# vtx531 Lawn Journal - Rotary Mow -



## Vtx531

Front was sodded new in 2007. Back was seeded (i think) and both were very poorly maintained. I started in 2010.

last year...

My lawn was pretty bumpy so I spent a lot of time an effort trying to level it with topsoil using a shovel, rake, and broom. Part of the problem was trenches from an irrigation system that I installed previously.

If I could do over, I would have killed the grass and leveled everything while installing the irrigation.

Here is a picture from April 23 after spreading the topsoil.



Then after working it in with a push broom (same date)



And two weeks later when the grass starts to pop from the spring. I think I had it mowed at 1.5" as low as my rotary would go to make spreading the dirt easier.



Another spot April 30, 2018. This was A LOT of work.


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## Vtx531

I decided the shovel and rake method was too labor intensive so I purchased a Turfco that was in really poor condition and spent the entire winter on a complete restoration - down to every nut and bolt.





So far I have about 75% of the lawn done with one layer. I use 2NS sand (Michigan thing?). Approximately 3,000 lbs per load and I do it whenever I have a free morning and I'm bored.


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## g-man

That turfco! I need one.


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## Cozy

Rad! Love a good winter project and love a good deal even more. Im in Coldwater, MI. What area are you in?


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## Vtx531

Im in Kalamazoo. It is nice to have but takes up a lot of real estate in a two car garage.

I was at 4" a couple of weeks ago. Then took it down .5" at a time to 2.5" over a period of about a week. It looked like garbage! Bad time of the year to do such a thing. There were a lot of clippings and brown tips even with sharp mower blades. Ended up having to bag it because there were so many clippings but at least it looked a little better.


Next few times I let it grow back out to 3" which is where I cut it today.



Looks good in the shade (camera/photo lighting)



No crab grass this year. I did two apps of dithiopyr/fertilizer on April 15 and May 15. Last year I didnt do preemergent and got hammered with crabgrass. But this photo is from Aug 25 so I guess the worst is yet to come.



Interesting comparison two photos from last year - June 11, 2018 before crabgrass and Aug 25, 2018 after crabgrass



I also aerated last year on June 14 which didnt help combined with no preemergent. I purchased a ride-on Classen Standaer and I wanted to badly to try it out even though timing was wrong. I sold it at the end of last year and now I am using a Ryan LawnAire 28.





I am also in the process of digging out around the sprinkler heads, and raising them up a little bit as well as replacing a few. I installed them below grade so they wouldn't get run over but I think this allowed dirt and debris to get in and ruin the gears. So I am going to try and keep the surrounding areas cleared out so it doesn't happen again.



Now giving the lawn a bit of water .1" and enjoying a Founders Centennial IPA while watching the sprinklers do their thing. Looks like approx. 2 week period with no rain. I watered a lot 2017 and got bad fungus. Last year 2018, I watered lightly each morning, enough to remove the guttation water in the morning and no big fungus issues. This year I am trying an approach of just giving it enough to keep from going dormant during dry periods.



Oh and here is my mower with homemade striping kit that I built a couple weeks ago.


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## Cozy

I get great results from my tow aerator. Basically the same as a stand-on I rented a while back. Turf looks great. If you ever feel like bringing that topdresser down I'll make it worth your time.


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## Vtx531

Email me what you are thinking...my username at gmail.com.

Today I dug up clay/rocks around three sprinkler heads that were "stuck" and replaced the heads. Backfilled with sand again because the clay dirt is hard to pack well. Sand seems to backfill easily and hoping it will drain better around the sprinkler head. I have about three more to replace but I ran out of extra sprinkler heads. Will order online because local places charge 3x the price.


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## Vtx531

Now that I got my sprinkler system mostly working, I Set my Bhyve smart timer to refill daily. It will water about 3 hours each day approximately .17 inches per day. Its hot and dry out. I would do more water less often but I dont like the sprinklers running 6-9 hours per day. Let's see how this goes...


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## Vtx531

Mowed today 3.0" at a 3 day interval. Seems to be responding well the the irrigation. I don't remember the last time it rained here. I have a couple spots of Poa in this area you can see part of it in this photo.


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## Vtx531

Mowed at 3.0". Heat wave this weekend upper 90's.







Still have some clover. I sprayed Crossbow a couple weeks ago but didn't get it all. I'll try to hit them again when the temps cool.



I overseeded this area under the pine trees and let the existing grass grow very tall there. When I finally mowed it, it left brown stalks that won't go away. Been like this for a couple months. Any advice?





Brown strip near the property line. Not sure why.



Dry spots along the road and by the mailbox. I installed the sprinkler not in the corner so the mailbox wouldn't block the sprinkler but now that corner gets dry. How do other people deal with this situation?





Dead spot from fuel spillage and two dead spots from fertilizer (urea) spillage. Both a few weeks/month ago.





Poa I think... Do I just do a preemergent in this area in the fall?


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## ken-n-nancy

Vtx531 said:


> Now that I got my sprinkler system mostly working, I Set my Bhyve smart timer to refill daily. It will water about 3 hours each day approximately .17 inches per day. Its hot and dry out. I would do more water less often but I dont like the sprinklers running 6-9 hours per day. Let's see how this goes...


It sounds like you're aware of this already, but the grass will do better (deeper roots, more disease resistance) if you irrigate less frequently, but more deeply each time. (Say .34 inches every 2nd day or 0.5 inches every 3rd day.) Yes, this will mean running the sprinklers longer. Personally, I have mine run from about 12:15am to 8:45am for their standard cycle on the 3rd day after a prior significant rain event or irrigation cycle.


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## iowa jim

Have you seen pics of ken-n-nancy lawn, i would take there advice.


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## Vtx531

Yes, I agree with you both.

Many people don't realize most household plumbing systems can only safely support a max flow rate of 6.5gpm (3/4" copper). Any more that that and the water velocity slowly erodes the insides of the pipes. My system is at about 8.5gpm just for the sprinklers...out of respect for the plumbing system, I try not to use any additional water at the same time. For example a water saving shower head at 2.5gpm combined with the irrigation would be almost double the max recommended flow (at least in the part of the system that is supplying both). Or a washing machine filling up- probably 5gpm added on to the 8.5gpm from the irrigation.

A long explanation to say that practicality outweighs the best practices for irrigating my lawn because I don't want my wife to be wondering if, when she can take a shower, run the dishwasher, laundry (new baby), etc... much easier to say don't use water between 4am and 7am.

I'm going to mow today. 3 days of growth in this pic with a lot of rain and no fertilizer for a few weeks.


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## Vtx531

3 days of growth



Losing the color after mowing



done - heres the good angle for stripes


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## Vtx531

A good day to do some sand topdressing with the cooler temps.

I get the sand from a local gravel pit. They have a $10 minimum charge and the sand is $5 per ton. This means I can fill my little trailer as much as want for $10.



The sand was a little bit wetter than I am used to. Must be from the heavy rain a couple days ago. I got 2800lbs (Less than usual. Not sure why. I just eyeball it how much based on the trailer leaf springs sagging)



Took just under two hours including getting out the equipment, getting the sand, spreading it, and putting everything away.


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## g-man

I'm jealous.


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## Vtx531

Thank you, sir

I did another 2,800 lb of sand today. This time I covered up my sprinkler heads with cling wrap to keep sand particles from getting inside and wrecking the plastic gears.



Also, I mowed. 3.0" hoc with two days in between mows. (Mowing every other day)



And here is a photo of the same spot in the backyard the day after topdressing. Sprinklers ran .2" last night, I raked some of the heavier areas, and mowed.


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## ken-n-nancy

First off, I love the topdresser! After your initial investment of what must have been many hours of labor for the restoration, you have a tool that makes lawn-leveling a lot easier than for most -- particularly given your source for inexpensive high quality sand! Well done!



Vtx531 said:


> Dry spots along the road and by the mailbox. I installed the sprinkler not in the corner so the mailbox wouldn't block the sprinkler but now that corner gets dry. How do other people deal with this situation?


The area by the mailbox and road is always a challenge. We've been able to improve these areas in our lawn in the most recent few years. However, these options may not be available to everybody. Here's what worked for us (photo below):


Like your situation, we also had trouble with the area near the mailbox where the sprinkler head at the mailbox can't get right into the corner. We ended up improving this by adjusting the two other sprinkler heads that throw back to the mailbox (the nearest head along the driveway and the nearest head along the road) so that they completely cover the corner, and actually throw a little farther onto the road and driveway. We're fortunate that our lawn is slightly **below** the driveway and road, so excess water thrown onto the road and driveway runs back into the lawn, rather than being lost into a storm sewer. Looks like you may have the added complication of the lawn in your mailbox corner being above the driveway and road, so this may not work for you.


Before re-adjusting the sprinklers, we sometimes hand-watered the mailbox corner using a hose and spray nozzle. This worked best when the hand-watering was done at the first sign of drought stress (the grass kind of changes color and starts to look different), rather than waiting for the grass to go brown, at which point it's kind of too late. Although hand watering worked well, it was time-consuming, required us remembering to do it, and had to be done when it was needed, not necessarily when it was convenient for us.


We changed grass types to one that would better tolerate the heat and drought. After switching to Kentucky bluegrass around the mailbox, that corner and section along the road does much better. We used to have a Northern mix there, for which the corner seemed to be largely fine fescue, which had the poorest heat and drought tolerance of the grasses in the Northern mix. In a section of our lawn where we still have a Northern mix along the road, the fine fescue still turns brown in the summer, whereas the KBG in the renovated front lawn deals much better with the heat.










For the section along the road, we always had trouble getting good grass to grow right to the edge of the asphalt. The last foot or so of soil is largely a sand/gravel mix to be part of the roadbed; salt runs off from the road in the winter and early spring; and the soil gets real hot there from the proximity of the asphalt. We eventually side-stepped the problem by intentionally making a "barren wasteland" from the road edge to a granite cobblestone border set back about 30 inches from the road, so that we can have good grass right up to the cobblestone border and then just have a barren wasteland (enforced by glyphosate) between the cobblestones and the road. It has worked well, but was a lot of work. There are pics in our reno thread from last year: https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=5671#p97955 and https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=5671#p97992 and https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=5671#p97994

Looks like your road edge may have an additional challenge of being sloped down from the road, yet the road may not fully drain onto your lawn. Your last six inches of turf abutting the road is going to be hard to water, as it's practically a ridge with water running off either into the lawn or back into a low spot on the road, rather than being retained at the road edge where it is most needed.

Have fun!


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## Cozy

Have you ran anything else through the topdresser? I ask because assuming you could run something else, why always "just" the sand? No problem areas that would be served by topsoil/compost mix? It looks great man!


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## Vtx531

Cozy said:


> Have you ran anything else through the topdresser? I ask because assuming you could run something else, why always "just" the sand? No problem areas that would be served by topsoil/compost mix? It looks great man!


Im just not familiar with compost I guess. Is it any better than just hitting an area with urea? I did topsoil before but it cost over twice as much as the sand and I think it introduced weeds. compost is 3-4x more expensive than sand and I don't think it has leveling properties (correct me if I am wrong). I have pics of problem areas a few posts up. Do you have any recommendations?

Mowed today 3.0"...


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## ken-n-nancy

Vtx531 said:


> I'm just not familiar with compost I guess. Is it any better than just hitting an area with urea? I did topsoil before but it cost over twice as much as the sand and I think it introduced weeds. compost is 3-4x more expensive than sand and I don't think it has leveling properties (correct me if I am wrong). I have pics of problem areas a few posts up. Do you have any recommendations?


Compost serves a different purpose than sand or urea. Compost is a good way to increase organic matter in the soil. It doesn't provide much nitrogen (like urea would) but usually contains a fair bit of phosporus. Compost does frequently bring in weed seeds, depending upon the quality of the compost source, which can vary all over depending upon specific location.

Compost does *not* help with long-term leveling, as being mostly organic material, will rot away to nothing after 3-4 years. In other words, if you fill in a hole with compost, the hole will gradually return again, until it is back to what it used to be after about 3-4 years.

Basically, sand, compost, and urea all serve different purposes, so it's not really a question of which one. However, it does seem that a topdresser could potentially make spreading compost a lot easier than with a spading fork and a rake.


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## Vtx531

Thanks for the info. I am hoping the fact that I am returning clippings this year will increase my organic matter. Last year I was removing 0.5 cubic yard + each week.

Day after a mow. The light spots are where the sun is poking through the trees or reflecting off windows.


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## Vtx531

I mowed 3.0" and applied fertilizer. I don't keep track of weighing it like I used to do but based on past experience it was about 1LB/1000. Supposed to get some good rain later today. I try to wait for rain because I also maintain an area adjacent to my property that is not irrigated.


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## Cozy

I was more curious how the machine handled spreading compost / topsoil?

Compost can introduce weeds for sure and doesn't typically compact well enough to level anything out. It does have a lot more microbes than straight fert though. I have some bad soil areas I am am mending with a topsoil / compost mix and I always use Tenacity after spreading compost.


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## Vtx531

I haven't tried the turfco with topsoil or compost but I have no doubt it would work well.

The lawn responded nicely to the urea. I mowed today at 3.0". Maybe it is getting used to the 3.0" hoc since I have been doing that consistently for almost a month.

I think this is the best looking the lawn has been which is great for Aug 1. Would have been even better with a double cut but I ran out of daylight.


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## Vtx531

Mowed Friday night Aug 2.

Mowed today Aug 5.



Installed mulch plug. It seems to work fairly well. I purchased it for about $25 but not the rest of the kit and using the same blades for now. Also easier to see where you are actually mowing on the right side without the big discharge chute. Seems to keep the grass out of the landscaping beds a little better too.



Sharpened blades (prior to mowing) with 60 grit flap wheel.



Balanced blades with Magnamatic



My notsogood section under the pine trees is getting a little better.


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## Vtx531

Decided to take it down from 3.0"



To 2.5"


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## Vtx531

Mowed at 2.5". Grass was slightly wet. I prefer to mow in the morning so this is common. The mulcher was clumping up pretty bad..



So I double cut and went back to side discharge


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## Vtx531

Double mowed at 2.5" and bagged during the second mow because there were a lot of brown stemmy clippings that were staying on top. 1.5 bags of clippings.

Noticed crab grass starting to appear. Only in very few places. Much better than last year.


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## Vtx531

Pulled all crabgrass by hand.


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## Vtx531

I sharpened the blades again. I think the sand is dulling them quickly. Mowed at 2.5".



A lot of the tips seems pretty ragged. But the freshly cut ones seem clean cut. As if there is shorter grass with previously ragged cut tips but I never went lower than 2.5" this year.



Should I mow down to 2.0" and let it grow back out to 2.5"?

Got the edging straightened out in front and also cleaned up by the road (not pictured).


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## Vtx531

Double cut at 2.0". I will let the clippings dry for a couple days then bag them.


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## Vtx531

Back out to 3.0" HOC the last couple weeks. Hasn't been cut in a couple days.


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## Vtx531

I haven't been on here in a month but the lawn is doing great. I applied 100lb of 19-19-19 this month in two apps at 50lb each. Everything is starting to green up nicely in the local area and even my non irrigated section is coming back.

***I just won an auction for a junky, old Greensaire II that is local to me. The ad says it runs but does not engage the pluggers. Very excited to go pick it up within the next few days and see if I can get it up and running!


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## Vtx531

I got the machine home today and tinkered with it. Engine runs and hydraulics work but it won't move and the tines won't go up and down. Also has tires going flat but came with extras. I think I found the fix and it is just missing a couple woodruff keys on the driveshaft. Hopefully next post will be pics of the unit in action.


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## Chris LI

Nice! It reminds me of the old Ryan GA-24 units we had at an old job (might be the same thing). It may have options for different tines. We used hollow core 5/8" tines in the fall and 1/2" solid tines (long/needle) in the warmer weather a couple of times during the season to reduce stress/eliminate core clean up. I would suggest trying to find some solid tines, so you get the benefits of aeration (with topdressing-sand), while reducing the chances of unearthing weed seeds. Good luck!


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## Vtx531

Yes, same thing as the GA24 but this is the older version. Based on the engine it looks to be a 1973 model. GA24 and even newer serial number Greensaire II have different engines/hydraulic pump/reservoir setup but everything else is pretty much the same and then the newest current version has the controls on the handle and uses belts and idler pulleys to engage instead of a multidisc clutch (as far as I can tell).

It came with coring tines - I think they are 1/2" . I would like to get 5/8" for more surface area but 5/8" require different tine holders so maybe I will keep an eye out for some. Will look at getting some solid tines too.

I also have a Ryan LA28 so it will be interesting to compare the two. 36 holes/ft2 compared to 8 holes/ft2 but much slower. I do really like the LA28 though. It is a good compromise machine - a lot simpler/cheaper/less maintenance and less expensive parts to break compared to the greens aerator.


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## Vtx531

Getting into it - it's basically a giant inline 6 engine

Crankshaft and connecting rods:


Camshaft with lobes and "valves" with springs


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## g-man

An upside down online 6 engine. Pretty cool and simple.


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## social port

@Vtx531, just now reading through your journal.
That is tidy lawn.
Your DIY striper is impressive. I am wondering if you have had any issues with stability at your connection points (e.g., the metal pieces moving out of alignment).


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## Vtx531

social port said:


> @Vtx531, just now reading through your journal.
> That is tidy lawn.
> Your DIY striper is impressive. I am wondering if you have had any issues with stability at your connection points (e.g., the metal pieces moving out of alignment).


No issues with any of the pieces moving. Most of the bolts are 1/2" and the brackets are 1/4" (I think) so everything is extremely sturdy.

Today I sharpened the blades and mowed it lower at 2.5".


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## Vtx531

Got to try out the Greensaire today. There was a lot more work required and more broken parts than I expected. I fixed the things that were obvious (flat tires, some bad seals, 2 broken springs, 3 cam rollers). I didn't fix every little piece to 100% but is it running and working.


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## Guest

To the poster from Coldwater Michigan - Dan the Beast Severn!!!!

VTX - Did you just now aerate? Pretty late in the season for that up in Michigan no?

Either way that lawn is a sight to behold. You are skilled in the lawn and have good taste in beer. A Centennial IPA nightcap by that fire pit wouldn't be too bad.


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## Vtx531

Not sure if it's too late but I did see a local golf course aerating last week and there is a senior complex that has a really nice lawn and they just aerated this week.

Unfortunately for me, I got about half way done with my lawn and the machine started making a knocking noise. I decided it was coming from the engine gear reduction box and in the process of troubleshooting, the shaft coming out of the gear box totally stopped spinning but yet the engine is running.

So now I need to take the gearbox apart and figure out what exactly is wrong. Hopefully it is repairable and I can find the parts I need for this old motor.


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## Chris LI

Sorry to hear about the aerator. I hope you get it going again. I always had a soft spot for those old school aerators. Now, most GC and sportsfield folks use those huge Tore Pro Cores, which most of us wouldn't need or couldn't afford.


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## Vtx531

Thanks for your sympathies. Ya but those Toro 648's are pretty awesome. Tires within the aeration path so they don't run over the cores, twice as wide, hydraulic drive wheels including the steer wheel.

I put down a final app of fertilizer today. 50lbs of 19-19-19. The yard is a muddy mess (where I aerated). Makes me question if it actually does anything.

I honestly don't think it's needed but in my mind it does something. I will have a test plot of sorts next year because I only aerated part of the lawn and my hypothesis is there will be no visual difference.

Check out the little tree behind the firepit compared to the post three weeks ago.


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## Chris LI

Vtx531 said:


> Check out the little tree behind the firepit compared to the post three weeks ago.


Nice fall color, not to mention the dark green of your lawn compared to the browned lawn across the street.


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## Vtx531

I think the brown is actually leaf cover. 


Within the last two days I mowed (2.5"), rolled (then emptied water out of the roller before freezing temps), and blew out the sprinklers. Still a muddy mess where I aerated.


Lots of pine needles, as always. Normally I bag them but I didn't opt-in for yard waste pickup this year ($120) so I have been mulching them in. Here is a pic under the pine trees of my neighbors yard adjacent to mine.


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## Chris LI

Gotcha. I zoomed in, but couldn't see enough detail on the photo to catch that.

What's your trick for mulching the pine needles? I recently had a bunch blow in quite a distance from the neighbor's yard after a storm. I decided to side discharge with several passes to try to suck them up and chop them multiple times. It worked ok.


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## Vtx531

I do the same thing as you, works OK. Bagging with the mower works much better. Seems like they never really mulch up very well, just get spread around in slightly tinier pieces.

We have leaf/brush pickup the week before Thanksgiving so I'm just trying to get by until then. Will bag it then. Hoping it won't be covered in frost and snow.

And I try to do at least one pic with every post...leaves are almost gone from the tree.


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## Vtx531

As I suspected on my Greensaire - gear reduction box damaged! Not sure if I can get away with just replacing the big gear that is obviously broken/worn away or if the little gear (which happens to be the crankshaft) is also worn and damaged. And what would cause this because I don't want to drop money on these parts and have the same thing happen again.


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## Vtx531

I orered a used replacement gear from ebay and will hope for the best.

Got a little bit of snow last night. Looks like my mower tires are leaving depressions even though I keep the air pressure low and I just rolled the lawn.


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## Vtx531

Couple hours later - lets mow it down to 2.0" and see what it looks like. Im going to make a pot of coffee, warm up a bit, then mow again at 1.5". I think this will be good for dragging a pallet around to try and break ip some of the cores/mud clumps from aerating.

Before mowing


After mowing


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## Vtx531

1.5"


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## Vtx531

Aerated with the Lawnaire 28. I really like this machine.


Hole pattern is not nearly as tight as the Greensaire but the holes are bigger. Better than any drum unit I have used.


Mostly doing this for leveling / smoothing purposes now that I got the grass cut short.


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## Vtx531

Pic after dragging a heavy pallet around behind the mower to break up the cores and fill in the low spots. I calculate the pulled cores to be the equivalent of 5.4 tons of topdressing.


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## Vtx531

Charity mow - probably the last mow of the season. Supposed to be down to 14 degrees in a couple days. I wanted to even up some stray grass blades that the dragging pallet stood up and lay down some stripes for winter.



Here is an example of a large depression that was filled in nicely.



Being that I lowered the HOC quite a bit lower than usual, my blades hit some pine tree roots and got bent. So I bought a $6 hatchet from Harbor Freight and tried to shave down the tree roots.

.


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## Vtx531

Snow today. We have about 5" so far and still coming down pretty good.


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## Chris LI

Oh, damn!


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## Vtx531

Still snow covered! but at least the temperature is finally above freezing today. Hoping the snow will melt quickly.

I am contemplating another aeration/dragging after the snow melts - if it gets dry enough. I really want to get things smoothed out.

I don't think desiccation is an issue. We get a lot of lake effect snow here and the grass is not cut as short as a putting green. If anything, I think standing water and freeze/thaw/ice layer near the crowns is more of a threat and aeration may help with that - even if it is extremely late in the fall.


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## Vtx531

Starting to melt - faster than the neighbors


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## Chris LI

...just a guess. I think that dark green color of yours and residual microbial activity (go microherd), may be enough to absorb heat from the sun above and keep cooking up some heat below, is why your snow is melting more quickly than the neighbors' lawns. :mrgreen:


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## Vtx531

Aerated again - so it should melt even faster next time haha. I'm going to let the cores dry and then drag it tomorrow.


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## Vtx531

Yearly leaf/brush pickup is this week but I guess it was too wet. I tried to run the zero turn and bag up the junk but it just made huge muddy ruts.


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## Vtx531

Picked up another Turfco F15B Metermatic Top Dresser for a winter refurb project! Planning on fixing it up and selling. It should be available for the spring season.


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## Vtx531

Happy new year

Front is looking better than when I destroyed it with the mud tracks.



And the backyard nothing interesting happening


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## Vtx531

New tires and new(used) reduction gear/output shaft for the Greensaire. Seems to be back in action but too wet to actually test it out.



And current state of the lawn:


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## Chris LI

I love your resto projects! It's like Classic/Muscle cars for turf nerds (yeah, I'm one of them too). Keep them coming! The lawn is holding color nicely, for mid-January.


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## Vtx531

The machinery for lawns is my favorite part of the hobby.



Chris LI said:


> It may have options for different tines. We used hollow core 5/8" tines in the fall and 1/2" solid tines (long/needle) in the warmer weather a couple of times during the season to reduce stress/eliminate core clean up. I would suggest trying to find some solid tines, so you get the benefits of aeration (with topdressing-sand), while reducing the chances of unearthing weed seeds. Good luck!


I found some - literally. They were in the bottom of a box of extra parts. Also found some side eject tines which are somewhat pricey if I had to buy them. ($8 each) Most of the extra tines are used but they should work.


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## Chris LI

Vtx531 said:


> The machinery for lawns is my favorite part of the hobby.
> 
> 
> 
> Chris LI said:
> 
> 
> 
> It may have options for different tines. We used hollow core 5/8" tines in the fall and 1/2" solid tines (long/needle) in the warmer weather a couple of times during the season to reduce stress/eliminate core clean up. I would suggest trying to find some solid tines, so you get the benefits of aeration (with topdressing-sand), while reducing the chances of unearthing weed seeds. Good luck!
> 
> 
> 
> I found some - litterally. They were in the bottom of a box of extra parts. Also found some side eject tines which are somewhat pricey if I had to buy them. ($8 each) Most of the extra tines are used but they should work.
Click to expand...

