# Colinjholding PNW 1.5 acre lawn journal. Reel mowing



## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Hello everyone from the Abbotsford, BC, Canada.

I am 30 years old and own ECM Irrigation and Landscaping. 10+ years in the industry.

I have lived at this location for about 5 years now and share a 5 acre property with my In laws. Before we moved here there was 2 houses (including ours built 1955) My in laws built a nice new house and 2 years later we did a full gut renovation on our house. I started on transforming the Lawn and landscape slowly as funds allowed.

Total area of grass is 1.5 acre
My area that i do the mowing is 26,000 sqft cut at .5" HOC with reel mower
My in laws side about 45,000 sqft 1.5" HOC with the zero turn.

To this point i have acquired the following equipment. 
John Deere z915b
John Deere 25 gal 3 nozzle tow behind sprayer
Tow behind thatcher
Tow behind aerator
Bluebird H30a aerator
Ryan Reno Thin dethatcher
Jacobsen pgm 22 greens mower
Jacobsen Greensking VI
Cushman Truckster with Toro topdresser 
Kubota bx25
Kubota kx 018-4
Stihl br600
Stihl km91 kombi 
Chapin Turf pro 4 gal backpack sprayer.

Year 1 started with basic mowing and fertilizing with nothing too crazy as i had plans to add irrigation to the entire property in the coming years. Also had plans to entirely revamp most of the landscaping and pour a patio in the back yard. Also sprayed 2 apps of 2,4d to minimize the weeds

Year 2 was all about ripping out and redoing about 80% of the landscaping. Followed by the first real top dressing the lawn had ever seen. Sprayed 2,4d twice across entire property.









Year 3 was by far the most productive year. We started in the spring with irrigating all 1.25 acres. Its a 1.5" mainline with 11 Zones using Rainbird 5004 rotors and 1804 pop ups. Pga 150 valves. Obviously this was very destructive but had to be done. I had the system in and functioning in about 3 days. Everything was backfilled end of March and top dressing was done about a week later. Sprayed 1 app of 2,4d and 1 app of trillion.



















Year 3 continued with the hottest summer we have ever seen with a weekend of temperatures hitting 45-47°c and weeks on end of 30°c. I dialled the irrigation back at this times as it simply did not matter with the temps.





That Brings us to this season. Spring 2022. We had and unusually cold winter this year with prolonged periods of hard freezing along with cold winds. The lawn experienced a lot of dissertation. We also had a major flooding event and the most rain in a 24/48 period we have seen in a 100+ years. 
Needless to say things were off to a rough start as we still continue to see lower then average temps to Start the growing season.

So far i have done a bit of topdressing and overseeding but just in the front where i had some prolonged standing water.

Here is the final bit of photos including just some general yard photos.

I will update this thread whenever I complete tasks. I look forward to using some of my new equipment and some new items such as pgr and doing more this year then ever.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

March 25th 2022.

First cut for the triplex of the year.


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## Vtx531 (Jul 1, 2019)

Nice intro- Looking forward to watching you use all the equipment. Good luck this year!


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Vtx531 said:


> Nice intro- Looking forward to watching you use all the equipment. Good luck this year!


Thank you! Just need to remember to post regularly.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Got about 220ft of edging done on my inlaws side. Only about a year overdue. I will go back with the string line and dial it in.

Both sides got cut again. My side with the triplex again. Temperatures about 15°c + today really had things popping.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Not 100% turf related but still important nonetheless. I got 6 yards of mulch spread in my big planter bed. The tractor makes quick work of it. I had to get this done prior too aeration and top dressing in the coming weeks. Also got 14 yards of sand delivered for top dressing. Another beauty day here too👍🏼👍🏼


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

This are finally growing consistently.

Got my sand delivered yesterday. Topdressing next week weather dependant.

I will be firing up the irrigation system this weekend.

Snuck in another mow today its looking better every cut.


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## jskierko (Sep 5, 2020)

That's looking good! Jealous of how flat you've got everything already.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

jskierko said:


> That's looking good! Jealous of how flat you've got everything already.


Its been years in the making 😂.

Nice thing about reel mowing is you need smooth not flat. I got lots if slopes etc in the back.

But ya sand topdressing every year has been the only thing i have done.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Poked some holes today.

Used the tow behind aerator with decent success this time. After rigging the hitch point differently.

Then after i threw the garbage blades on the z915b and set it on its lowest setting and used it to get rid of the cores.

Only took about an hour and a bit to do 26,000 sq ft.


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## gatorguy (Mar 13, 2020)

Subbed!

