Stripes in Lawns

[Charlton John]

I see these lawns that have been freshly cut most likely by a ZTR that have these perfect stripes in the lawn. Is there a special attachement or mower that produces this perfectly manicured look? Or is it just within the quality of the mower? Thanks

 

[ray66v]

The "real" stripes are produced by the rollers at the rear of the cutter heads on reel fairway mowers. They bend the grass in one direction giving the appearance of the stripe.

There are attachments that mimic this effect you can install on your rotary mower. Many guys have made their own.

You can get sort of a striped effect without a roller, as the mower tends to push the grass in one direction. But, there is nothing like the "reel" thing. A reel mower cuts like a scissors, rather than hacking the grass as a rotary does.

I use the fairway mover, nothing like the 8' cut.

 

[MikeD74T]

A good part of that perfectly manicured look also comes from skill of the operator. MikeD74T

 

[ToadHill]

In some cases the striping effect is enhanced by planting different types of grass in accurate bands. Then when the mowing is done the freshly cut grass is a slightly different color.

 

[Charlton John]

Thanks for the replys. I have a fairly decent ZTR (residential) and I can get some mild stripping. My neighbor owns his own landscaping business and has a couple commercial ztr's (nothing too fancy) He has all the same grass planted (Kentucky Blue) but when he is done he has these nice manacured strips I am reffering to which are much more noticable than mine. I pass a house on the way to work, who has not had to cut the lawn for over a month due to dormant season and these stripes are still very visable, this is the look I would like to go for.

 

[ray66v]

Have your neighbor cut your grass.

 

[KentT]

Thanks for the replys. I have a fairly decent ZTR (residential) and I can get some mild stripping. My neighbor owns his own landscaping business and has a couple commercial ztr's (nothing too fancy) He has all the same grass planted (Kentucky Blue) but when he is done he has these nice manacured strips I am reffering to which are much more noticable than mine. I pass a house on the way to work, who has not had to cut the lawn for over a month due to dormant season and these stripes are still very visable, this is the look I would like to go for.

You might find this info helpful...

Lawn Stripe Like The Pros - Popular Mechanics

As stated, it's the rollers. Simplicity patented them in the 1950's but the patent has since expired, and other brands offer them now...

 

[Airic]

This is a very easy mod to create this stripe look. For mine I used a piece of angle iron and flat stock and sandwiched a piece of rubber floor mat in between. The rubber mat combs the grass and lays it down in one direction. The width of this should match the outside width from tire to tire. Some mower mfg's sell kits to acheave this look as well and most are rollers that are install on the back side of the mower deck. I place mine on the back of the mower as it was easier to install and remove if nessessary.

 

[Charlton John]

Have your neighbor cut your grass.

I give it to you that was funny, not really the solution I am looking for though

 

[Charlton John]

You might find this info helpful...

Lawn Stripe Like The Pros - Popular Mechanics

As stated, it's the rollers. Simplicity patented them in the 1950's but the patent has since expired, and other brands offer them now...

Thanks for the link Kent. I might give the book a try but I am a little hesitant only because it states the author of the book is the head grounds guy for the Boston Redsox and being a die hard Yankee fan I dont know if I can bring myself to do it