# Time to go Reel Low



## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

I joined the reel family today. Not a greens mower, but at least upgraded to a McLane. Would love to join the greens mower club one day, but not in the budget this year. Resodded with Celebration last summer and it took well, but ready to go to the next level. Have added a backpack sprayer and the McLane to the arsenal since the growing season ended. So this year I"m adding ProD, full fertilizer regime, and the McLane to the game. How low do I dare go this year?? And when can I start cutting??


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Congrats! The biggest jump is from rotary to reel. A greens mower is just icing on the cake. :thumbup:


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## raldridge2315 (Jul 1, 2017)

Outstanding!

Your HOC really depends on how smooth and level your lawn is. You will need to experiment to find the sweet spot for your lawn. I would start at 1" and see how it goes and I would start scalping mid to late March. Also, you should figure on leveling with sand this summer.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

What is your lawn currently at right now in regards to HOC? Congrats on the new mower and I don't think you will be disappointed


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## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

After I sodded the Celebration last year, I started at somewhere around 1.25" (that's what the manual says, but not sure if my mower is calibrated to that). Was able to keep it there for about a month before I started traveling for work before I raised to 2" (the next notch up) and pretty much stayed there until the very end of the summer when I was out of town for work 3" in a row. Raised up one more notch for the last cut or two (2.5"). So, that's where I am right now.

I thought it looked pretty good at 1.25" last summer when I was keeping it there. Picture below is from about 3 weeks after I laid sod (so mid-June). This is at 1.25". No major scalping issues (ignore the strip right along the bricks on the left...some of the brown down there is from where sod got unloaded, the scalped part is from me trying to take it to .75"). So definitely feel like I could take it to 1". Am I looking at cutting 3x per wk during the middle of the summer if I don't put down PGR?

Another reel question. My front yard is Emerald Zoysia. Was looking to mow that w/the reel, too. Does anyone keep their emerald zoysia at 1"? I have two large oak trees in the front yard that I'll have to leave space around b/c of roots. How do people deal with obstacles like that with the reel? Use a weedeater to get the same HOC closer to the tree? Or go back with a rotary?

Going to try to level with sand again this summer. Leveled once in late summer 15 months or so ago (in prep for the sod laying). It's pretty smooth, but definitely can go smoother


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## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

I feel like I saw instructions in a thread once for making your own roller for a McLane. Am I missing it somewhere? I'd rather make my own if possible vs spend $100+ on one.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

mrigney said:


> I feel like I saw instructions in a thread once for making your own roller for a McLane. Am I missing it somewhere? I'd rather make my own if possible vs spend $100+ on one.


Here you go


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

With as tall as your lawn is right now, I would start to consider scalping as early as you can, maybe late February or early March and try and do it in sections. You will have a TON of material you will be removing and it's better to break it down into manageable parts instead of trying to do it all at once. Start with scalping with the rotary where you left off at the end of the season and see how much that takes off and then go to the next notch down and so on and only do one notch a day. It may take 2-3 weeks to get all the scalping done but if you spread it out it won't seem so bad. I hope what I just wrote makes sense .

Depending on how large of any area is around your trees in the front, you may want to look into turning them into flower/planting beds because if the area is heavily shaded, there won't be too much grass growing there and if it is it most likely will be very thin and weak. Plus adding the beds will make it a lot easier to mow around and maintain the area.

Would you mind updating your info to include your lawn size and mower? It will aid in giving you more precise advice on what you are wanting to accomplish.


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## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

Good advice on scalping in sections. Agreed that there will be a ton of material. Figured that out last year when I thought about scalping before I went on a series of trips for work last summer. Gave up...wasn't worth it in the late summer. Kind of excited to start the process!

I'm sticking two pictures of the front yard w/the oaks in front for some reference. They really aren't bad enough to turn them into beds surrounding them (maybe a small, 3-5' bed)...the grass grows surprisingly well right up to the base of the tree as you can see (picture was taken right after I scalped the zoysia last summer). The problem is it's just not level enough for the reel once you get w/in 5' of the tree...outside of that, no issues. I'll probably just experiment w/a reel/rotary combo and see what I can do.

Would you recommend verticutting? The sod has been down for < a year, so not sure if verticutting is necessary. I've heard that Celebration, though, can be pretty gnarly and needs it often. I think I can rent a verticutter in town for $40 for a day. Can I do it all in a day (the 4k sq ft)?

For the zoysia experts, should I verticut my emerald if I end up with the verticutter for the Celebration?


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## Redtenchu (Jan 28, 2017)

For scalping, I'm a fan of scalping on the mowers lowest setting without hitting dirt. I then maintain the grass just above that setting until I can't keep up with mowing. Celebration Bermuda is aggressive and will not take long to recover.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

If you are just verticutting the back yard (4K) you should be able to do it easily in one day if not a half day. I too have heard that Celebration is aggressive but with it only being a year old I'm not too sure how thick it really is at this point. Hopefully some Celebration owner will be by here and give us some insight.


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## mrigney (Jun 6, 2017)

Is there a way (for someone pretty new to really taking care of the yard like it should be) to look at/inspect the celebration and tell when it needs to be verticut? Or is it something you just kind of have to learn by feel?


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## FATC1TY (Jul 12, 2017)

I highly highly doubt you have enough thatch after a year to warrant the time and cost to verticut, IMO. Especially with the HOC you've maintained.


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