Jackpot!!! I think I'm almost as happy as you are! Please send me your feedback when you try them. They have a significant effect...however, not quite as much as the hollow tines, but ZERO cleanup. If you did twice as many passes, you should have near effect as the hollow tines, and spend less time. I would save the hollow tines for late summer/early fall or extremely compacted areas, where you really need the hollow tines. Good luck!


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## Vtx531

Snow is gone. Grass color is doing pretty well. Lots of brown spots in the backyard though and a few in the front along the edge of the driveway (where ups/fedex/amazon walk?)


----------



## Vtx531

My neighbor allowed me to borrow his sprinkler head trimmer. It worked really well to clean out dirt/mud/debris around the sprinkler heads.


----------



## Vtx531

First mow of the season at 1.5". Much earlier than usual but it was nice outside and I thought it would be good to have the mower engine run and charge up the battery a little bit.

I found my mower had a flat rear tire. It was a leak at the bead so I broke the bead and cleaned it with wire brush die grinder.

Then it didn't want to fire. Battery was good though. A shot of starter fluid got it going and it was fine after that.


----------



## Vtx531

A random elderly gentleman decided this would be a nice place to sit within 20 mins after I got done mowing, lol. No, that's not me or anyone I know.


----------



## Green

That is the oddest thing to happen after mowing! Hopefully he is not on any missing person lists. I always check things like that when people appear out of nowhere. You never know who is confused and wandering. Though, he could also be a Leprechaun I suppose...


----------



## Vtx531

Never thought about that possibility but there is a retirement community adjacent to our neighborhood so I think it was just a guy out for a walk and he decided to take a little break.

Lawn is doing much better this year than last year.Aside from weather, the major cultural changes were late season aerification and shorter height of cut at the end of last year.

March 18, 2019


March 19, 2020


----------



## Vtx531

Got my GDD Tracker alert email today - time to put down the first of two applications of preemergent in SW Michigan. 10 days earlier than last year


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today at 1.5" which is what I'd like to maintain throughout the season. Then I spread granular fertilizer with preemergent. I got a bunch of it on end of year clearance couple years ago at Walmart for something like $3 per bag. Seems like it worked really well last year to keep crabgrass away. I will follow it up with another app around May 1. I put down about 40lb (2+ bags) on 18.5K sq ft.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed yesterday 1.5" and rolled today.

Roller is 18" diameter and 36" wide approx 375lbs. It pulls nicely with my homeowner grade zero turn mower. I think it would have been better if the soil was more wet. I will have to try it again another time after heavier rains.

Yesterday after mowing


Today after rolling


----------



## Vtx531

We got some rain last night, so I rolled again this morning. Still not *quite* wet enough to really smash down the bumps but it is nice to firm things up a bit. Also, a shot of the sprinkler heads filling in where I trimmed them three weeks ago. I'm usually in the "mow it high" crowd so this is an interesting change for me maintaining it at 1.5" instead of 3-4".


----------



## Vtx531

I purchased my fertilizer for the year. 400lbs total.

Two bags of 19-19-19. Plan to do one bag in May and one bag in Sep.

Six bags of 46-0-0. Plan to do one bag a month all the other months April-Nov.

Fertilizer apps every two weeks - half bag - 25lbs.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed and weedwacked.

Also, I test fit some golf cart tires on my mower. They fit and maybe won't tear up the grass as much as my "turf-pro" tires?


----------



## Vtx531

I had a bit of sand leftover from topdressing last season so I used it to fill in some depressions.


----------



## Vtx531

I scored some free golf cart wheels and tires so I put them on and mowed. They seem to work well. The only problem is they stick out about an inch further on each side so that makes it harder to do trim mowing.

I mowed at 1.5". It didn't take much off. The grass isn't growing very quickly - we had really cold temps and snow the last couple days.

I ordered a new set of mower blades. Oregon 94-069. $27.42 shipped from ebay.


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed at 1.5" and spread Urea approx .75-1lb/k. Supposed to get .5" of rain tonight so should be good for the fertilizer. Didn't get a chance to put the new blades on the mower yet.


----------



## Vtx531

Still maintaining at 1.5" but I don't think it looks very good. The blade tips get shredded even though I put on new mower blades. Maybe it is the type of grass (mix). Maybe it is the fact that new mower blades don't come very sharp? The front yard is KBG and looks better.

I'm going to try holding off changing the HoC higher until at least memorial day to see if the look improves and try sharpening the new blades.

I also delivered some topsoil to my next door neighbor and he had leftovers so I used it to fill in some low spots.


----------



## g-man

Check the rpm of the blades. I used to keep my blade fairly sharp on my rotary.


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> Check the rpm of the blades. I used to keep my blade fairly sharp on my rotary.


I think you are right. The density has increased with the lower height and it seems to bog down my mower. If the grass is taller there are probably less grass blades to cut. 19hp mower may not be enough for a rotary at this HOC.

Is there a specific way to check the rpm of the blades or any way to adjust it? (Besides putting on a more powerful engine)


----------



## g-man

RPM meters used on car will work the best. A small reflective tape on the blade to make it shine back to the rpm meter. You can try an app with your cell phone light too.

You probably dont need to swap the engine. You can tweak the engine rpm to speed it up. There is a max blade speed setting for safety. Also more frequent mowing could also help.


----------



## Chris LI

Do mulch or side discharge? Mulching needs a lot more power. As @g-man suggests, increasing mowing frequency can help.


----------



## Vtx531

Side discharge. I think I let three days go between the mowings which didn't seem too crazy to me but maybe need to only go one or two days between.

I sharpened the new blades and it seemed to go quite a bit better but also was a day or two less between the mowings.

I bagged the clippings too but I won't be able to continue bagging. It made a big positive difference in the appearance of the lawn. We have leaf/brush pickup this week. They only do it once in spring and once in late fall. I would love to just fill my trailer with clippings and dump them but nowhere to do that (legally and for free).


----------



## Chris LI

Your grass looks very thick at that HOC. TTTF is tough stuff. If you have any of that in your lawn, it would draw more power. A tune up, frequent mowing and sharp blades may be your best bet to get through the spring flush. If you raise HOC a little when the warm/hot weather hits, that should help, too.


----------



## Ballistic

Looking good!!

Little Jealous of all the machines you get.


----------



## Vtx531

Thank you Chris Li and Ballistic. I love the machines but not enough space in a two car garage (especially with 5 cars, a boat, and a utility trailer) so most of it is going to be sold off this season.

Mowed again today at 1.5".

Things I have noticed at this height (lowest my mower will go):
1. The different patches and mixes of grass types become more apparent
2. The various high and low spots become more apparent because the grass looks darker where it is low and lighter where it is high
3. Mower doesn't cut as well
4. I have to worry about snagging my blade and twisting it up in tree roots
5. Bare spots become more apparent because they don't have taller grass blocking them.
6. Overall color is lighter

I'm just not enjoying the way the lawn looks at this height or enjoying mowing it like I normally do. I think I'm going to have to raise the height up even though I was trying to do this experiment until at least memorial day.

Anyone think I shouldn't go back up to a normal mowing height of 3"?

Side note - the dirt spots I filled in are starting to fade away.


----------



## ruxie88

Vtx531 said:


> Thank you Chris Li and Ballistic. I love the machines but not enough space in a two car garage (especially with 5 cars, a boat, and a utility trailer) so most of it is going to be sold off this season.
> 
> Mowed again today at 1.5".
> 
> Things I have noticed at this height (lowest my mower will go):
> 1. The different patches and mixes of grass types become more apparent
> 2. The various high and low spots become more apparent because the grass looks darker where it is low and lighter where it is high
> 3. Mower doesn't cut as well
> 4. I have to worry about snagging my blade and twisting it up in tree roots
> 5. Bare spots become more apparent because they don't have taller grass blocking them.
> 6. Overall color is lighter
> 
> I'm just not enjoying the way the lawn looks at this height or enjoying mowing it like I normally do. I think I'm going to have to raise the height up even though I was trying to do this experiment until at least memorial day.
> 
> Anyone think I shouldn't go back up to a normal mowing height of 3"?
> 
> Side note - the dirt spots I filled in are starting to fade away.


Why not see how you like it at 2 or 2.5" HOC? I'm really liking 2".


----------



## Chris LI

ruxie88 said:


> Why not see how you like it at 2 or 2.5" HOC? I'm really liking 2".


^+1
It's not all or nothing. I wouldn't jump the gun, and jump up to 3" (sorry for the bad pun).

I would incrementally increase until you find a happy medium. I loved 2" with my rotary last year and will probably move up to it soon, when I can no longer handle 1.5" with my push reel mower. I eventually went up to 2.5".


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed at 2.5". It didn't take much off at all but did even everything out and put down some new stripes. We are supposed to get a lot of rain the next two days.

I have been working on marking off new beds all around the house, deck, and shed. Right now we only have beds in the front and I don't like weedeating along the foundation or the look of it. I dug out 12" radius rings around the mailbox and streetlight also. I was going to do a 6' wide strip of mulch on the treeline but I chickened out.


----------



## Vtx531

I put down 50lb of 19-19-19 today in between rain storms.

Here is a pic of a ring I cut out around the mailbox. I was going to cut out the whole corner (see the paint lines) but I thought having mulch right next to the roadway would be odd. Anyone have an opinion on this? You can see the two lines for two different options.

I will dig the edges deeper. I bought a manual edger today that should work good for the purpose.



And here is a pic of revised bedding. I removed the plastic edging and used a flat shovel to do a trench edge. I still need to get mulch. You can see the line where I plan to extend the bed to get rid of that hard section to mow and have a nice, round, easy-mowing corner instead. The grass never seems good in that spot anyway.


----------



## Chris LI

I kinda like the circle around the mailbox. You could plant a few bulbs or annuals there. We have a similar square around our mailbox on the hellstrip.

What do you think of the 2.5" HOC?


----------



## Vtx531

Think it looks a lot better than 1.5" already and most of the grass hasn't even grown out yet. Here it is today after some good rain and the fertilizer yesterday.



Rereading my lawn journal, I realized I started out last year at 4" and I think it looked pretty good at that higher height. My grass just isn't homogenous enough and too stalky to do the low mowing to have it look good. Here is a pic at 4" from last year. Same time of year as right now.



And this one a couple weeks later May 28 2019 at 4"



And I believe this photo that I dug up is also at 4" (possibly 3.5") from June 21.


----------



## g-man

I really liked 2.5hoc when I was using a rotary. It avoided fungus issues when hot and wet, but had a nice color.


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> I really liked 2.5hoc when I was using a rotary. It avoided fungus issues when hot and wet, but had a nice color.


Thanks for the comment in helping me decide.

Here is my project for today: a hose hanger. I like to avoid anything that can't be undone - like holes into the side of the house. I thought this idea would work. 4x4 post down below the frost line. This whole area will be a 3' wide mulch bed by next weekend and besides not penetrating the exterior of the house, it will be easier to access the hose on the post rather than the wall. Still need to backfill the hole with sand. What I took out was all clay and rocks.

I hit a sprinkler line when I was digging but need to move that head anyway.


----------



## Vtx531

Todays project: redo the firepit

I tried to mow at 3" but it wasn't cutting any grass so I stopped.


----------



## Vtx531

Still letting the grass grow out. Lots of rain so it is too wet to mow even if I wanted to. I could hear squishing under my shoes when I walked on it.

I used my tilt bed trailer like a big lever to raise up my mower and scrape under the deck. No need for a lawnmower lift that costs money and takes up storage space.

Going to double check the blade level, front-rear slope, and sharpen again before I mow next.


----------



## Vtx531

I intended to do the adjustments on my mower and cut the grass today but my wife found some free firewood that I had to get. I spent a good part of the day splitting it off into smaller pieces. Still more to split - Should be nice for the new firepit. Plug-in hybrid pulled like a champ and got 36 mpg loaded for the in-town trip. Two full trailer loads and it was from an IBEW guy - just like my dad (retired). Thanks for the free firewood!

Yesterday, I put smaller diameter tires on the trailer (higher load rating 100psi) to make it easier to load/unload mowers and lawn equipment.



And the lawn this morning...


----------



## Vtx531

I finally mowed after adjusting the mower and sharpening the blades. The cut was sooooo much better.

I did 3" and it actually took off quite a bit. Now I am enjoying mowing again and it looks significantly better than when it was short.

Also, my neighbor came over and sprayed crossbow on my clover patches today to get me back for fixing his leaf blower. He said he has tenacity too, so I am going to buy some Tenacity from him to treat the annual bluegrass patches.


----------



## Vtx531

I aerated today with the Lawnaire 28. Conditions were just right. The soil was moist but not so much that it wasn't sticking to my boots and the tires. The cores are quickly drying out and we are supposed to get rain tonight.



I accidentally knocked over my wood pile and one of the logs got caught in the aerator - pretty good coring ability!


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed at 3.0". Had some hot weather the last few days almost 90 degrees.

Clover is being affected quite obviously by the Crossbow. I could see signs of it dying the day after application.


----------



## Vtx531

New lawn equipment today - 21" basic push mower. I paid $20 for it. The mower required a new pull start cord as well as a carb clean (The float needle was completely stuck closed)

I am going to use this along the side of the house where there are no mulch beds and under the deck. I am a complete hack job with a string trimmer. I scalp everything and it all turns browns, thins out, and dies. Hoping this will fix that problem and allow the grass to fill in.

Also mowed at 3.0". Had a lot of seedheads but they are mostly gone after today's mow.


----------



## Stuofsci02

Looking great!


----------



## Vtx531

Stuofsci02 said:


> Looking great!


 Thanks!

Today, I did a few things.

1. I raised the height of the push mower to its top setting. Measured on the driveway, it is 3.25" at the front of the blade tip. My plan was to mow a strip and try to match the height with the rider.





So I parked the riding mower on top of the strip that I mowed with the pushmower. Lo and behold, the riding mower height that most closely matched was the very top height - 4.5". It must sink into the turf a lot more due to the weight than the pushmower?



2. I wanted to give the mulch plug another try. The grass was mostly dry, not overgrown, and not dense (at this height). I ended up working pretty good. Does anyone know why a push mower needs just a mulch plug to mulch but for a riding mower they try to sell you a whole kit with baffles, faring, etc?



3. Mowed... 4.5" (?)









4. I mulched our landscape beds last Saturday. Seems a little difficult to mow the natural edge. If my plastic landscape edging was still there, I could let the wheel of the pushmower ride on it. But I can see how this would be easy to do with a reel mower with rollers instead of wheels. I might reinstall the plastic edging. I'll give it a while longer.


----------



## Chris LI

2. The reason why you need baffles is to isolate each blade. This will lead to more efficient mulching, so clippings are recut multiple times, using the lift/suction of each individual blade, as opposed to bouncing around the deck everywhere and losing lift/suction in the process.

3. As you mentioned, the weight of the large mower, might cause it to sink in. I would also check tire pressure to make sure you don't have excessive sag in the sidewalls. I take a ruler out to check actual HOC after a mow, every so often.

4. That natural edge looks beautiful! I love the flowing contour. For mine, I try not to take the edge so deep, so I can run my push mower wheel down in the bed. I do have an idea for you, however. What if you raised only one side of the deck, which would run inside the bed? Maybe at max HOC on that side, you could run the wheel down in the bed and have that, nice clean contoured edge?

BTW, the lawn looks great! It seems that you found your happy medium at 3" HOC. Do you think that you will stay there?


----------



## Stuofsci02

+1^.. To expand on what Chris said, with a multi blade deck, the deck is designed so that the blade furthest from the side discharge will "pass" the cut grass to the next blade closer to the side discharge. That way when you are side discharging everything flows nicely.

Now if you just plug the side discharge to mulch the "grass handoff" will still happen and the blade closest to your side discharge will end up mulching and dropping all the grass on that side. It makes for a poor mulch and dulls one blade faster. Not to mention dropping the clippings on one side.

The baffles isolate each blade from each other so each functions like its own single blade mulching deck.

Stu


----------



## Vtx531

Thank you for the in depth comments - much appreciated

Today I spot sprayed clover and weeds with Crossbow at 2oz/gallon using a hand spray squirt bottle.

Clover is flowering in some spots so it should be a good time to knock it out.

I'm slightly worried that the spray bottle may have been previously used for glyphosate. I washed it out pretty thoroughly but I neglected to label it last time. Guess I will find out within 24 hours if there is a problem. I probably should have just went to the store and bought a new bottle. We'll see if my impatience is going to cost me.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed this afternoon. Things are getting extremely hot and dry. Could definitely go longer between mowings but I am trying to get the grass all evened out at this taller height.

The area under the pine trees is not filled in with grass very well. I sprayed the area with a hose to try and keep the dust down while mowing but it dried so fast that it was still dusty.

I got the sprinkler system going. Put down only about .05" of water at 4pm and the difference was amazing. Grass is came back to life. I put down another .05" at 7pm.


----------



## Vtx531

Yesterday, I spot sprayed more clover with crossbow - patches that didn't seem to be dying.

Today, I spread urea. Spreader setting between C and D on my Lesco spreader seems about right. It is much harder to push the spreader with my grass tall than when it was short. Estimating it about 20-25 lbs of urea on about 20,000 sq ft so approx 1/2lb of nitrogen.

I washed the spreader out and put it away just in time for a nice thunderstorm with soaking rain to start as soon as I came inside. Perfect timing!

Edit: The rain is REALLY coming down now. "Cats and dogs". Not exactly sure how this will effect my fertilizer. Seems like it will dissolve the urea and soak into the ground still?


----------



## synergy0852

@Vtx531 did you get hit with the 50-70mph gusts like we did north of you? Amazing to see the trees bend like that without breaking! Hopefully you didn't get any damage and all is well.


----------



## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> @Vtx531 did you get hit with the 50-70mph gusts like we did north of you? Amazing to see the trees bend like that without breaking! Hopefully you didn't get any damage and all is well.


Ya, I think so. Lots of tree branches down in the area.

I mowed today. Top level on both mowers. Still have seedheads that are getting mowed off. Probably could have went another day between mowings but I wasn't sure with the rain and urea.

I did more investigating of the mower blade heights - remeasured both mowers cutting height. The push mower is 3.25". The rider blade is at 3 5/8" (measured at the front of the blade)even though the handle says 4.5". The rear of the blade is 4 3/8 so it is probably adjusted too low in the front for this handle setting. Seems to be cutting pretty well so I'm going to leave it as-is for now.







Also, my leaf blower won't start. It has spark. It has fuel (tried pouring gas directly in, and also starter fluid) and not even a pop. What he heck?!!

I see walmart has a 20v blower and weeedwacker combo for only $78 - tempting.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today at same hoc. It went really well and the grass is starting to fill up at that height. I went 4 days in between mowing and it was still good, even with the mulch plug. Grass was slightly wet too because I irrigated at about 4pm and mowed at about 6:30pm.

I'm still seeing clover flowering - guess I need to do more spot spraying.

Been watering lightly, and daily at about 4pm. My three main irrigation zones 20 mins (puts out about .2" per hr) and the other one 10 mins (puts out about .4" per hour). This practice in accordance with Dr. Vargas from Michigan State University. He wrote a great textbook called Management of Turfgrass Diseases. It is a book that has good practical advice. In email correspondence with me, he said, Daily irrigation keeps the soil moist and builds up large microbial population which help prevent fungal pathogens for causing disease.


----------



## Butter

Those stripes are spot on! Looking good!


----------



## Vtx531

Butter said:


> Those stripes are spot on! Looking good!


Thank you, I am a big fan of lawn stripes.

I am noticing a lot of hideous seed stalks. They grow faster / higher than the rest of the grass and a day or two after mowing, the top half inch of it turns white where is was cut. So it makes he whole lawn look like garbage depending on the light and angle of the sun. Not feeling too good about this. Hopefully the problem goes away on it's own in a few weeks? These seed stalks seem different to me than the KBG seed stalks from the last couple weeks.

Edit: upon closer inspection, it does look like kbg seed stalks. Not sure why it looks like more of a problem in my lawn than others nearby. I sharp ned the blades recently but maybe I need to check them again.


----------



## Vtx531

Yesterday - I spot sprayed more flowering clover spots with Crossbow.

Today - I mowed. Trying to stay consistent. Grass is struggling a little bit with the heat. 91 degrees right now. Normally, I try to avoid mowing when it is 90+ but it looked like that was forecast the next couple days. Now I look at the forecast and it is showing cooler weather tomorrow but rainy, so today was probably the best day to mow between the two days.

Watering on the same regimen. Daily/lightly.

I need to edge the driveway but it's too hot outside and the safety guard on my stick edger completely busted off. Still useable but it throws dirt and debris at my face (safety glasses a must) so it is not an enjoyable process. Sad to say my leaf blower is still not running too. Still can't decide if I should go electric and if so, 20v or 40v?


----------



## Vtx531

Hot and dry. Looking good in the shade under the pine trees in the back yard.



Clover is wiped out in the spots where I sprayed.



Grass is looking extremely stalky and whitish brownish again a day or two after mowing. These seedhead stalks are like copper wire.



They grow extremely fast and stick up higher than the rest of the lawn to make their ugly selves even more apparent. I mowed at 3 5/8" hoc two days ago and look how long these are. They seem to be in groups. Looks like some sort of KBG though. I can see a tiller on one that I pulled.



We went to my father in law's house yesterday. He has a nice lawn and none of this stalky garbage going on. Bad cultivars in my lawn?


----------



## synergy0852

@Vtx531 I've got the same issue just an hour north of you. Just when I thought everything had gone to seed and it was all over except the decay process more reared their ugly heads! I'm in the same boat as you thought wise as it doesn't seem others have it this bad on the forum reading through some of these journals. I'm excited to see what next spring brings after my reno this year to a kbg mono.


----------



## Vtx531

Ya, I need a reno too if I want it to look nice.

This photo shows an area near the steps with darker, better cutting grass. We had a bobcat come in, shortly after move-in, to regrade the dirt away from the foundation in that spot. All the existing grass got tore up and buried with dirt so I had to reseed and it is the best of the backyard now.



I wish there was a way to overseed and make it look better. Maybe PRG in the fall? Sounds like KBG overseed is futile from what I read. Either way the brown stalky crap would still be there.


----------



## Chris LI

synergy0852 said:


> @Vtx531 I've got the same issue just an hour north of you. Just when I thought everything had gone to seed and it was all over except the decay process more reared their ugly heads! I'm in the same boat as you thought wise as it doesn't seem others have it this bad on the forum reading through some of these journals. I'm excited to see what next spring brings after my reno this year to a kbg mono.


Sorry to hear you are both in the same boat. I know it's probably a little on the late side, but it sounds like you are at the tail end of the spring flush. I was still there a couple of weeks ago, or so. Do you each think that's the case? Hopefully, it will end for you soon.


----------



## synergy0852

@Chris LI I still have brown stalks all over, but it's definitely a lot better than it was a couple weeks ago. The flush is definitely over for me, a few stragglers here and there, but now it's about the stalks breaking down and decomposing. I'm about to kill my lawn so I don't care much at this point.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today - 5 days between mowings. Longest I have let it go but it cut alright, especially considering in rained hard a couple hours ago. A little bit of grass sitting on top after mowing, so 4 days between would probably be more optimal.

Re: Above

I think I misidentified the "problem".

The problem- It's mostly perennial rye grass (likely common, not new improved type)in the backyard, not KBG, and the tough seed stalks is what happens in spring with perennial rye grass. So, I just need to embrace the suck for a few weeks because that is just how this grass is and then it will look good again.

No matter how often I sharpen my blades, how much I fertilize, how much I water, how low or high I cut, it will always have the white/brown tips all over, giving it a bad look at this time of year.

It is a relief knowing this is just how it is, nothing I am doing wrong or not doing right.

Only option is to do a reno with KBG or live with it. We are planning on moving in a year or two so I will just live with it and maybe do some PRG overseed in the fall. It should look good after the seedheads go away.

Anyone else with PRG able to comment on what I wrote above or have a different experience?

Push mower is working great for under the deck and next to the house, around the beds.


White tips



Close up of white tips



After I was done mowing





PRG seed stalks


----------



## Vtx531

Did a quick mow this afternoon.only been one day in between mows but it definitely evened out the cut. I did one trim pass around the perimeter at the end and it seems to make the stripes look better than when I do it before. 




Hopefully PRG seedstalks will be done soon - it is almost July - and I hope this isn't a season-long thing.


----------



## Vtx531

I sharpened the blades and mowed today. The grass was pretty tall but looking green prior to mowing. After mowing, I am still having rye grass stalks in the back yard.

You can see the difference here where the kbg front yard meets the rye grass backyard. Looks brownish yellow but it is just from the tips.



Kind of a bummer because it looks pretty decent otherwise.


----------



## Vtx531

Daily light watering at 4pm - seems like it is still going well (see June 16 post on page 6)


----------



## Vtx531

I switched the rear tires on my mower back to the narrower original tires instead of the golf cart tires. More maneuverable and I'm growing the grass at 3.5" instead of short like I intended when I put on the golf cart tires on so the more aggressive tread isn't really a problem.

