April

VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2
D I R T
&
G R A S S
P R E S S
MAY 8, 2011
D&G EQUIPMENT, INC. AND 100.7 WITL TEAM
UP FOR FAN FRENZY 2011
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
JOHN DEERE Z720
ZERO TURN
MOWER
2
MICHIGAN AG
FACTS
2
WAYS TO PREPARE FOR A SAFE
MOWING SEASON
3
EXMARK
PROPANE POWERED EQUIPMENT
3
HELPFUL
4
MULCHING TIPS
MEET THE CREW–
MIKE COOPER
4
WITL and D&G Equipment, Inc. have paired up to
deliver Fan Frenzy 2011. Fan Frenzy is a game found on
WITL.com where Nascar fans can pick their favorites and win
awesome prizes. Each race reveals a new winner who will receive prizes such as CDs, D&G Equipment, Inc. gift cards and
more. The grand prize winner will receive a $1,000.00 gift card
to D&G Equipment, Inc. at the end of the season.
So how does it work? Sign up for an account on WITL.com.
Each race you can pick the 10 drivers you think will finish 1st
through 10th and your top 15 races count for your overall score.
If you do not make a driver selection at least 15 minutes before
the start of each race, the computer will automatically pick your
drivers for you.
The season has already started but you only need 15 races to
count towards your overall score. Sign up today to start playing.
Please visit the website or click here for additional details and
rules.
HOW TO DETHATCH YOUR LAWN
CLICK ON THESE
SPECIAL POINTS
OF INTEREST:
Find out if you have a thatch problem: Dig down into your grass. A little thatch is good for your lawn
• De-thatching Your
Lawn Video How-To
If you find a brown mat, a half-inch thick or more, your lawn definitely needs dethatching. That thick layer
blocks water and air from getting down to the soil. It can also harbor insects and diseases. A tow-behind dethatcher will make the job of dethatching faster and easier.
Additional Tips:
• Details and Specs on
John Deere Z720A
Thatch is a layer of roots and lower shoots that forms between the soil surface and the green vegetation
Follow these steps:
• Exmark Eco-Friendly
Mowers
1. Mow your lawn nice and short to make it easier for the
de-thatcher tines to get down into the thatch.
• Attachments for John
Deere Riding Mowers
2. Pull the thatcher over your lawn and check the dethatching depth.
• Toro residential
mowing products and
support
3. Set the depth so the teeth get down in the thatch.
4. Rake up the old thatch and place in your compost pile.
•Dethatch when your grass is growing well and
can quickly recover
•Never dethatch when your grass is stressed from
heat or drought
•Mulching your clippings does not cause lawn thatch
•Closely follow water and fertilizer recommendations
for your area
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2
Page 2
John Deere Z720 Zero-Turn Mower Offers Muscle and Sophistication
The John Deere Z720 has the
•
Durability: Cast iron front
muscle you need featuring a 25
caster arms and forks for
HP air-cooled Kohler Command
increased durability.
V-Twin motor. The 60” 7 Iron II
mower deck gives you the
•
Large Fuel Tank: 7 gallon
clean, close cut of sophistica-
fuel tank offers large ca-
tion that every land owner de-
pacity and easy access.
sires. The Z720 features make
it easy to give you the cut you
•
Available Attachments:
want at a price you can afford.
•
Check out these features:
•
2 Bag Material
Collection System
Brake & Go: Simply apply
•
Engine Guard
•
Mulch Kit
the parking break and turn
the key to start the mower.
•
Superior Controllability:
10CC Piston Wheel Motor
•
Warranty: 2 year or 700
LIST PRICE $8,499.00
hour warranty.
D&G PRICE $7,138.00
for increased power and
efficiency.
MICHIGAN AG–FACTS
Courtesy of Michigan Agri-Business Association — www.miagbiz.org
While not changing its estimate of ending corn stocks at 675 million bushels,
the USDA did increase their estimate of
how much corn will be used for ethanol
production. They now peg that number
at 5 billion bushels, 50 million bushels
more than last month. That compares to
just 1.6 billion used five years ago and
only 628 million bushels ten years ago.
The agency says that strong blender
incentives and positive ethanol producer
margins driven by higher gasoline prices
have spurred the surge in ethanol production. The total now represents 40.2%
of the corn harvested in 2010.
