Need to buy a tractor – requirements as follows:
- 8 acres of field to mow regularly
- some degree of digging / carrying wood around
- needs to be easy to use

serious answers only please!

For 8 acres, keep away from those ‘compacts’ Ok for a bit of garden work but not man enough for most farm jobs.
Do you mean new or second hand? if you mean a good used one then an MF 135 diesel was the finest 40-45 (engine) hp tractor ever made , even Ford IH and John Deere buffs usually admit to that. Of course for that reason they do tend to hold their resale value well ( good news for the seller bad news for the buyer, I have seen beautifully restored ones go for 3 grand ) They are a tough as nails,simple to operate, turn on a sixpence ,use hardly any diesel (that little Perkins 3 cylinder is a quart in a pint pot ) and parts are readily available. You say you want to carry wood around? Well maybe look for one with a loader too.they are a topping little loader tractor. Unhook the loader and it will pull a 2 furrow 14" plough on most soils, or a 5 foot disc mower, hay baler or a 4 ton tipping trailer. ( I have pulled 5 tons of wheat up a hill but it made her cough a bit! )
As you may have gathered,I have spent many a happy hour on 135.
"Crispy" …. There is nothing wrong with a plough, but you need something to pull it ( stupid remark)

I am looking for a British Farmer who can rent me a plot of land and help me mow the field so it reads "I Love you" when seen from a distance (or from air). I would need this for about a month.

If you have any other suggestions for my first surprise gift to my wife, please let me know. Will appreciate if its something different and really surprising (other than usual meal, spa, flowers etc).

Sky writing used to be a good way of surprising someone. If this is not possible, you could have
a banner made with your wishes,and rent a light aircraft to pull it across the sky.

Hope this is of assistance.

I want to mow the field at my home, but it is almost as tall as I am. I have a ride on lawn mower but I still have to cut it all down enough to allow the mower to navigate. I’ve tried a weed eater but it isnt strong enough to cut down the brush. I know that there are machine’s that I can rent that will do what I want but I dont know what they are, or how to use them.

Sounds like you need a brush cutter. A motorized revolving blade that spins at very high speed and cuts pretty much anything that gets in it’s path (except metal).

Basically it’s a long pole with a motor at one end and the blade at the other – they’re 6 to 8 feet long which means when held properly, they’re too long to cut your feet off with. They take a bit of getting used to but once you’ve got the hang of it you’ll be fine.

Get the people at the hire center to show you how to adjust the fittings (it either attaches to a harness or hangs from a strap across your shoulders). Also get them to demonstrate the cutting motion. For high brush like yours you need to sweep the blade from side to side, starting high then lowering towards the ground.

Watch out for any small stones – the blades rotate at about 12,000 times a minute, if they hit a small stone it will fly off like a bullet (wear strong boots). Depending what you’re cutting there could be stuff flying in all directions so a safety helmet with full face shield is a good idea as are ear defenders because they’re noisy things (a buzz-saw helmet will protect your face, ears and head).

Some brush cutters are badly designed in that the motor is too close to your body, once it’s been running a while the casing can get very hot so a thick jacket is also a good idea. Thick trousers as well to protect your legs from flying debris.

Well, today or tomorrow I am mowing my field (I pray my friend lets me use his riding lawn mower that bags, other wise I’ll have a lot of raking to do [I have a riding lawn mover, it doesn't bag though]) to get all the fox tails out (the worst thing on the worst to grow in my field), I’m almost done putting up fencing for this small yard (about the size of a normal yard), I’m putting Tango in it while I am mowing. How long should I keep him in there where any chemicals that could get onto the grass will be gone and won’t hurt him? I was thinking two days. What’s the best type pf grass seed to through into the pasture that will kill out the fox tails? I’ll buy a couple bags and spread it around in there every year.
He’s not leaving for a week, and he’s not going to stay there forever!

I’m a little confused. You are putting Tango in this new yard while you mow his normal one. And you are wanting to put some sort of herbicide in his normal field after the mowing in order to kill the foxtails, and want to know how long Tango will have to stay in the new yard until it’s safe to return him to his normal yard?

Anyway, I don’t know what sort of chemicals you should be using. Consult with your local farm store or agricultural extension office to select the best product, and apply it according to the label directions. I would call the manufacturer of the product you buy and ask them how long your horse needs to stay off the pasture, and then double the amount of time just to be sure. You could also call your vet and tell him what chemical you are using and ask how long your horse would need to stay off the field. Some vets will know, others may not. But asking advice over the phone is always free and so worth a try.