Lawn Care Forum banner

P G Rs

2K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  ArTurf 
#1 ·
If we are using alot of trimmer line along fences and the like,(esp. chainlink) would it not be worth the investment to try applying a PGR in these areas to cut back on expenses??

Would using the PGR save more than the extra line used plus labor??

Or do they wipe each other out cost wise after labor and expenses??

I was just wondering because I havent seen anything where people talked about using them for this type of scenario. Was primarily them trying to figure out application rates and how they worked for retarding the growth of turf in regards to mowing.

Thanks for the help.
Kris
 
#2 ·
Kris, I just received 2 gallons of Embark PGR that I ordered from AMLeonard at 37.28/gallon. The local dealer wanted $39/QUART !!! so this looks good to me. I have close to a mile of fence line and have tried everything from mowing close, push wheel string trimmer, weed whacker, roundup, you name it. Since it's a 6 week project to see if it really works, try to remind me in a couple of months and I'll let you know how it does OR you could invest a few bucks and try it yourself! Good luck, Will
 
#5 ·
Josh
Keep after those studies!!! They will pay off -trust me.

Mr. Z thanks for the valuable info. I will check them out and let you know how we made out as well. I will pass this along to Mike Paulsen as well. he was the one I was discussing this with, so if you have a list please add him to it.

Good Luck this season!
Kris
 
#6 ·
Kris I have been thinking about this and this is what I came up with without getting to try it out on a yard. If you will be able to trim every other week and it last 6 weeks then you'll save 3 weeks of trimming. If your trim time is about 30 percent of the job and your running $50 an hour then thats saving $45 in the 6 week period. I guess it comes down to how much the chemical cost is.
 
#7 ·
Mike has the right way on this one, Kris. Use of turf PGRs is necessarily based on experience with specific site. Turf PGR will reduce time spent emptying bagger and dumping debris for bagging contractors. Will cut time in spring mowing for mulching, discharging contractors by eliminating, or at least drastically reducing, the need for double, triple cuts. Most who have tried them have agreed that time savings - payroll & equip wear - more than offsets the chemical cost and appl time. Improving productivity in spring rush and rain is a great benefit - how do U measure that in $$$?

But you cannot just say across the board that your trimming time will be cut in half. You will probably still want to trim the highly visible parts of your properties at each mowing. But the distant fenceline that would be a jungle if you just skipped one week in May, you may be able to just do every third visit. Intermediate edges might be done every other visit.

Another great use of PGR is in fall overseeding. Once treated a new rye lawn with Primo in mid-Aug, 5 days later cut to 1 inch, and slit seeded bluegrass into it. Normally rye would have re-grown so much most of the blue would be smothered out, but did not have to put a mower back on site for 5 weeks. Go with newer technologies for general turf growth reduction. The older classes of PGRs were rather critical in application, easy to misapply. And results were not as consistent. Some specific reactions to older PGRs are still useful today though.
 
#9 ·
My experience with growth reg is limited, but I don't know how I would do without!

Use Cycocel on my hibiscus and the results were beyond expectation. Usually by the time hibiscus starts to produce flower buds its time to trim the green vegetation as it will easily get way tall. Usually 3 weeks and your back at it. The hedges look fine but no flowers. Now why would anyone plant hibiscus and not want to look at there awesome flowers in all their glory?

The usual sitch is people just let them go if they can, say its in a place where the branches won't creep into pathways and such. Hey hibiscus looks great uncut and tall. But the property manager does not want tall, leggy hedges. For years I would just cut away all those flowers to the dismay of some residents!

My friend in the buis turned me on to Cycocel and just one week after trimming gave one application. That was all I did for the hedge for 3 months! Very profitable!

And since the green vegetation was under control the blooms just kept on coming. So much so that at times the entire hedge was red. Kind of scary to see such results. I hoped I didnt do something to harm. But not a problem. Just cut and reapply.

To rap it up lets see. Much less trimming means less wear-n-tear on the H.T. I can concentrate on areas of the property that need more attention. Less TIME on job WITH THE SAME/BETTER RESULTS and not worry if its time to trim hedges! My service to client is enhanced without additional time spent. Its like having one more worker without the hassle. The hedges never looked better. And wear-n-tear on my back much less indeed. Less clippngs to pick-up and disposal is reduced at least 1/2. In essence it means PROFIT pure and simple.

There is prolly more to add, but if you could find a tool that could do all of this for your service I think it would at least deserve a heads up eh? Well them by all means use the tool and reap the benefits.

One last thing Kris is that I never told the property manager what I did to the hedge, he just says how great it looks. Hopeful he dont read this post!

Keep Pushin On!

Aloha,

Kevin
 
#11 ·
My experience with growth reg is limited, but I don't know how I would do without!

Use Cycocel on my hibiscus and the results were beyond expectation. Usually by the time hibiscus starts to produce flower buds its time to trim the green vegetation as it will easily get way tall. Usually 3 weeks and your back at it. The hedges look fine but no flowers. Now why would anyone plant hibiscus and not want to look at there awesome flowers in all their glory?

The usual sitch is people just let them go if they can, say its in a place where the branches won't creep into pathways and such. Hey hibiscus looks great uncut and tall. But the property manager does not want tall, leggy hedges. For years I would just cut away all those flowers to the dismay of some residents!

My friend in the buis turned me on to Cycocel and just one week after trimming gave one application. That was all I did for the hedge for 3 months! Very profitable!

And since the green vegetation was under control the blooms just kept on coming. So much so that at times the entire hedge was red. Kind of scary to see such results. I hoped I didnt do something to harm. But not a problem. Just cut and reapply.

To rap it up lets see. Much less trimming means less wear-n-tear on the H.T. I can concentrate on areas of the property that need more attention. Less TIME on job WITH THE SAME/BETTER RESULTS and not worry if its time to trim hedges! My service to client is enhanced without additional time spent. Its like having one more worker without the hassle. The hedges never looked better. And wear-n-tear on my back much less indeed. Less clippngs to pick-up and disposal is reduced at least 1/2. In essence it means PROFIT pure and simple.

There is prolly more to add, but if you could find a tool that could do all of this for your service I think it would at least deserve a heads up eh? Well them by all means use the tool and reap the benefits.

One last thing Kris is that I never told the property manager what I did to the hedge, he just says how great it looks. Hopeful he dont read this post!

Keep Pushin On!

Aloha,

Kevin
Is this an over the top application?
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top