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COURSE CARE

Harvest Time

By Bob Vavrek

| Oct 15, 2013

Farm implements can efficiently harvest abundant plant debris that is generated by annual mowing operations of native roughs. Baling the grass eliminates the labor-intensive task of raking and collecting the debris by hand.

Mid-October to mid-November is a prime time to control crop weeds and woody plant encroachment by scalping down the native roughs. Flail mowing the tall grass areas is a quick, simple operation, but removing the abundance of plant debris generated by mowing is always a challenge when most of the seasonal labor is gone. A more efficient option for golf facilities in rural areas is to make arrangements with local farmers to cut, windrow and bale the natural roughs wherever the course can accommodate the farm implements. Cleaning up the mowing operations becomes no more difficult than removing bales of “golf course” hay from the property.

Source: Bob Vaverk ( rvavrek@usga.org)

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