Looking great so far! Weathewise its been a really nice week as you mentioned. A real treat after all the rain.

So if I follow correctly this is the original NoMix grass your working with and just overseeding PRG? Do you have poa annua and crabgrass issues?

Did my annual rent of a 27" Aerator from Su belt this week and went at it for a day....thats tiring! Especially working on slopes and some tight backyards. For your yard have you thought of buying a vertical aerator like a greensaire? You can pick em up for pretty cheap and they go deeper and make cleaner holes is what im told.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

gatorguy said:


> Subbed!
> 
> Looking great so far! Weathewise its been a really nice week as you mentioned. A real treat after all the rain.
> 
> ...


Ya everything is still the original blended mix with a bit of fescue, but it seems to be more and more rye heavy with the over seeding i have been doing. Maybe like 10% fescue.

I get a bit of poa for sure. Not much crab grass. I am less worried about having 1 variety and more focused on just having decent looking turf overall. It is so hard with the fields surrounding me because it always goes to seed and different stuff blows in. Maybe one day i will nuke everything and start over.

At some point i would like a better aerator but doesn't make sense from a cost standpoint right now. Ideally i would want a tractor mounted procore which would be even better. I would prefer to solid tine anyways and keep the Organic in the ground. The walk behind greensaire or procores are slow too.

We need some more warmth though!


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## gatorguy (Mar 13, 2020)

Good stuff! Yeah keeping it short too, from a distance you probably wouldnt notice the poa as much.

What kind of depth were you getting for aeration plugs? I was very unimpressed...1" - 2" kinda thing. Not sure if the spoons were just wore out or what.

A tractor mount unit would be sweet! Have you checked out the auctions to see if you can picl one up to rebuild?


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

gatorguy said:


> Good stuff! Yeah keeping it short too, from a distance you probably wouldnt notice the poa as much.
> 
> What kind of depth were you getting for aeration plugs? I was very unimpressed...1" - 2" kinda thing. Not sure if the spoons were just wore out or what.
> 
> A tractor mount unit would be sweet! Have you checked out the auctions to see if you can picl one up to rebuild?


I am getting a full 2" of depth with mine, running about 160lbs of weight on it.

I have been watching auctions but 3-4k for a piece of equipment i only use a few times a year is a tough sell to the wife. Also my soil isn't very compacted. I aerate more so for the ability to introduce more sand when top dressing.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Been a Crazy week for the family. We welcomed a new baby boy two days ago. While mama and baby boy rested I took my 2.5 yr old outside and got to work topdressing. She loves riding along with me on the equipment.

It was a slower process with her riding shotgun. I was still able to get down about 30% of my total sanding and did a few passes with the drag. 
Bit dissatisfied with the quality of the sand I received this year. Seems it either got loaded with a dirty bucket or loaded into a dirty truck. Lots of 1" rocks, but it was cheap so thats on me.

Hopefully get another mama/baby nap break tomorrow to get some more done.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Cut the front with the walker and then core aerated the front. I usually do this area with the blue bird and use the tow behind on the rest of the lawn.

Also fired up the irrigation just to do a once over of the system.

I will finished sanding the front and little bit remaining of the rest. Go to spray tenacity on the front area where i will be overseeding.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Snuck some time between new born cuddles to get the front sanded. The topdresser/tractor combo makes quick work of everything.

Worked the sand in and then laid some seed 3 pounds/1k sqft.

One more section to do then a few weeks for everything to settle.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Super nice day today.

Weather has been decent but still really cold for this time of year.

Today i sprayed tenacity on the front section along with a 0-22-28 mixed in and i diluted .5 pound of urea as well.

Spread a 18-18-18 on the rest of the yard.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Sand is beginning to disappear. The front 4k sqft is taking for ever to fill back in with the over night temps being cold still.

We are getting a few good days of warmth here till Monday. Going to put some peat moss/
Seed mix down tomorrow in the bare spots. Also planning to line trim everything tomorrow and spray all the planter beds.


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## Wile (Sep 17, 2020)

What an incredible amount of work and how freaking awesome it's going! I got into an argument with a dude in a FB group that you could reel mow 20k sq ft. Here's proof at 65k+. Well done!


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Wile said:


> What an incredible amount of work and how freaking awesome it's going! I got into an argument with a dude in a FB group that you could reel mow 20k sq ft. Here's proof at 65k+. Well done!


Surprisingly so many people just are not aware of the availability and different types of reels. Because of the golf/ turf industry the machines are readily available. I have a less then 1000$ total into my try plex.

