An attachment system for attaching a crop saving accessory to a cutting header where the cutting header comprises a knife mounted along a lower front edge thereof and a discharge opening in a middle rear portion thereof. The header cuts plants and moves the plants laterally to the discharge opening where the plants move rearward through the discharge opening. The system comprises an accessory engagement mechanism on a rear portion of the crop saving accessory configured to engage a header engagement mechanism mounted on the cutting header. A first end of a tether is attached to the crop saving accessory and a second end of the tether is adapted for attachment to a tether location on the cutting header. The tether is configured such that when the accessory engagement mechanism is disengaged from the header engagement mechanism, the tether prevents the crop saving accessory from moving through the discharge opening.
