Now in my 8th year of mowing and have a 2021 Hustler XL 42" set up for mulching using Gator G5 blades. In Spring and Fall, as you all know, the fescue really needs to be cut every 4-5 days. But I don't have that luxury as customers want weekly mowings. To get the lawn(s) to proper height of 2.5-3" depending, I usually end up with a crap load of clippings left on top from turns and such, which I then have to eliminate with a second cut to reduce and then take the blower and disperse the clippings left on top of grass. Call me lazy if you want, but I won't bag. Nor am I a big fan of discharge. That said, I'm sick of having to blow the whole fricking yard in some cases. Normal mulching blades don't cut as well as I'd like and I like the longer cutting edge of the G5. Have I got too much lift with the G5? Could thatch be a contributor to my problem? Would lowering the height of the lawn to 2" now while it's still cool help? I'm looking for answers and don't want to 'experiment' with 4 different blade sets. All opinions welcome!
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Best mulching blade?
- Thread starter Optimum
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Export threadFescue needs/likes to be cut as high as possible. Like 3-4+" HOC.
G5 slash mulching blades are crap for lift, not made for lift.
Bagging is still king for a pristine looking lawn. Snapper Hi-Vacs are still unbeatable to this day......
0-turns compacting the death out of the soil have terrible cuts. Yard looks like a tank battalion drove across it. You can see all the ruts when you drive down the street, knowing the mower type that was used.
Your problem is the clippings are not getting removed from the upper turf layer. What would you expect if you mulch slash lazy mow? Clippings do NOT go away over time either. They choke the turf from air, sunlight and nutrients. Diseases set in as well as a possible bug infestation more likely.
You have the best blade for mulching. Maybe your deck doesn't like it?? Put the factory blades back on it and see what you get. See if they offer a mulching blade for your mower.
G5 slash mulching blades are crap for lift, not made for lift.
Bagging is still king for a pristine looking lawn. Snapper Hi-Vacs are still unbeatable to this day......
0-turns compacting the death out of the soil have terrible cuts. Yard looks like a tank battalion drove across it. You can see all the ruts when you drive down the street, knowing the mower type that was used.
Your problem is the clippings are not getting removed from the upper turf layer. What would you expect if you mulch slash lazy mow? Clippings do NOT go away over time either. They choke the turf from air, sunlight and nutrients. Diseases set in as well as a possible bug infestation more likely.
You have the best blade for mulching. Maybe your deck doesn't like it?? Put the factory blades back on it and see what you get. See if they offer a mulching blade for your mower.
Last edited:
bertsmobile1
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In a healthy lawn clippings are consumed by bacteria and return to the soil as compost when mulching is done properly
Bacteria are like all living things they need food air & WATER so if you mulch it is essential to water otherwise the clippings dry out .
Once dried they will still be consumed by bacteria but a different species that do not reproduce as fast so it takes a lot longer.
And depending upon the health of the local environment grass termites as well
Laying on the ground and being rotted down by bacteria is the natural thing to happen .
However it does take time to nurture the local ecology to repair the destruction we have done with herbicides , insectcides & fertalizers over used & incorrectly used .
You need to have a long chat to an organic gardner or a pasturalist or even a green keeper at you local golf course .
There is 1000 acres behind the workshop which currently is getting its winter mow
Been mowed with clippings discharged back into the grass for near 100 years in some places .
There would be thousands of similar sites i the USA.
Now getting back to Optimum's question
1) Slomo was correct about the height , the grass needs to be cut higher .
2) there is no such thing as a universal "BEST" mulching blade and some of my commercial customers will change blades between jobs because different grass mizes need different cutting parrameters .
3) If you have to blow to shake the grass a little for the clippings to vanish then blow while you are mowing .
Not hard to rig up a mount for the blower on the left side
While I have never seen any one mount a back pack I do have a couple of customers who do large retail complexes with big carparks that have a BG 45 in one hand & a powered weed sprayer in the other .
I have mounted a couple 12V sprayers above engines ( makes them a PIA to service ) on ZTR's
4) By and large Gators work best with the discharge open so they throw and when the grass is cut higher then clipping will vanish in a day or two all by themselves
If you blow they should vanish as you cut ( never tried that )
5) if the customer is not paying foe the removal of the clippings then you are doing too much work for nothing.
If they are paying for a mulched cu then they have to accept that for a day or so there will be visible clippings on the grass
Bacteria are like all living things they need food air & WATER so if you mulch it is essential to water otherwise the clippings dry out .
Once dried they will still be consumed by bacteria but a different species that do not reproduce as fast so it takes a lot longer.
And depending upon the health of the local environment grass termites as well
Laying on the ground and being rotted down by bacteria is the natural thing to happen .
However it does take time to nurture the local ecology to repair the destruction we have done with herbicides , insectcides & fertalizers over used & incorrectly used .
You need to have a long chat to an organic gardner or a pasturalist or even a green keeper at you local golf course .
There is 1000 acres behind the workshop which currently is getting its winter mow
Been mowed with clippings discharged back into the grass for near 100 years in some places .
There would be thousands of similar sites i the USA.
Now getting back to Optimum's question
1) Slomo was correct about the height , the grass needs to be cut higher .
2) there is no such thing as a universal "BEST" mulching blade and some of my commercial customers will change blades between jobs because different grass mizes need different cutting parrameters .
3) If you have to blow to shake the grass a little for the clippings to vanish then blow while you are mowing .
Not hard to rig up a mount for the blower on the left side
While I have never seen any one mount a back pack I do have a couple of customers who do large retail complexes with big carparks that have a BG 45 in one hand & a powered weed sprayer in the other .
I have mounted a couple 12V sprayers above engines ( makes them a PIA to service ) on ZTR's
4) By and large Gators work best with the discharge open so they throw and when the grass is cut higher then clipping will vanish in a day or two all by themselves
If you blow they should vanish as you cut ( never tried that )
5) if the customer is not paying foe the removal of the clippings then you are doing too much work for nothing.
If they are paying for a mulched cu then they have to accept that for a day or so there will be visible clippings on the grass
Thanks for writing. Disagree with your height recommendation. So does KSU Reaserch and Extension Office as they recommend a cutting height of 2.5-3.5" for tall fescue. So in Spring I'll cut shorter as customers like that, and Summer I'll raise to 3.5 so as not to stress in the heat. They (KSU) almost encourage mulching as it does not contribute to thatch and clippings reduce the amount of fertilizer needed. (some fertilizer remains are in the clippings now decomposing) And clippings DO decompose as they are 80-90% water. Moisture is always a factor in disease, whether it comes from rain or overwatering.Fescue needs/likes to be cut as high as possible. Like 3-4+" HOC.
G5 slash mulching blades are crap for lift, not made for lift.
Bagging is still king for a pristine looking lawn. Snapper Hi-Vacs are still unbeatable to this day......
0-turns compacting the death out of the soil have terrible cuts. Yard looks like a tank battalion drove across it. You can see all the ruts when you drive down the street, knowing the mower type that was used.
Your problem is the clippings are not getting removed from the upper turf layer. What would you expect if you mulch slash lazy mow? Clippings do NOT go away over time either. They choke the turf from air, sunlight and nutrients. Diseases set in as well as a possible bug infestation more likely.
You have the best blade for mulching. Maybe your deck doesn't like it?? Put the factory blades back on it and see what you get. See if they offer a mulching blade for your mower.
Mower ruts. Bermuda is the worst for showing ruts and for those that don't vary the cutting pattern. I've not had any problems with ruts on fescue.
From K-State Research and Extension: