Mowing Rushes

SomethingElse

Tried mowing rushes with an old finger-bar mower lately, but it kept getting clogged with dead grass. Would newer style mowers be able to mow rushes easily? What would be the cheapest option out of these?

pakalasa

I have an old finger-bar myself, complete waste of time when it comes to rushes. A drum or disc mower is your only job. Even a regular topper isn't suitable, better to cut them clean at the base with a mower.

reilig

I find that cutting with a drum or disc mower cuts too low and this results in a longer time for the grass to grow back. I have a topper and find that it does a great job on rushes - however, I keep the blades on the topper rasor sharp to ensure a clean cut. I know people with toppers who have never even sharpened the blades and think that they are useless at rushes. You'd change or sharpen the blades on your drum or disc mower so why not do it with your topper?

A topper is also much easier on your tractor to operate, has less moving parts and is therefore less likely to break down and finally, you can adjust the height that you cut with your topper and you can cut at various heights from 6 inches to 1 inch meaning that you won't have to shave the grass unless you want to.

EDIT: Not to mention the cost difference. A topper is about 1/3 the cost of a disc mower and 1/2 the cost of the cheapest drum mower.

SomethingElse

Thanks for the help. The field is very densely packed with rushes so I wouldn't worry too much about cutting the grass short as it has already been heavily grazed. The price would be a huge factor though, so a topper looks a good bet. How much should I expect to pay for one second hand - i.e whats the cheapest I could get one for!

roadtripman

SomethingElse wrote: »

Thanks for the help. The field is very densely packed with rushes so I wouldn't worry too much about cutting the grass short as it has already been heavily grazed. The price would be a huge factor though, so a topper looks a good bet. How much should I expect to pay for one second hand - i.e whats the cheapest I could get one for!

I've seen a few lads using converted double chop silage harvesters for topping ground thats full of rushes, wouldnt be the quickest way of mowing them but u'd buy a old double chop for small money.

Indubitable

I use a licker to kill the rushes and then use a topper on them all later on

sea12

I have one field which is badly overrun by rushes. I always use the topper its a 6ft semi off set. Works great. I'd agree with the person above, you need to have the blades well sharpened.
But I am going to get a weedlicker this year. Topping makes it look good but doesnt kill them.

tabby aspreme

kingofthe3rdyrs wrote: »

I use a licker to kill the rushes and then use a topper on them all later on

Have you used the weed licker on nettles or thistles , what make is it , i would like (need) to get one this year .

vanderbadger

have often seen those really thick clumps of rushes break a shear bolt on topper, you would only have the bolt replaced when it goes again
best get the stronger shear bolts if using topper and take your time

Ford4000

vanderbadger wrote: »

have often seen those really thick clumps of rushes break a shear bolt on topper, you would only have the bolt replaced when it goes again
best get the stronger shear bolts if using topper and take your time

HSS bolt:rolleyes:

pakalasa

Jasus,
Don't use a higher strength bolt.
These shear bolts are designed to break at a certain torque to protect everthing else, like the internal gears in the tractor. You could end up doing serious damage somewhere else.

Around where I live all the older guys swear by the mower to cut rushes. I tried using my own topper to cut heavy rushes but I stopped. I was putting the tractor under serious pressure, even driving in the lowest gear.

vanderbadger

well its just a tougher shear bolt, it will still break if under pressure, the lighter shear bolts sometimes break just by turning on pto so they are just totally useless! In my auld fella time I remember him hating the shear bolts, the hips were bad and getting in and out of the tractor didnt suit him, anyway he got the bright idea to re bore the driveshaft, get rid of shear bolt and put in some big strong bolt....needless to say the topper didnt last too long

Indubitable

tabby aspreme wrote: »

Have you used the weed licker on nettles or thistles , what make is it , i would like (need) to get one this year .

It kills anything it comes in contact with, The weed killer I use always kills grass if it touches it, so i lick rushes when they are high and the grass isnt high enough to touch the carpet. I attach the licker to the quad bike and away i go. Couldn't tell you my models name but it looks like this:



If you have a field that you haven't looked after in a few years and it is bad land that is always damp and the rushes are so thick that they have completely overgrown the field then I use a sprayer.

reilig

kingofthe3rdyrs wrote: »

It kills anything it comes in contact with, The weed killer I use always kills grass if it touches it, so i lick rushes when they are high and the grass isnt high enough to touch the carpet. I attach the licker to the quad bike and away i go. Couldn't tell you my models name but it looks like this:



If you have a field that you haven't looked after in a few years and it is bad land that is always damp and the rushes are so thick that they have completely overgrown the field then I use a sprayer.

Its a RoCo licker. My old man bought one of the first ones that Tom Roche ever made in his factory in Gurteen and he did a little bit for hire with it - about 15 years ago now. It was a big hit around here for the first few years, but the last few years have seen them less popular, and ours, while still working, is sitting in a shed for the last 5 years.

The licker does a great job on rushes that are growing, kills them dead. But it does not stop the regrowth. Within 12 months the rushes come up again. The only way to kill the rushes for at least 3 to 5 years is to spray them with Mortone or MCPA. The licker will kill what's standing up. The sprayer goes to the heart of the rush root.

You will also find that spraying is just as economical as licking - you'll be licking every year or every second year, but you will only have to spray every fourth or fifth year.

That's our personal experience anyway. Maybe others have different views??

Figerty

I agree with spraying them, but I think following up the following years with the Licker should give good control. The licker won't hit the small rushes.

I used to cut with a finger bar in Low top gear on a MF35 or even Low Second to keep the ground speed low but the revs up. Keep the blade sharp and the fingers pointed with a rub of a fill or small grinder.

One thing you can do is tile the fingers upward slightly if you can adjust them at this stage. I bought a Disc mower last but had to revert to the finger bar as the ground condition wouldn't allow me to travel the ground.

Don't throw away the finger bar mower!

SomethingElse

Figerty wrote: »

Don't throw away the finger bar mower!

I won't! It's a handy yoke! Use it on a MF35X myself

pakalasa

The finger bar is great too for cutting briars around by the hedge.
The last 3 years were so wet I wasn't able to do them. Hopefully this year!

Iferguson

SomethingElse wrote: »

Tried mowing rushes with an old finger-bar mower lately, but it kept getting clogged with dead grass. Would newer style mowers be able to mow rushes easily? What would be the cheapest option out of these?

Check out this video it shows a Conor side mounted topper, topping rushes with ease. and aren't too dear to buy second

http://youtu.be/VkpnHOsOVd0

ally k

We have a 9 ft mcconnel rhino heavy duty topper great machine for rushes we normally cut them about 9 inches from the ground take off all the brown tops easier on the machine too rusher are brutal to cut at the stump spray with mcpa when they start to grow green again make the spray strong leave them then and they will dissolve into the ground and grass will grow up thru them ....waste of time if you dont cut first....

PN14

Lads if you were going to try and introduce some seed into the field afterward cutting rushes would it be better to spray with MCPA or would roundup or something similar be better on the regrowth of the rushes after cutting. Have cut a field around three weeks ago which is really all rushes. Regrowth just starting to come now. There is very little existing grass in field as the previous owner had neglected it for years (we bought it as part of sale of a much better second field which we had rented from the said owner). The field is very peaty and not an option for ploughing & reseeding so was thinking of over seeding it, harrow and light coat of slurry maybe. What do you think would be better for the spray off of the regrowth of the rushes?

quadboy

Whats the best way to tackle thick heavy rushes, cut then spray regrowth or just spray/lick them and leave them rot away?

PN14

Generally seems to be better to cut and then treat the regrowth as its growing its supposed to get a better kill as spray gets drawn into roots at growing stage. I'd say treatment methods all work probably depends on what you have. i have a spayer but no weed licker so it will be the sprayer for me but I assume a weed licker would also work. Do it from different angles on filed to ensure that all sides of plants get treated

bbam

quadboy wrote: »

Whats the best way to tackle thick heavy rushes, cut then spray regrowth or just spray/lick them and leave them rot away?

If time is right and your worried about ground conditions then you can lick Older stronger rushes. Travel a bit slower and expect a 70% kill rate.
They rot away quite quickly. We wouldn't top them again until the kill is well through them.
If you don't think your going to get time for a regrowth it's better to jump in and do something to get started killing them.

quadboy

I think id prefer a sprayer to a licker cos with licker ud want to go around the field in both directions but iv heard that quad sprayers are no good, boom falling down and things. A quad mower would be handy too

Conmaicne Mara

quadboy wrote: »

I think id prefer a sprayer to a licker cos with licker ud want to go around the field in both directions but iv heard that quad sprayers are no good, boom falling down and things. A quad mower would be handy too

Quad bikes Wales on Ebay do boomless sprayers called the boominator, does 15 or 25 foot fan of spray depending on your pump. Will be trying out mine soon ish on very thick rushes.

quadboy

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Quad bikes Wales on Ebay do boomless sprayers called the boominator, does 15 or 25 foot fan of spray depending on your pump. Will be trying out mine soon ish on very thick rushes.

