Grapple. Wins and Losses

[B737]

did you mod the grapple with some kind of netting to make that leaf situation? This set up would transform my life---leaves are killing me.

If I mulched leaves as suggested above by our favorite arm chair operator, my property would be under a 6” bed of leaf mulch. I’d be out there for literally days or weeks.

@JSL all I do is zip tie a little snow fencing to the grapple. Take huge scoops. It’s that easy, and it’s fast.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

In my part of the World, people pay good money for 'leaf mulch', as long as there's no Black Walnut in the mix. It's a great ingredient in 'compost' for veggie gardens and growing giant pumpkins. The chewed up leaves break down in 2-3 months(less if you turn them often) compared to a year or more for just a 'pile of leaves'.

 

[bird dogger]

did you mod the grapple with some kind of netting to make that leaf situation? This set up would transform my life---leaves are killing me.

JSL, select this Leaf Control Link for an OTT thread on different ideas for leaf management.

 

[minthral]

My john deere x590 mulches dry leaves into invisible smithereens. Key here is dry which happens by early winter. I used to try bag till I realized it’s better all around to mulch them. I do this successfully in thick wooded trails too, so unless your leaves don’t dry out, it’s hard to imagine what you’re working with.

 

[B737]

In my part of the World, people pay good money for 'leaf mulch', as long as there's no Black Walnut in the mix.

In my part of the world, no one pays for 'leaf mulch'... Spring, and Autumn clean-ups from my landscapers are $1500 each, ($3k) annually. Instead, I do them myself in a day, if I have time.

My john deere x590 mulches dry leaves into invisible smithereens. ... I used to try bag till I realized it’s better all around to mulch them. I do this successfully in thick wooded trails too, so unless your leaves don’t dry out, it’s hard to imagine what you’re working with.

if you even considered bagging, it means each of us are dealing with two vastly different situations.

 

[minthral]

if you even considered bagging, it means each of us are dealing with two vastly different situations.

1.2 acres around my house on rural property about 75 acres mostly wooded. At one point I thought about bagging (many years ago) as I didn't know better on how to deal with leaves.

Again - just some advise for anyone - if you haven't, try using your mower with sharp mulching blades and discharge chute closed. You mow the leaves periodically as if they are grass. You wont get rid of all of them each time, but a good chuck gets cleaned up enough for grass to not suffer...more will fall and everything blends in. By late fall/ early winter (depending on when the leaves fell), they will be dried out and a few passes and you wont see them. By winter or next year, it will appear as if someone collected/bagged all the leaves, but really they are completely disintegrated in to dust and rotten into the soil.

I'll do this on wooded trails surrounded by large hardwood trees (including sycamore, which has giant leaves) too. For that those you can even wait longer till they are dried out more and then still after a few passes, it's completely clean, though if you let the leaves sit on grass too long, they'll kill it (don't care about this on trails...).

Mulched leaves are great compost for a garden, however the hassle of collecting them, mulching, moving, and distributing is probably not worth it. If you're mulching them on the spot, it's just as easy as mowing grass.

To mulch leaves well, you need a good finish mower... I don't think a tractor attachment (bush hog, flail mower, or even finish mower) will work too well for this.

 

[B737]

1.2 acres around my house on rural property about 75 acres mostly wooded. At one point I thought about bagging (many years ago) as I didn't know better on how to deal with leaves.

yeah... very different, you do you!