Also people assume everything has to be perfect for reels which simply is not the case. Golf courses reel mow through all kinds of bumps and debris no issues.

Definitely helps being apart of that world. Different perspectives.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Long time no update.

We have been experiencing pretty crappy weather lately. With temps around 5-11°c and colder at night.

Sand has settled in nicely. Few low spots that will need topsoil and seed. I am waiting for some good weather to spray post em.

Been trying to mow as much as the rainy weather allows. My tri plex is also having a few issues so thats a bit frustrating.

Today i line trimmed everything and cut the front and ran the deere over the rest.

Also dumped some seed on the front today. It was free seed so what i get is what i get. 8 pounds per 
1000 sqft. Also tenacity bleaching is pretty much gone in the front. Just need some heat.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Snuck in another mow after the kids went to bed. Finally a nice day. We are forecasting nothing but ran for a while it seems.

Also put down 50 lbs of 18-18-18 and some grub be gone. (Want to see if it reduces worm castings)

My pacific dogwood is thriving this year so thats one positive.


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## bf7 (May 11, 2020)

Colinwjholding said:


>


This is a beautiful shot. I'm a sucker for a nice tree.

Your profile says you have fescue. Are you reel mowing the fescue?


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

bf7 said:


> Colinwjholding said:
> 
> 
> >
> ...


I should probably change that now haha. My lawn when i took over was a classic pacific northwest blend of fescue/rye/bluegrass and poa. I haven't killed off any areas and started from scratch yet. I have been overseeding heavily with rye only for about 2 years now. So yes still reel mowing that mix but if i had to guess it is mostly rye at this point.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Another decent day here.

Got the tri plex back out and cutting after some fuelling gremlins. Laid some half and halfs. Crazy how much regular mowing helps improve things.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Snuck in another mow today. Everything was pretty long with the fert kicking in. My half and half is burning in nicely. Need the weather to improve. We are expecting another "rain event" tomorrow.


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## gatorguy (Mar 13, 2020)

Sweet!

Yeah, bring on some heat.


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## livt0ride (Jan 10, 2021)

I like the half and half!


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

livt0ride said:


> I like the half and half!


Its so much faster too


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## MNLawnGuy1980 (May 10, 2019)

Congrats on the new addition to the family @Colinwjholding! Looking forward to reading more about your progress throughout the summer. Looks like a ton of fun, lot of work, but fun nonetheless!


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

MNLawnGuy1980 said:


> Congrats on the new addition to the family @Colinwjholding! Looking forward to reading more about your progress throughout the summer. Looks like a ton of fun, lot of work, but fun nonetheless!


With the weather we have been having here in the pnw it has been not much work at all. Can't really do anything but watch the rain fall 😂😂


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

We finally got some good "spring weather" here in the pnw. I was able to cut 3 days in a row. Also got some planter beds trimmed and cleaned up. Hoping to get a window this week to get some 3 way Down as a post emergent to combat the broadleaf coming in. Also i have finally got my triplex to run without stalling, ran some seafoam through it. Seems to have done the trick cleaning the carb out.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

The rain keeps falling. Just trying to mow as much as i can right now. Waiting for a window of weather so i can get some post emergent down. Then pgr on the front.

Also my wife discovered that this is the photo google uses for my house 😂. The lawn has come a long long long way.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Long time no update.

I have been trying to sneak in regularly scheduled mows when i can. It has been a challenge. Only avg. about 2 mows a week. This has meant often having to use the rotary. Hoping the weather changes and we get more dry weather. I have only irrigated twice this yeAr.

Managed to get 3 mows in a row this weekend. Hoping for a fourth tomorrow.

Also last week got down an app of trillon (3way post em) and today i put down my first ever app of pgr on the front.

Got a big bbq coming on the first of July so the push is on. After that i will slow down as i have a packed golf tournament schedule for month of july.

Mow on everyone.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Update. We are currently on day 2 of our first hot stretch of the year. 3 days of temps in the low to mid 30's Celsius. Everything is holding up fine.

I have been super pleased with the increase in density on the front where I applied PGR.

Another app going down next week.


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## Colinwjholding (Apr 6, 2020)

Long time no update!
This was by far the most challenging summer I have ever experienced. In the last 4 months we have had a severe drought with no major rainfall since late june. We broke avg. temperature records every month from june through September and you might as well add October to that already.
That being said everything held in there pretty good. Some areas were stressed and went dormant same as last year. They have already started recovering and things are greening up.

I have a few irrigation tweaks to make for next year. Including adding a head or two and Quick connects for 1” hose for wetting agent.

Ready for the season to wind down and get back to normal mowing.


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