Multi dibble for onions and leeks
 

About three years back I made this from on hand materials. 3/8ths bolts 3 1/2 long 3 inches apart. The new pins are longer and tapered and should avoid soil sticking to the threads. Some of our leeks fell over last year and the extra 1 3/4 depth should help with that. there is a metal conduit in the handle because the pvc was to flexible.

Neat. How do you use it? Drag it at an angle to create furrows?

I push it in then move it forward 3 holes so the spacing stays the same. The new setup will have a fifth short stub to mark the next hole so I don't redo one hole on every push. The 3 inch spacing seems close but the onions and leeks seem to grow well. I use a header with 6 rows of t-tape 6 inches apart and put a row of onions on each side. I will look for a picture of the bed to post.

I am curious I am planting big underground onions. I was told by my Local Dealer to put them just in the ground and then push the dirt up around them? Thanks in advance, Beale.

We use the dibble to make holes along both sides of a length of drip tape. The plants (from Dixondale) are put in about an inch deep and the soil squeezed against the roots. The plants bulb up nicely, bigger than I expect with such tight spacing. If you are planting sets, the bolts might be need to be shorter so the holes are shallower.

[QUOTE=4season;460439]We use the dibble to make holes along both sides of a length of drip tape. The plants (from Dixondale) are put in about an inch deep and the soil squeezed against the roots. The plants bulb up nicely, bigger than I expect with such tight spacing. If you are planting sets, the bolts might be need to be shorter so the holes are shallower.[/QUOTE]


No sets just single bulb onions, thanks for the explanation, Beale.

Yes in heavy clay soil for sure you want the bulb to grow on top.
It makes for a bigger flatter bulb.

[url]http://geddies-store.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/images/harvesting-onions.5693203_std.jpg[/url]
Worth

Hey Worth I will be putting mine in Mireille Grow Potting Soil for now . Until I get the garden soil. Do I just put them on top? Or about an inch down? Beale.

[QUOTE=EBCIII;460713]Hey Worth I will be putting mine in Mireille Grow Potting Soil for now . Until I get the garden soil. Do I just put them on top? Or about an inch down? Beale.[/QUOTE]

An inch down will be okay.

Worth

What are the tapered tips made from?

[QUOTE=paulgrow;461093]What are the tapered tips made from?[/QUOTE]

They look like pins you would drive in a hole to stop a leak in pipe that have been milled flat on the sides and tapped for threads.

Sorry about the late reply, the tips are bolts that have been turned on a lathe and there are threaded holes drilled in the top for a 1/4 inch bolt. I wasn't there when they were made but I got a tour of the shop later, too many machines to remember them all.

I made a rig with a similar concept, but I used all wood. The dibble pins are dowels. It's great not just for making seed holes, but for marking out for spacing. I often plant in wide rows, and running the dibbler/marker down the wide row on a diagonal gives me perfectly offset plantings, zigzag style.