On Mon, 31 Oct 2005 19:04:06 GMT, "Cindy" wrote:

Bourne Identity wrote:
Ryobi..... It won't till fresh soil which hasn't been worked, but it does a
great
job at cultivation of soil which has already been ammended. It is
strong enough to rip down virgin areas of soil, but it's not intended
to do that. I have mine for about 8 years and it is still working.
It's also electric so no need to struggle with gas/oil mixtures or
pull starting.

Same for the Mantis. I also lived in an area with very rocky soil, from
small to large gravel. The rocks got caught in the tines and stopped them.
I got tired of having to sift all the rocks out of my soil to use the
tiller, so it's been sitting for years. I haven't even tried it on the
lovely clay here.

Cindy


Actually, if you have clay and it's got the right amount of moisture,
it does do a pretty good job, but you can't just jam it into the soil
and expect it to activate six inches at once. With patience, the
Ryobi does work well for a small garden. At least in my experience.
Fortunately I don't have any rocks to speak of.