# Leaves, Leaves, and more leaves



## treed (Sep 16, 2003)

After battling leaves the past several years, I decided last year to find a better way. So I found a mulch kit for my 112L last year, and finally had the opportunity to give it a try last night. After waiting for enough leaves to fall in my front yard to give it a good test, last night I was ready. Went one pass around the front yard, and I got to say, I'm impresed. The leaves were mulched and cut up enough that there was hardly any indication they were there. The only drawback was the exhaust routing on the 112L. It comes out the front and downward, and had a tendency to blow some of the leaves out of my path. Maybe I can run a vertical exhaust stack, I once saw a picture of a modified 111 that had one.


----------



## Greg (Sep 16, 2003)

treed,

I've been bagging mine up but maybe today I'll try mulching. We got 90 large plastic garbage bags of leaves, mostly Maple, last year. More than I can use for compost in the garden!


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I used to use my Stihl ST400 backpack blower to blow all the leaves into a pile and drag them over the garden on a tarp. I am talking 100's of bushels of leaves. Last year I got fed up with it and tried chopping them up the the 72" MMM on the 4410. It did a great job and chopping the leaves up into small enough pieces that they just composted into the lawn. That is what I am doing this year too. This year I am trying the Gator blades to see how well they work. I use the F525 to chop up the leaves on the steep hills and slopes.


----------



## chrpmaster (May 5, 2004)

The last several years I have been using a 15 cu ft bagger on the back of my grasshopper and though it is the easiest bagger I have ever used (don't even leave the seat to empty) I have always wondered if it would be better for the grass if I just mulched. I have about 2 acres I mow. The acre in the back of the house is surrounded by mature maples and oaks so it gets buried with leaves but the acre in front of the house gets a lighter coating of mainly maple and cottonwood leaves. I have often thought it may work to mulch the front but wanted all of your opinions about it before I bought the mulching setup and how fine to mulch it before I quit going over it.

Thanks
Andy


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I tried cutting it and blowing it into wind rows first and then cut the wind rows and spread the cuttings back out as much as possible. I figure I must have run over the leaves maybe 4 or 5 passes this way. Within a few weeks the cuttings were pretty much not noticable anymore.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I will say that the kids are really missing my 40' circle, 7' high leave piles though. :lmao: :lmao: :lmao: :tractorsm


----------



## John Deere Dave (Oct 4, 2004)

I have always mulched, you can't beat it as it saves the back I have yet to try out the X475 mulching leaves, but I bet its better than the GT275 was


----------



## memmurphy (Sep 18, 2003)

I've mulched for several years. If there are too many to be fully cut up, I pull my sweeper behind while mulching and put the excess it collects on the garden.

Mark


----------



## treed (Sep 16, 2003)

This was the first time for me at mulching leaves, and like I said, I was highly impressed, and may I add, pleased. I have a lot of oak trees and it's been a battle every fall. I tried the sweeper thing, just too many trips to unload the hopper. Raking them is too much of a chore and too time consuming. I would rather drive around my yard, mulching as I go. I'll see how many more times I have to do this as the leaves are now beginning to fall more rapidly.


----------



## slipshod (Sep 19, 2003)

*My way is much easier*

I let the wind blow them over to the neighbor's yard.


----------



## Ingersoll444 (Sep 17, 2003)

So far this year I have been just mulching them into the soil with the hand mower, and it has been working well. When the REAL large ammonts of them start falling I will work up to Bagging with the hand mower, then to the sweeper with the tractor. I have a bagger for my 444, but that is still not running, so I have to use another plan.


----------



## leolav (Sep 16, 2003)

My mow n vac has been incredible this year. Not a single issue with it. I mowed using it yesterday AM and it still took me over 6 hours to do my lawn and my dads place. I hauled away 18 loads of leaves. And the kick in the pants is that the leaves are still falling like no tomorrow. No way I could mulch that many leaves.