I mowed. It took quite a bit off for only being 1 day off between mowing. I should check HoC with the new (old) tires and make sure it didn't change. Tire psi was good.

Noticed a few spots of what I think is some type of sedge. It was growing up much taller than the rest of the grass and had a triangular shape. I pulled them out but I thought I remember something about not doing that because it makes it spread? I will have to do some research but it isn't currently a major problem.


----------



## synergy0852

That's nutsedge. Many chemicals to take care of it. When you pull it you're leaving the nutlets behind so a chemical kill is what's required to kill those from what I've read.

Looks good for the heat we've been having. Are you irrigated?


----------



## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> That's nutsedge. Many chemicals to take care of it. When you pull it you're leaving the nutlets behind so a chemical kill is what's required to kill those from what I've read.
> 
> Looks good for the heat we've been having. Are you irrigated?


Looks like Tenacity (Mesotrione?) is labeled for sedge.

I am irrigated. If you look up a couple pics, the sprinkler closest to the tree line is as far as my irrigation goes but I did adjust the nozzles and heads to irrigate back under the trees a little. The non irrigated areas under and behind treeline in far corner are doing okay, maybe they get enough shade to help with the heat but grass is sparser back there.

Looking good this morning in the shade. Brown-white tips aren't showing up in the photo but still there, although not as bad as a couple weeks ago. I'm guessing ipad renders the photos a bit automatically by default.


----------



## synergy0852

Meso works but I prefer halosulfuron or sulfentrazone to not go over yearly limit of meso. Halo is a slow and mild kill no injury to other grasses.


----------



## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> Meso works but I prefer halosulfuron or sulfentrazone to not go over yearly limit of meso. Halo is a slow and mild kill no injury to other grasses.


Thanks for that

Yesterday I doubled up on the water because it seems like it needed it. I've been running the main zones for 20 mins each per day for .05" daily or .35" per week. Very light. Ran them 40 mins each yesterday.


It is supposed to rain today and tomorrow so I would like to mow and put down some urea since it hasn't had any nitrogen for about s month. I found my fertilizer receipt when I was cleaning out my car.


The non irrigated area behind the trees is doing pretty well considering the lack of rain. It is thin though, I definitely need to overseed back there, still trying to decide what seed and if I should power rake first. I will definitely be aerating before overseed but not sure about the power raking and flail blades or slice blades.


As for my wife's flower garden - Clematis is doing pretty good, rose bush is suffering, one bloom on the hydrangea, stargazer lilies yet to bloom.



The front areas by the road are suffering. Sprinkler coverage is a bit short of being head-to-head and it shows, especially in the corner by the road opposite the driveway side.


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed. The grass is a lot drier than I thought. No fertilizer until it greens up more and gets out of survival mode. Really hoping we get some rain these next two days or I am going to have to push the irrigation a bit more.



I picked up a drop spreader from the neighbor's trash. I think it will work for overseeding as I read a drop spreader is more accurate for this purpose. Anyone have experience?


----------



## Butter

I have spent a lot of time behind drop spreaders. I have three of the old Scotts metal ones. Two different sizes. I seeded my current yard with one, applied countless pounds of Milorganite and some soybean meal. I've even applied worm castings and alfalfa pellets with limited success with mine. I made a calibration tray out of a piece of old gutter and a couple wire hanger so I could really dial in the rate. I think they are very good for precisely applying certain materials. 
Your lawn looks great!


----------



## Chris LI

I love my drop spreader (Scotts Accugreen 3000). I've used it for seeding by cross-hatching passes. I use it regularly for perimeter fertilizer apps and on my hellstrips. I like crisp, green edges, and hate to waste fert which will also runoff and pollute.


----------



## Vtx531

The drop spreader that I got is Accugreen 2000 - same as 3000 except narrower? I completely disassembled it and cleaned everything but the part that blocks off the material flow seems to stick, as if the return spring is not strong enough.

Mowed today.

I bought a tow-behind spike aerator yesterday for $20. I put a couple bags of water softener salt on the back for weight - bad idea! The bags ripped open and leaked chucks of salt all over so I had to pick them all up by hand. Today I got some appropriately sized cinder blocks (46lb each) and strapped them on- much better.

The spiker seems pretty cheaply made though. I would prefer actual bearings on the ends but there are none. Each wheels spins individually on the shaft and I doubt it will last very long before wearing out.

My intention with the spike aerator is to get less water runoff in the summer when the ground gets dry/hard and possibly allow some airflow in and out of the roots but I'm not sure it goes deep enough for that. The nice thig is there is no cleanup like core aeration, which is still plan on doing twice a year - memorial day and labor day.

It does seem to go a good depth for overseeding though. I may throw some seed down soon on my bare spots and see what happens. Whats the worst that could happen?


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today, mostly to get the stripes going again but also the spiker seemed to stand up the grass and make it look uneven.



Tested the hole pattern. It is 2.75x4" that comes out to about 11 holes per sq ft - not too bad.



Here is the seed I bought on a whim the other day. I decided not to go ahead with putting it down yet because of the fact I did preemergent in and additionally when I do aerate/overseed at th proper time in fall, the aerator will likely tear out and uproot any grass that is not well established.

Any comments on the seed? Some annual (italian) ryegrass in there but not a large percentage. Price is about $45 for a 20lb bag. It has a little bit of water seed coating, I've never seen it in such a small amount.


----------



## Vtx531

I was going to give an extra dose of water this morning but I went outside and it is actually looking pretty good, especially considering we have had no rain since June 27 and 8 days in a row above 90 degrees (32c) in early July.



Lots of "spider webs" in the dew.

Most look like this:


Some look like this:


I would say that obviously the second photo is mycelium but what about the first one?


----------



## Vtx531

We are supposed to get rain tonight (finally!) 100% chance and 1" so I put down some urea. Between C&D on the lesco seemed good for about 1 lb of urea per 1000 (20ish lbs on my 18,500 sq ft) so about .5lb nitrogen per 1000.

And a photo from this morning. I wanted to mow today but didn't get to it. Maybe tomorrow or Friday morning if it is too wet tomorrow.

Edit: Now the forecast says 2.4" rain tonight. :shock:


----------



## Vtx531

Based on a 5 gallon bucket sitting in my driveway, we got about .75" of rain after I fertilized. I still haven't mowed since last Sunday. I would like to do it today but it's supposed to be 93 degees...hmmm


----------



## Vtx531

Did a full mow, edge, weewack, blow, push mow edges. Not a lot of clippings considering it has been 5 days betweens mows. Some of the grass blades were pretty tall but most were not. Mulch plug still able to handle it.

Watering now and I will probably double down the water again later this evening.

Everything seems pretty healthy and I think sticking to ONE mowing height through the season is a big part of it compared to last year. Without a doubt, mowing is the biggest factor in affecting how the grass looks.


----------



## ken-n-nancy

Vtx531 said:


> And a photo from this morning. I wanted to mow today but didn't get to it. ...


The "reel low" look gets a lot of love on this site, but I like the look of lush, thick, deep grass. Looking great for mid-July -- keep up the great work!


----------



## Wolverine

Looking good!


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks for the comments

I purchased a pair of used tow-behind dethatchers. Decided to keep the black one. I bolted on some strut brackets that stop the wheels from going all the way back, this allows 1.5" clearance between the ground and tines for less aggressive dethaching.





I did a test strip and this is what pulled up. I think (and hope) it is mostly rye grass but I'm not really sure.



We got almost 2" of rain today.

Rye grass is still producing seed heads and ugly as can be. These are one that I pulled out by hand. Most the seedheads are dead but still giving the lawn an unsightly look. Maybe I should buzz it down an inch and let it grow back out to eliminate dead seedheads?


----------



## synergy0852

> Maybe I should buzz it down an inch and let it grow back out to eliminate dead seedheads?


This used to work for me when I was rotary mowing. Your lawn is looking great!


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks and I think that is a good strategy for the seedheads looking at my photos from last year. I just overdid it last year(too short all at once) but it looked better when it did bounce back.

Did a couple things today:

1. Ran the dethatcher. It actually didnt do a whole lot but that was sort of my goal. I just wanted to comb the lawn and stand up the grass a little bit.


I have an idea to use unistrut clamps to make the tine height infinitely variable. Thinking to put a 1x4 board underneath the tines to get .75" spacing.



2. The grass is really laying down in spots still even after the dethatcher. So I decided to mow it down lower one notch. I was not planning on doing this after the debacle last year with lowering the HOC during summer but I was able to restrain myself from going too low. Just did one notch and will try to leave it here for a while and see how it goes.





After mowing shorter. I measured the blades again, was getting 3.75-4" on the last setting and 3.25-3.5" on current setting one notch lower.


----------



## Vtx531

Lots of growth since Monday. I mowed at the same height today. Many clippings clumped in rows with my mulch plug still installed.

Before mow:


After mow:


----------



## Vtx531

I finally checked my rpm as recommended by g-man on page 5. I used a tiny tach wrapped around the spark plug and it showed only 2700rpm!
So I bent the tab back that holds the governor spring and got it up to 3200-3300 rpm. Wow! It is like a totally different lawn mower.

Mowed the lawn, still not really happy with how it is looking due to clippings and dead seedhead stalks. Oh well. Thinking of maybe doing some test stripes where I mow it down one notch lower and let it grow back to get rid of the stalks. Maybe another test with two notches lower and let it grow back.

I pulled p some spots of poa annua but that was a mistake. Now I have bare dirt spots. At least it was green before and not a place for my toddler to get muddy when he is playing there.


----------



## g-man

@Vtx531 try to check the lawn blade rpm unless you know the motor = blade (same pulley diameters). I think there is an app for the cell phone that could do it from the pulley. Also check the rpm while mowing (the grass will slow down the motor).

I had an idea around the PRG seed heads. If you have a dethatcher, could it remove most of them?


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> @Vtx531 try to check the lawn blade rpm unless you know the motor = blade (same pulley diameters). I think there is an app for the cell phone that could do it from the pulley. Also check the rpm while mowing (the grass will slow down the motor).
> 
> I had an idea around the PRG seed heads. If you have a dethatcher, could it remove most of them?


Ive had the same thoughts about the dethatcher but that never seems to go well in the summer. I could use the pull behind, or I have a Ryan with flail blades or fixed blades. Maybe wait until overseed time and use the flail blades to rip everything up?

I mowed again today to try and chop up the clippings more but still a lot of them remaining on top. All from going only one notch lower on the height. I might need to bag them or pull of the mulch plug at the least to better spread them out.


----------



## Vtx531

Omg what have I done. I decided to give it hell. There was so much more material than I expected. I tried using the mower to bag it - not happening. It was just getting clogged and too much. Tried chopping it up with side discharge - what a mess. I finally had to rake. I am beat down exhausted and not finished yet. Now my yard still looks bad from the seed stalks, maybe even more so, but thinner.

I'm left with the thought that the only way to get it looking how I want is round up and reseed. On a side mote, my neighbor scalped his yard a week or two ago. It looked like hell but now has come back and looking great with no prg seedhead stalks.


----------



## Wolverine

Perennial ryegrass should be listed as a noxious weed in our climate. I too am battling stalks, dead clumps and overall low quality. If it doesn't turn around for me next year it's getting a gly bath in July. I'm not sure where this crap would thrive.


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## Vtx531

Wolverine said:


> Perennial ryegrass should be listed as a noxious weed in our climate. I too am battling stalks, dead clumps and overall low quality. If it doesn't turn around for me next year it's getting a gly bath in July. I'm not sure where this crap would thrive.


Ya its bad!

I spent 5 hours this morning raking and cleaning up the debris. 3 trailer loads that I made well compressed by walking on the pile inside the trailer.

Hoping this will bounce back soon. The back under the trees is really bad. Lots of bare dusty dirt and I can't mow without a dust storm.


----------



## Vtx531

Maybe I just need more water to have it looking better? I checked weather history and it has only rained two days in July. I am putting down .05" per day which is .35" a week - not enough.

I somewhat enjoy how it looks in the morning (photo) and then when it gets in direct sunlight - not so much.

I am thinking about buying one of those yellow traveling sprinklers to get the dry dusty strip behind and under the pine trees.


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## synergy0852

For what it's worth I was putting down .5" every other day to every 3rd day before I killed my lawn an hour north of you. You'll want an inch a week right now I'd think. ETo is around .15"/day right now average.


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## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> For what it's worth I was putting down .5" every other day to every 3rd day before I killed my lawn an hour north of you. You'll want an inch a week right now I'd think. ETo is around .15"/day right now average.


I definitely want an inch per week but I don't want the $100 per month water bill associated with that. I guess I need to decide if it is worth it to me (it might be).

My wife got mad at me and said "go take a walk" so I obliged. First time I ever walk-mowed the entire yard. Can't beat the quality of cut from a walk behind mower though. Shorter HOC at 2.25". I can't seem to stick with a consistent HOC but it looks a lot better than last year when I chopped it down.

I think I am mowing too frequently given the heat and lack of rain so I am going to give it a good effort of mowing less often and finding something else productive to do with my time. Plenty of other projects and things to work on besides mowing the lawn multiple times per week. Maybe that is good in the Spring or Fall growth periods but not now.


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## Vtx531

I built some shelves in the shed today. Worked out really well and only cost about $50. So much more useable storage space now!!!


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## Chris LI

:thumbup:


----------



## Vtx531

I cleaned the carb on the push mower and upped the RPM - got it running really nice now.

I mowed to try and mulch more of the clippings and even everything out. Didn't do the back behind/under the trees - too dry. It always seems like you need to go twice in both directions when changing the HOC and I only went one direction earlier this week when I went down to 2.25". Still lots of clippings, I don't have a side discharge chute for my push mower so I may need to get one.

Not looking the greatest with the mulch clippings sitting on top and in direct midday sunlight.


----------



## Vtx531

I might be a walk mower convert. Today, I picked up a 1996 Super Recycler for $20. The ad said it was not running and won't start. I got home and added gas to the tank (that was bone dry) and it fired right up! Looks like it will need a drive belt but otherwise everything seems to be in order.

I did side by side comparison with the MTD and the difference was night and day but it doesn't show up well in the photo. No clumps with the Super Recycler. MTD stripes on the left half and Toro on the right half.

Mowed on setting D.

Only bad thing is it doesn't have a bag.


----------



## Vtx531

My time with the old Super Recycler was short lived - I liked it so much that I bought a newer version today. The big differences are taller max cutting height (4" vs 3"), OHV engine, personal pace, and a bagger.

The lawn still looks terrible from dethatching but it is recovering. Lots of rain last night should help. Mowed on setting E.


----------



## ionicatoms

Which Super Recycler did you get?


----------



## Vtx531

ionicatoms said:


> Which Super Recycler did you get?


20381 - 2012 model year. With 159cc Toro engine and no extra features. It wouldn't start when I bought it. I had to clean the carb, sharpen the blade, and change the oil. (wow - oil changes are easy on this mower)

Most importantly, I added an inline fuel shutoff to keep fuel from running into the engine during storage. I do this to all my engines that have gravity feed. If not, gas will leak past the carb, into the crankcase, dilute the engine oil, and ruin your engine over time. This one had a slight gasoline odor to the oil and it was thinner than it should have been when I drained it. Why no fuel shutoff as a standard feature?! I *highly* recommend this to anyone reading and remember to use it every time.


----------



## ionicatoms

Interesting suggestion! I'm assuming it's not needed if the tank is dry?

But assuming tank isn't dry, would that suggestion apply to the upright stowing model?


----------



## Vtx531

ionicatoms said:


> Interesting suggestion! I'm assuming it's not needed if the tank is dry?
> 
> But assuming tank isn't dry, would that suggestion apply to the upright stowing model?


If the gas tank is dry you are fine. I'm not familiar with that particular engine but look carefully and check that the gas tank is physically lower than the carb when tilted/stored. Just make sure the fuel can't gravity drain into the carb. That smartstow feature looks pretty handy.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed a notch lower on setting D which is 2-3/4" according to the manual.


----------



## ionicatoms

Grass is looking good!

For the sake of completeness, I found that the 2020 SmartStow isn't shipped with a fuel cutoff. The Briggs & Stratton manual shows where one would be if it were included (see call-out A):



Unfortunately, it's missing from my model 21386 mower.



Hope you don't mind my following up in your journal.


----------



## Vtx531

Yes, that is where it would go. They are very easy to install if you want. Wait until the gas runs out, cut the line with scissors, cut off about 1/4"-1/2" of the fuel line, stick in the valve. I bought a 10 pack of straight valves and a 10 pack of 90 degree valves on ebay for cheap so I always have them on hand and I never had problems with even the cheap ones.

Im out back now watching the sprinklers on a beautiful morning. Grass is looking somewhat patchy in color. I think the striper on my zeroturn was able to hide the grass variations better. I like the wider stripes but not the cut quality of the zero turn and not the stress damage caused by the tires. I can already see areas starting to recover where I had thin, brown, layed over grass in my outer trim pass areas.


----------



## Vtx531

I got the walking sprinkler going under/behind the pine trees. The long rectangular shape is perfect for this type of sprinkler.

I have never watered back here before so I think this will be helpful, especially when I overseed this fall. It is always dry and sparse in this area - not an enjoyable mow but I am hoping to change that.


----------



## Vtx531

Another perfect morning- nothing like the early sun shining through the trees and lighting up the mist. Currently watering at 150% of what I was doing.


----------



## Vtx531

Picked up 20lbs of KBG for fall overseed. I would have gotten a 3rd bag but it was cut open and leaking seed out. The manager at Menards offered me $1 off...Um no thanks.

With their 11% rebate it comes out to about $2.80/ pound. This would give me just over one pound per thousand sq ft.

Not really sure if this is a good blend or if I should return and get something else from a seed store or sod farm?

Looks like a large portion of the blend is Impact and not evenly split between the three types. .20% weed seed is higher than others I have seen on this forum. Not sure what the 6% inert matter is. Maybe it has some seed coating.


----------



## synergy0852

I personally wouldn't use anything with other crop or weed seed percentages over 0.00% but everyone is different.

I've used the big box stores seed in the past and ended up fighting undesirables and vowed to never use them again. If you don't mind having to spend some money on chems to remove weeds then it looks like a fairly decent blend, but keep in mind there will inevitably be stuff other than grass germinating along with the grass.


----------



## Wolverine

synergy0852 said:


> I personally wouldn't use anything with other crop or weed seed percentages over 0.00% but everyone is different.
> 
> I've used the big box stores seed in the past and ended up fighting undesirables and vowed to never use them again. If you don't mind having to spend some money on chems to remove weeds then it looks like a fairly decent blend, but keep in mind there will inevitably be stuff other than grass germinating along with the grass.


Agree. Use gold tag elite varieties if you want superior results.


----------



## OnTheLawn

0.20% weed seed and 0.10% other crop seed doesn't sound like a lot. A total of 0.30%, but think about in pure numbers...

In one pound of KBG seed there are roughly 1,300,000 seeds of grass. (1.3-1.5). We'll stay in the lower end here. That means in one ten pound bag there are about 13 million seeds of grass. 0.30% of 13 million seeds equates to 39,000 seeds, so if you put out two bags you'll be putting out just under 80,000 seeds of undesirable grass. Now germination rates and seasonal germination play a massive factor in how many of those seeds will actually germinate and when, but it's just not something I would want to deal with based on experience. The amount you'll spend in pre and post emergent weed control to take care of it will be more expensive than just paying for weed free elite cultivars.


----------



## Vtx531

Appreciate the advice. I'm going to visit some other Menards stores and see if they have any more bags of this stuff with some better weed and other crop numbers on the seed tag.

I'm really afraid of spending hundreds of dollars on premium seed and not having it go well since I don't know if a KBG overseed will work out. If it was a full reno instead of overseed then I would be more confident.

Hoping to get results that are better than nothing but not expecting much compared to a full reno.

Front lawn is looking pretty even (not in the photo though weird) considering this the third day after mowing and healthier. I think this is because the combination of walk mowing, lower temps, and extra water.


----------



## synergy0852

@Vtx531 Out of curiosity why do you want to overseed a turf with that density during the worst time of the year for us cool season folk? It's only going to get better as the temps drop into fall and you follow the N blitz.

I think what you have looks great and unless you want to make a drastic change why waste money on some big box seed. Your yard looks like mine used to a couple years ago and I quit overseeding 3 years ago when the density wasn't even what you have now and followed the N blitz to fill it in the rest of the way.

At the end of the day it's your property and you do whatever you feel will make you happy, but I like what you've got going on now!


----------



## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> @Vtx531 Out of curiosity why do you want to overseed a turf with that density during the worst time of the year for us cool season folk? It's only going to get better as the temps drop into fall and you follow the N blitz.
> 
> I think what you have looks great and unless you want to make a drastic change why waste money on some big box seed. Your yard looks like mine used to a couple years ago and I quit overseeding 3 years ago when the density wasn't even what you have now and followed the N blitz to fill it in the rest of the way.
> 
> At the end of the day it's your property and you do whatever you feel will make you happy, but I like what you've got going on now!


Really appreciate the thoughtful comments here. I'm generally OK with the front. It is mostly KBG. I would like to make drastic change to the rear lawn though, it is mostly PRG and density is not that great in certain areas. Maybe I need to be less critical of the lawn during this time of year and not worry about it. I just want it to be in it's Fall condition at all times, is that too much to ask?! Haha

I mowed today on setting D (2-3\4). I increased the RPM on the Super Recycler from 3,000-3,300. think it would have been better if I waited at least another day to mow but that is hard to do when you enjoy mowing and have a new mower sitting in the shed.

Full-sun pic:


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed at 4 days in between mowings on setting D.

Love this mower - chewed through all the grass with ease, no clippings, smooth, quiet. Looks like it was bagged.





Pulled the Turfco out of the garage to clean up and take a lot of photos since I am trying to sell it.


----------



## synergy0852

:thumbup: looking good!


----------



## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> :thumbup: looking good!


Thank you.

Yesterday I mowed at setting C (2-1/4"). Too low! It doesn't look as good. More stalky. Less green. Showing the unlevelness of my yard. Not mulching as good. I'm going to have to keep it a notch higher.

Every time I try something new, I come back to the realization that about 3" is what looks best to my eyes.

Contemplating going back to the rider. I like the wider stripes and feel like I'm wearing out my hips with this much walking. It is harder to get the lines straight with the walk mower for some reason.

Also, I picked up a hand spreader at Walmart for $4 that I plan on using to spot seed throughout the year in 2021.


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed yesterday with the rider. I blades were at 2.75" measured on concrete which was on 3.0 for the handle setting. I had to stop half way through because there was a vibration from the blades. I pulled them off and they were out of balance with a lot of grass buildup on the tops and bottoms. Cleaned, sharpened, balanced while they were out and the vibration went away.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed with the ztr at a an increased height ~3"-3.25" (3.5 handle setting). Keep coming back to this as the best looking height to me. The mulch plug was on - no clippings or clumps on top.

Super recycler on setting E to match the riding height for trim mowing.


----------



## ionicatoms

Looks great!


----------



## Vtx531

ionicatoms said:


> Looks great!


Thanks for commenting.

Im going to wait one more day to mow so there are at least two days in between for the grass to rest.



I went on a road trip yesterday and I picked up a couple more projects. I am excited to get working on them today despite 90+ degree heat. Pair of GA24 aerators that I was just barely able to fit on my little trailer. I must be moving up in the world because this is the first turf equipment I've bought that doesn't have all flat tires.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed at same height. We got a little bit of rain today. Worked all day on the aerators. Changed oil and filter on my riding mower. I cross referenced the oil filter dimensions and found that the same oil filter for my car would work for the mower. $3 at Walmart and good for 10,000 miles. Checked air pressure in the mower tires and used a sharpie to write the psi on the wheels because I always forget and have to look it up in the manual.


----------



## Vtx531

Day after mowing



Tested out one of the aerators using 5/8" solid tines on 2x2 spacing.



I had the turf guard removed and there was quite a bit of lifting of shallow rooted grass.



Looking forward to use this prior to overseeding but I am planning to order some hollow tines for that.


----------



## Ngilbe36

Looks good! Nice to see all the Michigan folks around. Im in a similar boat with the rider vs push mower. Ive got a 42in z turn but I find myself really enjoying doing the front with an 18in manual reel mower haha. Simple pleasures.


----------



## Vtx531

Ngilbe36 said:


> Looks good! Nice to see all the Michigan folks around. Im in a similar boat with the rider vs push mower. Ive got a 42in z turn but I find myself really enjoying doing the front with an 18in manual reel mower haha. Simple pleasures.


Ya! My front lawn is quite a bit smaller than the back. I think the front looks better walk mowed and the back looks better with the 42". Too hard to get lines straight with the walk mower when they are 130'+ long and the lines look too skinny but it looks just right for the front.

I got one of the Jacobsens (Ryan?) all set and posing in photos for marketplace.


----------



## Vtx531

Spike aerated with the zeroturn pull-behind unit. We are supposed to get some much needed rain tomorrow so I applied 50lb of 19-19-19 fertilizer in preparation for overseed in approximately one week.

