You probably know that we’re all about working smarter and not harder… especially when we’re completing a manual labor job! With so much sweat and strain in executing an installation, we always want to utilize tools to the best of our ability to make our job easier! With so many options on the market, it’s hard to know what works and what is worth the investment. Equipment makes us feel more confident and more empowered to get the job done most efficiently. And let’s be real, who doesn’t love driving a tractor?!

Kubota and New South Tractor (the local Kubota dealer located in Newton, NC) allowed us to test two amazing tractors for our installation job. New South delivered these brand spankin’ new tractors to our job site and they showed up in style.

Let’s review these tractors:

LA1065 on the MX6000 series enclosed cab tractor

The first tractor: heavyweight champion of the world (are you imagining me introducing a boxing round?) LA1065 on the MX6000 series enclosed cab tractor.

This bad boy was a hoss! It’s practically the Cadillac™ of tractors when we’re talking about comfort and luxury; it has an enclosed cab to protect from elements and controlled cabin air control with both air conditioning and heat. This was something that was brand new to us and we loved it! In my previous life in the turf world, those long days spent on the tractor, renovating athletic fields, or spreading fertilizer, this would have been perfect in the summertime and the cold winter scraping snow and ice.  For this installation, we needed a heavy-duty piece of machinery to unload the 1500-pound trees off of the truck. Since the higher you go in the air, the more off-balance the tractor becomes, ensuring we had a heavy tractor that was properly ballasted was key. The LA1065 came with forks on the front, which worked perfectly to hold these large rootballs. Once we had the holes dug, we lifted and positioned it inside of the tree well and set down in its new permanent home. We know that this tractor can come with a multitude of implements, so I am confident we didn’t use it to its fullest potential, but to unload and position heavy trees, it worked like a charm. TPL-approved for sure! 

LA340+ BT603 Backhoe on the BX series 4WD tractor

Up next, we have the small but mighty, lightweight champion of the world: the LA340+ BT603 Backhoe on the BX series 4WD tractor.

The best feature about this tractor is the compact size of it. For this job, we needed a tractor to fit into a small yard to move materials. While we were met with unforeseen fencing issues that led us to not be able to maneuver this piece of equipment into the backyard, it still worked out great for the digging of the large tree wells and moving new material around. The new tree wells already had hardscape stone edging around them and we needed to dig down roughly 33″ and 40″ wide to allow for our new tree rootball to sit at grade-level. We parked the BX near the digging zone, deployed the feet to brace the tractor, turned the seat around to face the rear, buckled up, and began using the mini backhoe to dig the holes. I don’t know about you, but there is something so cool about a digging arm! Without a doubt, this feature saved us a good 4 hrs of digging and we were able to complete it in roughly 30 minutes without even breaking a sweat! 

Once the trees were installed, we used the LA340’s loading bucket to haul 12 smaller trees to the backyard, four tons of small boulder stone, 30 yards of double-ground mulch, and six yards of topsoil. We maneuvered into the small front yard square footage like a champ, not having to wonder if we were crossing property boundaries. 

To say we are happy with these products is an understatement. I mean, if Kubota could make a heli-tractor to help get into tiny backyards in HOA communities, we’d be first in line to test it out. Thank you, Kubota and New South Tractor for making our jobs easier! 

Connect with the New South Tractor team over on their website + social media accounts. Be sure to let them know we sent you!

WEBSITE: newsouthtractor.com
EMAIL: https://www.newsouthtractor.com/contact-email-tractors-utvs-dealership–xcontact
PHONE: 828-468-495
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/NewSouthTractor

All Photos & Videos are copyright of Heather Payne Photography + Those Plant Ladies.