Content
Drawings of hedgehogs for weeding potato plants will be useful to every gardener. According to the diagram, you can independently make a simple mechanism that helps loosen the soil and remove weeds. Moreover, hedgehogs for weeding potatoes with your own hands can be made in the form of a hand tool, and also as a tow mechanism for a walk-behind tractor.
Design features of hedgehogs
Hedgehogs are intended for weed removal on the aisles. The same function is performed by a flat cutter, only the weed is cut off close to the ground with this tool. Over time, new stems begin to grow from the remaining root. Hedgehogs use their thorns to pull out the weed along with the roots, leaving it no chance for further development. In addition, the mechanism loosens and rakes soil from row to row. The garden takes on a well-groomed appearance, and the potato roots receive oxygen through the loose soil.
Hedgehogs for weeding potatoes are made of three rings of different sizes.The disks are welded together by jumpers. Spikes made from pieces of metal rod are welded to the end of each ring. The result is a conical structure, welded to a steel pipe, inside of which the axis is located.
A pair is always made from conical hedgehogs, fastened with a metal bracket at an angle of 45O, relative to each other. If you manually weed potatoes with hedgehogs, they will have to be attached to a long handle. During rotation, the conical structure grabs the ground with spikes, forming a ridge in the garden.
Manual weeding of potatoes with conical hedgehogs requires a lot of effort, so it is better to attach them to a walk-behind tractor. A simplified design will help make work easier. For manual weeding, evenly shaped hedgehogs are used. That is, on a piece of pipe about 250 mm long and 150–200 mm thick, spikes are welded on. The structure, using a shaft and two bearings, is fixed to a metal bracket, to which the handle is fixed. These hedgehogs are made independently, but you can also buy them in the store. The factory design usually consists of a set of sprockets with 5-6 spikes, which are mounted on a shaft with a bearing. The length of each spike is within 60 mm. The distance between the sprockets is about 40 mm.
Purchased or homemade manual hedgehogs simply roll back and forth along the potato row. The thorns pull out weeds by the roots, fluff up the ground, and the potatoes themselves remain untouched.
If it is possible to make hedgehogs for weeding potatoes with your own hands, it is better to refuse the purchased option. You yourself will make a mechanism with the right size, suitable specifically for your garden.
Self-made hedgehogs with manual control
So let's start with the simplest thing. Now we will look at how to make hedgehogs for weeding potatoes by hand. Before starting work, it is advisable to acquire simple diagrams sketched on a sheet of paper. They will help create an idea of the shape of the future structure. Conical urchins are difficult to roll between potatoes by hand. Moreover, the mechanism for manual weeding does not necessarily have to be of this shape.
To make hedgehogs yourself, you need to take a piece of pipe with a diameter of 150 mm. Its length is selected individually, because each gardener adheres to his own row spacing sizes. Metal spikes 60 mm long are welded around the circumference of the pipe. There are about 5 of them in one row. The distance between them is approximately 4 cm. To make the hedgehog rotate, you can insert a hub with a bearing inside the pipe. It’s easier to just weld the ends of the pipe with plugs and fix the threaded studs with a diameter of 16 mm strictly in the center. The finished structure is mounted on a metal frame with a wooden handle.
The photo shows an example of homemade hedgehogs. The design uses a set of six-pointed elements with blunt ends instead of spikes. The result was a kind of knives mounted on the shaft at a short distance.
It is easy to work with made hedgehogs. The mechanism is installed on the potato row and rolled back and forth until a positive result is achieved. This type of weeding requires the use of physical force. It is difficult to work with a tame hedgehog in large gardens. Before making it, it is advisable to ask your neighbors for testing. Maybe you won't like him.
Self-production of conical hedgehogs clinging to a walk-behind tractor
Making conical hedgehogs for a walk-behind tractor is much more difficult than making a hand tool. However, their use will simplify and speed up weeding of potatoes. It is very difficult to develop drawings of hedgehogs for weeding potatoes with your own hands. For your reference, we have selected two schemes. Using them, you can try to assemble the structure at home.
We adhere to the following order of making hedgehogs:
- For one cone-shaped hedgehog, you need to find three steel rings or disks of different sizes. The option 240x170x100 mm is suitable, or you can calculate your own parameters.
- A hole is drilled in the center of the disks, after which they are put on a steel pipe with a diameter of 25 mm. A maximum distance of 180 mm is maintained between the discs, after which they are welded to the pipe. If rings are used instead of disks, then they are welded to the pipe with jumpers made of rod. That is, it looks like wheels with spokes.
- At this stage, we have a conical structure of three rings or disks. Now you need to weld the spikes to them. They are cut into lengths of 60–100 mm from a steel rod with a diameter of 10–12 mm. The proposed size of a hedgehog will require about 40 spines. The blanks are welded to the ends of the disks or rings at an equal distance.
- The second hedgehog is made using a similar principle. Now they need to be combined into one mechanism. The large wheels will be located inside the structure, so the main mounting mechanism must be made on this side of the hedgehogs. As an option, bearings with a shaft can be inserted inside the pipe or a mechanism with sliding bushings can be machined. Two hedgehogs are connected to each other with a bracket at an angle of 45O.
- During weeding potatoes with a walk-behind tractor Hedgehogs are under a lot of stress. It can be reduced by installing two guide wheels. They are mounted on a bracket made of a steel strip 70 mm wide and at least 4 mm thick.
It is better to test the finished trailing mechanism on an empty plot of the garden. While the walk-behind tractor is moving, the hedgehogs should constantly rotate, leaving behind a well-loosened, neat furrow.
The video shows self-made hedgehogs:
If the household has a walk-behind tractor, hedgehogs will make caring for potatoes easier. There will be no need for manual weeding with a hoe, plus loosening the soil will increase the yield.