Setting E on the lesco and its seemed to come up juuust barely short for 50lbs on the 18.5k,



Then ran the pull-behind dethatcher without the wheels and without weight.



Should make a nice seed bed when combined with plug aerating and spiking.





Plan is to:
1. LA28 plug aerate
2. Pull-behind spike aerate
3. Appy seed
4. Pull behind dethatch
5. Drag with a pallet
6. Roll

Fun fun. Need to wait for the right weather and soil conditions.


----------



## Vtx531

Mow job


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed. I will be aerating tomorrow so I only have today to enjoy the stripes.

Happy to have made it through July and August with very little crabgrass. I did a single application instead of split and it was still effective.


----------



## Vtx531

Yesterday was a big day - overseed day.

I did the steps I wrote above except I didn't need to use the pallet drag and I didn't roll (besides in bare dirt areas I drove the mower with striper kit over the seeds to roll).

Everything worked great. The spike aerator did a good job of busting up dirt clods after plug aerating in the dry areas under the pine trees as well as poking a bunch of little holes and making little windrows almost like a cultipacker.

I used two types of mix seed from (local landscape supply) under the pine trees where there is a lot of bare dirt and then straight KBG all over. Setting C on the lesco spreader worked good for the nomix seed. I was between A and B for the KBG but had some seed leftover so probably should do it on B next time.





The reason I used seed with rye in it under the pine trees in because some of it is unirrigated back there and I need to grass to come up quick so I don't have dry dusty dirt that is constantly eroding.

I tried double areating when I started around the perimeter but it was talking too long and a little too messy go over areas I already did so I stopped overlapping after about 10 feet width all around the perimeter. We'll see if it looks any better in these areas when I am done.


----------



## Vtx531

Today I cut a bunch of low branches on the pine trees to let more sunlight get to the grass. I may have gotten a little carried away and taken off too much. Now I have a lot of cleanup work to do. Any branch that I could reach without a ladder was cut off.


----------



## Vtx531

I picked up a project mower the other day. 60" John Deere w/ Kawasaki motor. I've been working on it and decided to try it out today. It cut really nice and I finished my yard in record time but I was not very straight with the lines (not used to that mower) and it is lacking striping rollers.

Cut at 3".


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed yesterday with the John Deere - my lawn and each neighbor next to me. It cuts amazing and the blades arent even sharp. I might have to hang onto this one for a while if I can find the storage space.

Double cut at 3" - grass was pretty tall. My lines are much straighter this time around. I put some new tires on it too. Also, Fix-a-flat/slime sucks and please never use it.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today at just under 3". By far the best mower I have ever used. It's a real shame that it won't fit through the door in my shed. Even the wife wants me to keep it because I can get the yard done so quickly.


----------



## g-man

Bigger shed. Problem solved.


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> Bigger shed. Problem solved.


You are right - 8x8' is not big enough for a person that likes to buy, fix, test, sell lawn equipment.

Mowed today with the Toro Z4200 at 3.5 handle setting. I think I am settling on this as the goldilocks mower for my property. 21" push mower is too small, 60" rider is too big. 42" is just right. Anything in between 42-60" seems like a waste . Standard size mowers based on number of blades: ~21", 42", 60".

Things I have learned:

1. Fits in the shed, less storage space
2. Better quality of cut on contours than 60" (theoretically but I didn't notice a problem in real life) 
2b. More stripes look better on my size yard. But not as many as a 21" they look too narrow.
3. Cheaper parts and less parts. 2 blades/spindles instead of 3 to keep sharpened and purchase.
4. Single cylinder engine...again, less parts to break, one set of valves to adjust, and when it does break, cheaper to replace.
5. Lighter weight. I get needing a commercial mower for different properties with holes, ruts, bumps, ditches, pastures, etc. but for a nice home lawn, it is unnecessary. A commercial mower allows you to mow fast over a crappy, bumpy lawn. I like to go at a more leisurely pace and the ground isn't too bumpy.
6. Sitting is more comfortable than standing (on a relatively smooth lawn).
7. The zero turn rider controls are more precise than using finger tip controls like a standup mower

So pretty much, get the proper tool for the job and for my yard, I think that is the 42" homeowner grade Toro.


----------



## Vtx531

After everything I just said above...

I sold my beloved 42" Toro Timecutter. I listed it for a high price on FB Marketplace last week just to see if I got any offers. I got a good offer so it is gone. I kept the striper though. I'll be scouting Marketplace for a good deal on another 42". Going to be hard to find a replacement though because I had that mower set up really nice and it was very well maintained.

In the meantime, it's back to the Toro Super Recycler - a great mower! Cut this morning at setting E (3.25"). The grass was very wet and lots of dew. The mower did a good job mulching. It left a few wet clumps here and there but overall pretty good. Lots of wet clippings underneath that I had to clean, so next time I need to wait for the grass to dry out more. I timed myself for the first time with this mower and it took about 1hr 5min not including blowing or trimming.

My neighbor recently bought a Toro Time Master that I would really like to try out on my yard before the year is over.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed today - Took it down a notch to setting D (2.75"). The SR mulched great but was clogging up. Not enough to bog down the engine but enough that I could hear a difference in how the blade sounded so I stopped twice mid mow to clean out underneath. But still very good cut quality and I probably didn't NEED to do the cleanouts.

It looks better in person than photo shows. Going to try and keep it at this height for a little bit. I would say through the end of the year but I don't have a good track record of keeping the same HOC for very long.

The very bottom part of the first pic shows the difference in cut.


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## Vtx531

Scrape... Scrape... Scrape... I use a 5-in-1 paint scraper tool. Aluminum deck so no worries about rusting.



Excellent mulching



I think maybe the longer cut on E (3.25") looked better.



I really want to get down some urea but we haven't had any rain recently and none in the forecast. Im planning on dropping some Oct 1 - rain or no rain.


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## Vtx531

Mowed last night right before it got dark. Setting D 2.75". Meh.

Less clumping under the mower compared to morning mowing but I like getting it done earlier and then admiring the fruit of the labor all day.

I'm getting straighter with my lines. I think the bushings in the wheels are worn out pretty bad which probably doesn't help with straight lines because the wheels have side to side play. I will go down to HD and check out a new model, see how much play there is in the wheels and probably end up ordering some new bushings.

Also, I sold the 60" John Deere...so I'm down to one 21" mower and that's it - crazy.


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## bencrabtree27

I have a roller kit I bought from Harrison specialities for my 757 (60" ztrak) it makes the world of difference. You have to trim some tabs on the deck if you want to go lower than 3.5" but with a sawzaw and grinder it's quick and easy.


----------



## Vtx531

bencrabtree27 said:


> I have a roller kit I bought from Harrison specialities for my 757 (60" ztrak) it makes the world of difference. You have to trim some tabs on the deck if you want to go lower than 3.5" but with a sawzaw and grinder it's quick and easy.


757 looks to be a nice mower. I am finding 3.5"+ is best anyway.

I mowed this morning. Raised the cut back up to setting E (3.25"). It looks a lot better to my eye. Amazing the difference that 1/2" makes but I see all you reel guys talking about 1/8" change being a big change...so maybe not surprising!

We are supposed to get some rain tomorrow so I plan to put down a good amount of urea this evening.

My lines are getting straighter. I am learning how to make slight adjustments left or right on each pass to make corrections for the previous line.

I went to TSC and looked at one of the new SR mowers. Compared to my 8 year-old mower, the wheels were much tighter, no wobble, no play. So I ordered new bushings for the wheels and I'm hoping to have them installed before my next mow.


----------



## Vtx531

I applied the urea tonight. Setting D on the Lesco spreader. I ran the sprinklers for 5 mins each zone, prior to spreading the fert, which helped for seeing my footprints and tracks. I did two mowing rows in between fertilizer passes...so every third row was a pass. I did it long ways with the direction of the trees so next time I need to go across in the perpendicular direction. I put down an estimated 50lbs which should be just over 1lb per 1000.

Last time I did urea was July 15. Setting between C and D on the spreader and estimated 20-25lb. I am surprised that a half setting more put down so much more product. Maybe my overlaps were tighter this time around. Either way, whether it's .5 lb or 1lb or anything else, I got some fertilizer down and that's the important thing.

Too dark for a photo (pitch black at 8pm with cloudy skies). I will try to take one tomorrow and hope the fertilizer spreader tracks are still visible for documentation purposes but I did my best to describe everything above so I can repeat or adjust as necessary next time.

I sold my Lawnaire 28 today - my favorite aerator.


----------



## Vtx531

I worked a little bit on the Super Recycler today. I put new bushings in the front wheels, all good. It needed new bolts too as they were worn down. Unfortunately, the rear wheels were actually both broken. The plastic part holding the inner bushing was cracked and being held together by the metal gear. So, I had to order a new set of rear wheels. Going to have $200 ($120 purchase price + $80 in wheel parts)into this 8-9 year old mower when all is said and done. I probably should have just bought a new one for $400 at end off the year clearance at TSC.







I bought this little gem to clean up and fix too. Much better wheels!



Mowed with SR4 on setting E. Heavy rain stopped me halfway through. I went out right after and finished. It did a good job - no clumps or clogging of the deck. I noticed the pine trees have started dropping needles.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed. Only one rest day between cuts. I raised HOC up to setting F 3.75" and did the backyard. It seemed like maybe it was too tall so I lowered back to E 3.25" and did the front (forward from the back of the deck). Actually hard to tell the difference between the two even looking right at the line where it changes.


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## Vtx531

I mowed everything on E and it is looking pretty good.


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## dwaugh

Vtx531 said:


> I worked a little bit on the Super Recycler today. I put new bushings in the front wheels, all good. It needed new bolts too as they were worn down. Unfortunately, the rear wheels were actually both broken. The plastic part holding the inner bushing was cracked and being held together by the metal gear. So, I had to order a new set of rear wheels. Going to have $200 ($120 purchase price + $80 in wheel parts)into this 8-9 year old mower when all is said and done. I probably should have just bought a new one for $400 at end off the year clearance at TSC.


The lawn looks great. It's always a bummer when parts costs are high and one needs to question the parts cost vs replacement.


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## synergy0852

Vtx531 said:


> I mowed everything on E and it is looking pretty good.


 :thumbup:

Does your soil drain pretty quickly? I mowed front today up here in GR, but I probably shouldn't have. The back will be days before I can put a mower on it this time of year. Curious if you happen to know your soil type as well?


----------



## Vtx531

Dwaugh - Got the new wheels today! (but didn't get a chance to install) Should be nice when it's all fixed up.
Synergy - responded in your lawn journal

Mowed today setting E. I tried out the bagger for the first time. I did a small part in the back under the pine trees and it worked pretty well. A full bag is nice and light compared to the zeroturn bagger and maybe it will even dump right into a paper yard waste bag? The other nice thing about it is you can see in front of you when the bag is full and see when it starts blowing out the pine needles instead of sucking them up.

I've been manually watering but I turned the smart timer back on yesterday.


----------



## Vtx531

Installed the new wheels and bushings on the mower. Still soem slop in the rear. There are 4 more bushings that hold the transmission so I might need to replace those.

Mowed on setting E. 3 days between mow days. It definitely wasn't too tall. Maybe slower growing now with cold nights but the days have been warm lately. LOTS of pine needles under the pine trees. It was NOT doing a good job of mulching those up.

Overall not looking as good as the last time I did the stripes in this direction. Not sure why! Sometimes it just looks great and makes you say wow. Other times it just looks so-so.

Fertilized (same as last fertilizer post) Is one pound of nitrogen per thousand too much every two weeks? It seems like a lot but at this time of year I almost feel like it is impossible to overfertilize.

Watered post-fertilizing. I have really been upping the water lately with it being dry and with the smart timer turned back on. .80 crop coefficient which is about 2 hours total per day.
Z1 36 min
Z2 39 min
Z3 14 min
Z4 23 min


----------



## Vtx531

It's been five days in between mows so I thought I would really enjoy this one...but I was wrong.

The pine needles have taken over the back, completely covering the grass including my newly planted grass this fall. The Super Recycler bag is small. I had to make so many trips to dump the little bag into my trailer. It wasn't picking up very well but even if it was, the bag fills up too quickly. I called the local dealership to see if they had the Toro high lift bagging blade in stock...nope. That place is useless, I have had so many issues there.

So, I ended up raking part of it and that was faster. I filled my 4x8 trailer completely full and gave up on the pine needles. The mower doesn't mulch them at all. I tried side discharge and it was a little better but not much.

Then I mowed. Lowered to setting D because it just seemed like it needed to be shorter. The mower was leaving a little more clumps than I would like (because of how tall it was and some moisture in the grass) so half way through I raised back up to setting E.

It was windy and cold and miserable. I was hungry from not eating lunch. Then, on one of my 180 degree end turns, a mower wheel got caught in a sprinkler hole and I tweaked my back as I was turning it around.

Here's to hoping the next mow goes better.

Also, I bought a very lightly used 2020 Super Recycler #21387 with electric-start 190cc Briggs w/ smart stow. It is missing the battery and charger cable but I only paid $150.


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## Di3soft

Dude 150 bucks for that thing is a steal


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## uts

I was looking at the 30" commercial exmark. Can you help me with pricing of it's in great condition?


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## Vtx531

Di3soft - I thought it may have been a scam. I asked if the guy would hold it for me and he said to send him the money via venmo. So I said how about $20 on venmo and the rest in person but he wouldn't do it. Only greedy people get scammed right? But it seemed legit, so I took the gamble and sure enough, the guy held it for me for 5 days until I got back from my work trip.

Uts - I think those commercial 30's are just under $2,000 new. I have seen them as low as $800 used. It just depends how badly you want it and how badly the seller wants to get rid of it (end of season). I don't have experience with that mower but I think I would go for a new or nice used Timemaster instead. You will get a bigger engine and it should be lighter. I prefer personal pace to the bail setup. There are a lot more Timemasters out there so more chances to get a deal. Unless you are planning to run it on 20-40 lawns a week, banging it around daily on a landscape trailer, and having potheads or drunks operating/abusing it... then I would probably get the Exmark for that.

If you want the Exmark, I would tell the guy it needs to be at least half price to compete with 0% financing and warranty from the dealer...but I would pay more if it is actually really nice and it is what I am looking for. There aren't a lot of those machines out there on the used market.


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## Vtx531

Had a good mow today. I intended to mow it all down at D to even everything out but I didn't check the height setting until I was almost done. Well it was on E again. It still evened out pretty good so I must have had a good amount of growth in only two days. I guess the universe is telling me not to lower the hoc to D.


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## Vtx531

Mowed it all down to D 2.75".


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## Vtx531

I had a really nice mow today. Setting D. Nice sunny fall weather. Looked great after I was done (maybe best looking of the season). We've had a lot of rain recently.

I also applied another 50lb of urea.


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## synergy0852

Looking good after all that rain! Do you hate those pine needles as much as I do?!


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## Vtx531

Ya! The pine needles are bad. Been trying to bag them up a little bit at a time. I think I am finally caught up on that.

Mowed today on D. When I was doing the natural edge in front, I raised the front wheel on the rut side all the way up but accidentally lowered the rear wheel all the way down instead of all the way up so it scalped a little bit.


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## jamesonw

Great color! Love this time of year, time to get the fire pit rolling with all that wood


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## Vtx531

This weekend will be great for a fire with warmer weather!

I changed the oil in the mower (forgot to shut off the fuel valve recently while it was stored) and mowed. It was a great mow.

I am still running the sprinkler on the smart timer. ET is down to about .05" per day. We have had some days below freezing but the sprinkler plumbing seems to be holding up fine. One night it even got down to 20 degrees. My neighbor forgot to winterize his sprinklers one year and the copper pipe above the ground didn't rupture until about December. Nevertheless, I will probably blow out the sprinklers after this heat wave is done. Supposed to be up around 70 degrees this weekend.


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## Vtx531

Sharpened the blade and mowed (D). Lawn is taking on a yellowish tint, almost like the problem I have with seed stalks in late spring. Maybe the grass is hardening off for winter? I just sharpened the blades so that not the issue.

Still running the irrigation but will probably shut it down this week or soon after.


----------



## Vtx531

Frosty out there - it got down to 23 degrees (-5C) at one point last night. I put a water bottle out on the deck before I went to bed and the top half of it was a little icy/slushy when I checked it this morning. I need to blow out the sprinklers very soon.

Update: it was a nice sunny day so I blew out the sprinklers today. Another season in the books...


----------



## Vtx531

I bought a Toro high lift / bagging blade. 108-3759-03. Ordered it from local dealer for $18.

I mowed on D and bagged. Not many grass clippings. About 2.5 paper bags of pine needles/pinecones and 1/2 bag of clippings. Leaf/brush pickup is scheduled for today.

I like the highlift blades. You can even see the grass blades getting sucked up at the edge of the mower deck. It didn't really get any of the pine needles that were matted down though. Just the ones that were sitting on top.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed (D) and bagged yesterday. Cut down all the plants next to the shed. Edged the driveway and used a shopvac to suck debris out of the channel. I was vacuuming out the cars and thought I would try it on the edge. Worked great!


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## jskierko

Vtx531 said:


> used a shopvac to suck debris out of the channel


That is next level lawn nut dedication!


----------



## Vtx531

jskierko said:


> Vtx531 said:
> 
> 
> 
> used a shopvac to suck debris out of the channel
> 
> 
> 
> That is next level lawn nut dedication!
Click to expand...

Ha thanks!

*2021*

I changed the oil in my mower with 20oz of 10w30. I took off the bagging blade and put on the mulching blade. I mowed on setting D.

Today is the first day for crabgrass preemergent according to gddtracker. I plan on putting some down later this week.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed again (D). Was still able to make out the lines from last year so that helped. Had actual clippings and growth compared to Mar 25 post.

The back yard is much greener than the front but I know it will flip to the opposite in a few weeks. Main section of front lawn is greener than the other side of the front. Overall looking pretty decent though.

Havent had a chance to put down preM yet due to work. I wanted to do it yesterday but it was too windy and the granules would have blown around and been totally uneven.

Also- I sold my lawn striper last weekend since I dont plan on using a riding mower at all this season.


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## weirj55

Edge looks nice and crisp. Never thought to vacuum before, but I usually blow the dirt remnants back into my lawn after the edge. Cleaning out the channels does give it an enhanced look, I feel. Bravo for thinking to use the shopvac, glad it worked for you.

Another beautiful early season lawn, gearing up for prime time!


----------



## Vtx531

Thank you weirj55- time for the shop vac trick again. I haven't done it yet this season.

Good Easter morning from the lawn: shaping up to be a nice morning it is already 48 degrees at 8:30am so I am outside filling out my journal entry.

I finally got around to throwing down crab grass preventer. GDD 386 today. The target range is 250-500 so Im actually right in the middle of the window. No rain forecast in the next couple days though. Hopefully the dew/frost will activate the crabgrass preventer.

I used two old 21lb bags (same as last few years) and part of another bag (Maybe 5-10lb).

The old bags were 30-0-4 and .29% prodiamine. 6.7% slow release.

Menards bag was 26-0-3 and .125% dithiopyr. 1% iron. 7.8% slow release.

Started with the old bags. Prodiamine yellow granules. Kind of messy. I increased the spreader setting from D to E and it seemed to work well. I got through the two bags (42 lb) and ran out about near the fire pit, doing front and rear. I spaced my lines out with two mower widths inbetween (every thrid strip).

When I switched to the dithiopyr bags, the granules were brown, less messy/ sticky so it was flowing too quickly through the spreader. I decreased from E to D. Still flowing too quickly. Decreased to C which seemed about right, had a little bit left over at the end of doing the whole yard.

Just doing the one application (not split) this year because I havent had any problems doing that in the past. The prodiamine granule fertilizer won't flow well enough through the spreader at a half rate type of setting.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed (D) last night. Big improvement from just a few days ago in color and density.


----------



## Vtx531

Wow - lots of growth in the last couple days. I started to mow last night but a rain storm came so I finished up this morning. A little bit wet and clumping but not too bad considering how tall it was.

Really enjoyed the mow. It was at the perfect point where it is tall and seriously needs to be mowed but not overgrown. I REALLY like this lawn mower.

I got out the edger/weedwacker for the first time this year and it started right up!


----------



## g-man

^ the best mow shoes, white new balance.


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> ^ the best mow shoes, white new balance.


Crappy old Asics that are worn out and gross-looking but perfect for mowing!

I had one of the best mows ever tonight. I sharpened the blades beforehand too. Grass is coming in nice and thick. The low evening angle of sun was just right for making the grass look really nice.

One of the situations where it actually looks a lot better in person than the pics. I took this photo mid-mow. You can see the area in the top right has yet to be mowed when I took the photo.

I really like this mower. The grass was giving the 160cc Briggs and Stratton a pretty good workout - even though it was far from overgrown and I just mowed two days ago.

I have high hopes for this season!!! Next challenge will be how the Super Recycler handles the upcoming seedheads that will appear. Will the edges be as raggedy as with my 42" zero turn last year?


----------



## mowww

@Vtx531 dang that looks lush! Good luck this year.


----------



## Vtx531

mowww said:


> @Vtx531 dang that looks lush! Good luck this year.


Thank you. I am having really good luck so far this year!

Ironically I STOPPED doing all the extra stuff to the lawn (aerating, dethatching, topdressing, leveling) and I am happier than ever with the way it looks right now. If I could keep the lawn looking like it is right now and have it never get any better, I would be pretty happy.

Mowed today... I really like this mower.


----------



## Chris LI

The lawn is looking really tight and dense. :thumbup:


----------



## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> The lawn is looking really tight and dense. :thumbup:


Thanks!

Today- I mowed


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed & edge/blow


----------



## jamesonw

Phenomenal looking already this time of year! Great color and density. Congrats on a great start!


----------



## Butter

Looks great! Its so thick! Is that 2.5"? Will you keep it at that HOC all year?


----------



## Vtx531

Thank you for commenting jamesonw and Butter!

According to the Toro Owners Manual it is 2.75" (7cm).

I would like to try to keep hoc consistent this year. History shows that I have a real hard time doing that. I was just thinking about going higher but will try to resist.

This hoc is the exact middle of the range for my mower so I think that it is probably designed to cut best at this hoc. Setting D of ABCDEFG.

I might play around a little bit with the height (+/- one notch) when the seedheads start soon but hopefully I can restrain from doing devastating/drastic changes like I have done in the past. All I need to do now is look back in my lawn journal for a nice reminder of what NOT to do - could be one of the most useful aspects of my lawn journal.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed.

Getting some dandelions here and there but most were tall enough to get mowed off. Need to spot spray eventually.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed. Starting to notice a little bit of yellowing and little bit of stalk-iness. Probably the beginning of the seed head time of season approaching. Pulled dandelions by hand also.

Sold my Exmark Commercial 21 today. Down to two mowers now: 159cc and 190cc Super Recyclers. Need to thin it down to one.


----------



## Butter

What did you like and dislike about the Exmark 21?


----------



## Vtx531

Butter said:


> What did you like and dislike about the Exmark 21?


I liked that it seemed really big and solid. I liked the big wheels on it and ball bearings. I disliked that it was really heavy and I disliked the bail self propel (prefer the personal pace!)

Mowed yesterday. Still a few dandelions popping up and seems like the lawn might be getting a little dry. I still haven't turned on the sprinklers yet.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed. Still keeping it consistent!

I was getting the urge to go higher with the hoc but reminded myself that the grass usually ends up laying over if I go higher.

I havent bought my big stash of fertilizer yet for the year. So far just a single app of fertilizer with preM. Rolling around the idea in my head of going with less inputs (water and fertilizer) and not spending hundreds of dollars on the lawn this year. Back to basics, so to speak, with a push mower and minimal inputs?

Seedheads are definitely on their way. The grass is starting to get really stalky and yellow, as it always does for me. The Toro SR is handling it well though. Still getting a lot of buildup under the deck and having to scrape before each mow. The poa spots have had seedheads for a few weeks already.

Still got a few dandelions popping up here and there. Very few are making it to the white/seed stage though before getting mowed off.


----------



## Vtx531

Sharpened my mower blade.

Mowed.

Still getting the urge to mower taller.

Not very many seedheads at all. Maybe it is still early? Or maybe mowing consistently every three days is keeping them from showing up?

I noticed the bottom of my mower deck had SIGNIFICANTLY less grass buildup today. Not sure if due to the shraper blade, dryer grass, or more stalkiness and holding less moisture.


----------



## Vtx531

Fertilized this morning. Urea on setting between C and D. Two mower stripes between (every third) and went front to back. Used old urea from last year that was stored in the garage and it was still in perfect condition and not clumpy.

Hopefully this will give my lawn a boost up. I'm giving very strong consideration to going taller on HOC.

I sold the 190cc Toro SR this morning. Down to one mower! The purchaser said his old one broke and there are none in stock at any stores. Two week wait for online ordering. It was a nice mower and I probably should have kept it but oh well. I think my older SR needs a couple more bushings to tighten up the rear wheel height adjuster assemblies.

Here is a front yard pic for a change. Getting a little brown or off color near the road for some reason. It has not been hot here at all lately. Averaging about 20 degrees cooler than normal for the last week. Maybe that has something to do with it.


