Need advise on pasture leveling/repairing ???

I need to recondition the front (3 acre) pasture on my old ranch . I just finished digging out the last tree stump , picking up 30 zillion miles of used barb wire and misc metal that was disgarded carelessly by the privous owner .

I have lots of ground squirrels( hundreds) in this pasture . It has made the field extremely rough, bumpy and dangerous for cattle or horses with all the holes . A 22cal.rilfe is now taking care of squirrels every evening .

I also dug a small pond with a island in the center and used the excess dirt to fill low spots that the old stream had cut through the pasture over the last 50 years .

I have mowed the pasture with my Brush Hog down to about 4 or 5 inches . I tried to use my tamden disc ,but it will not even begin to cut through the thick 4" plus grass matting even with weight applied .This pasture has not been maintained in upteen years .

I am thinking I need to rototill or plow under and then disc to get a good base to plant the new White Clover for my Elk .
I do have access to a old D2 Cat crawler with a angle blade that has been completely rebuilt if neccessary . It will peel the grass mat up .

I can use any suggestions any of you old farmers/ranchers can think of .
I would like to rebuild this pasture in the fall and try to get some cover on it before the winter snows .
Thoughts or opinions greatly appreciated .

I've just "reclaimed" some pasture land for a front yard on my property. I have now tilled it 3 times and will do it once more before I plant grass seed.

I've been very happy with the speed and quality of the 5' KK tiller behind my L3400 Kubota. It has turned thick meadow turf into fine fluffy soil that is easily smoothed with a fence gate.

I think tilling mixed with some light discing or "bed-springing" to level the loosened soil will do what you are asking.

Whatever you do don't scrap that sod off. Till it or turn it over with a plow. Plow it in the fall and let it rot all winter then next spring disk it and get that seed bed ready to plant. Take a soil sample and have it checked to see what the soil needs are. Then go from there.

I agree with Deerlope about scraping the sod off, and it's probably going to be hard to get a cover on before winter snows.
If you have a tiller that should work to break it up, but will probably take a few passes, with some time between to let the residue rot.
If you have a turning plow, turn it under and disk several times. Then you can drag a harrow over it of some sort to level out, apply your seed and fertilize, etc.
I've read some about folks that "winter sow" flower seed and the seed come up in the spring, have never done it. That might work for your grass too, but I'm not sure. Probably would be best if you could get your grass up this fall and let it continue root development over the winter.

Good luck.

Plow/Middle Bust then Disc then roll.

Or Till (2-3) times then roll.

If you have a sprayer, nuke the pasture with Round-up before you work the soil and it will help in breaking up the clods of turf after it has killed everything off. But this isn't exactly environmentally friendly.

The biggest problem with doing it this time of year is that if you get any wind it is going to make things very dirty and dusty around the house.

If you re-seed early on at the start of the fall rains you should be able to get something up.

Thanks you all !

I have access to a 2 bottom plow and am looking to buy a PTO 5' or 6' rototiller to use behind my 45 HP tractor . The ground is almost as hard as a rock now even though the water table is only about 3' down . I need to do something and dust is a major issue at this time, as this pasture is very close to the house and the wife does not look kindly at dusting and cleaning the house all the time .

We usually get a few Summer rains ,but it sure don't seem to be happening this year .

If you spray with Round-up to kill the grass it will still act as a ferterlizer for the next crop when is decomposes. Plow in the fall and plant in the spring or plow in the fall and plant something like winter wheat in the fall.

As a update on this ,I tried ripping the soil a couple weeks ago and my box blade rippers just bounced on top . I am taking a two bottom plow back up in Oct and will try to turn the pasture under before winter sets in . The pond is full now and grass is growing like crazy around the edges . All my nieghbors are telling me to fertilize real heavy when I I plant new grass . We have a lot of clay here . I also have access to a big heavy I beam that I plan to drag behind the tractor to fill in the low spots . I'll take some before and after shots to show results .

Might want to put some lime out too. If you can get a soil ph test kit at a garden center it will give you a rough idea how much you need.