U.S. winter wheat crop generally is not in good shape. Crop conditions for
the week ended April 3rd, for selected states, is shown below:
State
Very Poor
Poor
Fair
Good
Excellent
Colorado
16
27
41
16
-
Kansas
13
21
35
27
4
Michigan
1
8
22
52
17
Montana
-
2
28
61
9
Ohio
1
3
32
49
15
Oklahoma
22
31
31
13
3
Oregon
-
1
32
46
21
South Dakota
1
1
36
55
7
Texas
31
30
27
12
-
Washington
1
1
16
60
22
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2
Page 3
WAYS T O P R E PA R E FO R A SA F E M OW I N G S E A S O N
inclines and wet conditions.
Please read these helpful safety
tips for a safe mowing season.
•
Like all lawn mowers, zeroturns require care to prevent
accidents when mowing
around water, drop-offs, steep
Read and understand the
operator’s manual before operation. The manual provides important maintenance and safety
information.
•
Do not operate the mower
when people, especially children, are in the area.
•
Allow plenty of safe clear-
ance in the vicinity of drop-offs
like retaining walls, culverts and
ditches.
•
Do not mow on unstable
ground or slopes greater than 15
degrees.
•
Be alert and use caution when
making turns -- keep movements
deliberate and steady.
•
Make certain safety devices are
working properly, and never bypass or remove any safety equipment.
EXMARK PROPANE POWERED EQUIPMENT
Why Propane?
•
Propane is considered a GREEN Alternative Fuel as defined by the
Energy Policy Act of 1992. It includes reduced green house gas
emissions and a reduced carbon footprint as compared to gasoline.
Economic Considerations?
•
Federal, state and local tax incentives and rebates.
•
Establish a fuel supply contract with propane supplier.
Available Models?
•
Zero-Turn Riders- 60" & 72" Lazer® Z S-Series and 60" Lazer Z XSeries units. Feature’s Kawasaki® FX801V V-Twin propane engines.
•
Walk-Behind Mowers- 48" & 52" Turf Tracer® S-Series, and 52"
Turf Tracer X-Series. Feature’s Kawasaki FX600V and FX691V
V-Twin electric start propane engines.
VISIT US ON THE WEB
MEET THE CREW
WWW.DGEQUIPMENT.COM
Mike Cooper has been with
D&G Equipment, Inc. since
February 2004. He started
with the company as a Parts
Clerk and is now our
Corporate Parts Manager.
Mike has 3 daughters and a
grandson. He finds combines
most intriguing. “Without
combines you can’t get the
crop to the table,” Mike says.
“The entire agricultural cycle
is amazing, but it takes the
combine to bring it all home.”
D&G EQUIPMENT, INC.
110 S. Lincoln St
CHARLOTTE, MI
(517) 543-2540
1047 N. Shiawassee St.
CORUNNA, MI
(989) 743-8844
710 N. Cedar St.
MASON, MI
(517) 676-9588
1155 S. Milford Rd.
HIGHLAND, MI
(248) 887-2410
290 N. Railroad St.
RIVES JUNCTION, MI
(517) 569-2405
3915 Tractor Dr.
HOWELL, MI
(517) 540-6141
2525 E. Grand River Ave.
WILLIAMSTON, MI
(517) 655-4606
P R O V I D I N G
A G
&
T U R F
S O L U T I O N S
F O R
T H E
L I F E
Y O U
L I V E .
If you would like more information on D&G Equipment,
Inc. or any article in this newsletter, please contact us at
dgmail@dgequipment.com.
HELPFUL MULCHING TIPS
•
Find out how much you will need. For 3 inches of thick cover, you will need 1 cubic foot of mulch for
every 4 square feet of bed. 1 cubic foot for every 6 square feet will give you a 2 inch thick cover.
•
Most plants prefer “acid” soils, so pine bark is healthier for them than hardwood mulch, and much
healthier than dyed wood chips.
•
Many dyed mulches contain recycled pallets and other waste wood.
These can be bait for termites and actually rob your soil of nutrients
as they decompose.
•
Good mulches turn into soil eventually. Your plants won’t appreciate
being smothered by non-compostable mulches such as cypress or cedar. These products work fine for paths and play areas, but they are
poison for gardens.
Mulching with low-pH shredded
pine bark actually builds your
soil, encouraging feeder root
•
Pine bark mulch has a low pH, which means it is good food for evergreens, blueberries, dogwoods and other acid-loving plants.
•
All mulches are not equally effective at weed control. Fine-ground mulches are much like potting
soils and wind-blown weed seeds or blown grass clippings will sprout and root easily.
•
Course bulk mulches or “nuggets” aren’t so friendly to weed seeds, and they last much longer before
turning to soil, so they make better weed barriers for a much longer period.
-Written by Steven Boehme, owner of Good Seed Nursery & Landscape, Peebles, OH
Click HERE to read full article.
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