About a year ago I bought a house in Northern NJ. Zone 6b. The backyard (~100x75) was essentially woods, as the previous owner did nothing during the last 25 years. The yard was severely sloped toward the house. This year I have cut down several tree and pruned others to provide a yard area for my kids and let some sun in. I cut into the slope and did a rough leveling of the yard (still some slope there) and removed several stumps. But, there are at least two stumps still there.

My next step would be to rototill, level, smooth and seed. The problem is that the ground is so rocky and there are so many roots (most very small, but occasional bigger ones), I am afraid the rototiller would have serious problems. (I cannot put a shovel into the ground without hitting stone.) Most slightly smaller than a deck of cards, various ones the size of a hand or two, and then 5-7% of them the size of a football. Am I wrong to be concerned about the ability of the rot to get through this? I will probably get a mid sized tiller from Home Depot or a local rental place. (I was told a larger one would actually be less effective in this environment because it would always be hitting something and bouncing off or seizing.) While I will try to add some top soil, compost and grass clippings it won't be much (1-2 inches).

One thought that I came up with was renting a backhoe and using it to pull the stumps, turn the soil and do some other work. I would dump whatever topsoil, compost, etc. I have and then use the backhoe to turn over the top 5-6-7-8 (??) inches. Basically dig in say 5-8 inches, lift the bucket 5 feet off the ground and dump the dirt. Once I went over the yard, I would use the front shovel to smooth out the terrain. Then rake.

If I get the backhoe, I could order more topsoil and add that in. This method would most likely expose more rocks, which I am using to build a drystack wall. I could also use the backhoe for some other projects around the house. While I am not an expert with a backhoe, I've used one several times and feel a little comfortable on one.

Which would be a better option? Does flipping the soil with the backhoe make any sense, or is it just a waste of time? Obviously, it wouldn't mix things up as well as a rototiller, but frankly, most of what I would be turing is clay anyway. Is this reasonable, or just grand illusions? Would the rototiller be a better option? The backhoe would be about 2-3 times the cost and while fun, I don't want to spend all that extra money, just to have to bring in a rototiller or something else later. If I do it, to what depth would you recommend? 3, 6 9 inches? Also, since I still have several trees (75-100 feet tall), any recommendations on what kind of perimeter to give them when backhoing/rototilling around them? Anything else I should be looking out for?

Your thoughts and advice are appreciated.

Develop an overall plan for the yard. Then, I would do both. The backhoe will loosen the soil and uncover rocks to make into a wall. Removing rocks will allow planting of anything easier. Grade with the backhoe. Be mindfull of the rain drainage to avoid gullies during storms and direct away from the house.

Then bring in some topsoil and till to mix with the supsoil/clay. Rake and plant