Best way to clean up pine needles?

[djsmokin]

What is the best way to clean up pine needles? Please don't say the 4-letter word like Rake. I know that works.

Here in North Florida there is tons of them and after they winter they are a bit#h to get up.

[Green Pastures]

OK, Get a $10,000 Walker mower, forget the rake.

[Navig8r]

OK, Get a $10,000 Walker mower, forget the rake. ...............

Or a Lazer with an Ultra Vac................ or lots of other machines w/collection systems.................

But seriously.............. Maybe one of those Walk-Behind Lawn Vacuums would work?

I know the rental centers up here rent them for leaf cleanup, I don't know how well they would work for needles..... might be worth a 1/2 day rental to see if it works......
Or how about a push blower to create a pile, then use that 4-letter thing to get em onto a tarp......

Good Luck

[greenman]

Collect the pine needles, and use them in mulch beds. Make money twice.

[LB Landscaping]

I've got a property scheduled for a clean-up with a ton of pine needles. We use or BP blowers to get the heavy stuff up and then the Walker to suck up the rest. I'm going to give my power broom a shot at it this year.

[Ray&Christine]

I used a 21" toro to suck up some of them and my husband raked/blew the huge clumps in small piles all over the backyard.I had to go back and forth over lapping 3 times.Our walker wouldn't fit in the backyard.I agree the walker works best on pine needles.Thank god the customer wasn't fussy cause there was still some needles left.sorry I used the four letter word.

christine

[djsmokin]

Thanks everyone. I already have the $8000 Walker. I have the model C. It gets alot of them up on couple of passes, but if you do a great job on the winter embeded ones I have had to use the 4-letter word item....RAKE. Darn it, I said that again.

Keep those ideas coming for me...Dj

[JJ Lawn]

Originally posted by djsmokin
Thanks everyone. I already have the $8000 Walker. I have the model C. It gets alot of them up on couple of passes, but if you do a great job on the winter embeded ones I have had to use the 4-letter word item....RAKE. Darn it, I said that again.

Keep those ideas coming for me...Dj

If you have the Walker, then get yourself the de-thatcher. Does wonders on those embeded needles. Push them right up into a pile.

The best option though, is do the yards every week, and stay ahead of the needles. don't let them build up.

[Runner]

Also, if you're picking up the real heavy thick stuff underneath trees, a 5 or 7 prong pitchfork works well for gathering them, and after that, anything left over is up on the surface so it is easil gathered with a rake.

[crawdad]

Looks like, from these posts, that you can't avoid using a RAKE. Why is everyone scared of RAKES? My RAKE is three feet wide, I ain't skeered of it, but I charge for the use of it. When that three foot RAKE goes in the truck, I'm makin some dough-re-mi. Ain't that why we're out there?
If you can't make money RAKING, you're using the wrong RAKE. Buy a professional RAKE. You'll be glad you did.
Crawdad