----------



## chrpmaster (May 5, 2004)

:ditto: 

I did the same thing in the front yard Saturday and with in 20 minutes the wind had covered it again so that you couldn't tell I had done anything 

Andy


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I am just keeping up and running over the leave and mulching them up every few days with the MMM on my 4410. Seems to be doing a great job. Only problem is that the next day it looks like nothing was done. I will be glad when the leaves are done falling.


----------



## Archdean (Jul 15, 2004)

My solution and any one can do it!! I fabricated this baffel out of an old Automobile Bumper shield!!

It is attached to a 54" deck on an 1860TG Diesel Kubota!! and pulverizes all leaf material, just mow as normal!!

Dean

<img src=http://www.greencis.net/~custer/baffle1.jpg>


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

Good idea Dean. I have been having really good results with my MMM letting it spread the leaf clippings out. After I run over them few times, the clippings ase small enough to just settle into the grass and not be noticed.


----------



## ducati996 (Dec 27, 2003)

Dean & Chief,

Isnt there mulching kits and chute plate covers available from Deere and Kubota? I know Chiefs mower is the big 72" but dont they offer a plate to close the chute? 
I cant say enough how effective my Cub 3204 is on mulching leaves and small sticks. Last year I did my own and 2 neighbors houses (same plot size) and a few other houses ( approx. 10 acres in all)..
I made a believer out of myself and a few others (who later got themselves a JD 4010 w/54 mulch deck ). 
I know Dean got something to work already but Chief just imagine how much better the mulching would be if the discharge chute is closed and the mulching option added!! This is probably obvious already I know..

Ducati


----------



## Archdean (Jul 15, 2004)

> _Originally posted by ducati996 _
> *Dean & Chief,
> 
> Isnt there mulching kits and chute plate covers available from Deere and Kubota? I know Chiefs mower is the big 72" but dont they offer a plate to close the chute?
> ...


Duc,
I looked at mulching kits and you are much better off making your own IMO a good size dried dog poop would dent or land on your porch with most kits I have seen, but never looked at Kubota's offering!! I made this one 5 years ago it worked so well I never thought anything could do as well so stopped trying!
Dean


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

Duc, I have looked at the Deere 72" TRICYCLER MULCH Kit but they are INDEED pricey. Real nice kits and I would love to have one but for the price they charge, I just can't justify it. I may try something like Dean has and thanks for the tip. I wasn't sure how well a mulching chute cover worked. 

<img src="http://jdpc.deere.com/pimages/MP80/MP8040_________UN01JAN94.gif">

72" TRICYCLER MULCH KIT 
Part # BM18151
about $275


----------



## Ingersoll444 (Sep 17, 2003)

Dean,

Did almost the same thing years ago with my Moms old JD112. This was when I was a young, and used to have a small Bis mowing lawns, and yard work. I had my biggest costermer, and two or three of my smaller ones want me to mulch up the leaves. Well with a,at the time 12 yo mower, and no mulch kits that I could find, my stepdad and I, fabbed up a plate[cut of peace of some hood if I remember right, and added a new set of blades. Worked good in all places except were the grass was to long.


----------



## guest (Sep 16, 2003)

last year i swept the lawn of leaves.. but so far this year.. ive just mulched them and it seems to have worked out fine.


----------



## ducati996 (Dec 27, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Chief _
> *Duc, I have looked at the Deere 72" TRICYCLER MULCH Kit but they are INDEED pricey. Real nice kits and I would love to have one but for the price they charge, I just can't justify it. I may try something like Dean has and thanks for the tip. I wasn't sure how well a mulching chute cover worked.
> 
> <img src="http://jdpc.deere.com/pimages/MP80/MP8040_________UN01JAN94.gif">
> ...


pricey somewhat but I would imagine its a solid setup and a lot of metal, especially when your deck is 9 guage metal correct? 
It looks like blades are included with it? do they suggest high lift blades? 
You dont think you can find it somewhere (Internet) for a lot less? 

At least for me, my machine works as well as Agri fab or C.R powered tow behind unit on leaves and small sticks....makes life so much easier, and saved me considerable expense in purchasing powered attachments. 

