Turf

kerryjack

Black turf but don't seem to be much in a load we probably need 2 loads I think it's epensive fuel at that price

Feisar

Bullocks wrote: »

Tradition here is turn , foot and refoot . Torture .
Some lads will foot it straight up alright .

We used to:

Turn
Foot
Refoot
Home

Gave up the turning about 10 years ago, hasn't made any odds. Now we wouldn't be a year ahead but always about half a year ahead, so fairly well seasoned.

Feisar

On refooting, we see it as a nessessity, the bottom two are nearly never fit to come home.

Aravo

Feisar wrote:

On refooting, we see it as a nessessity, the bottom two are nearly never fit to come home.

When box footing the bottom two are troublesome if there are wet spots in the box. But not this year.

High bike

Anyone selling turf in the Limerick Tipp Clare area ,can collect

Feisar

I wonder is turning a hangover from the slane cutting days?

anfieldrd

High bike wrote:

Anyone selling turf in the Limerick Tipp Clare area ,can collect

Sent you a private message.

anfieldrd

kerryjack wrote:

Lads how many yards of turf is in one of those 10 by 6 trailers with rail that are for sale for for 400 quid and how much a yard is it to buy on the flat , just doing my maths here for next year thanks lads.

Probably around 150 yards of 10 sod row, standard 10x6 is 100 yards of 10 sod row, it costs 90 to buy, 20 to foot and around €250 for standard 10x6 trailer.

lakill Farm

Feisar wrote: »

We used to:

Turn
Foot
Refoot
Home

Gave up the turning about 10 years ago, hasn't made any odds. Now we wouldn't be a year ahead but always about half a year ahead, so fairly well seasoned.

Foot here. bottom 2 sods turned 90 degrees to where they were layed originally and flipped over . ( skin side down) all rest footed skin side up

a lot quicker to foot and if it rains like 9/10 other years the turf doesn't soak the water. lads laughted the 1st and 2nd year when we started it but now 3 or 4 other lads doing the same on our bog. refoot the stuff that falls within the first 4 weeks . then home when dry

Feisar

lakill Farm wrote: »

Foot here. bottom 2 sods turned 90 degrees to where they were layed originally and flipped over . ( skin side down) all rest footed skin side up

a lot quicker to foot and if it rains like 9/10 other years the turf doesn't soak the water. lads laughted the 1st and 2nd year when we started it but now 3 or 4 other lads doing the same on our bog. refoot the stuff that falls within the first 4 weeks . then home when dry

We'll give that a run next year, cheers.

TheRiverman

What are people's opinions of hoppers ?.I have got my turf cut with twelve sod hopper in recent years,found it very labourious to save.Just started footing this years after getting it cut with a six sod.Already feeling that it is much easier with the narrower rows.

Aravo

TheRiverman wrote:

What are people's opinions of hoppers ?.I have got my turf cut with twelve sod hopper in recent years,found it very labourious to save.Just started footing this years after getting it cut with a six sod.Already feeling that it is much easier with the narrower rows.

That's just taking the hardship out of it. Turf is penance.

the_pen_turner

TheRiverman wrote: »

What are people's opinions of hoppers ?.I have got my turf cut with twelve sod hopper in recent years,found it very labourious to save.Just started footing this years after getting it cut with a six sod.Already feeling that it is much easier with the narrower rows.

the hardest part of footing turf like that is planning ahead.
if one person is doing it all then you can work out a system that gives you room but if someone else goes against it then you have no room.

if your working from left to right then you need to start the row of foots as far to the left as possible , preferably outised the line of the row if you can.
at times all you can do is go higher to regain some space.

an old man near us when he would run out of space would say its like dancing with a beautiful woman in a crowded dance hall, dont be afraid to get u close and dance a close box waltz. then he would do a little dance.

Limestone Cowboy

All turned. Great weather for the bog. Only cut a fortnight.

Still waters

Is there any worse job in rural Ireland, I've found the few bags of coal and a bit of timber is better than facing the bog, I'm not afraid of work but I hate the big so I don't bother with it

Base price

Still waters wrote: »

Is there any worse job in rural Ireland, I've found the few bags of coal and a bit of timber is better than facing the bog, I'm not afraid of work but I hate the big so I don't bother with it

Picking stones is far worse.