----------



## synergy0852

Seeing the same color loss north of you as well. Can't wait for the warmer weather!


----------



## Vtx531

I just barely missed out on the rain south of us yesterday too so that isn't helping! Would have been nice. We were supposed to get .5" of rain yesterday so I fertilized but we got about zero.

I went to the shed and raised up the mower to the highest setting. Stuck it on the lawn just to see how it was doing. So that is the photo...Toro SR aat the highest hoc.

Cant...control...myself...

Not enough growth to go for that yet. I normally mow every third day. It would probably take a little bit off if I went up one notch higher. It really doesn't look like a drastic change to me in the photo but it would be 1.5" higher compared to where I am at now.


----------



## Vtx531

I decided to at least do an edge & blow to keep things looking as nice as possible while I am waiting for the lawn to grow out.

You can really see the discoloration in these couple photos.


----------



## Vtx531

Still letting it grow out.

Seems like the front yard condition is worsening.* Is this drought stress or from the cold weather or what? *It looks greener along the edge which would point to cold weather. However the part along the road is not green. I did run earmuffs on my boat that flooded the side of the driveway there with water but that was probably two weeks ago but there is also a green stripe in the middle. Quite an odd pattern! Almost looks like I did a bad job with a drop spreader.

I decided to turn on the sprinkler system for the first time of the year and currently running each zone .25" to see if it responds. Would like to do more but I'm just too cheap to spend more $$$ on water. Each .25" is about $5 for the whole lawn - I probably need to open up my wallet a little more and let the water flow.

The backyard rye grass doesn't look as bad as the bluegrass in the front yard.


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## g-man

That looks like drought stress. I think you guys missed all the rain we had in indy.


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## Vtx531

g-man said:


> That looks like drought stress. I think you guys missed all the rain we had in indy.


I should have taken a screen shot of the radar image. The giant blob of precip missed me by a couple streets. No joke this happens every time. Lol. Usually the line splits off north and south and goes right around us somehow. Thanks for your input! Perhaps more water is in order for tomorrow. I don't see any rain in the near forecast.


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## synergy0852

Water that lawn @Vtx531! We're spoiled with water prices here in MI compared to elsewhere in the states! I've been watering for over a month now, granted only a couple times with the cooler weather, but I can see drought stress in neighbors lawns already that don't irrigate near me so I'd imagine you're in a similar boat.


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## ROJ_3030

I'm over in Midland and definitely seeing drought stress in my area too. I also noticed a slight change in color the last couple days I believe from the light morning frost. Not sure if you guys had freezing temps south of me. I'm pouring on the water as we speak but have the beauty of a well.


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## Vtx531

ROJ_3030 said:


> I'm over in Midland and definitely seeing drought stress in my area too. I also noticed a slight change in color the last couple days I believe from the light morning frost. Not sure if you guys had freezing temps south of me. I'm pouring on the water as we speak but have the beauty of a well.





synergy0852 said:


> Water that lawn @Vtx531! We're spoiled with water prices here in MI compared to elsewhere in the states! I've been watering for over a month now, granted only a couple times with the cooler weather, but I can see drought stress in neighbors lawns already that don't irrigate near me so I'd imagine you're in a similar boat.


Watering more this morning. We did indeed have frost the last few nights. It does look a little better today after the water last night...looks like it was drought stess


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## Vtx531

I got too impatient waiting to mow so I set the SR wheels one notch below maximum so that the mower would at least cut a _little_ bit. That's 3.75" (F), one inch higher than my last mow, and it just barely took off the tips some of the grass - the overachiever blades that grew fastest.

Watering now again. I figure if the grass blades can _lose_ moisture through the fresh cut blade tips then they should be able to _absorb_ moisture through the fresh cut blade tips as well. Riiight?


Always looks crappy to me in midday sun.


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## Vtx531

A little more water this morning (seriously little - .05") and here is the current state of one of the dry areas in the front yard. Looking much better but the bad pic on May 12 was direct midday sunlight and this one is early morning when grass always looks better.


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## Vtx531

The lawn finally got some rain last night but it wasn't much .05"

I'm planning on mowing later when it dries out. In the mean time, I put down two test strips of extra urea in the backyard. I used my hand spreader on setting 3. I did two passes to the left side of the deck and one pass to the right side. Will be interested to see what happens and if I end up with two thick green strips then I probably need more fertilizer on the rest of the lawn. My theory is that if you go at a reasonable rate, then you can never have too much nitrogen. Let's find out!!!


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## Vtx531

4.25"!

I mowed at the highest wheel setting. It did not take off very much. Now just continue mowing and wait for it to fill in at that height. I am looking forward to the next mow to see how much more grass it cuts off.

I experimented with my mower. I removed the bagger block-off to obtain rear discharge. My thought was more airflow would help with suction. Not sure if it actually did anything but the air was definitely flowing out under the rear flap. I can try it with the bagging blade sometime to see how that does.


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## Chris LI

Yes, the bagging blade will increase suction. I'm curious, how many different types of blades do you have for the SR?


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Yes, the bagging blade will increase suction. I'm curious, how many different types of blades do you have for the SR?


Just two. The mulching blade (3-in-1) and the bagging blade. As far as I am aware those are the only two blades available from Toro?


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## Vtx531

Watered a slight bit this morning and used a hose to hit the bad spots.

Threw on the bagging blade and side 
-discharge mowed. I couldn't really tell a difference as far as grass standing up better. Might be a difference if it was taller and i didnt just mow yesterday.

No noticeable difference for my fertilizer test strips.


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## Chris LI

I haven't looked it up, but Oregon probably makes a Gator blade for it. If you find one, I would pick it up. I really like them for both mulching and bagging. They stand up the grass more than other mulching blades (good suction), and annihilate leaves in the fall.


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> I haven't looked it up, but Oregon probably makes a Gator blade for it. If you find one, I would pick it up. I really like them for both mulching and bagging. They stand up the grass more than other mulching blades (good suction), and annihilate leaves in the fall.


Will check it out...don't they make multiple different versions of gator blade? Always fun to try new tools.

I mowed today. I went in a different direction than my usual two directions. It is actually one of the patterns I used to do with the ztr.

I tried mulch mode with the bagging blade but didn't seem too good so I went back to having the rear chute open which seemed okay.

Not too happy with the appearance of the lawn. I would say we are having a moderate drought so the lawn is growing very slowly. I need more growth for it to even up to my new raised height of cut. So it is slow getting there but looks okay considering how bad the weather conditions have been. We got a sprinkle of rain today when I was out mowing but hardly enough to even get the grass wet.

Only .36" total precip in the last three weeks.

Lots of seed heads are appearing and the stalks are slow-growing and below my new height of cut so they aren't getting mowed off very much.


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## Chris LI

The original Gator blades are labeled G3. The newer models are G5 and G6. They are similar and are different from the G3 in that they are a little thicker/heavier, more lift, have a longer cutting-edge with carbide edge, to my understanding. They only offer the G3 fmy mower, and I love it (feel free to check out my journal).

The bagging blade probably clumps when you try to mulch with it. It's meant to cut grass and get it out of there (into the bag or out of the chute/side discharging). Cracking the door open will allow for some airflow and better results. If this works, you can stick with it, if you don't want a mulching blade. However, the mulching blade will work better.

Mowing during the stemmy period stinks, and drought conditions make it worse. Dry, brittle turf tends to tear, as opposed to being sliced. Try hand filing the blade every other mow to keep it sharp, and try to get some water down. If you have any TTTF, the striations tend to cause tearing/rough edges.

Regardless, your lawn looks great. We can be our own worst critics.


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## Vtx531

I called the co-op I normally get my fertilizer from. Price is up 33.4% from last year. Not happy about that.


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## g-man

I stopped at ATS this morning to grab AMS, SOP and MAP. Prices are higher.


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## Vtx531

Mowed the back today. The rye in the backyard mix seems to grow faster than bluegrass in the front.

Did another different direction. The ruts from going the same two directions over and over are pretty bad. Maybe because the soil is fairly dry right now.

As I was bouncing around with my lawnmower like it was the Baja 1000, I got to thinking the flex handle on the newer SR that I just sold sure would be nice. Along with the bigger 190cc mower...found a new one (open-box?) on FB marketplace - $325 later it is in my driveway. Not as good of a deal as my last one but still good. Same exact model that I just sold. This is Toro SR #4 for me. I'm still keeping my eye out for a Timemaster but the used ones are all too expensive or too junky.



Oh! Somehow I noticed today that the front wheels on my old mower were set at 3.75" HOC instead of 4.25" that I wanted. Really not sure how that happened! Someone must be messing with me lol.


----------



## Butter

That new Toro is sweet! I've been thinking of trying one. You seem to be very knowledgeable about the SR and really like them. I may be hitting you up with some questions.


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## Vtx531

Butter said:


> That new Toro is sweet! I've been thinking of trying one. You seem to be very knowledgeable about the SR and really like them. I may be hitting you up with some questions.


It is sweet I agree! Definitely try one. I've only recently _discovered_ the Toro Super Recycler series of mowers but I have a fair amount of amateur experience in different types of lawn equipment and mechanics so I would be more than happy to attempt to answer any questions!

Did nothing to the lawn today besides water 💦 .15" this morning which should be enough to almost keep up with ET.

Funny - my fire pit has three rows of blocks. Yes- the lawn is that tall. I could easily run the mower over the top of a 4x4 block of wood if I wanted too.

Another dry, hot, full-sun day in the upper 80's. Supposedly this is late June type weather. Hate running the sprinklers so much but thankful that it is possible. No rain in sight...


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## Vtx531

I did some work on the irrigation plumbing today. The main project was to install a pressure reducing valve but while I was in there, I ended up replacing the shutoff valve and drain valve as well.

The pressure reducing valve is working amazing! I have it dialed into about 32psi working pressure which is fairly low but it seems to work good just by watching how the sprinklers look. I think the pressure was too high before which caused a lot of misting from the rotors, they were pretty noisy when outside, probably not very efficient. Also hoping this fixes my problem of sprinkler heads constantly going bad and getting stuck/failing to rotate.

I really feel like this is going to make a huge difference for the lawn. There is such a dramatic change in the spray pattern, it is unbelievable.


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## Vtx531

Mowed today at 4.25" again. Grass seems to coming up to level at this hoc. Tons of seedheads.

Also, I sharpened the blade on my new Toro and added an inline fuel shutoff valve. The flex handle is very nice. The electric start is AWESOME and that is a feature I didn't really want or need. Now I am hooked on the electric start feature next time I buy a mower.


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## Vtx531

Yet another HOT DRY day here. Sprinklers are doing great with the reduced pressure. Im going to look at this hot dry weather as a positive - it allows me to control the amount of water 100%.


----------



## gravely G20 pro

Great stripes with 21"mower like that yours can mow at 4.25


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## Vtx531

Mowed today. Hooray - most of the seedheads got mowed off. The lawn is really starting to level out now at this high cut. The new mower did a nice job with no visible clippings.


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## Vtx531

I lowered the irrigation pressure a little bit more and I did a mini irrigation audit this morning. Also, adjusted a few rotor heads.

The lower pressure has reduced my water flow significantly from each zone being up around 10 GPM before. This will give me some flexibility to change out a few nozzles for optimum coverage. I was making compromises before to stay at 10 GPM max for plumbing safety.

Zone 1 Front Yard: 5.39 GPM
Zone 2 Back Shed: 5.75 GPM
Zone 3 Side Driveway: 5.45 GPM
Zone 4 Back Garage: 5.08 GPM

Next, I would like to do another catch cup test. I am optimistically hoping the precip rate is actually higher with the lower water flow rate due to less misting. Will that actually be the case??


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## eric1104

Looking great - especially given all the seed heads and drought conditions we're facing now. Really highlights the importance of a good irrigation system/practices. I mowed yesterday too and finally feel like I might be done with the seed heads. Do you throw down any N to help the turf rebound from energy spent on seed stalk production?


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## Vtx531

eric1104 said:


> Looking great - especially given all the seed heads and drought conditions we're facing now. Really highlights the importance of a good irrigation system/practices. I mowed yesterday too and finally feel like I might be done with the seed heads. Do you throw down any N to help the turf rebound from energy spent on seed stalk production?


It has been very tough conditions around here lately! Supposed to get .25" rain tonight thankfully. The taller mowing height has really helped out.

I like your thinking on the fertilizer - was planning on throwing down some 19-19-19 at the beginning of June for that. Interestingly, my extra Urea test strips (including the double extra amount) are showing NO visible difference from the rest of the lawn. So I guess that means nitrogen is not currently the limiting factor.

Edit: I want to retract my statement about conditions being tough. It is just dry and requires more water. Really nothing difficult - just need to run the $prinklers longer. Pretty easy.


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## Vtx531

Mowed front to back to create fresh stripes for fertilizer walking/spacing purposes. Sort of a double cut but spread over two days.

Not my best work today on the fertilizer front:

1. Went to buy some 19-19-19 in anticipation of rain tonight and tomorrow. They were all out so I bought 6-24-24 instead.

2. I started to apply it with my lesco at the setting I use for Urea. It seemed like not much was coming out so I dialed it up from C-D to E. Still not enough, dialed it up to F. Seemed good but then I realized the 50lb bag wasn't going to last for my whole yard. So I dialed it back to E and extended the spacing between rows. Three rows in between (every fourth row). I ran out by the time I got to the fire pit. My rows were aligned front to back with the north side of the property line.

I think the prill size was quite a bit larger and heavier than Urea so it did need a bigger opening in the spreader but also needed wider spacing because the heavier particles broadcast out farther.

I hope it doesn't burn and I will need to buy more and apply heavy to the southern half of the yard to even it out. Shooting for 2lb per 1000 of potassium and phosphorus each for the year. This rate was recommended according to a soil analysis I sent for a few years ago at Penn State.




Bought some seed today too (for the fall) from local landscape supply store. I got "Contractors Mix". This is to overseed underneath the pine trees, some of which is not irrigated. Why I went with the low maintenance type of seed mix.

Paid $15.63 with a coupon for 7.5 lbs for $2.08 per pound.


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## uts

^^ those are good prices. Are you getting these from a ag store?

The lawn does look good. Are you putting down the full 2lb of K and P in one app?


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## Vtx531

uts said:


> ^^ those are good prices. Are you getting these from a ag store?
> 
> The lawn does look good. Are you putting down the full 2lb of K and P in one app?


The name of the store is "Feed Bag". Mostly animals feeds but they have those various fertilizers on pallets out front. May be cheaper here in the midwest or areas where there is a lot of farming activity. Although...what farmers would buy fertilizer by 50lb bags? Probably not! Prices are 30%+ higher than last year. I used to pay $14 for 50lb Urea and slightly more for 19-19-19. Tripple 19 seems to be in short supply this year. A lot of places are sold out. I used to drive an hour each way to a place that had them cheaper but this is close by.

I was planning on putting down .5lb P and K per app. That would have worked out perfect with 1 bag of 19-19-19 per app for four apps but everything is slightly messed up for me now. Thank you for commenting! How do you do the P & K part of the lawn equation???


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## uts

Vtx531 said:


> uts said:
> 
> 
> 
> ^^ those are good prices. Are you getting these from a ag store?
> 
> The lawn does look good. Are you putting down the full 2lb of K and P in one app?
> 
> 
> 
> The name of the store is "Feed Bag". Mostly animals feeds but they have those various fertilizers on pallets out front. May be cheaper here in the midwest or areas where there is a lot of farming activity. Although...what farmers would buy fertilizer by 50lb bags? Probably not! Prices are 30%+ higher than last year. I used to pay $14 for 50lb Urea and slightly more for 19-19-19. Tripple 19 seems to be in short supply this year. A lot of places are sold out. I used to drive an hour each way to a place that had them cheaper but this is close by.
> 
> I was planning on putting down .5lb P and K per app. That would have worked out perfect with 1 bag of 19-19-19 per app for four apps but everything is slightly messed up for me now. Thank you for commenting! How do you do the P & K part of the lawn equation???
Click to expand...

Nice. I've found ag supply store near me and get stuff from them. Some are completely sold out.

My phosphorus is fairly high ( typical for my area) so I'm completely avoiding it. ( only put one app when I renovated with starter fert). My recs were 4lbs of K for the year. I've almost dropped 2 (1+1). Il drop 0.75x2 over july and August and last 0.5 in sept to hit the target. I have low CEC soil so smaller more frequent apps.


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## Vtx531

Yea Im not really sure this is the best time for me to be dropping P&K because it will feed the weeds more than the turf through the summer. I did put down a pre-emergent so that should help. I wonder if it should all be in the fall for optimal results?


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## uts

I try to avoid K after Sept to minimize snow mold concern. Most of it goes before summer stress sets in to build reserve and the rest for recovery. Smaller doses for low CEC.


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## Vtx531

Mowed today at 4.25". Pretty disappointing mow. A lot of areas with seedheads still that are seemingly thin. Some dry areas. Some good areas. The drier areas just arent growing much so the seedheads aren't growing out. I feel like if I lowered the hoc it would just make the growth even slower and thin it out more.

I did a catch cup test on my sprinkler system and the results with lower water pressure was significantly lower precip rates. Also, the uniformity went down. So, I raised the pressure up to 30psi dynamic which is the minimum on the chart for my rotors. I got everything dialed in pretty good but the areas right around the sprinkler heads are thick, green, lush. Just goes to show I am not putting enough water but the cost is just not worth it too me.

Too bad because normally this is prime mowing season but I am sort of missing out due to the lack of rain lately. Oh well. It can't expect it to look good all the time.

Been thinking about just giving up on irrigation unless it gets real bad. Why pay good money to get it splotchy green and still not have it live up to expectations? Need to adjust expectations. I can't bring myself to spend $1,000 per season that it would cost to do the amount of watering it needs.



Here is the side-front. Yellow circles show the sprinkler head locations and associated green grass.


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## Vtx531

This side of the house looks okay, some Poa Annua spots that I am hoping will go away with the tall mowing. This is the same spot but opposite angle as my current profile pic.


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## Vtx531

Mowed at 4.25". Took a good amount off in the well-irrigated areas and hardly anything off in the drier, un-irrigated areas. Overall continuing to improve the look as more seedheads get mowed off. Still very dry conditions.

May 2020: 8" of rain
May 2021: 1" of rain

Not getting the ripped, jagged PRG seedhead tips and associated white/brownish look this year. I think the Toro walk behind just does a much better job than my 42" Timecutter ZTR last year but the taller mowing height may be helping too.

No doubt the lawn would be looking really nice if it had more water.

I did the first oil change in my new Super Recycler. Guessing has about 5 hours runtime and that would be time for the first oil change under the old rules. Now the marketing says you never change the oil and just top up as needed which is not what I plan to do! I drained and filled with 18oz of 5w30 Walmart Supertech advanced synthetic (the 20,000 mile one). Capacity is 20oz and I think if I filled it with the full 20oz that would have been perfect but did 18oz so as not to overfill. The "old" oil had shiny metallic dust glistening in it. I can't imagine never changing the oil. It is so easy to tilt it over and drain/fill. Not to mention when the oil gets thinned out and diluted from gasoline over time, especially when then carb gets old and leaks + no factory fuel shutoff valve.

Toro says 10w30 but Briggs says:
Synthetic SAE 5W-30- Best protection at all temperatures as well as improved starting with less oil consumption. 
Going to be switching my Jeep Wrangler 4.0L and BMW 2.5L inline 6's over to the 5w30 as well, when the time comes. Also, the powerwasher with Honda GX200 clone.


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## gravely G20 pro

Yard looks great!! I cringed at the thought of 5w30 in an air cooled motor though lol


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## Vtx531

gravely G20 pro said:


> Yard looks great!! I cringed at the thought of 5w30 in an air cooled motor though lol


Thanks, appreciate it!!! So glad I decided to increase the height taller and really lucked out that coincided with the dry conditions I am experiencing.

My opinion is that any oil in a lawnmower that is not diluted with gasoline should be sufficient but I wanted to give this one a try.


----------



## Butter

Looks great! Very nice color! I love that HOC!
You should throw the bag on the SR for the next mow while I'm still trying to decide to buy one.


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## Vtx531

Butter said:


> Looks great! Very nice color! I love that HOC!
> You should throw the bag on the SR for the next mow while I'm still trying to decide to buy one.


Thanks - really lucked out that I decided to mow tall the last few weeks. Im right on the edge of the severe drought zone. (Darker orange) :bd:

Front lawn is far from thriving and I'm just trying to hold it together until weather conditions improve. Looking to be upper 80s today and 90+ the next couple days. _Dry conditions will continue_

Im sort of stuck with seedheads in the drier spots. They sprouted and then the drought slowed growth. So now they are not growing out tall enough to get mowed off and I don't want to mow shorter and make things worse.

I'd like to mow today but might just wait a few days to give it the best chance through the mini heat wave.


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## Vtx531

I received an hourmeter/tachometer in the mail. Temporarily hooked it up to the Super Recycler and bumped up the rpms from factory 3000rpm to 3300rpm. The Toro Commercial 21's run at 3300rpm.

All you have to do to adjust high speed rpm on this engine is bend the tab that connects to the governor spring (I used my hand, no tools required besides the tachometer)


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## Vtx531

Alright guys, I've had a cocktail or two that might be affecting my thinking but this drought has really got me down (as far as the lawn goes). I've been watering a lot lately and the lawn still looks like garbage or at least well below my expectations. At this point why bother irrigating at all? Might work for people on a well but with city water it's just ludicrous. The lawn is lush green right near the heads where it gets extra water but the rest is patchy, dry, seedheads all over the place. I think I'm going to stop wasting money on the water and just let it go dormant or natural state.


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## Vtx531

Mowed because I like mowing....

Briggs engine on the Super Recycler seems to be hunting. I took off the carb and it is all completely plastic and I couldn't figure out how to get to any of the jets for cleaning. Not sure what the problem is. Everything looked brand new inside as far as I could tell.


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## gravely G20 pro

Possibly hunting from bending the governor tab? Not familiar with this particular engine but usually that spring keeps tension on the governor so stretching it out may have weakened it cause the motor to surge


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## uts

@Vtx531 have you tried putting something like hydretain or lesco moisture manager. At full rate the 2.5 gallon covers almost an acre ($180 or so). That's for a full 3 months. Might be something to check out considering how water bills ride up in summer. You can do a full app and follow it up with a 1/3rd app every month and probably only go through one jug a year.


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## Butter

Its a tough call with the watering. I installed my irrigation with the thought of using it as little as possible and for the most part that is what I do. Some years I water more than others but my water is fairly cheap. There have been times where I water just enough to keep it kind of green but below my expectation level. Also, some summers where I live it can get so dry and hot that there is no way to give it the water it needs, not psychically, not financially, not morally. None of this probably helps or makes you feel any better. Good luck!


----------



## Vtx531

G20- I don't think the governor is the problem. Still seems like a fuel issue with the carb. I found some YouTube videos on how to clean the new style Briggs plastic carbs. Will report back.

Uts- thanks for the idea. $180 per gallon is still just too much for me to swallow. Wish I wasn't such a cheapskate. The math you provided makes sense but damn that's a lot of money to spend on something and just hope it works. Sort of like buying grass seed haha.

Butter - that does make me feel better. I'm told our water is fairly cheap. I calculated it out to about .25cents (1/4 penny) per gallon. The price keeps going up though. Commercial use is less than half the residential rate. WTF! I guess homeowners dont have enough lobbying power here in the local area. Glad my "high" prices are able to subsidize local businesses lower prices. Oh, and it must be nice to be able to write it off as an expense on taxes too. Alright, off on a tangent. It is what it is...

Thankfully I am getting some much needed rain right now. But....Only .03" compared to the .25" predicted. Thanks for commenting guys!


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## uts

Nothing cheap about it. A budget is a budget and that's what all of us work with. Do you have an idea of how much water you put down on your lawn in a season?


----------



## Vtx531

I think I'm only at about 1/2" per week.

I cleaned the carb on the Briggs engine. Mowed today to test it and it was running 100% better. Later on in the mow it was stumbling ever so slightly, every one in a while- say 95% good. I watched another youtube video and there is one part of the carb that I missed cleaning so I'll have to pull it apart one more time but no rush because it is running good overall.

Regardless, this mower cuts great. I swapped on the bagging (high lift) blade and used it in mulch mode. It seemed like it did a good job. More lift = better cut, I would think. A down side would be more noise and more fuel consumed - likely why the mower manufacturers don't provide this blade from the factory.

Fun with the new hour meter. 1.3 hours for my last mow and 1.0 on this one. I was a speeding bullet today.

Here is a good angle of a good section...

Another...



Back NoMix is looking better than the front KBG sod.


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## Vtx531

Mowed today in 97 degree heat, yikes! Yesterday we hit 100 degrees. I did a new stripe angle- I tried to go from my viewpoint straight out.

We got a little rain yesterday, only .27" that was badly needed.

Got the Super Recycler plugged in to charge the starter battery. First time I have charged it. Still started up with no lack of power though so this could go a long time without charging. I added 3oz of oil since it was a little low last time I did the initial five hour oil change.

Lawn is still struggling. Sprinklers still cut off since June 5 and I currently don't plan on turning them on again. $$$ Not worth it on a NoMix/PRG lawn!!


