The brakes on the International A414 tractor are now back together and working as intended. It was the idea of lifting the back end of the tractor and adjusting the breaks while it was running was the most stressful part, but in reality it was no big issue. The old massive bottle jack and some big heavy bits of metal worked to hold her up just fine. Once adjusted, Marty took her for a run up the driveway as usual, and we discovered that the handbrake is adjustable from the top!
After the tractor was back together, we hooked up the single tine deep ripper and dragged the old A frame out from storage. We started by marking a contour line in the woodlot area using the A frame with the level attached. I then drove the tractor alongside the posts, and the deep ripper sunk into the ground, moving the soil but not turning it over. We did a rip on each side of the posts, and we planted the trees that I had waiting all summer for good weather. We planted a line of 14 trees, mostly Yellow Box and Blakey's Red Gum, in between the two ripped areas. Usually people plant IN the rip, but if it's a wet winter, they'd easily drown, so we planted them between the lines. The silty soil in the woodlot is deep and becomes a heavy clay at the bottom of the rip.
Then we took the A frame and tractor up on the top of the hill, and made a couple more contour lines up there. The soil there is rocky and hard, and the ripper didn't go in nearly as far. We hope to see some improvements to the soil and hopefully some more natives will volunteer to grow up there now. It would certainly be easier and better than buying and planting more trees and plants, but I started some locally saved seeds just to see if I can get any to come up. If they do, I'll plant them between the rips up on the hill. There is plenty more land we can rip and plant trees in, and we certainly intend to!
Since then, Marty and I have been working on a project we've had in mind for a while now, a covered annex to the shade-house. We worked on it all last weekend, and there are now 4 poles in the ground, and the ground is roughly leveled using the little Kubota. We'd planned a little garden shed in that general area, but weren't exactly excited by the plan, but we came up with a better idea and just went for it with the materials we have on hand.
The little cement mixer that Mum and Mike gave us before they went to Queensland was awfully useful. We plugged it right into the solar system, and it uses only 150W. Much quieter than running the generator for mixing a little concrete for the posts. Not to mention the bags of cement they left came in handy, too!
The next step requires some welding, and we're expecting a bit more rain, so we'll continue it when we can. It'll be such a useful little space once it's complete - a bit of storage for chicken feed, gardening supplies and tools, and shelter for potting up plants etc. It's also a bit of practice and a confidence building exercise before we start on the bigger shed we've wanted since we moved in. We'll get there!
PS: I forgot to mention how nice and easy the tractor is to drive now! It stops easily, and the handbrake works perfectly, which makes us both feel more relaxed.