Genghis Cant

Still waters wrote: »

Is there any worse job in rural Ireland, I've found the few bags of coal and a bit of timber is better than facing the bog, I'm not afraid of work but I hate the big so I don't bother with it

I love the bog. I love footing turf. And I love drawing it home even better.
I'm old enough to remember turf before the hopper turf took over. It's handy work nowadays.
When I think of the hardship footing turf after the bagger on a spreadbank that a duck would sink on. Going to the makers name of a wet year load after load. And that was with twin wheels !
Jaysus it's a cakewalk now. You can drive the family car to the edge of the plot.

Base price

Genghis Cant wrote: »

I love the bog. I love footing turf. And I love drawing it home even better.
I'm old enough to remember turf before the hopper turf took over. It's handy work nowadays.
When I think of the hardship footing turf after the bagger on a spreadbank that a duck would sink on. Going to the makers name of a wet year load after load. And that was with twin wheels !
Jaysus it's a cakewalk now. You can drive the family car to the edge of the plot.

I love the peace and tranquility when footing turf. I leave the phone in the jeep and the rest of the world can feck off for those few hours every evening, although I hate get eaten by the midges

I says

Base price wrote: »

I love the peace and tranquility when footing turf. I leave the phone in the jeep and the rest of the world can feck off for those few hours every evening, although I hate get eaten by the midges

Ah suffering jaysus TURF!!!

keepalive213

It's turf fever I tells ya, old lads on masseys leading a queue of cars, there's not a tube of grease to be got in the town, random headcases cutting with slanes.
Its fantastic stuff.

Snowfire

Base price wrote: »

Picking stones is far worse.

Anyone see the ploughed field on the outskirts of Tullamore heading towards Kilbeggan. Ever time I pass over the past few weeks the mountain of picked stones and rocks pilled up is getting bigger. Must be torture

hempel

What are lads charging for 8x4 car trailer and fertilizer bags have my own bog at home just wondering is it worth selling

TheRiverman

the_pen_turner wrote: »

the hardest part of footing turf like that is planning ahead.
if one person is doing it all then you can work out a system that gives you room but if someone else goes against it then you have no room.

if your working from left to right then you need to start the row of foots as far to the left as possible , preferably outised the line of the row if you can.
at times all you can do is go higher to regain some space.

an old man near us when he would run out of space would say its like dancing with a beautiful woman in a crowded dance hall, dont be afraid to get u close and dance a close box waltz. then he would do a little dance.

Luckily I have my own bank with drains each side,so don't have to bother about anyone with spreads either side of me.Definitely finding the six sod rows that I got cut this year much easier to work on.

MfMan

Only ever used a potato fork to unload the trailer; would a beet fork be better...or worse..?
No quips about tipping please, low shed roof puts paid to that.

Albert Johnson

MfMan wrote: »

Only ever used a potato fork to unload the trailer; would a beet fork be better...or worse..?
No quips about tipping please, low shed roof puts paid to that.

Beet fork can work well in my experience if the sods are fairly short. Longs sods are difficult to sink the tines in and tend to scatter when lifted. The fork is a great tool for the small stuff that's left on the floor of a trailer after it's been unloaded by hand, much quicker than picking it individually.

Robeman

Saving turf is childs play now given that cut \ spread by machine. My father used to spend over a week cutting turf. Spreading was torture as turf was in a pile after cutting. Footing (or recling as we call it) was a must do and clamping some years, then putting out on side of road and finally bringing home. Now only have to turn and foot (not every year) then bring straight home off bank. It is so easy now.

TooOldBoots

Hopper turf is easier to dry too. Having said that, there's nothing worse than facing into turning a dozen or so hoppers by yourself.
Help is the key to the bog.