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## synergy0852

Take this with a grain of salt but if you're not going to be irrigating it may help to reduce mowing frequency and reduce stress on the lawn and stay greener longer in between rain events. Just my $.02.


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## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> Take this with a grain of salt but if you're not going to be irrigating it may help to reduce mowing frequency and reduce stress on the lawn and stay greener longer in between rain events. Just my $.02.


I agree 100%! Problem is...I'm sitting around bored and I love mowing! Lol. Need the exercise too. I have a BAD habit of overdoing things to the lawn...mowing...fertilizing...aerating...dethatching... everything except watering. Figure if I mow too often thats the least bad of the options - right? I sold one of my greens aerators...got one left to go. Still trying to just mow, fertilize, XXXWaterXXX.


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## synergy0852

I can definitely relate to the love of mowing, but I've been watching my neighbors mow their lawns in this drought and didn't know if you had known. Honestly looks great for not watering anymore compared to what I'm seeing just a bit north of you. It seems like all the rain is going north or south of us this year, it's pretty brutal.


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## Vtx531

synergy0852 said:


> I can definitely relate to the love of mowing, but I've been watching my neighbors mow their lawns in this drought and didn't know if you had known. Honestly looks great for not watering anymore compared to what I'm seeing just a bit north of you. It seems like all the rain is going north or south of us this year, it's pretty brutal.


Its a weird situation. You probably know with your old nomix lawn. The damn PRG (especially seedheads) will grow really fast. Some areas are slow growing, some areas fast growing. And if you don't mow every 2-3 days it ends up looking really uneven. Plus the PRG that "...mows like baling wire" (JM Vargas) and turns white on the tips a day or two after mowing.

Luckily the seedhead situation seems to be subsiding. So glad you were able to reno and get a nice bluegrass lawn. I'm still waiting and will do so at my next house but not worth it for this one since we plan on moving in the short-term future.

Battery charger on the super recycler shut itself off automatically. Not bad! It is just a "wall wart" type of charger. Light on it was red when charging. Started at 8 watts and the lowest I saw was 3 watts before it shutoff (greenlight) and went to 0 watts. Nice! I used a kill-a-watt meter to monitor what was happening. Didn't take long to fully charge the battery. It must not have been discharged very much. I wouldn't be surprised if you could go an entire season on one charge and have 100+ engine starts.

Backyard closeup showing much improved seedhead situation. I think it is starting to take a turn for the better.


Closeup of prg seedheads that have not grown up tall enough to get mowed off.


Side yard showing some kbg seedheads in the foreground. The Super Recycler is doing a good job. I don't think it looks like it is mowed over 4" tall.


Little man wants to give it a try (Engine was OFF! Don't mow around small children and especially don't let them ride along on a tractor or zero turn if you want them to have all their fingers, toes, arms, and feet or worse!!!)


----------



## Vtx531

Drought has worsened since last week despite the minimal amount of rain yesterday


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed half the lawn and then it got too dark. Have to finish tomorrow. Still dry AF here.


----------



## Vtx531

Finished the mow yesterday morning,

Here is what it looks like today at 6am. Still getting drier. Still waiting for a turn for the better...it will come eventually.



Some areas are still sustaining nice green that have received extra water. The small area on the left is a sprinkler head spot and the area to the right got extra water where the downspout extension lets out?



Anyone ever see the film strips that show a series of jail booking photos of meth prostitutes as they deteriorate from about age 18 to 40+? My lawn journal is going to be like that except with grass...


----------



## Vtx531

Just a photo update. I actually put down some water three days ago. One hour on the main zones and half hour on the side zones. It wasn't enough to show any difference. Supposed to get a small amount of rain tonight and tomorrow so should be enough to prevent dieoff but I don't think it will be turning green anytime soon.

Some little areas by the gutter downspout extensions and sprinkler heads are still growing. Not sure what to do. I don't want to mow and get heat tracks but I don't want those areas to get too tall. Will hold mowing for now...

Doesn't look good but "saving" $50 per week on water.


----------



## g-man

I think you should get a lot of rain tonight.


----------



## uts

@Vtx531 didn't know you had 2 aerators. What is the other one?


----------



## Vtx531

g-man said:


> I think you should get a lot of rain tonight.


We did get a lot of rain last night - over an inch! Do you think that will be enough to allow the lawn to green up?



uts said:


> @Vtx531 didn't know you had 2 aerators. What is the other one?


I just have one right now - old Ryan Greensaire II. Sold the Jacobson GA24 recently. Now if I can get rid of this one, maybe I can put a car in the garage again...


----------



## Vtx531

Well where to begin... I mowed for the first time in a while.

The lawn is bouncing back for the most part.


Some areas look like they have died. I think there are new blades coming up though so perhaps just the old blades doed and will be replaced by new. Still sucks because that will take a while even if the weather cooperates.





Some areas are doing really well and growing like crazy. Other areas - not so much. You can see dead seedheads in the foreground on 2nd pic below, which is representative of different patches all over the yard.




There is some spots of ryegrass in the front lawn and they actually seem to be doing better than bluegrass.



Not sure why this area struggled so much


----------



## Vtx531

Getting lots of rain lately! I decided to mow today even though everything is wet and soggy. The Super Recycler did a really good job mulching, despite the wet conditions. The engine didn't even bog down at all. Hardly any clumping too.


----------



## Vtx531

Almost 2" of rain yesterday. Lots of growth. I mowed. Some areas starting to mat down a little bit. Seedheads mostly mowed ofd and gone. Some dead ones still around. The browned out areas - old blades are turning dark brown/black and matted down. New growth blades are popping up through. I think the turn-around is going well! Should be getting a lot more rain the next few days. I took a break due to rain and I snapped this photo.

Still wet conditions and minimal clumping. Mower is working well. I still have the bagging blade installed. It does seem to use more gas - I have to refill the gas tank before I am done mowing.


----------



## Vtx531

Details... prepare for a lot of pics

One of the really dry areas. You can see the new leaves sprouting up through the old dead ones.



Another burned out area. Dead stuff decomposing and new grass blades coming up.



Along the edge of the road was really dry and brown but it is coming back.



Lots of mushrooms everywhere but that doesnt bother me.



Wife's flower garden.



General photo of the nicer (mostly) bluegrass front lawn



Super dry brown spot by the mailbox coming back. Also the flower bed ring I cut out last spring is filling in. Combo of rye and bluegrass. I think I threw down some seed there last fall.



This area is interesting because the mower wheels ride down in the landscape bed. This make the grass about an inch shorter near the edge. Interesting to compare to the taller mowed area.



An area that always gets shaggy and matted down for some reason when I have mowed high in the past.



This area dried up and thinned out with lots of seedheads. Still there but coming back. Along the curved concrete edge it never fully grows up to the high mowing height for some reason.


This area is very interesting to me. The neighboring lawn is mowed lower at once a week interval and otherwise has no fertilizer or water. It is greener including the part where they mowed over onto my lawn. Seems like a good, inadvertent example of "mow it a notch lower and let it grow back up" method. I think I am preferring to live with the brown stalks for now and keep the height up for longterm health through the summer vs having it a little bit greener now.


I think this may have been a poa spot that died off from the drought.



Just another "dead" area that is coming back. Hoping it is a stronger grass that fills in.



Mine on the left and no maintenance, once a week mow on the right. Theirs looks greener (not showing well in the pic). My lawn is not good in this area. Brown and stalky. I am wondering if the difference is I recently seeded here and the no maintenance area has been having yearly survival of the fittest grass for a long time.


This area was really brown and dry. Coming back now.

Area on the side of the house. I had some poa patches throughout and I think those are the dead looking spots. Yay!


This area is shaded and low lying so it hets lots of water and always seems to get matted down when I mow high.



This area was very browned out from the drought. Interestingly, it seems very low and when it rains hard like it did recently, gets soggy.



...and a three gallon bucket that has been sitting outside on my deck


----------



## Vtx531

Lots of rain every day still. Grass is growing like crazy and I love it. Mowed today...still on the highest setting - 4.25". This mower is so awesome. Chews and gobbles up thick tall grass without any struggle. Really enjoyable.


----------



## Vtx531

Im going to mow tonight. Here is how it looks now, three days after the last mow. Complete 180 compared to last month when it was dry. Looks like I did get some clumping in the left wheel tracks of my mower due to mulch mowing in the extreme wet conditions.


----------



## Vtx531

Wow! Didn't realize how long it was. Crazy growth in the last three days. I had to check and make sure the wheels were still at the highest setting. Then I had to double check because I still couldn't believe it.

I started out mulching but was getting some pretty bad clumping stripes on the left wheel track again. It wasnt wet, just really tall. So I put on the side discharge cute and it went nice and smooth with that. Lots of long clippings sitting on top though from the side discharge so I will have to mow again tomorrow. Side discharge must use a lot less fuel because I was able to finish the whole yard on one tank of gas.

Anyways, it was really enjoyable mowing tonight and looking soooo much better since last month. The kbg front yard was especially nice considering how it looked last month with the drought.


Please excuse the clippings on the driveway. I took this shot mid mow. You can see the area in the back still yet to be mowed. Must have been at least 6" tall. Mowed at 4.25" as I have been for the last month or so.


----------



## Vtx531

Part two of the two day double mow complete. Also, for record purposes (Suppose that is the entire purpose of a lawn journal anyways), I had 9.6 hours on the mower hourmeter, closing out June. Charging the battery now.


----------



## Vtx531

Mulch-Mowed. Lots of growth considering it had only been two days since last mow and hot,dry conditions. Still getting a row of clumping in the left wheel track that I don't like. Might try switch back to the mulch blade instead of bagging blade.

Temps above 90 last two days. Last rain was a week ago.

Looking fairly decent for what it is- a northern mix lawn in July. I am doing a much better job of managing my expectations this year of a lawn going through various stages throughout the season and that it is not always going to look like it does in the fall...no matter how much you aerate, dethatch, water, fertilize, etc. its just not... pretty satisfied with it right now though. Makes it all the more enjoyable when it actually is in top shape for the period of time in early spring and late fall.


----------



## Vtx531

Side discharge mowed today to avoid the clumping on the left wheel track. Grass is still growing pretty fast. Seems nice and healthy despite the dead seedstalks that give a little brownish color when mowed. Otherwise it is filling in and thickening up at 4.25" mowing height.

Starting to get drought/heat stressed near the edges of the road and I am noticing it a little bit on the front side strip where it showed first earlier in the year. We are supposed to get some rain tonite. I still have the sprinklers shutoff.

Nine days since rain and six of them above 90 degrees.

The side discharge mowing with bagging blade seemed to give a really nice cut and descent striping too.


----------



## Vtx531

Side-discharge mowed. Temps dropped down into the 70s for this weekend. Nice


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed. Kbg Front yard is looking much nicer than the mix/mostly rye back yard.

Not sure why the color looks so weird in the straight-on photo.


----------



## Vtx531

I decided to do the trick where you mow the lawn one notch lower and let it grow back up to the normal mowing height in an effort to hide the brown seedhead stalks.

Mowed at 3.75" dow from 4.25"... supposed to rain a lot this week.


----------



## Vtx531

Getting the itch to stay here or go even lower again. Why does this always happen to me? Is anyone else like that?

When the grass is cut shorter, I want it longer. And when the grass is cut longer, I want it shorter.

Wife commented earlier this week that it was hard to walk on - like it kept trying to twist her ankle. She is light and the grass was pretty dense and stiff (with the rye stalks) at the high height. When you stepped on it, it would sort of fall down sideways. //////// Almost like walking on top of deep snow with a melted/frozen crust and breaking through with every step.


----------



## Vtx531

I stuck to the plan and mowed back at the top setting today. 4.25". Lawn was almost overgrown even at the higher setting. Did it work to hide the brown stems? Not really sure. Lots of rain still. I decided to take a break midmow because of rain. Using side discharge still with the bagging blade and it does a good job when wet and no clump stripe on the left side like mulch mowing.


----------



## Vtx531

4.06" of rain last night :shock:


----------



## Vtx531

3.75"


----------



## Vtx531

I sharpened my bagging (hi-lift) blade that I have been using recently at 20 hours on the meter. Mowed at 3.75". Looking nice and dense - too bad the rye stalks are really throwing off the overall color. It would be looking really nice if it wasn't for that. Grass blades are nice and green but the stalks give it a salt and pepper look. Actually looks better in the photos this time than real life.

I was thinking about taking it down another notch this weekend to 3.25" but pretty happy with the hoc right now. We'll see how it looks on Sunday as that would be the earliest I want to go any lower...chopping off 1/2" per week max.

Was thinking about a striper kit but seems to be doing well enough on its own.


----------



## Chris LI

The lawn looks great! I'm glad it bounced back from heat/drought you had awhile back.


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> The lawn looks great! I'm glad it bounced back from heat/drought you had awhile back.


Thanks Chris!

Mowed today at 3.75. It was pretty tall. Seems like it is standing up pretty well at this height so I might keep it here for a while instead of going lower.


----------



## jskierko

Looking good. I'm in Saugatuck for the week and I have hardly seen any signs of stressed lawns up here. Seems like conditions have been optimal (hasn't really been much above 80 in the last 7 days where I am).


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## Vtx531

Thanks - yes conditions have been really great for July. We've been at temps between 86-95 degrees the last week...but 5+ inches of rain in that same time period so no lack of water (including another 1+" this morning). Everywhere is green including schools, cemeteries, roadsides, etc.

I still got the brown stalky crap going on but it's proof that water and fertilizer wont change it. At least it is pretty thick and the actual grass is doing well.


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## Vtx531

Mowed it down to 3.25"


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## Vtx531

Mowed again at 3.25". 2-day double cut. Always like to "double-cut" when changing to a lower height but twice in one day is a little more work than I like to do. It was very wet from dew and was puking chunks or mulched grass out the side in clumps every so often.


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## Vtx531

Mowed. It was pretty overgrown. Went from looking green before mowing to looking brown after mowing due to all the dead seedhead stalks. Sigh.

Neighbors dont seem to have this problem so I must be doing something wrong. Maybe letting it grow tall in the spring during seedhead production was my mistake? We got .25" of water last night.

Yep...remembering why I wanted to buzz it all off low last year and reset.

Before



During



After


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## Vtx531

I like this view despite the brown/salt/pepper/sh1t ryegrass stalk situation.


May do another cut tomorrow (two-day double cut) with mulch blade to get rid of clippings.

I will go down to 2.75" this weekend if I do keep up my one-notch lower per week strategy in order to get below 3". I have not seen ANY recommendations to cut above 3" on any University extension publication. (Except MSU that says the highest you mower will go which is not very specific)

Also, I got a flip-up gutter extension to try out. It doesn't look very nice but is functional for a person who cuts their lawn every other day. I may get a few more to retrofit the other downspouts. Not a fan of corrugated plastic piping to a french drain with freezing temperatures four+ months per year.


----------



## Vtx531

Also, I got something digging a big hole under my deck. Anyone have any tips or suggestions? This is new to me.

Groundhog?



A different view of my tree line and shed:


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## Robs92k

Looks great even with the stalks ( I have the same annoying problem). I considered dropping my height as well to try to get the stalks down…went down to 3". Last night after a week of no mowing, I raised to 3.25". The lawn looks better simply because the grass is now taller than the stalks, but you can still see them…now considering 3.5" until the end of august and then coming down for fall.

*yours still looks better than mine!

Let me know if you find a solution to this…good luck!

PS make sure it's not a badger before you dig…WI joke.


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## Vtx531

Been dealing with it for years - no solution that I can find other than what you said. I saw the animal running across my yard today while I was mowing. Pretty sure it is a groundhog/woodchuck.

I mowed today. 3.25". Side discharge with bagging blade. Still tons of clippings. I might try mulching soon to see if that will get rid of the clippings. Too thick and too much material to go any lower on the hoc at this point.

I also greased the zirks on my mower (26 hours) and charging the battery, as I do monthly.

Before mow



After mow


----------



## Vtx531

I sharpened the mulching blade and mulch mowed. It did a great job of making the clippings disappear like magic.


My patented shopvac trick/method:


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## Vtx531

Double mulch mowed at a lower height - 2.75" - setting D. Same hoc that I started the season. I think it looks much improved. Looking forward to fall.


----------



## Robs92k

Looks better! I see you dropped HOC over a couple mowings…did that help the stalk issue? I'd considered doing the same, but wanted to make sure our 80/90+ days were over. I also have some reoccurring rust…thought a little more air might help stop the spread.

Also looking forward to some nice lines like yours. Again looks great!


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## Vtx531

Yes - dropped it 1/2" per week for three weeks. Didn't help the stalk issue very much! If anything, it might have made it slightly better but nothing drastic. I think if you do 1/2" shorter every week or ideally every other week then you should be good but waiting until hot weather is done would be even better,

Things are starting to dry out again here and I'm still on my sprinkler watering boycott. The lower height is probably not helping but I can see the effects of lack of water on high mowed lawns too.

Mowed today. 2.75". Mulched up more of the excess clippings from reducing the hoc. Still getting some excess clippings.

I keeping going over the same pattern for the lines. Not sure if that is a good thing or not but it does make mowing easier. Thanks for the positive comments


----------



## uts

For a watering boycott that sure is holding its own.

Since you are the toro expert, do you have any recommendation for Toro Timemaster blades, mostly bagging. maybe some mulching. I dont think side discharge requires anything special?


----------



## Vtx531

Just trying to hold on until fall!

I havent had the pleasure of owning a timemaster. That being said and generally speaking, I think you would be best served with having two blades.

1. Original blades, aka mulch blades/ 3-1 blades. Use them for mulching.

2. Hi lift blades - buy these and use them for bagging or side discharge. You will get more suction and I think it makes a difference.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Toro-TimeMaster-30-in-High-Lift-Blade-Kit-20122P/205809739

I like to stick with OEM blades. They aren't very expensive. Good luck, let me know if you get the hi lift and how they work for you.

Evening pic:


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed.

Still getting intermittent surging/hunting on my new Super Recycler Briggs engine. It is driving me nuts. I disassembled and cleaned the carb twice and it was clean both times. Switched fuel shutoff valves in case that was the problem. Took of the gas cap off in case it wasnt venting. Not sure if it is covered under warranty since I bought it second-hand even though it is less than a year old.

Oh, and my powerwasher dripped gas on my front lawn in three spots. The spots are already turning brown.


----------



## Vtx531

I disassembled the carb completely again, cleaned it reeeally well with carb cleaner, compressed air, and ultrasonic cleaner. All the gaskets and seals are good. Linkages good. Removed and cleaned gas tank (found there is a filter/screen built in)After cleaning, it runs better.

Almost seems like now it is running rich under heavy load as opposed to lean under light load. I think I cleaned out the idle passage sufficiently and now causing the rich running under load because I previously enlarged the main jet slightly with torch tip cleaners. Going to order new jet assembly to get back to square one.

Mowed.



Also, I sold a mower this morning that my mother-in-law gifted to me to sell (I've been maintaining and fixing it the last few years for her). She is downsizing houses and doesn't need it anymore. It wasn't in that great of shape but I was able to get it cleaned up and all put together nice. It was good mechanically and mostly just dirty. Husqvarna seems like they make a good quality mower.


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed with my older red super recycler and went in the direction opposite I normally do. Did a double cut. The against the grain mowing seemed to stand up the grass a little better.

Not liking the color.

While I was mowing, some people stopped their car and waved me over to say it looked good and how do I do it. So that was a nice pick-me-up. Maybe my wife paid them lol. People seem to like the diamond pattern.

Supposed to get some rain tonight.


----------



## Vtx531

Started mowing today at the same hoc - 2.75". It was looking really brown due to the dead seed stalks. I raised the mower up to 3.25" and did the rest of the lawn and it stayed much greener.

Section on the right at 2.75" and left at 3.25".


Back mowed at 3.25".


Perimeter passes mowed at 2.75". The rest at 3.25".


I think allowing it to grow out tall during seedhead time in the spring was the major cause of this.


----------



## Chris LI

Great side by side photos of the different HOCs. It will be interesting if there's any increase in density of the lower HOC, when the color comes back, or if it's still too hot to see a difference.


----------



## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Great side by side photos of the different HOCs. It will be interesting if there's any increase in density of the lower HOC, when the color comes back, or if it's still too hot to see a difference.


I think I snapped some photos today that are even better:

Mowing the back at 3.25". Second mow at this height which is .5" higher than my lowest cut after seedhead season. Before there would be an obvious loss of color after cutting - the lawn would look brown due to seedhead stalks. Now there is no loss of color after mowing.



Here is where it gets interesting. The section on the left of this photo was previously mowed at 2.75". I mowed it today at 3.25". The rest of the lawn is on it's second mow at one notch higher and this is on its first mow at one notch higher. It is essentially the same as the rest of the lawn but three days behind. Again, no color loss after mowing but the rest is quite a bit greener being on it's second mow at a notch higher compared to the first.



Feeling much more positive after today and now I know DO NOT allow the grass to grow taller during seedhead time.

Will be interesting to see if the left side is able to catch up to the right side by the next mow or if the right side will continue to be ahead in how it looks and how long will it take to even out.

Dead spots due to the gasoline-leaking power washer:


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed



Beginning to even out between the left side and right side



It's been a week since we had rain and temps ranging from 85-92 degrees so things are getting a little bit dry but I'm saving a small fortune in water bills with the sprinklers off.


----------



## Vtx531

I mowed today. We got a little bit of rain yesterday and today so that helped.


The front is looking worse than the back. I suppose the KBG in front requires more water that it's not getting.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed. Both struggling for water but especially the front kbg vs. rear prg.

Rear


Front


Front


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed last night. Some areas needed it and growing well, some areas brown and not growing at all. Bone dry under the pine trees.

I tried mowing in a different direction than the usual two ways I go. It was perpendicular to my normal line and made for a really bumpy "ride" because of the tire ruts. Anyone else have this problem? I guess I should stick to the angle mows because it is smoother, like driving over a speed bump at an angle.


----------



## Vtx531

It's been a while since I posted. The beginning of September was very dry and I went about two weeks without mowing. We got a heavy rain which brought the lawn back to life the last portion of September.

I've been mowing with my backup older red SR mower because the new one hasn't been running smoothly. New carb part has been backordered for weeks and weeks. I need to see if it is covered under warranty even though I bought it second-hand.

Father-in-law upgraded to a Timemaster and gave me his old Toro Striper. I tried it yesterday and it worked great. (3.25" hoc) A little more manhandling required during turns and tight spaces but not bad. Somehow the way it attaches just works well, even when backing up. It pivots enough to turn but not too much that you can't back up (with slight jackknifing but it works).

I wanted to apply fertilizer on Memorial Day but too dry. Same for grass seed in bare areas. So still no fall fertilizer or seed- Waiting for some rainy days but it's already October. It's been a tough season for the lawn.


----------



## Vtx531

Spot seeded some areas with a hand spreader

Put down an old bag of weed n feed. It had a lot of filler in it like sand and didn't spread very well. Ended up on setting F at the end and three mower stripes between fertilizer paths.

Mowed at 3.25". Toro striper is great. Grass was wet and no clumping too.


----------



## Chris LI

Congrats on the acquisition from your FIL. Those stripes look great! :thumbsup: I have one and love it, too. You can burn stripes in pretty well with it and have fun with different patterns. When I do doubles, I come down the center of the previous double to take the edge mark, before I make the double pass on the new stripe. Now, I just need to get my stripes straighter like @Butter . :lol:

The roller goes on and off easy, so I can do perimeter passes without it before striping, or when not looking to stripe. I've also tied it to the back of my drop spreader to help roll in seed. It's not nearly as heavy as a water filled roller, but helps with seed to soil contact.


----------



## Butter

Those stripes look awesome! Good to see you posting again.
@Chris LI My secret is a string line. I can't mow a straight line to save my a$$. Some people can, I can't.


----------



## Vtx531

Great idea on taking off the roller for the perimeter passes and on the spreader.

Thanks butter. Glad to be back in the stripe game. I really liked the striper when I had my zero turn and it certainly brings the lawn appearance up a notch.


----------



## Vtx531

The grass is growing fast. I mowed today. 3.25 with side discharge and bagging blade because it was wet and I thought I could use some extra lift. Getting those stripes burned in!!

Happy how it looks right now. We've had a lot of rain and temps in the 70's. I always love fall weather. I just need to address the clover and some dandelions.

Pine needles are beginning to fall under the pine trees. The kbg front is really thriving now that it has enough water. It looks worse than the back when it's dry but looks better when conditions are right.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed it down to 2.75" yesterday. That's the height I've been wanting to be at but it was too stalky and brown/yellow before. Doesn't look as green but not as bad as it was earlier in the year. This is probably how I'll ride out the rest of the season.


----------



## Vtx531

It was pretty tall so I mowed @ 2.75"


----------



## Robs92k

Beautiful color and lines def look less "rutty". Looks like it turning the corner!


----------



## mowww

Looking really good @Vtx531 !


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks guys!

Had a tough time mowing last week. I had a planned trip to be gone for six days so I wanted to mow right before I left. Problem was- everything was extremely tall and wet!

I mowed at 2.75" and it was clumping badly and clogging up the side discharge chute. Interestingly, it was not a lack of engine power but just too thick and wet to process out the chute.

