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Loftness Adds Lightweight Mulching Head For Compact Excavators
Jessica Schwartz
SiteOne Landscape Supply Aids Veterans With Non-Profit Donation
SiteOne® Landscape Supply donated $10,000 worth of battery-powered equipment to I Want To Mow Your Lawn™, a non-profit organization that provides free lawn service to veterans, elderly, and others in need. The donation—a combined effort from several SiteOne branches in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania—provided the non-profit with brand-new, environmentally friendly equipment. “We’re seeing new laws banning gas-powered equipment, so we wanted to help the non-profit get ahead of those regulations while supporting its efforts in assisting veterans and elderly in need,” said Doug Shinnick, SiteOne sales support representative. “One of our pillars at SiteOne is to be a good neighbor. We strive to be impactful by implementing our large but local mindset and giving back to our communities.” I Want To Mow Your Lawn is composed of 200 volunteers in 40 states. Those in need can search for landscape help on IWantToMowYourLawn.com or submit a lawn service request. Local volunteers, many of whom are landscape contractors, then help complete the requests. The non-profit encourages the use of battery-powered equipment to contribute to a cleaner environment. “The generous donation from SiteOne made a big impact on our mission to preserve dignity, enable independence, and build community by providing eco-friendly, essential lawn service for those in need,” said Brian Schwartz, founder of I Want To Mow Your Lawn. “We are looking forward to a long-term partnership with SiteOne.” “We are honored to work with Brian, who started I Want To Mow Your Lawn at the height of COVID-19 when the ...
Summer Lawn Disease Management
Turf disease has always been a consistent adversary across the United States for residential lawns and commercial landscapes alike. With the arrival of summer comes the looming threat of lawn disease outbreaks in cool season grasses. Though disease outbreaks can occur in warm season turf, it usually happens during the spring and fall months as temperatures shift between winter and spring, or fall and winter. Cool season grasses are more commonly impacted by disease during the summer months (mid-June) and into the early fall. Common diseases found in cool season turf: include brown patch; large patch; Pythium blight (seen below); spring dead spot; and fairy ring. Although certain chemical fungicide solutions have the ability to cure turf disease, there are a few cultural methods that can be performed to keep disease outbreaks from occurring beforehand. Mowing. Mowing grass at its recommended mowing height improves turf’s ability to fight off disease. When mowing, no more than one-third of the leaf blade should be removed at all times. Removing more than this amount increases the possibility for disease outbreaks since the grass will have a difficult time recovering from stress or damage. Regular maintenance on mowers also ensures a sharpened mower blade for proper cutting. Mowing with dull blades increases the chance of disease as the mower blades tear the grass instead of neatly slicing them. Once the grass is ripped, it is left open and vulnerable to disease access. Irrigation. Although turf requires a certain amount of water, the amount ...
Best Practices: Raise Your Mowing Game
How often do you mow customer lawns during the spring and fall compared to the summer? What type of equipment do you use? What heights are the blades? If any of the lawns you service are poor shape, and you’ve been watering and fertilizing regularly, examine the mowing practices being used. Following is guidance offered from three university extensions around the United States. As these are specific to the region, keep that in mind. (If you have mowing best practices to share with fellow readers, send an e-mail with a brief overview to Turf at acosgrove@groupc.com.) Colorado State University Extension provides this insight for turf in that region (Lawn Care, Fact Sheet No. 7.202): “The two most important facets of mowing are mowing height and frequency. The minimum height for any lawn is 2″. The preferred mowing height for all Colorado species is 2.5″ to 3″. Mowing to less than 2″ can result in decreased drought and heat tolerance and higher incidence of insects, diseases, and weeds. Mow the turf often enough so no more than one-third of the grass height is removed at any single mowing. If your mowing height is 2″, mow the grass when it is 3″ tall. You may have to mow a bluegrass or fescue lawn every three to four days during the spring when it is actively growing but only once every seven to 10 days when growth is slowed by heat, drought, or cold. Buffalograss lawns may require mowing once every 10 ...