Ducati


----------



## treed (Sep 16, 2003)

So far I've mulched the leaves about 3 times with good results. But the next day it's hard to tell if I did anything, as the leaves just keep falling. I'll also be glad when the leaves have all fallen.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

> _Originally posted by treed _
> *So far I've mulched the leaves about 3 times with good results. But the next day it's hard to tell if I did anything, as the leaves just keep falling. I'll also be glad when the leaves have all fallen. *


It has rained the last 2 days and the leave are coming down by the zillion! :argh: #[email protected]$:   I will have a mess to mulch up when things dry out.


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

Mulching is simply not an option for me because of volume and content. I have 20 mature oak trees on my lot and cherish my grass. Oak leaves contain tannin which is not good for the lawn. I have used JD Power Flow Bagger for the past 5-6 years and it is the best solution for me because of the number of tight turns I have to make. I just got the 3 Bag Bagger this year and it cuts the number of dumps in half which makes the job go faster. I use my leaf blower or a rake to move the leafs out of the flower and shrubbery beds onto the grass so I can vacuum the leaves up. I have waste areas on the edges of my property to dump the mulched up leaves that decay to nothing by the time I start bagging 12 months later.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I have 5 huge oak trees and for the past 10 years I have been piling the leaves up with a blower and dragging them to the garden and tilling them in when Springs comes along. Last year I tried mulching up the last bit of leaves with the MMM and had very good results. There is just too large a volume for me to keep blowing the leaves and hauling them to the garden. From what I have read, mulching the leaves up add valuable nitrogen back into the soil and benfits the grass. I am no expert on lawns but mine seemed to do well this season.


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Chief _
> *...leaves up add valuable nitrogen back into the soil and benfits the grass. I am no expert on lawns but mine seemed to do well this season. *


Chief,
Oak leaves indeed would add some nitrogen to the soil but they also add tannin (tannic acid) which makes the soil more acidic. Helps weed control but not great for grass.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I add lime and fertilize periodically so it should not effect me to any great degree.


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

Chief,
You forgot to mention that you include some secret sauce in your mulched leave recipe. Adding the lime makes all the difference in the world.:thumbsup:


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

Cmon' Keweenaw,
You can't mow grass with that bad boy snowblower. Get an A/C unit for the cab and a mowing deck for your new JD and keep your grass neatly trimmed. BTW I am happy to report that my marathon leave bagging efforts last weekend have paid dividends. Looks like only a 2 or 3 dump (bagger that is ) weekend since most of the leaves are now off the trees.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

Actually the mulching blades don't have nearly the lift of the high lift blades. I am have fantastic results just chopping up the leaves with the high lift blades and spraying them out the chute with the chute guard removed. The lawn is absorbing the clippings real well. By the way, the grass started growing again here with temps in the upper 80's. I had to cut it last week.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

I see a nice John Deere 777 just waiting for you Tom.


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

Tom,
Tell your neighbor to check out the AWS JDs like the one I have. Not quite as tight a turning radius as a one of those ZTRs but you can put a snowblower or Power Flow bagger on mine but not a ZTR.


----------



## Live Oak (Dec 22, 2003)

> _Originally posted by DeereBob _
> *Tom,
> Tell your neighbor to check out the AWS JDs like the one I have. Not quite as tight a turning radius as a one of those ZTRs but you can put a snowblower or Power Flow bagger on mine but not a ZTR. *


The 777 has a 14-bushel capacity 3-bag hopper 3-Bag Material Collection System. 

3-Bag Material Collection System


----------



## DeereBob (Sep 16, 2003)

> _Originally posted by Chief _
> *The 777 has a 14-bushel capacity 3-bag hopper 3-Bag Material Collection System.
> *


Chief,
But that's about the only attachment for something that costs about the same amount as my X485 AWS. Isn't the name of the game "accessorize!"  Clearly a superior mowing machine to my rig but then again, I am sure Keweenaw's neighbor would miss not have snowblower attachment!


----------



## Archdean (Jul 15, 2004)

"I guess Dean missed or chose to ignore the Kubota reference."

No he didn't!!!! Dream on Green people!!


Kubota


----------