So I raised it up to 3.25" and that 100% fixed the clumping and clogging problem. Then double cut back down low at 2.75".

It's now seven days later and the grass was very tall again. So I cut at 3.25" and that worked great. Very enjoyable mow. No double cut lower this time. Maybe in a day or two or maybe stay at 3.25".


----------



## Wile

Kzoo here too. That looks great!


----------



## Vtx531

Wile said:


> Kzoo here too. That looks great!


Maybe we can meet up? I've yet to see one of these reel mowed lawns in person.

Mowed yesterday down to 2.75". Still debating what height looks better. Must not matter that much.

I applied urea today. Setting D on the Lesco spreader and I did three mower stripes between passes (every fourth). This was one more stripe wider than I usually do. The bag was already opened so I'm not sure exactly how much went down but I don't really care to keep track anymore anyway. It just barely didn't finish off the bag so I spread the little bit extra on the front yard.

Now I just have one more bag of "lawn food" store fertilizer to use up and all my extra old stock will be gone. Not sure if I will save it for next fall or just use it up in a couple weeks.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed yesterday. Back up to 3.25" I don't like how the lawn looks splotchy at 2.75". Firm believer now that I should mow at least one setting above the lowest "reset" cut.

I suppose the other option would be a reset cut down to 2.25" and then back out to 2.75" but not worth it.

Pine needles have been crazy the last few weeks. They are totally covering the grass at times. I have been side discharging them which seems to help slightly. Leaf pickup isn't until November.





There are a lot of weird patches in the back with lots of brown stem/roots and very little grass blades on top. Almost like bentgrass. If I mow even a little bit shorter then it just shows as brown splotchiness in the yard. Can see that in the pic from one post up Oct 23. I think this could be avoided if I didn't change hoc so drastically in the beginning of the season.

Look at the pic below and can see that a half inch shorter would majorly eliminate the green part of the blades and one inch shorter would be all brown left.


----------



## bf7

This color is superb, and the stripes are eye-popping. Makes me want to raise my height!


----------



## Butter

Looking good! Are weird spots Poa triv?


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks guys. No idea on the poa triv. Could be, I'll look into it. My approach is to make whatever grass is already there look as good as it can so I'll look i to poa triv maintenance lol.

I hadn't edged the driveway in a long time (weeks). Wow, didn't realize how overgrown it had gotten but it is straightened out now. (Did it yesterday) Another weird spot that I can't get to grow right is the corner where it is rounded by the walkway. Just doesn't seem to grow very well there.

Lots of rain last night.

Looking shaggy for some reason.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed 3.25"

Tree is starting to get some nice color. A little later than usual...


----------



## Vtx531

I blew out the sprinklers yesterday. A little bit of very light snow right now even though it is 36 degrees (+2c).


----------



## Vtx531

Going well for November. We had a little bit of light snow (none sticking) and also a couple of days near 70 degrees. Both seem pretty typical looking back earlier in my lawn journal.

As for the theory of mowing low to reset and then one notch higher...I am considering that totally CONFIRMED. I mowed at 3.25" and I didn't lose any color. Many lawns in the area are being mowed shorter than usual to get ready for winter and now they look brown and stemmy compared to before.

Goal is to still have a green lawn at Thanksgiving and beyond.

I am not doing any raking or bagging of the pine needles this year. Just continual mowing. I don't see a difference for the grass. Just bare dirt if I rake or pine needles if I don't. If anything, the pine needles should hold some moisture and prevent erosion/dusty conditions next year. Less work too! We'll see.


----------



## Vtx531

Where did the lawn go?!

That nice bright orange/red tree made a drastic change too.


----------



## uts

That changed fast. 4"?


----------



## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 where in the mitten do you live?


----------



## Vtx531

Ya probably 4". SW MI - Kalamazoo

Getting more snow today but the temperature is above freezing so not much buildup. Should be near 60 degrees on Wednesday so I expect to get a nice mow in sometime later this week. Look for a pic of green grass stripes in a couple days! ha


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## Butter

That snow is a bummer but it's good that it won't last long.


----------



## Vtx531

I missed the 60 degree day yesterday due to work. I mowed today in light flurries, temperature in the 30's and 20mph winds. Not really enjoyable but I had my winter coat and hat on.

Not much grass being cut but it did a great job on leaves and other debris that I blew out of the beds. I used the mulch blade and took off the side chute.

Not a great photo because I didn't want to go back outside


----------



## Vtx531

Happy Thanksgiving


----------



## Vtx531

Holding strong for December. I'm tempted to give it a mow.


----------



## Vtx531

First time I've seen the lawn in many many weeks - the stripes are holding.

Only a few weeks away from first mow! Last year was Mar 25. Getting close.

Need to decide what height to start the year at. Ended last year at 2.75". ***Error Edit: Actually ended at 3.25"***Considering dropping down to 2.25" but not sure. Maybe start the first mow at 2.25" to do a reset and then maintain 2.75" with more resets possible after seedhead stalks get going.


----------



## Butter

That's really good color under the snow!


----------



## Vtx531

Butter said:


> That's really good color under the snow!


Thanks it actually looks quite a bit worse now than it did when I took that photo! Maybe the snow insulated it? More browning on the tips and loss of color overall currently.

Lots of brown spots in the back but that's normal for me and it should recover quickly when it warms up for the season.

I took this photo from my upstairs window (glare and reflection from the window blinds)


----------



## Wile

I noticed the same. Very green immediately after snow melts and then turns brown. If I didn't have some snow piles towards the street that just melted and were bright green I wouldn't even have noticed the difference. I would love to know what it is that causes that.


----------



## Vtx531

Wile said:


> I noticed the same. Very green immediately after snow melts and then turns brown. If I didn't have some snow piles towards the street that just melted and were bright green I wouldn't even have noticed the difference. I would love to know what it is that causes that.


I think it gets dried out when exposed directly to the air?

I purchased my spring crabgrass fertilizer today. Two bags at about $17 each after sale and 11% menards rebate - Dithiopyr.

I normally do the typical hardware store fertilizer for the preM application and use urea and farm type fertilizer the rest of the year. Seems like the farm fertilizer prices have risen quite a bit but not the hardware store lawn fertilizer.

So...I might go with a basic 4-step program this season. It currently doesn't cost much more and has the added benefits of some slow release nitrogen and iron. I did a test strip of _extra_ nitrogen (urea) last year and noticed zero difference so more isn't always better.

I am excited to get the season going in a couple weeks and apply everything I have learned from last year.


----------



## Vtx531

I created a little calendar based on GDD Tracker from last year. It gives me a good overview of what to expect and when.


I am amazed at the correlation between the tracker dates and some of my journal entries from last year.

Ex: First mention of seedheads 4/28 "Starting to notice a little bit of yellowing and little bit of stalk-iness. Probably the beginning of the seed head time of season approaching."
First mention of seedheads improving 5/26 "Mowed today. Hooray - most of the seedheads got mowed off."

Amazing!!!

I always pictured May as being primetime for nice grass but it is actually the month of April and maybe June if there is not a drought. May is when all the bad stuff happens.

I raised the HOC last year from 2.75" on May 7th to 4.25" on May 16th and beyond. I think that was a big mistake to allow the grass to grow taller during seedhead time and I will try to avoid doing that this year. Looks like I did a similar mistake in 2020 too!

I am also trying to figure out why the optimum Preemergent application time is so much earlier than the germination time. Sounds like preemergent is only good for about two months...why not apply it later around May 1?


----------



## Vtx531

Blowing snow and 15 degrees F today. Looks like a sustained warm-up beginning tomorrow just in time for daylight saving time! Getting there... wont be too much longer...


----------



## Vtx531

Today GDD 249. Looks to go up to 250 into the optimum crabgrass preventer window tomorrow. Only one day before last years date. We have had some very high temps up above 70 at one point and also below freezing quite a bit too.

I have been holding off on mowing the lawn but it is greening up a bit from the last couple weeks. Getting the itch to mow soon and see if it makes it look greener by mowing off all the brown tips.

Near-term forecast is not looking good for warm temps. Maybe I can do the first mow Wednesday Mar 30 or Thursday Mar 31 if it doesn't rain like it says it will.


----------



## Vtx531

In addition to being cold, we received multiple inches of snow yesterday. Today, everything is still snow covered. Still showing rain on Wednesday but high temp forecast to be 68 degrees.

Hoping to get this thing started soon but probably best not to mow as early as I have in the past anyway.


----------



## bf7

I got the snow too yesterday :x but that first mow is coming! Just need to patiently push through this last week or two. Your lawn looks great (before it got smothered).



Vtx531 said:


> I am also trying to figure out why the optimum Preemergent application time is so much earlier than the germination time. Sounds like preemergent is only good for about two months...why not apply it later around May 1?


Maybe because it takes time for the pre-em to work down into the root zone? I agree though - seems like we put the stuff down wayyy before crab prime time.


----------



## Vtx531

bf7 said:


> I got the snow too yesterday :x but that first mow is coming! Just need to patiently push through this last week or two. Your lawn looks great (before it got smothered).


Thank bf7. Patience - something I am working on... The snow is starting to melt, yay. Sun is out even though current temp is only 27F.

I am going back and forth in my mind trying to decide what to do for HOC this spring.

Option 1: Go "low" (1.75")
Two years ago, I tried a low (1.5") HOC and ended up going higher during seedhead season (bad) because I blamed the poor cutting quality on the low hoc. So looking back at my journal, it makes me not want to do that again. BUT...I was using a 42" riding mower at the time and the rpms were misadjusted way too low. So maybe with a walk behind mower, proper rpms, and lowered expectations at seedhead season, things would be different? The walk mower does cut sooo much better.

Option 2: mid HOC 2.75" What I started with last year. It was going well until I messed up by raising HOC during seedhead season again. Dumb! but I learned

Option 3: Low-Mid HOC 2.25" Something in between

What leads me to go below 2" is that I have never tried that with a 21" walk behind that I know cuts A LOT better than my old 42" rider. Reading book "Turfgrass Science and Culture"...the grass bible (1973) says preferred mowing height is 1-2" for KBG and rye,

What leads me to go above 2" is newer recommendations from Universities to go as tall as you can for turf health and another textbook that says the grass will out compete weeds and poa annua better above 2".

Good thing I have a few days to figure this out. I will say that it is easier to go higher if you change your mind than lower. Just not during seedhead time! (late Apr- late May here)

Also, I don't really like having the lawn look drastically lower than the neighbors. I will do a lowered reset cut once notch below my intended hoc either way.

Toro mower manual says "Do not cut below the 2-inch (51 mm) setting unless the grass is sparse or it is late fall when grass growth begins to slow down."


----------



## Vtx531

Finally hit the GDD tracker window for crabgrass preemergent yesterday. GDD 275 today compared to 368 last year.

Hers is a general photo of the backyard.


Front yard always seems a little bit behind for greenup.


Front Side yard, it looks the most brown out of all the areas with the typical line I get where it turns green going to the back where the rye grass starts.


An area of new growth along the edge of the driveway showing some fresh new growth.


The other side yard. It always seems to blend better together here between front and back. This area is on the north side and gets a lot of shade.


Edge along the side of the house that always green up first in spring and dies out first in the summer heat.


Back of the pinetree line to document how the grass does under there. The needles are covering quite a bit since I didn't rake or bag mow last fall.


So this is basically where I am starting this year.


----------



## Vtx531

I filled up the red mower with gas, installed the highlift blade and discharge chute. I tried a couple trim passes at 2.25". The ground was way too wet, soggy, and muddy so I was unable to continue. We had a lot of rain yesterday and some today. Grass was clumping too which surprised me. Looks greener after mowing though.


----------



## Vtx531

Snow last night. My two mower paths from yesterday noticeable on the right side.


I don't see any good mowing conditions in the forecast. Maybe it will dry out a little on Sunday


----------



## Vtx531

Got the actual first mow of the season yesterday! GDD at 313.

I tried upping the mower rpm again to 3500rpm but it just seemed too loud and too much, even with earplugs. So I went back to factory 3000 rpm. I used the bagging blade (that needs to be sharpened) and side discharge.

I began mowing at 2.25" The perimeter path on each side was still quite wet and the wheels were sinking in a little bit so I think it actually cut lower than 2.25". This scared me into raising the deck higher to 2.75"

Unintentional experiment: I did some of the yard at that height and noticed the two strips I did last time were noticeably greener, again confirming that mowing a reset cut one notch lower than the desired cut is a good practice.

So I did the whole thing lower again at 2.25" and will plan on maintaining at 2.75".

Unmowed on left. 2.25" on right.


The accidental experiment - notice the greener two strips on the left. Those had the reset cut on March 31.


Everything mowed at the reset cut of 2.25"


----------



## Vtx531

2nd mow today. It's been pretty cold, wet, windy.

I mowed with the bagging blade and side discharge. This was one notch higher than last time at my planned maintenance hoc 2.75" D.

This is my first spring with the striper. Not bad for only mow #2. Some spots that get more shade are still a little thin and brown. Lots of clover back near the firepit and various weeds popping up. Couple of bad vole tracks back there too.


----------



## Butter

Stripes are looking good!


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks Butter. Not sure why people want to avoid grain on a home lawn. That's what I'm trying to do. lol.

Mowed today. 2.75" with side discharge

Seems like the grass is still half asleep. It's been a cold spring so far as we all know. I need to get down to crabgrass fertilizer very soon but too tired today after mowing and working on my car.

Here is a shot midday when I mowed. Doesn't look that great.


And he same area in the early evening. Looks so much better with a low sun angle.





Was thinking if I should avoid crabgrass preventer under the pine trees and seed under there instead...hmm...


----------



## Vtx531

I did the crabgrass preventer today. Setting C on the Lesco but seemed a little bit light. Two mower track between passes (every third). I loaded part of an old bag and an entire new bag in the hopper and only used half of it. Yikes. I'll apply the rest in a week or two to give me a little bit of a split app.

Supposed to get .25" rain tonight. Nice.

I did avoid preemergent under the pine trees and put down 2.25lb of quality northern mix seed. I used my hand spreader on setting 4. I put it in some other thin areas too even though they were fertilized with the preemergent because hey, why not. Maybe some of it will grow.

I edged the driveway and road but was unable to get my leaf blower running good. It would start and die out. Suspect worn out carb diaphram...we'll see.


----------



## Vtx531

I cleaned the leafblower carb (diaphragms were fine)and now it doesn't want to start at all! Even with starting fluid. I think it is a spark issue, maybe the plug got fouled up. Either way, the thing is an old piece of junk and I wanted a newer one with a trigger throttle.

Found a used Echo on FB for $60, negotiated down to $50 and picked it up. When I got there, the guy also had a Husqvarna trimmer he wanted to sell for $50 so I bought that too.

I ran them both yesterday and they seem good. I should probably just stick to buying new because it would have only been a couple hundred dollars more but I'm trying a new strategy of newer, lightly used purchases from homeowners and avoiding overly used/worn out equipment that has been used commercially. We'll see how that turns out. Both these machines are homeowner grade but since that's what I am using it for... hoping it will be a nice step up from troybilt and craftsman (MTD) stuff.


----------



## Vtx531

Got a gdd tracker alert for the first day of early seedhead flush.

I also noticed yet ANOTHER mole tunnel on the side of my house. I went out to the shed, got a trap and set it. I don't think I have ever had any success with this before but that all changed today! Got one within a couple hours.


----------



## Vtx531

I did a full mow (2.75", bagging blade, side discharge) weedwhip, edge, blow today. It was sunny but quite cold. Looking good but I never got to the level of thickness yet that I did last year in mid-april, where I could see my footprints in the lawn. Maybe because I didn't put as much fertilizer or maybe the cold weather.

There were noticeable clippings on top, maybe just a tad too long between mows and since I'm not mulching.

I am really enjoying the new string trimmer and blower. Also, enjoying the grass being green while it lasts (I may try the watering boycott again this year).


----------



## Jeff_MI84

It's looking good considering the cold weather we've had so far.


----------



## Wile

Sweet, 10lb, baby jesus that looks good.


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks for the support fellas!

I put down the remainder of my crabgrass fertilizer today. Same spreader setting as before and did three mower rows in between, which worked better. I didn't do under the pinetrees again and had a little bit leftover so it might be perfect settings for half bag for the entire lawn.

I also mowed, edged, trimmed at my parents house. They have been away for a couple months. First mow of the year for the lawn. My dad always buzzes it down really short and it doesn't get any fertilizer. I raised his mower deck all the way up to transport setting and mowed. It came out good considering the lack of proper care for the past 30 years. I measured the blade height after I was done mowing (30 year-old craftsman 42" rider) and it was 3.5". I thought it would be higher. Then I measured at the setting my dad normally uses - 1.75". Poor grass. It doesn't stand a chance at that height with no fertilizer or weedkiller or anything.

I'm looking forward to the next mow of that lawn and seeing how much it can improve the next few weeks with just a higher HOC. Maybe when he returns from vacation, the results will change his mind about mowing higher. He insists it needs to be mowed short because of the weeds to make it look better. :shock:


----------



## Vtx531

May 01 - I mowed. Bagging blade/2.75"/side discharge.

It was a great mow. The grass was tall but not too bad. We've had a lot of rain and cool temps. Seems like it is still thickening up a bit. Not much action under the pine trees. Still thin and sparse and no germination to be seen.

Not seeing any seedheads yet expect some sporatic poa making seeds. Lots of clover that I need to spray with crossbow and a few dandelions. I even saw what I think is a couple of mature crab grass back behind the treeline - weird.







I didn't feel like raising the left side mower wheels up (down?) for the natural bed edge in front and it looked like the edge was getting shaggy. So I let hthe mower ride at normal height with one wheel down in the bed. Scalped one spot pretty good down to the dirt. :wacko:



I'd like to go back to the plastic edging. Makes it easier to mow and I like the look better. I only removed the plastic edging to try it in the front and the other beds I left with the plastic edging. Here is the side.


----------



## The Lawnfather

That Toro makes a nice cut


----------



## Butter

Stripes are looking strong!


----------



## bf7

Vtx531 said:


> I didn't feel like raising the left side mower wheels up (down?) for the natural bed edge in front and it looked like the edge was getting shaggy. So I let hthe mower ride at normal height with one wheel down in the bed. Scalped one spot pretty good down to the dirt. :wacko:


Not kidding, I just did the same thing :thumbup: Seems like a clever idea until the edge decides not to cooperate. Besides the obvious, the rest of it looked great!

Agree with the others. I always come here for the vivid stripe action. It never disappoints.


----------



## Vtx531

bf7 said:


> Not kidding, I just did the same thing :thumbup: Seems like a clever idea until the edge decides not to cooperate. Besides the obvious, the rest of it looked great!
> 
> Agree with the others. I always come here for the vivid stripe action. It never disappoints.


Thanks so much for all the comments!

I raked and re-leveled the front bed to fill some dirt in where it scalped. Hoping that fixes it, maybe it was just a little too deep of an edge in that one spot.

I mowed in a different direction today than my normal two paths. Surprisingly the stripes still showed up well. Ground is still pretty wet. It was a bumpy ride with the mower going across the ruts. Might have to keep going with this direction and a 90 degree and hope the old ruts level out over time.

Front yard thats mostly kbg looks much better than the back nomix (as per usual). Maybe I'll try to get.a pic of the front-back line where you can see the difference. Still no seedheads except sporadic poa.

2.75", bagger blade, side discharge. Didn't cut much off. Cruise control until fall nitrogen. Keeping it simple. Will probably spot spray weeds.

Lighting looks weird in this pic for some reason


----------



## Vtx531

Spot sprayed Crossbow with my battery backpack sprayer. 5oz/3 gal. I had to do two tanks and have about half left of the second tank. Also replaced oring on the handle. Really hoping this knocks out my clover issues.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed! 2.75" bagging side discharge.

I changed the oil in the red Toro too. 20oz 5w30 Supertech Advanced Synthetic. Still amazed how EZ it is to change the oil in a push mower.

1. Open dip stick
2. Tip over mower to drain
3. Refill with oil

Don't even need any tools.

Also, still amazed at how much better cut you get with a 21" push mower compared to a 42" rider. The non-scalping and evenness of having all four wheels so close together and close to the cutting deck is great.


----------



## Vtx531

Had a glorious mow tonight despite the heat and ruts.

Grass was tall and thick even though I mowed only about three day ago. Probably 5" tall for a lot of the blades.

2.75", bag blade, side discharge...somehow managing to keep it consistent unlike the other years.

Starting to see some moderate seedheads. Hoping it works out better this year with continuously mowing them off vs. letting it grow out at this time the last two seasons.

Front yard kbg is really thriving and looking good but I only got a pic of the back nomix before it got dark.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed at 2.75", bag blade, side discharge. Too thick and tall for mulching. I use the mulch plug around the beds and it was clumping but my priority there is to keep the grass out of the beds.

Lots of seedheads and they mowed off nicely and I was able to still get a nice cut. Grass was pretty tall, I would say overgrown, with 5 days between mows. Normally, I try to I do 3-4 days. Going a lot better this year with the lawn appearance decline due ti seedheads. Maybe a combination of not having a drought and not letting the grass grow taller this time of year.

I used the string line method (I think I first saw it mentioned by Butter?) to get my lines straighter with the new pattern..



Worked great! especially in this spot. Made the mow more enjoyable.


Patch of kbg seedheads about to get mowed off. Sort of interesting how there was a big patch of it right there.


Front lawn after I was done


----------



## Vtx531

Yesterday I went over to mow at my parents house after two weeks. Recall that I was trying to mow it at 3.5" and get it trained there since my dad normally mows too short.

I was really excited to mow it for the second time and have it looking nice taller. When I got there, I saw that it looked like a well-intentioned neighbor buzzed and scalped the crap out of the front yard. 

I had to do a double cut because it was so tall and thick, but the back look pretty darn good after I was done. Front was looking sad with brown strips and major thinning wherever it was scalped such as when the neighbors mower was turned or whatever. Also, many places buried in clippings and clumps.

Will take a while to recover if it ever does before summer. That was primetime for it to grow and thicken but it was forced into emergency salvation mode.

Really a bummer because I wanted my dad to be impressed with how good it was looking when he gets back from vacation in two weeks. :?

Here is the line where front transitions to back when I arrived.


Uuuggggggh


Backyard after I was done


Backyard after


Backyard after


Same spot in the first picture after I was done mowing


Front yard after mowing...would have looked nice. Oh well...


----------



## Butter

Looking good! Ain't nothin like string line straight!


----------



## Vtx531

Butter said:


> Looking good! Ain't nothin like string line straight!


I used the string line on all the property edges and for going the opposite direction pattern. Works so good! and fun too.

I _almost_ raised the mower height like I am always tempted to do at this point in the season but I decided not too and glad I did. My nomix doesn't stand up good when it is higher. 2.75", bag blade, side discharge...



Front yard


Backyard


I thought the edges looked especially tight with the sun angle.


----------



## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 those edges are sharp.


----------



## Vtx531

Jeff_MI84 said:


> @Vtx531 those edges are sharp.


 :nod: thanks

Two hour drive to mow my parents lawn... it is coming along pretty nicely (in the back at least, front is thinner and more weeds due to the neighbor mowing it too low approx. 10 days ago).

This is only the third mow for this lawn. It started raining a lot shortly after I started mowing. I was able to raise up the discharge chute with a rope and that spread the clippings pretty well to avoid windrowing. It puked out some big chunks every once in a while but I was able to easily hit them with the leaf blower to spread them out. Just did a single cut, no double cut needed today.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed the parent's lawn


I enjoyed using my dad's old riding mower so I found a good deal on a used one for me. 2006 model year, 1200 hours (yikes!) but it seems like it is in good condition besides the seat being ripped. Has 724cc two cylinder, 25hp, 42" cut, pedal hydrostatic, scalp wheels on all corners, tight steering, runs smooth, tires hold air, needs a new battery. Came with original manuals, price tag. I paid $200.

I sharped the blades and mowed on the highest setting which I measured to be just over 3". I think it needs to be adjusted higher because the highest setting is supposed to be 4 inches.

I hadn't mowed in a week! Long time for me



Doesnt cut as even as the 21" and there is a lot of trim work that I will need to so with the push mower...hmmm...



Now I remember why I liked it when I switched to the push mower.



May keep it, sell it, or give it to my dad. Not sure.


----------



## CaffeinatedLawnCare

Nice of you to mow your parents lawn (just did my moms today as well). Looking good!


----------



## Vtx531

Thanks, Caff. I enjoy mowing their lawn too

My riding mower broke down half way through the mow. The cable for the blade engagement pulled out of the crimped end.

So, I remowed the entire lawn with the walk behind at setting E 3.25". That was actually lower than what the rider was actually doing.

I am reminded why a simple 21" mower is so nice with hardly any issues or things to break and it really does cut nicer as well as get closer into tight spots.

Weird lighting and the shadow from the house happens to be right at the line where I mowed with the rider.


----------



## Sfurunner13

That's my biggest gripe with ride on mowers. No matter what you always seem to need to pull out the push mower to get all the hard to reach places


----------



## Vtx531

Sfurunner13 said:


> That's my biggest gripe with ride on mowers. No matter what you always seem to need to pull out the push mower to get all the hard to reach places


100% agree

I mowed today. Things are getting a little bit dry. Especially dusty under the pine trees.