Mowing With Martha Stewart
“As landscape professionals, we are on a constant quest to create that picturesque and sustainable lawn. Juggling the expected (events and deadlines) with the unexpected (weather, staffing, pests) is simply our way of life. As property foreman for Martha Stewart’s residential farm, I don’t just work for Martha, I often work with her. “People are often surprised as to how hands-on Martha Stewart is on her farm; she works the land and gets her hands dirty. Of course, she’s also juggling a full schedule of appearances and media events, so that’s where I come in, to help keep everything running,” says Chhiring Sherpa, property foreman. “Martha and I work side-by-side to maintain her farm—it’s a 152-acre constant work-in-progress.” Stewart’s Bedford, NY farm spans varying terrain, from the well-manicured to undeveloped meadows and woodlands. It includes horse paddocks, a fruit orchard, gardens, and the infamous soccer lawn for her grandson that doubles as a “party lawn” for social gatherings. A fleet of four orange mowers and a Kubota M Series tractor stay busy year-round. “We have been using Kubota zero-turn mowers for 15 years on my farm—the reliability and durability is second to none for homeowners and professionals looking for a sleek, comfortable ride and professional results,” Stewart says. “Plus, they are easy and fun to operate.” The approach at the farm is simply to schedule everything, then “roll with it” when changes, events, and Martha herself, want to shake things up. Sherpa took us through his general operating procedures at ...
Three Sustainable Groundskeeping Ideas
By Daniel G. Schied, CGM From the February 2021 Issue of Facility Executive As individuals charged with the maintenance and stewardship of either entire facilities or aspects within them, when facilities professionals hear the word “sustainable” we often wonder what the cost associated with that effort may be. We think about our budgets and bottom lines. In many instances this can be a false way to look at this since some efforts may be cost-neutral, or may even save valuable resources of labor and materials. Let’s look at some opportunities within grounds operations that may provide some low hanging fruit allowing both environmental and fiscal prudence. 1. Mowing Practices. Does your site have some areas that are challenging to mow safely? Have you considered a meadow? A meadow can be a fancy term for just letting the grass grow, while encouraging some naturalism and supporting pollinators in the process. I am not qualified to comment on the challenges our pollinator populations are facing, but that should not suggest that simple efforts to assist their activities can’t be found. Celebrate your effort with signage while giving the pollinators a place to thrive! Another simple approach to benefit pollinator populations is to consider a “No Mow May.” Are there sections around your facility in which you could allow the lawn areas to grow for the month of May, encouraging pollinator habitat? This initiative could also be extolled with signage highlighting your team’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and support local honey ...
A Lawn Mowing Message Of Hope in NYC
A giant heart, recently mowed into the lawn at New York City’s Bryant Park by Baker & Sons Landscaping and Moe’s Lawn Care, both of Highland, NY, has garnered lots of attention. “Thank you healthcare workers, first responders, and essential workers. Thank you to everyone staying home, social distancing, and checking in on their neighbors,” was Tweeted April 21 by Bryant Park officials with the lawn photo. “It’s a message of love to all New Yorkers, especially essential workers, who are weathering the pandemic crisis in a heroic way,” Bryant Park Corporation Executive Director Dan Biederman said in a statement. New York City has been hit especially hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 134,000 New Yorkers have tested positive for the new coronavirus, with 9,562 confirmed deaths as of April 21, according to the NYC Health Department. “The Park asked if there was something we could create and we said, ‘Sure, we’ll give it a try,'” Jordan Pascariello, owner of Moe’s told Turf. “We felt it was important with COVID-19 and all the essential workers, especially healthcare workers who are really out there doing what they need to do, to spread a little happiness.” Pascariello, who is hired by Baker & Sons, did the actual mowing of the heart with Tim Baker, owner of Baker & Sons. Tim’s 14-year-old son, TJ, also helped, particularly with measuring out the top radius of the heart and running string lines to create the design. “It was crazy to get all that ...
In Uncertain Times, Bayer Provides Advice On Golf Course Maintenance
The world is facing uncertain times with the current COVID-19 issue and its impact on society. It is impossible to predict the long-term impact on golf courses, but here are some tips to help you weather this storm of uncertainty, realizing staff and budget may become limiting. The Bayer Green Solutions Team offers the following for golf course maintenance teams. For more guidance, the Bayer Green Solutions Team contacts are listed further down, and for Bayer updates related to COVID-19, visit the company’s website. Increase plant growth regulator (PGR) use to limit mowing frequency. PrimoMaxx ® and Aneuw® are widely used and have flexible rates and timings to maximize growth reduction Trimmit®, Cutless® and others can also be used, but can negatively affect Poa Reduced turf growth decreases recovery from diseases, so consistent preventative fungicide applications are still most effective in terms of cost and labor Increased PGR rates may cause some reduction in turf color but this is temporary. Turf quality will improve as the effects of the PGR wear off. Increase mowing heights. Mowing all playing surfaces higher reduces mowing frequency but be careful not to raise mowing heights excessively, as it may be difficult to resume regular mowing once this storm passes. A 25 – 40% increase in mowing height is recommended. Alternating rolling with mowing can help reduce mowing stress, maintain speeds, and limit scalping when regular maintenance continues. Also, increasing sand topdressing can help to raise effective mowing height. Pest management: Preventative applications made in ...
