The field we have chosen for the strawberries has been laying fallow since my great uncle stopped growing watermelons on it around 1990, in his late 80s.  He bottom plowed with a 2 bottom plow pulled by Massey 35 for years and years.  The field had never been subsoiled and so has a plowpan that would probably support a skyscraper.  We haven't had a drop of rain since early spring and the field is like concrete.  I set up a Nelson big gun and pumped several inches of water on the field to try to soften it up some.  Even then subsoiling with a 2 shank ripper pulled by a 4WD 60 HP tractor was difficult to say the least.  I managed to break it up down to 12-14 inches, but I would like to have gone deeper.  Then trying to turn the sod under was next to impossible as the broken up surface clogged the plow bottoms.  I ended up rototilling the surface and then turning it under.  You wouldn't know that I had irrigated the field as the soil was still bone dry.  I can see now that our meager pond is going to be a serious problem.

I have gotten approval to buy water from the city of Charlotte through a fire hydrant next to the field if worst comes to worst.  Hopefully by next spring the pond will be replenished.