I decided to mulch since things are dried out. I figured it would work good mulching especially for the seedheads/stalks. I sharpened the mulching blade and changed out the bagging blade. Mowed on setting E 3.25". Worked great!

Used string lines again to help get the stripes straight.


----------



## Vtx531

Mowed last night and finished right before it got dark. Setting E 3.25" mulching blade and mulch mode. I did a different direction than normal.

The people behind me mowed short the back section behind the pine trees a week ago and it looks worse than everywhere else now.

Things are pretty dry but we did get some rain yesterday and about 3/4" last night!

Gddtracker says seedheads should be done on June 09 so I am planning to mow a little lower soon for a reset cut and then let it go taller


----------



## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 that was some storm. We got about 1.75".


----------



## Vtx531

Jeff_MI84 said:


> @Vtx531 that was some storm. We got about 1.75".


Ooh, I'm jealous. Need more water haha

I made a blade sharpener jig for my flap disc today and sharpened my bagging blade. Came out out good beyond my expectations. I started a thread with more details in the equipment section.


----------



## Wile

I cut myself when I pinched zoom on the edge. Nice stuff.


----------



## Vtx531

Wile said:


> I cut myself when I pinched zoom on the edge. Nice stuff.


LOL - thanks! Gotta be careful there

So today is the first day that seeheads are "done" according to GDD Tracker. I stuck with my plan of mowing lower on this day for a reset cut. Went from 3.25" down to 2.25". I thought it was going to look worse but it actually looks pretty good.

I tried mulching at first but it was clumping. Even in side discharge mode it was still leaving a lot of clippings almost in windrows. I just kept the mulching blade on for the side discharge and the sharp blade made for a nice cut. I used my handheld leaf blower after I finished mowing to disperse the clippings and it did a good job.

My only concern is even if the seedheads are done, that the stalks might continue to grow. So I guess this will be my chance to find out. Looking forward to a nice mow after it grows out a little bit!

First pass - not too bad. Not all that brown. You cant see it in the photo but the stringline is there.


Mowing from tall to short - oddly satisfying.


I bought this extension cord reel at Walmart for $12 and it works better than I could have imagined for my string line.


----------



## Butter

Looks good! You're going all in on the string line.
Great idea with the extension cord reel, I'm gonna have to get one. The blade sharpening jig is cool too.


----------



## Vtx531

Butter said:


> Looks good! You're going all in on the string line.
> Great idea with the extension cord reel, I'm gonna have to get one. The blade sharpening jig is cool too.


Thanks for the comment on the blade jig. It works amazing and the cord reel is wonderful.

I mowed today for the first time since the buzz down nine days ago. Mowed as tall as my mower would go - 4.25". It didn't hardly take anything off. Oddly, when I was done mowing, I noticed one of the front wheels was down two notches and one was down one notch. Maybe they got bumped somehow when I was trim mowing around the house or under the deck or something.

Anyways, it does look fairly green considering the conditions around here have been a little hot and dry. One BIG thing I noticed - there are lots of fresh rye grass seehead stalks in areas that get a lot of shade. So even though seedheads are done in the sunny spots, the soil in the shade must be a little cooler and seeheads still growing strong in those spots. :? Might have to do another low mow to reset everything. Maybe in July as long as there is no drought? Not sure.

So to recap, sort of 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode, with the striper.


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## Vtx531

Spot sprayed crossbow - A few flowering clover patches here and there.


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## Vtx531

Mowed last night, it's been a week. 4.25" and mulch blade, mulch mode. It hardly took anything off.

Last rain was 10 days ago. Lawn is pretty dry.

Mower ruts are worse than ever, even though I stopped going on that pattern. Must be because the ground is so hard.

Still a lot of seedheads, especially under the trees and other areas that get shade.

Some kids keep riding their bikes through my front and back yard and leaving bike tire tracks all over that turn brown due to the lawn being crispy.


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## Vtx531

Ditto my last post. 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode, been a full week, not taking much off mostly just seedheads, things are dry.

Only difference is I put the striper back on. I did the same pattern as last week, not worried about creating ruts in the dirt that is dry and hard as a rock. The roller makes it look better even though it is dry.

Last rain was 6/17 so just over two weeks ago.





Took a photo from the edge of the property - yikes, that doesn't look good



Move forward a couple feet and take another photo - ah, that's better. 😂


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## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 ouch. That's pretty dry.


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## Butter

Is that mostly PRG that's checking out?


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## Vtx531

Ya, I think mostly PRG in the backyard. Front KBG wasn't looking any better though.

We had some rain (~1") on July 5,6....amazing the difference some water makes and how quickly the lawn bounces back.

As for the brown spots, not sure why they did so much worse. Oh well, survival of the fittest. Let the weak grass die.


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## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 after those two days of rain, it was amazing what it did for the lawns with zero input.


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## Vtx531

Jeff_MI84 said:


> @Vtx531 after those two days of rain, it was amazing what it did for the lawns with zero input.


Looks like my backyard PRG fared better than my front yard KBG...

I mowed today @ 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode. Didn't take a whole lot off but did mow off lots of seedheads that were sticking up a lot higher than the rest of the grass. Looks greener today than last week.

Front yard KBG







Where it transitions from front to back



Backyard PRG


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## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 PRG does better than KBG with drought?


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## g-man

There is something odd with the front lawn. There is a strip of green grass near the driveway border. If it was drought, i would expect it to not be green. Have you check for billbugs?


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## bf7

I have that line of green along the driveway too, right next to the dormant grass. I can't figure out why it's green.


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## Chris LI

bf7 said:


> I have that line of green along the driveway too, right next to the dormant grass. I can't figure out why it's green.


I've observed the same thing in different locations and can relate. The long hellstrip on the other side of the RV in my yard started to exhibit the same signs of beginning dormancy, with the greenest portion towards the sidewalk (see recent photos in my journal, 
if interested). This is a regular trend in the summer. I believe that it is due to sufficient water access along the immediate edge from the irrigation. Also, I supplement irrigation with heavy hand watering along edges and work my way in 18-24". In @Vtx531 's case, the yard is pitched towards the street, where what little water may be available, runs off to the street edge to soak in. If the soil is exceptionally dry, and won't accept water, it will runoff worse towards the street. The driveway edge may be collecting just enough to stay green, too. Just my 2 cents.


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## Wile

Chris LI said:


> bf7 said:
> 
> 
> 
> I have that line of green along the driveway too, right next to the dormant grass. I can't figure out why it's green.
> 
> 
> 
> The driveway edge may be collecting just enough to stay green, too. Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same. Plus it's probably adapted there since it's used to being hotter and dryer. The other part almost looks like ascochyta leaf blight.


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## Vtx531

Not sure about the front! It does seem to have new grass blades popping up in those spots. That is weird how its green on the edge - the edge is actually a high spot too.

Mowed today 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode. Still seedheads around - crazy. We've been getting decent rain lately so it is bouncing back pretty well.

I tried to mow fast today. It took 1:20 with no esgihg or blowing. The ruts from spring wet mowing are driving me nuts.

I sold the riding mower that I picked up back in May. It only went as high as 3.25".

Low light photo taken at 9:20pm - just starting to get a little bit dark outside.


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## Chris LI

Glad to see some recovery. Maybe the edge is holding some fertilizer along with water?


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Glad to see some recovery. Maybe the edge is holding some fertilizer along with water?


Maybe neighborhood kids walking along the edge?

Mowed today - 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode.

The grass was tall! I It was an enjoyable mow - had some nice green clippings. Almost reminded me of spring. We've had a good July with about 3/4" of rain every week.


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## Butter

Looks great! That steady rain is nice. I don't know that but I can imagine it would be nice. We just got our first rain in over a month.


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## Vtx531

Things are beginning to dry out again. No rain in a week so I guess that's all it takes in the summer to get dry. It's at the point where there are some large dry areas and other areas doing just fine.

I mowed last night 4.25", mulch blade, mulch mode.


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## Vtx531

Today was good. We got some thunderstorms and rain.

And I bought a Timemaster (20200) from FB. I believe it is a 2016 model - last year with the smaller engine. It seems a little worn out based on the tire tread and a little smoke at startup but has all the accessories and _almost_ everything seems to work. Only issue right now is the electric start wasn't working but the seller said it worked in the morning. I have it charging now, hoping the battery is still good. He said it had new filters, oil, spark plug. Blades were ok, not in horrible shape. Didn't get a chance to check the belts or pulleys. Wheel bearings seem good despite the tire tread being almost gone.

I've been on the hunt for an affordable one of these mowers for about two years and I found this one 40 mins from my house for $350. I was lucky enough to be the first one to message the seller within an hour of it being listed. Excited to try it out but it's going to have to really impress me to take the place of my Super Recycler.

New used mower


Accessories


Front yard a couple hours after the rain


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## Butter

Good buy on the Timemaster. I look forward to seeing some 30" stripes!
How's the stressed area by the street? Did it recover?


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## Vtx531

Butter said:


> Good buy on the Timemaster. I look forward to seeing some 30" stripes!
> How's the stressed area by the street? Did it recover?


Man, that's my problem is I don't have a 30" striper. I saw you have what looks like the checkmate. I was looking to build one but for the price of materials lately, the Checkmate isn't much more. Maybe I'll get lucky and my current 21/22"roller would fill the space between the timemaster wheels.

Oddly, I think the stressed area by the road is doing better than the rest of the lawn. :lol:

July 10, corner of the lot near the road


Aug 4, same area but photo taken from the front porch


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## Chris LI

Congratulations on the purchase! Toro makes a 30" striping kit for the Timemaster. However, I've see photos/videos demonstrating that it stripes nicely on its own. I have the 21" Toro striping kit. Easy on, easy off, and I've even hooked it up to my spreader, to roll in seed.


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Congratulations on the purchase! Toro makes a 30" striping kit for the Timemaster. However, I've see photos/videos demonstrating that it stripes nicely on its own. I have the 21" Toro striping kit. Easy on, easy off, and I've even hooked it up to my spreader, to roll in seed.


I lucked out - the 21/22" Toro Striper works great!



The mower came with Toro 30" striper mounting brackets but they were badly bent and smashed.



I was able to get them amazingly straight after a few minutes with a hammer, big adjustable wrench, and 12-ton shop press.



I bought some 3/4" sqaure tubing from the hardware store for $8 and a J hook for $2. My original intent was to fab a bracket that would attach like the factory unit like this:



but I decided it would be easier to just weld the tube to the brackets and then weld on the J hook. I think this turned out pretty good and the roller is _much_ easier to take on and off with the J hook being mounted solid.



I like the wider stripes.





Overall, the mower seems nice. It is just as easy, maybe easier, to do 180 turns compared to the 21" Super Recycler. Seems like it travels a lot faster and handles the bumps and ruts better. Even the edge/trim mowing seems better being that the deck overhangs the wheels a little bit and the engine being offset to the side helps.

An issue I am having is the gas cap leaking like crazy. I put on a new Oring but same issue. Almost seems like it is splashing and coming out the vent. Maybe that's the purpose of the infamous blue sponge? My blue sponge was sunk down to the bottom and not filling out the tank very much. I pulled the sponge up into the neck and it seems to fix the problem but fell down again.

Also, the traction belt squeals when starting out. Maybe need a new belt?


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## jskierko

I agree with you on all the positives of that mower. Faster speed and blades extending beyond the wheels really had me happy with that purchase. Only major downfall for me was that the gas tank was grossly undersized relative to what that mower should supply. Stripes look good! Glad you got your striper situation figured out. I have the 30" striper, but obviously don't use it since I really only use the Timemaster for cleanup mows and the area on the outskirts of my property. So you are welcome to have it for free if you want it.


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## Vtx531

jskierko said:


> I agree with you on all the positives of that mower. Faster speed and blades extending beyond the wheels really had me happy with that purchase. Only major downfall for me was that the gas tank was grossly undersized relative to what that mower should supply. Stripes look good! Glad you got your striper situation figured out. I have the 30" striper, but obviously don't use it since I really only use the Timemaster for cleanup mows and the area on the outskirts of my property. So you are welcome to have it for free if you want it.


Amazing offer! I sent you a message.

I did mow #2 with the Timemaster. Almost have everything sorted out.
1. Sharpened and balanced blades
2. Changed oil (gassy, dirty, thin) with 5w30 synthetic
3. Added fuel shutoff
4. Adjusted valves
5. Adjust pulley tension cables + drilled and tap broken bolt for the pulley cover
6. New 40A fuse and checked all the wiring (didn't find any problems)
7. Another new Oring for the fuel cap. Seems like it worked - 1/8" thick and 1 5/16" ID. Probably could have went with 1 1/4" ID, might have fit a little better. The last one I tried was too small.

I bought a new belt but I didn't put it on yet. I am a bit disappointed to see that the variable speed is built into the transmission. Unlike the Super Recycler that uses belt slippage to control the speed. So that is why the transmissions go back on the timemasters whereas on the Super Recycler you don't have that problem.

Love the mower though!!! I lowered it a notch to 3.75" and used side discharge.


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## Butter

Those 30" stripes look good!


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## Vtx531

jskierko said:


> I agree with you on all the positives of that mower. Faster speed and blades extending beyond the wheels really had me happy with that purchase. Only major downfall for me was that the gas tank was grossly undersized relative to what that mower should supply. Stripes look good! Glad you got your striper situation figured out. I have the 30" striper, but obviously don't use it since I really only use the Timemaster for cleanup mows and the area on the outskirts of my property. So you are welcome to have it for free if you want it.


^^^How awesome is this guy^^^

This showed up unexpectedly at my house today:


Was going to mow today back up one notch higher to 4.25" but we got a stray rain shower so I'm going to avoid mowing the moist grass.


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## Chris LI

Wow! Congrats! @jskierko is a generous guy! I love my 21" version. I hope you enjoy the 30". Cool late afternoon photo with the sun/shade areas. :bandit:


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## Vtx531

Mowed up one notch at 4.25". It was one for the books - thick and tall and green - Zen mowing!!!

Timemaster was running good too and it cuts really nice, no need for more power at all with dry grass at this height with side discharge. My trim passes around the house with the mulch plug were just fine too. I really like this mower. One tank of gas lasted me the whole job (barely!) Took about one hour, maybe just under.

Bad lighting in the photos and the sun was not a good direction for the stripes but it looks really good and even in person. Always looks good the next mow up a notch after a reset cut.


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## Vtx531

Mowed at 4.25, side discharge. Decent amount of growth in only four days. The frontyard KBG is outpacing the backyard PRG currently in the appearance department.

Front



Rear


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## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 that looks so good.


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## Chris LI

The kbg recovered nicely! Especially, the section by the mailbox. :thumbup:


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## SeanW78

@Vtx531 The grass and the stripes are looking really good!


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## Vtx531

Thanks all - amazing how well the kbg recovers. The whole front side next to the driveway and along the road was really bad and now you can't even tell.

I mowed yesterday. 4.25", side discharge. Doesn't look as good as last mow. Maybe the sun/lighting or maybe just that it's actually not looking as good but I'm pleased with it.

I've only spent about $25 this year on any inputs to the lawn besides mowing including a $20 bag of crabgrass preventer and $5 worth of weed spot spraying. No water so I've been pretty lucky with the weather besides the dry couple weeks earlier in the season.


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## Vtx531

I had a great mow today. It really thickened up over the last couple days. We had a nice rain storm last night. 4.25" and side discharge.


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## Chris LI

Great results from low inputs! I'm loving the 30" mower/striper!


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## Wile

Vtx531 said:


> I've only spent about $25 this year on any inputs to the lawn besides mowing including a $20 bag of crabgrass preventer and $5 worth of weed spot spraying. No water so I've been pretty lucky with the weather besides the dry couple weeks earlier in the season.


You've only spent $25 and it looks like that?!?! Boy do I feel like a 🤡.


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Great results from low inputs! I'm loving the 30" mower/striper!


Thanks, I love the 30" stripes too. Looks more proportional to the yard size, I think



Wile said:


> You've only spent $25 and it looks like that?!?! Boy do I feel like a 🤡.


Haha, too funny. Don't worry, my lawn has its good days and many bad days too where it does look like I spent $25 :lol:

Mowed last night. 4.25" side discharge. Not looking that great. It was hot and dry here this week. Then I got a bunch of rain Saturday, and then cool, cloudy, damp all Sunday.

Maybe it needs another reset mow down to 3.75" or 3.25". I may do that this week.


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## lawn-wolverine

You are talking about rotary mowing your KBG (down to) 3.25" I see. I rotary-cut my KBG blend at 2.0" and I really like it at that height because it looks very trim, but tall enough to still maintain a dark green color (any shorter and it loses that same dark green). Any reason (maybe I missed) that your KBG variety would not handle that length of cut ? BTW, I am in the U.P. of Michigan so our max temps are cooler than SW Michigan.


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## Vtx531

lawn-wolverine said:


> You are talking about rotary mowing your KBG (down to) 3.25" I see. I rotary-cut my KBG blend at 2.0" and I really like it at that height because it looks very trim, but tall enough to still maintain a dark green color (any shorter and it loses that same dark green). Any reason (maybe I missed) that your KBG variety would not handle that length of cut ? BTW, I am in the U.P. of Michigan so our max temps are cooler than SW Michigan.


I think it would handle 2" okay but I just want to give it the best chance possible to be healthy and outcompete the weeds so I think the taller height might be better for that.

I mowed today at the same height, decided not to go down lower. 4.25" side discharge. It was pretty tall - I ran out of gas with a big portion of the lawn still left to mow. Usually the gas tank lasts me the whole lawn or really close. Must mean we are getting closer to fall!


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## Vtx531

Did the reset cut today - 3.75" side discharge. It seemed like a lot of dead brown dry clippings were coming out the discharge. I'm going to let it grow back out to 4.25" for the next mow and hopefully get an improvement on the color.

Things are pretty dry around here but the stripes help to mask it.


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## Wile

What's your target HOC before the end of the season?


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## Vtx531

Wile said:


> What's your target HOC before the end of the season?


I'm not so sure. I'm sort of confused right now. The lawn is not looking good. I have found the past year years that is does better for me and stays green throughout the winter if I keep it at my "normal" height for the end of the season.

Nevertheless, the does look bad. Looks like a $25 lawn for sure at the moment haha - Salt and pepper green and brown. Also it is thin and the blades are needle-like. A lot of the green grass blade tips are shredded looking and brown. I think it is due to lack of water because the shaded areas are much greener and don't have the issue with brown tips. I guess I haven't been paying attention but we've only have 3/4" of water in the last 20 days.

I was thinking about leaving it 4.25" throughout the end of the season but it just looks really bad when it gets dry and cut long.

I mowed it down to 3.25" tonight. My Time Master broke down on me half way through. I didn't inspect it but I'm pretty sure it is the blade engage cable or belt. So, I got out my old Super Recycler to finish. What a difference - that Super Recycler is a lot more work to push around and so many more back and forths. Harder to turn too. Makes me really appreciate the Time Master. I need to get that thing fixed ASAP.

I'll update this post with a oic tomorrow but it was too dark when I finished mowing today.


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## Wile

Still the best $25 lawn I've seen. It's been sort of dry and windy. Do you have in-ground sprinklers?


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## Vtx531

Wile said:


> Still the best $25 lawn I've seen. It's been sort of dry and windy. Do you have in-ground sprinklers?


Thanks - I do have sprinklers but I stopped using them mid last season and I kept them shut off this year too. It just got to be more money than I want to spend and I wasn't getting the results I want.

Hopefully that rain last night helps things turn around.

One additional note I forgot to mention in my last post, the Time Master does a much better job spreading the grass clippings out through the discharge chute than the Super Recycler.


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## Vtx531

Looks like maybe I have a grub problem - eating all the roots and causing the grass to thin out and die.

There are hardly any roots going into the dirt.


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## Wile

Ouch. You might be spending more than $25 now. 8-10 is bad news


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## Vtx531

Wile said:


> Ouch. You might be spending more than $25 now. 8-10 is bad news



I think I'll just let the lawn suffer. I'm sort of mad at it right now so I mowed it down lower to give it some pain.

Lots of clumps and rows but I used the blower to spread it all out. The lawn put up a good fight with my mower but the mower won. I had to cut at 3.25" because it was bogging down too bad and then double cut at 2.75". I got the time master fixed up $60 in parts.


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## Vtx531

Mowed again at 2.75". Nice weather - sunny and 65 degrees. I thought I would mulch but it wasn't going well so I did side discharge. Had frost last night. Back tree began changing color last week. Pine needles began dropping a week ago too.

I still haven't put down any N this fall. May just skip it at this point or maybe do a bag of 17-17-17 if I happen to drive by the feed store.

Might go pick up a newish model Super Recycler mower tonight for $80 that wont start. It's a little far at one hour + away though but seems like a good price to resist going for a nice drive.


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## Vtx531

So I missed out on the $80 Super Recycler (guy sold it out from under me even though we had a meeting set up) but I came across a Toro Commercial 21" 22290 the next day that I got for $65. Even better! I got it started and running with a little shot of fluid. I need to buy a mulch plug for it. Also need to put on a fuel shutoff and oil change. It's in really good condition and not used commercially. But I think the Timemaster might be my preferred mower anyways.

I stopped at the farm store yesterday. I didn't see any urea but they did have 19-19-19. It was $20 last year which was a price increase and $30 this year. So screw it, late in the season and lawn is sort of dry anyway.


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## Chris LI

Those are good mowers! At work, we buy the most basic in the line, which is strictly push with a "Toro" branded engine. Yours has a Kawi motor with self-propelled drive. 👌👌👌 Those aluminum decks with composite wheels are durable and take quite a beating. Our shop has been happy that I convinced my boss a few years ago to invest in them, because they wind up in the shop for repairs much less often. They're not backlogged with mowers piling up in the shop, and my guys aren't begging, borrowing, and stealing from each other. We're also not buying a bunch of cheap mowers every year, which fall apart regularly. The steel deck plates are also a maintenance part, to save the bottom of the deck, not that you would ever need to replace them. Banging them up and down, trucks, trailers, etc. can really beat up the bottom of the deck on aluminum deck mowers in a commercial environment, so the replaceable deck plates are key (like shoes or blade savers on a plow). You have a nice score there, sir!


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Those are good mowers! At work, we buy the most basic in the line, which is strictly push with a "Toro" branded engine. Yours has a Kawi motor with self-propelled drive. 👌👌👌 Those aluminum decks with composite wheels are durable and take quite a beating. Our shop has been happy that I convinced my boss a few years ago to invest in them, because they wind up in the shop for repairs much less often. They're not backlogged with mowers piling up in the shop, and my guys aren't begging, borrowing, and stealing from each other. We're also not buying a bunch of cheap mowers every year, which fall apart regularly. The steel deck plates are also a maintenance part, to save the bottom of the deck, not that you would ever need to replace them. Banging them up and down, trucks, trailers, etc. can really beat up the bottom of the deck on aluminum deck mowers in a commercial environment, so the replaceable deck plates are key (like shoes or blade savers on a plow). You have a nice score there, sir!


Nice to hear god things about it. I haven't tried it yet but looking forward to it.

I mowed with the Timemaster today. Up one notch to 3.25". Mulch mode. Did okay on the pine needles, not too great. Was blowing out the right side and leaving a slight strip on the right side of the previous mowed clippings. We are abnormally dry right now according to drought monitor. Sort of a bummer that normally everything looks really nice this time of year but the weather isn't cooperating. Oh well!


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## Vtx531

Mowed yesterday. 3.25". I tried to mulch the pine needles but it didn't seem like it was going as well as side discharge so I switched back to SD.

I think the neighbor fertilized his grass a few weeks ago and has let it grow taller so his is looking so much greener right now. Just hoping mine comes back before everything stops soon (halloween?)


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## Chris LI

Pine needles are a PITA! The extra suction from SD really helps. What has helped me with pine needles, matted leaves/grass, and thatch is using a backpack blower to fluff everything up before mowing. It will take some time, especially for the size of lawn in your photo, but it helps almost as much as raking. I find it well worth it.


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## Vtx531

Chris LI said:


> Pine needles are a PITA! The extra suction from SD really helps. What has helped me with pine needles, matted leaves/grass, and thatch is using a backpack blower to fluff everything up before mowing. It will take some time, especially for the size of lawn in your photo, but it helps almost as much as raking. I find it well worth it.


Just saw this, good idea with the blower. I'll have to try that next time. I don't have a backpack but my handheld is a pretty powerful one. I mowed the pine needle area in tightening circles to blow the pine needles into a row and then raked into piles. I spread it in the mulch beds but doesn't look good and wife wants it gone. Original plan was the just mulch it all up but it seemed like too much.

Mowed yesterday. 3.25" sd. Not looking great. Stripes help tho.


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## Vtx531

Mowed today. 3.25" mulching. Looks better than last time. We've had some warm temps recently. The front kbg is looking better and winning the competition front vs back this time of season. I should have put down some fertilizer this fall.


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## Jeff_MI84

@Vtx531 for as little input as you do, your lawn looks phenomenal. How much longer until your cut it lower?


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