Read the fine print… the ad says trees that didn’t make the grade. Disease? Insects? Fungus? Half dead? Ask!
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FInally caught the damn chipmunk that’s been after my new plants, dunked the cage directly into a tub of water. Whereupon the varmint pried up the door of the cage enough to swimwriggle thru and out. Which I wouldn’t have said was possible. I checked that door myself.
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What kind of zturn did you purchase and how is it working out for you? I think it’s about time I upgrade from my Cub cadet lawn tractor and get me a zturn. I’ve speced out tons of them and haven’t decided on brand yet. Leaning toward Gravely but also looking at Kubota, Hustler, Bad Boy, and Toro. I want a Scag but no dealers within 60 miles.
I bought a Toro MX5050 . So far I love it. I was using pretty low end Craftsman riders and it has cut my mowing time nearly half. I have lots of trees and the rider would not turn tightly around them so I had to make several trys to get close to them and mow where I had already been.
You have several good names on your list but I think that you should looks at the Toros. My neighbor has a bigger Toro and he likes his also.
https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/riding-mowers/timecutter-mx5050-74770
Edit, I forgot to say to make sure that you look carefully when you buy. For example, the Model just one number lower than the one I have (the MX5000) has a stamped steel deck where this one has a welded deck and the 5050 also has the better hydros. (The Zt2800 vs Zt2200)
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Checked on the four gooseberry plants today, it looks like all of them have sprouted new little canes from below ground. So, it looks like they’re liking their new homes and getting established.
Provided they grow well this year, do y’all think they’ll produce next year?
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Very cool. I see where the model you bought comes with 2800 hydros which is nicer than the EZTs that a lot of residential mowers came with. I haven’t decided on if I’m going to go with a zturn with 2800s or spring for something with 3100s which are considered commercial grade. I was talking to my local Toro dealer that also sells Hustler and he showed me both the Toro Titan 5400 and the Hustler Fast Trac. I liked them both. But I’m leaning toward the Gravely ZT52 HD which is very comparible in specs to the Toro and Hustler but is about $500 cheaper. I also have a Snapper dealer in town too and I’m told they sell a true commercial level machine in the same price range so I’m going to look at them too. I want this to be the last mower I have to purchase.
My Cub has a Kawasaki vtwin and it’s an incredible motor. So I think I’ll likely choose that again on whatever I purchase.
And I just saw your edit. I agree, I want no part of a stamped deck. I definitely will purchase something with a HD welded deck.
I would wait a bit after that for good measure … with some experience you can learn for each variety the right darkness to pick at but with only one you want to give it several days extra to let it sweeten up.
They will lightly produce the 2nd year, and explode the third. Even bigger plants do not produce a lot 2nd year. At least here. What do you have? Which ones? I now you mentioned it, just forgot.
Speed, The best mowers on the planet are Exmark zero turns. I say that with confidence because that’s what you see on the pro’s trailers. Scag is a distant second. Scag will set you back 12-15k. The Exmarks are even pricier. Exmark’s just mow, change the oil every 100 hrs. and grease them and they mow and mow, they just never break down. If you can find them used, they can be a great buy. They also have a quality of cut that is hard to match with a great stripe pattern. I sold commercial mowers for 3 years and I hated Exmark!! You want the manufactured deck(welded plates of steel) not the stamped decks. That manufactured decks are pro decks and give the best cut. Depending on the amount you have to mow, 52, 60, and 72" are the most common sizes. Fine quality mowing instruments.
Phil
My Jeanne plant is doing very well, it has two main stems about 5in long covered with leaves, and a few new sprouts coming up from the ground. I wouldn’t be surprised if it produces a fair amount next year. The other three plants were much smaller when planted and prob won’t produce much of anything next year. I’m just glad they’re sending up new tiny little canes.
Best thing about Jeanne is that it’s practically thornless. The other varieties already have some little spikes on their new sprouts even though they’re maybe a half inch long. I can just imagine how prickly they’ll be when full grown.
