement. If it was 4x4, it would be able to do significantly more, traction is it's biggest failing and weights can only get you so far. People still pay $3, $4, even $5,000 for these machines even though they're 20-30 years old because the cost of a modern equivalent is over 2x as much. |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:43:49 PM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryQuoted: My 10hp farmall cub can plow a garden well. But it’s no “lawn tractor” With a Woods belly mower it can be! |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:51:27 PM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryQuoted: No doubt a point of semantics. But I have a JD 1025r which is a scut. 18hp pto. I've got a tiller for it for my garden and I was surprised how well it did in my heavy clay soil. The garden has been tilled before, but it's always such a struggle with the heavy soils here. I don’t doubt a 1025 could do a good job. But I’m talking about this type.  Attached File |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:52:04 PM EDT
[#49]
When I was a kid I rode one of those little coin operated machines they used to have out front of grocery stores and the like.
It was of a farm tractor ..... that is my only experience with farm tractors |
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Posted: 5/11/2021 12:55:16 PM EDT
[#50]
I don't know about the little lawn tractors. We have a small Kubota 2600 with 27hp that I use for "farming" more than our 80hp John Deere. Actually probably 10-1 more. But for plowing new ground the Kubota wont do it and it takes the bigger tractor.
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