Limestone Cowboy

Some week for saving turf.

memorystick

Don’t do it anymore but made a good few pound when I was. I find now that the first things I need now after the bog are steroids and inhalers. The oul bronical tubes aren’t what they used to be.

keepalive213

Coming along nicely

Doctors room ghost

keepalive213 wrote: »

Coming along nicely

You could near put them standing. I footed mine straight off the hopper no turning

keepalive213

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

You could near put them standing. I footed mine straight off the hopper no turning

This is bucket turf, way harder saved!
Hopper turf goes for sale but not cut yet

Doctors room ghost

keepalive213 wrote: »

This is bucket turf, way harder saved!
Hopper turf goes for sale but not cut yet

Ours is 8 sod hopper and couldn’t have got a better start with the weather.broke out in the first week clean breaks was a joy to foot.
Footed turf other years and you’d have two hands under the sod trying to lift it and it as big as a loaf.
Great year so far thank god

keepalive213

More hardship

Odelay

keepalive213 wrote: »

More hardship

Will you have any room to work with that? Can you post photos as you go on? Curious about it.

Aravo

Turf cut here 3 weeks ago. Got fantastic weather since cut. No turning. Started footing a few days ago. Will foot everything, even if a few bits are still wet underneath. If it can be footed to get off the ground, this is what I will do. The wind does more drying that the sun after the crust has formed.

Lady Haywire

Had a crust on them a few days ago, about two weeks before we start lifting.
I'm soooooo looking forward to it :pac:

Bullocks

Lady Haywire wrote: »

Had a crust on them a few days ago, about two weeks before we start lifting.
I'm soooooo looking forward to it :pac:

This thread should be amalgamated with the depression thread!

Lady Haywire

Bullocks wrote: »

This thread should be amalgamated with the depression thread!

It's not too bad, I have 5 skips, my parents have 5. My aunt has 5 & the folks buying my parents house have 5!

eusap

The Irish Turf Footing championship in on June Bank Holiday in Ballyteague GAA Club in kildare!

Aravo

Lady Haywire wrote:

Had a crust on them a few days ago, about two weeks before we start lifting. I'm soooooo looking forward to it

Looks like a lot of turf. The Greens will not be happy with this thread. Did you have to mark it or did the machine mark it ok for it to break out.

Lady Haywire

Aravo wrote: »

Looks like a lot of turf. The Greens will not be happy with this thread. Did you have to mark it or did the machine mark it ok for it to break out.

Machine does it. There's only two banks of turf made on that bog so it's actually relatively 'Green' by turf standards. The other one isn't even half that size.

I says

I wondered on to this thread accidentally



















My eyes, my eyes, my eyes I’m going blind looking at that stuff the dreaded turf.

TooOldBoots

Chronic bad week on turf so far. I had most of mine footed but some of it is standing in water.
Pure penance now

Muckit

First rule of footing. Never build "in the halla"

Aravo

TooOldBoots wrote:

Chronic bad week on turf so far. I had most of mine footed but some of it is standing in water. Pure penance now

Muckit wrote:

First rule of footing. Never build "in the halla"

I think what TooOldBoots meant was that some of the unfitted turf is in standing water which is worse that just the bottom two sods of the footed turf in water.

Muckit

https://youtu.be/ZzMOSBq77Uw

Muckit

https://youtu.be/oq41vPEBcKI

Albert Johnson

TooOldBoots wrote: »

Chronic bad week on turf so far. I had most of mine footed but some of it is standing in water.
Pure penance now

We didn't cut turf the last 3 years and missed out on a great chance last year. I was getting all nostalgic the last few weeks between this thread and listening to the talk locally. I very nearly picked up the phone to book a few hoppers back a fortnight ago thinking that it was the right thing to do, thankfully I decided against it at the last moment.

It's pissed rain nearly every day this week and nothing of the good forecast until the end of next week. I'm thanking whoever is looking out for me that I didn't succumb to temptation and resign myself to a summer of turf induced hardship. Both the bog and turf is in ****e and full of lads searching for a dry bank to foot it on or worse yet looking for pallets. I'm going to buy a tonne of coal as usual and repeat the mantra a local character told me as a child, "the bog is the only place for an ass". It was only when I grew up that I realized it was the 2 legged variety he was referring to when referencing the ass!

Limestone Cowboy

Lovely.