The nozzle doesn't look that high off the ground

Conmaicne Mara

quadboy wrote: »

The nozzle doesn't look that high off the ground

You can look for problems or solutions

Mount it higher.

quadboy

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

You can look for problems or solutions

Mount it higher.

Oh right didn't think of that its just that some of my rushes are fairly tall. one of these is a lot cheaper too than a licker and even a sprayer with a boom. did you get the 55 or 95 litre one, think id do with the 55

Conmaicne Mara

quadboy wrote: »

Oh right didn't think of that its just that some of my rushes are fairly tall. one of these is a lot cheaper too than a licker and even a sprayer with a boom. did you get the 55 or 95 litre one, think id do with the 55

55 as I have unsafe ground, easy tip over if not paying attention.

quadboy

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

55 as I have unsafe ground, easy tip over if not paying attention.

I have a field that's fairly steep and bumpy and nearly tipped the quad up there before and I was crawling, try out that sprayer so and tell how it is, sound man:D

quadboy

I now like the look of the logic on board sprayer with boom, place in Newmarket that sell logic so might go for a look

mulcher

Recently hired a contractor with a Seppi mulcher to cut rushes. I was not expecting him to be able to cut part of the field as the rushes were so strong. Was delighted to return to the field to find it completely cut. All the rushes were mulched up as well as being cut.

Dampintheattic

mulcher wrote: »

Recently hired a contractor with a Seppi mulcher to cut rushes. I was not expecting him to be able to cut part of the field as the rushes were so strong. Was delighted to return to the field to find it completely cut. All the rushes were mulched up as well as being cut.

You must be delighted with your Seppi mulcher mower, Mulcher.:cool::cool:

mulcher

I could'nt afford it, only had 10 acres to cut

mulcher

Got a contractor in Co. Clare to cut rushes for me with a Seppi mulcher. That was a few weeks ago, the grass growth afterwards has really surprised me.

mf240

waste of time spray them.

Also its fairly obvious "mulcher"that you are the contractor and you are looking for work with your new mulcher,

pakalasa

I've seen a place with rushes mulched aswell. Complete waste of time. Huge horesepower required with no benefit.

mf240

I wouldnt be in a rush to mulch much rushes.

bbam

When were cutting I find that if you run the topper at high RPM with low ground speed they are torn up very well and rot quickly..

Never found any that wouldnt go through it, and we seem to grow them on a commercial scale, soft ground would be more likely a problem..

No idea what mulching costs but I think if you hve a topper, use it and then direct the cost of hiring a mulcher towards treatment..

The key is to treat them, spray or lick when they regrow.. then at worst you'll be dealing with light covers that top easier.. and then treat them again, and again.. I'd view them as a war of attrition rather than a battle that is won by either sides in one pass..

iverjohnston

As the saying go's " the small farmer, like the rush, will always be with us"!

bbam

mf240 wrote: »

waste of time spray them.

Also its fairly obvious "mulcher"that you are the contractor and you are looking for work with your new mulcher,

just on that point..
We could have a sticky with services offered to the farming community.. TBH I've no problem with lads looing for work or promoting a product or service. It could be contained in one sticky and easily moderated there.. Then if we want to look we can and if we don't, then we don't have lads trying to slip in their pitch in other threads... J

Just an idea, other forums on boards do similar stickies

gerardk55

I see the general consensus is that mulching rushes is a waste of time. But for very well established rushes, would mowing with a flail mower in the autumn followed by spraying in the spring be a good solution?

Dampintheattic

gerardk55 wrote: »

I see the general consensus is that mulching rushes is a waste of time. But for very well established rushes, would mowing with a flail mower in the autumn followed by spraying in the spring be a good solution?

I mowed about two acres of very heavy rushes, in October 2011, with a bog standard drum mower. Slow forward speed, and you will get them cut down low. Left them in the row. Didnt shake them out. By following April, they were well rotted. Fertilized. Grazed. Regrowth sprayed off mid summer.

Field today, even after such a wet year, has only a lightish scattering. I mowed them early this year, and have it fertilized and grazed once since.
I will spray at the first opportunity.

bbam

gerardk55 wrote: »

I see the general consensus is that mulching rushes is a waste of time. But for very well established rushes, would mowing with a flail mower in the autumn followed by spraying in the spring be a good solution?

Yes..
Another thing they don't like is to be mowed as late on in the year as possible, it lets the frost down into them which weakens them consideraby..

tony007

We find the finger bar mower very good. Disc mower gets destroyed when it his stones. If you sharpen the blades and go easy they'll get cut.