Leaf Collection

[kernal]

Thinking I need a faster way to clear up the foot of leaves in the yard. Way to many to just mulch up and leave on the ground. I was looking at the Trac Vac pto driven unit, kinda pricey. Any other option?

Scott

 

[ragkar]

I've built a fifteen foot mulch pile for the shredded leaves. The leaves are blown into a pile and the Mac shredder reduces the volume by six to one. A couple time a year I use my bucket to turn it over.

 

[Maxfli]

I have a PTO Trac Vac on my 2210. Bought just the 3 point assembly used. Then added a Rubbermaid trailer. I guess have around $600 in it and it probably could use new hoses which will cost another $250 or so. But here are my thoughts, the PTO option is one less motor to maintain, and it is almost indestructable. The unit also has an 8" intake and exhaust, I think a lot of these other units are 6 or 7", so I rarely clog the unit up. I have a lot leaves, nuts and whatever, mostly all ends up in the trailer. Best attachment I own. $2500 for new one is a big investment, but something used can be a bargain. Right now is probably not the best time to buy though.

My 2 cents!

 

[kernal]

I have been looking for a used one for the last few months, no luck. It looks like trac vac sells it minus the trailer, which I have one I can make work.

 

[msengstock]

I use a DR lawn/leaf vac. Similar to the TracVac, but not pto driven - it uses a Briggs engines and 8inch pipes. The hopper holds quite a bit - 250 gallons and chops up the leaves pretty good. The hitch is a bit screwy on the model I have (it uses a hitch plate and attaches to the plate with two pins about 19 inches apart - I bolt the hitch plate to my ballast box) .... the "commerical" models use the typical single pin hitch that a typical dump cart would use and also holds more and a bigger engine, etc ... that one is about $2000 and has a manual feed chipper shoot also. The one I have doesn't chip (its about 3 yrs old) and I think I bought it for about $1200.

With two acres surrounded by mature oaks and maples, I don't know how I lived with out it.

 

[WH401]

What I plan to do is build about a 6x6x6 box to go on the pallet forks and chain it down so it can't move. Blow all the leaves into piles, run over the piles with the push mower while chopping them and bagging them. Then keep dumping the bag into the box until the box is full. Drive the tractor to the woods and dump the box in the woods. Then repeat until all the leaves are gone, shouldn't take long.

 

[cast_and_blast]

I picked up a JD PowerFlow for my 62C deck along with a MC519 material collection cart. These are used on the X series and the 4xx series JD's. I had a "hitch" frame welded up that attaches to my 3-point - this raises and lowers the MC519 and secures it so it trails my JD 2305.

I bought the powerflow and the MC519 used - works great. Paid ~$200 to have the hitch made including a set of 3-point pins.

Picks up leaves very well, raises the MC519 for dumping, no extra motor to make noise or maintain. And, it's JD green.

Good luck - there are options! I think ProTero makes a unit too. TracVac PTO is nice, but $2500 is a chunk of change.

Scott

 

[RalphVa]

ooo! One of you is actually dumping leaves in the woods. That's kinda like taking some gold to the woods. I go out in the late fall and pick up bags of leaves that silly town people just leave at the curb. Then I chop them up with my MacKissic into a big pile. Turn the pile a few times during the year, adding sawdust from my cabinet maker every once in a while (add high N organic fert to the sawdust to bring C:N ratio to about 30:1).

If I had a lot of leaves that my walk behind mulching mowers wouldn't handle (so far; this has NEVER happened), I'd prolly get a landscape rake to rake them to nearby my mulch pile.

I don't fully compost mine, but I know how. Just as mulch, they'll be a great mulch to retain water and will compost by the next year.

Folks with small yards should just buy some 25' sections of fence. Make either one 8' diameter circle or a couple of 4' diameter ones. Dump the leaves in there. Even without turning or anything, they'll reduce themselves (with help of worms from underneath) down quite a bit by the next spring.

Ralph

 

[rjgogo]

Thinking I need a faster way to clear up the foot of leaves in the yard. Way to many to just mulch up and leave on the ground. I was looking at the Trac Vac pto driven unit, kinda pricey. Any other option?

Scott

I just bit the bullet and ordered one. I have I think about 2 acres cleared and a ton of trees. Lots of Maple and Oak as well as pines. All around the cleared area are trees and lots of them. Amortized over years and taking into consideration the value of my time I figured what the He!!. Last year I spent days and days dealing with the cleanup to save the newly planted grass. I figure I can gain back about 20 hours this year alone with all of the machinations I went through last year to clear things.