Are GBs like raspberries, in that they send up new canes every year and need to be pruned to the ground, or produce on two or three year old canes? Are they known to sucker much, like some rasps?
Me and the Mrs thought it funny that all the GB leaves look like cilantro leaves. Don’t taste like them tho…
That may be true in your area but in my area but in my area the true pros use are Ventrac and Steiner. But they are a whole different beast and are purely commercial. The largest dealer of residential and commercial mowers in my area sells Exmark, Gravely, Altoz, and Cub Cadet. The other large dealer in my area sells Hustler (they invented the zturn) and Toro. I was talking to my dealer last week and we talked a lot about Exmark. He said they don’t sell too many of the low end residential Exmarks like the Quest or Radius because while their residential grade mowers are nice they are very comparable to the competitions residential mowers only they have a 20% premium on price. He said that the commercial Exmarks do hold their own in sales here although they are undoubtedly outsold by the high end Toro’s. I’m not sure I’d call Scag a distant second to Exmark though. Even here without a dealer I still see nearly as many Scags on trailers as I do Exmark. Maybe it’s a regional thing.
I’m targeting a pro-sumer grade z-turn which is a residential rated mower with many commercial features. I am not willing to spend more than $6k on a mower and would prefer to be around $5k. While a $15k zturn would be great I’d probably start targeting a used Ventrac or even a Kubota tractor in that range.
I mentioned this in another thread but my neighbor has an Exmark Lazer Z and it’s a beast. But I think he paid around $12k for it. I’m not willing to do that.
Produce on 2 -5 year old canes. Older canes are removed I think after about 5 years. My 2nd leaf Black Velvet plant had 4 or 5 four foot canes, but only produced a handful of fruit. Other 2nd leafs were not as big. This year it’s covered head to toe with flowers, has about 8 canes. It is huge! Hard to get a good photo right now back-lit and a green plant on green grass. In containers that were left outside unprotected all winter. Left is Hinnomaki Yellow and Black Velvet on the right. Finally producing.
I’m going to add a Jeanne maybe next year. H. Yellow is supposed to be a good one,
Black Velvet is known to be tart, and will be used for mixing with other berries for jam and smoothies. I also have Poorman’s but it is 2nd leaf and hardly has any fruit.What I really want is the Polish cultivar Jewel. I was reading a message by another grower who said if he only could keep one GB it would be Jewel.
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OK, got a better photo to see size. From left to right Hinnomaki Yellow and Black Velvet. Third leaf, and first year they are producing a large crop.
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Thanks for the pics. What are those plants, about 4ft?
I found Jewel GB on One Green World’s site. But they are pretty pricey. Couldn’t find this variety on many other sites, guess it’s just getting going in these parts, considering it’s a Polish variety? Sounds like a tasty GB.
Well besides the gooseberries, to the right is a bird planted crab apple. I never removed it, made jam out of it one year. It is right next to a mountain ash tree.
Yeah OGW wants a lot for it. Hoping to find it elsewhere. I have no plans to add it this year, I just have too much now, I still have 4 plants coming. 2 blueberries and 2 honeyberries.
Freeze alert again tonight, I have to cover everything again. This should be the last one for the season. Strange as it’s nice out, a little chilly, but sunny!
Frost this morning ! I did pull my young fig cuttings inside but my other potted figs braved the cold.
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I’m hoping this was our last frost of the year.
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Your pic of the IE purchased last May 2016 looks exactly like the one I purchased and planted last week. Great looking pic of yours after one year. Nice growth!!
We’re in store for a bunch of rain over the next few days, so no work outside. I’m glad my bro in law came over yesterday to disk our veggie plots. I finished liming them and putting down ferts. So, this rain ought to mix it in really well. After it dries off later this week, I’ll do some tilling and we’ll get our potatoes and sweet taters in the ground.
Today and tomorrow will be good days for me to finish transplanting the rest of peppers, herbs and other seedlings.
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