MMM or bush hog?

[tj53152]

Hello everyone. I'm in the final decision making process on a new tractor. My wife and I have 8 acres in the mountains above Chattanooga. It's hilly, but not too steep.

We planted 4 acres in fescue/orchard/timothy/alfalfa last October for our 2 horses and hope to be able to put them on it after it goes to seed this summer. I'm thinking we'll need to cut it before we put them on it, and 2-3 times a year after that.

OK, now to my question. I'm looking at a Max28 XL and wondering if the Mid-Mount Mower will be suitable for mowing our pasture. Right now it's about 18" - 24" tall and I'm thinking a bush hog may be needed instead of a MMM. We have quite a few trees in the pastures so for maneuverability, the MMM would seem to be the right option. Another solution would be to have a friend of ours cut it the first time with his bush hog and then use our MMM from then on?

I'd appreciate the groups' advice as we hope to make a tractor purchase within the next few weeks.

Thanks.

Terry

 

[nybirdman]

I think a bush-hog will better serve you.Finish mowers are going to take it down to 1.5-2 inches or so.Better height adjustment with the BH.And if you want to take down a little brush or small trees you will have the better tool.
Uneven fields will be tough on a finish mower.You also want to leave a little grazeing for the horses.

 

[SSdoxie]

Bush hog it unless you plan to mower every week or 2. You bush hog around a tree failry easily once you get practiced at it, plus if you trees are like mine (lots of maples) there are always some dead branches to encounter and the bush hog just grinds them up.

 

[MrChris]

I have a finish mower pulled behind a UTV on steep pasture areas that feel unsafe for my tractor. It handles it fine as long as the grass is below a 12" height. If your pastures are fairly flat a finish mower can work, but you have to stay on top of it. A bush hog will give you more flexibility if the grass height gets a little out of hand. Horses can graze a pasture very irregularly as well, choosing to eat consistently in certain areas never letting the grass grow above inches while other areas, especially where they defacate, can get much taller. I had some foxtail areas in my one pasture that with a fairly rainy spring and the horses avoiding it, was well over 2' before I was able to get in and bush hog it. Again, a bush hog gives you much better flexibity.

 

[JimRB]

Pastures grow rocks, sometimes big rocks. After a few years you may be safe to mow with a regular finish mower. I would not recommend a finish mower for a year and definitely not for the first spring mowing after winter heaves of rocks and boulders. Our horse keep things grazed down and we chopped our 9 acres into 4 sections so they do not overgraze any one area. We do not have that much rock harvesting to do any more but the first year was more than a few buckets of rocks that would do harm to a finish mower.

 

[tj53152]

Thanks for the responses guys. My local dealer had the same opinion. The good thing is a bush hog is cheaper than a MMM - there may be a box blade in my future now!