Wednesday, January 21, 2009

3D mowing?







3 D mowing this was a new term for me this fall, Research always seems to bring new terms for things that you have always done. But, 3D mowing really makes sense when you break it down. This year we will be mowing the fairways and the greens with new mowers. These mowers all have turf groomers on them and all will be able to groom the turf in this 3 dimensional way. This process should produces less thatch, and provide thicker and healthier turf as well as better playability. Reels cut horizontally to clip the vertical growth(remember this clip term) and the grooming blade reaches down into the canopy below the height of cut. These blades will cut the horizontal runners and some organic matter. They cut into the true crown of the plant this in turn will stimulate a new plant to develop. The new growth of the turf will be more vertical, less grain and a more truer turf surface. Hopefully the new plants will be healthier and more resilient to both biotic and abiotic stress.
Clip rate, what is this term. The number of revolution of the reel to the cutting knife. This is important when selecting equipment and quality of cut. last year the greens mowers were equipped with a 11 blade reel with a clip of .156 this year the new greens mowers are equipped with the latest 14 blade reel with a clip of .112. When testing the mowers last year I noticed a truer cut with less grass left over. So when we couple the new reel with this 3D grooming process we should see a big difference in the turf.
What I will be trying to achieve this these new mowers is vertical growth that will allow less grain and a true ball roll.

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