How to mow our meadow without losing seeds

[Pam W]

We have a small meadow which has now quite a lot of yellow rattle patches. We plan to mow it soon with a small tractor which has a grass collector. My question is will the grass collector collect the yellow rattle seeds as well as all the grass and would it be best to cut the meadow and leave the mowings for a few days and then collect them? Would this give the seeds more chance to reach the ground? Thanks for any advice.

[Steve Pollard]

Rattle seed has been ripe for at least 6 weeks now, and the much of it will have fallen to the ground already. The mechanical action of cutting+collecting will knock some more of it out, but additionally cutting, then cutting+collecting will further help - if you want to make really sure. The act of it laying on the ground for a few days will not make any difference to the rattle seed, as it is already dry, but it will help dry the rest of the cuttings, lessening the amount you have to collect up. Good luck!

[Pam W]

Thank you Steve, having less to collect is appealing, as there is a lot of bulk when freshly cut!