I like the idea of no more engines to maintain and using that PTO I paid for on my little 2305. The plan is to pile the mulch, water maybe add something and turn it with the loader once in a while and maybe I can have something I can use later. I pick it up next Saturday. Looking forward to it. Let me know if you are interested in how it goes.

All, any ideas on how to speed the composting?

 

[cast_and_blast]

They make composting additives - your local farm/garden store will have some. Not sure if they are necessary or not, I'm not a composting pro.

Scott

 

[KennedyDiesel]

I picked up a JD PowerFlow for my 62C deck along with a MC519 material collection cart. These are used on the X series and the 4xx series JD's. I had a "hitch" frame welded up that attaches to my 3-point - this raises and lowers the MC519 and secures it so it trails my JD 2305.

I bought the powerflow and the MC519 used - works great. Paid ~$200 to have the hitch made including a set of 3-point pins.

Picks up leaves very well, raises the MC519 for dumping, no extra motor to make noise or maintain. And, it's JD green.

Good luck - there are options! I think ProTero makes a unit too. TracVac PTO is nice, but $2500 is a chunk of change.

Scott

I have the Powerflo and MC519 as well. Your setup sounds even better than mine. I love the way this setup chops the leaves, but the hitch on the MC519 leaves a lot to be desired. Also my 519 is starting to rot pretty bad. Once the rust gets started under powercoat...

 

[cast_and_blast]

My brother has one on his X5xx series JD - I know what you mean about the hitch.

Good news is that used MC519's aren't hard to find in nice shape for a few hundred bucks.

Scott

 

[TBDonnelly]

All, any ideas on how to speed the composting?

About a month before leaf season starts I super preheat the compost pile with lots of grass clippings, thoroughly blending them into some existing compost. The clippings starts 'cooking' almost immediately. Now I have a head start when the leaves come down. The leaves come in large volumes so I like to blend/turn them into the pile same day that I pick them up, thoroughly mixing them with the existing compost. I repeat this all through fall leaf season and then turn/flip the pile about every 30 days thereafter.

Don

 

[rjgogo]

About a month before leaf season starts I super preheat the compost pile with lots of grass clippings, thoroughly blending them into some existing compost. The clippings starts 'cooking' almost immediately. Now I have a head start when the leaves come down. The leaves come in large volumes so I like to blend/turn them into the pile same day that I pick them up, thoroughly mixing them with the existing compost. I repeat this all through fall leaf season and then turn/flip the pile about every 30 days thereafter.

Don

Thanks, This even works in the winter?

 

[TBDonnelly]

Thanks, This even works in the winter?

Can't tell where you're located but in Michigan I've turned the compost pile in January and it was still cooking. You can tell it's cooking by the melted snow spots on the pile.

Don

 

[billb3]

I have a DR Commercial Tow-Behind 13.74
Hooked to Husqvarna Rider Mower, though.

Wished I had bought it 30 years ago.
I'll clean up My 2 acres of oak leaves, my neighbor's 1/2 acre of oak leaves and my sister's 2 acres down the street. All in one weekend, all in one day if I start early enough. All chewed up ready to put in the compost or use as mulch. I pile up one huge pile and use it during the year to add to lawn clippings and use some for under fruit trees. I no longer have lawn in the orchard because I have so many chewed leaves to use as mulch.
I use 25 foot rings of fence for compost piles, too.

Would spend October and Novemeber raking up just my own yard and a leaf chewer to chew up the oak leaves and be sore at the end of the day.
No more.

 

[rjgogo]

Can't tell where you're located but in Michigan I've turned the compost pile in January and it was still cooking. You can tell it's cooking by the melted snow spots on the pile.

Don

Changed my profile. North Central IL, in other words, a bit nearer to Chicago then Bloomington.

 

[rjgogo]

BTW, had a chance to work the new Trac Vac and it rocks. Saves us many hours every weekend. In the same time I can mow the yard plus 25% more I can also collect the leaves. May not be for everyone but for us it is a good tool.

Last year consisted of blowing piles into the woods, blowing piles into a tarp to burn and more blowing piles. much easier to vac it all up. still working out what to do with the big pile in the woods. Figure I can wet it and let it mulch over the winter I hope.