LawnCare.net

If you have more than a postage stamp yard, a riding mower is a must.  You can either stick with a traditional gasoline powered riding mower, or a new, electric riding lawn mower.  To get the most life out of your mower, you need to select the type of mower that is right for your circumstances and maintain it properly.

Selecting a Riding Mower: Gas or Electric?

Gas powered lawn mowers are much easier to find and less expensive than electric lawn mowers.  There are a few electric riding mowers, in particular the Electric Ox, made in Canada.  Its cost puts it out of reach for most homeowners, though.  The electric riding lawn mowers put out fewer emissions, but at a price of about $10,000 per mower, it would take years to recoup the cost savings in fuel.  Electric riding mowers are much better for the environment in terms of emissions, though the electrical power for the battery has to come from somewhere.  That means that the environmental impacts of an electric riding lawn mower ultimately lie in the power source of the local area where a homeowner resides.

Maintaining the Lawn Mower

Regardless of the type of riding lawn mower you have, in order for it to work well you need to maintain it.  Of utmost importance is keeping the blades sharpened.  Sharp blades provide a clean cut, which helps keep disease from entering the plant.  Additionally, a sharp mower blade produces a nicer looking lawn.  Dull blades will rip the grass blade, making a raggedy edge that will unevenly die at the edges.  If you look across a lawn that has been cut several days prior, and it has a whitish look, it is because the blades were not properly sharpened.

Benefits of Riding Lawn Mowers

It is much quicker to mow with a riding mower than with a push mower—self-propelled or not.  If your health is not the best, a riding mower can allow you to maintain your own yard without needing the care of an outside professional.  Another benefit of riding lawn mowers is that many of them can also work with attachments such as snow plows and small trailers.  They are versatile tools, more than just mowers.  New zero turn mowers allow for even mowing of the yard with less trimming, as well.

Always purchase your riding lawn mower from a reputable dealer who can help with service if the need arises, and maintain the mower to factory specifications.

The way you mow your lawn makes a big difference in the overall health of the lawn, and the appearance of your house.  A well mowed lawn is like the frame to a painting.  If the lawn looks raggedy, nobody will notice your house or garden, but if the lawn is well-maintained, the rest of your yard will shine!  Here are some tips for mowing the lawn quickly and efficiently.

Perfect Conditions for Mowing

Your lawn will bounce back much more quickly if you mow it when conditions are good for mowing.  It is never, for instance, ideal to mow when the lawn is wet.  You can mow wet grass, but in a perfect world, you will mow grass that is not wet.  For most people, this means mowing in the morning after dew has evaporated, or in the evening before the dew has fallen.  The reason you don’t want to mow wet grass is that fungal and bacterial diseases travel like wildfire when water is involved.  And, fungal problems in the lawn are some of the most difficult to eradicate, so it is better to just not open the door to them.

Conversely, you don’t want to mow when it is too dry, as the grass will be stressed and not recover well from the mowing.  You will learn when it is the perfect time to mow your own lawn.  You will learn to read the weather patterns, and watch the grass, before and after mowing.

Preparing the Mower

It is a good idea to get in the habit of cleaning the mower after mowing every time.  But, that doesn’t always happen.  Therefore, it is an even better idea to check the mower before mowing.  Check the fuel to make sure it is at the right level.  Also, check the oil.  Make sure that the undercarriage is clean, and that the blades are sharp.  (Blades need sharpening after about 10 hours of mowing.)  Adjust the height, if necessary.  You never want to remove more than 1/3 of the grass leaf at one time.  More or less can cause the plant stress. The mowing height depends upon the type of grass in the lawn, the time of year, and how fast the lawn is growing.  Never set the mower blade on one setting and leave it.  Always adjust if necessary. Lastly, unless you are removing a lot of grass, set the mower on mulching.  Leaving the grass clippings on the lawn is good for the lawn, and returns nitrogen to the soil.

Check the Lawn

Do a quick walk around the lawn to remove any debris:  twigs, rocks, toys, hoses, etc.  It will save time during mowing, and you’ll make sure that you don’t injure yourself by running over something that you shouldn’t run over.

Mow!

After completing the above steps, you’re ready to mow.  First, you will want to pick a line and stick to it.  Vary the pattern each time you mow to ensure that the grass grows evenly, and you don’t compact the soil with constant tire traffic.  Good line directions are as follows:

• Parallel to the house
• Perpendicular to the house
• Diagonal in relation to the house

Switching between those three patterns will give the lawn a nice look all season.  While mowing, overlap each pass by about two inches to be sure that you are giving the line an even cut.

Keep safety first and foremost in your mind, and always push the mower forward.  That might sound like common sense, but some people still push and pull the mower back and forth.  Most mowers are designed to cut only when moving forward so pulling the mower not only wastes your energy, it could put you in danger.  If you were to fall or slip while pulling the mower back toward you, you could be cut by the blades.

Follow the 1/3 Removal Rule

As mentioned up top, never remove more than 1/3 of the grass blade at a time.  If it has rained a lot, and you’ve been unable to mow, and the lawn has gotten away from you, slowly work the lawn back down to its optimum height.  Going slowly will be much better for the grass, in the long run.

Now that you know how to mow your lawn properly, go mow!

We do not advise that mowing wet grass is a  good idea, but sometimes it cannot be helped.  If you’ve been out of town, or it has been raining non-stop, or you have a party coming up and you have to mow before the big event, there are some techniques that can make the mowing easier, and keep your lawn healthy.

Reasons Not to Mow Wet Grass

Before we get to the techniques to help mowing wet grass less harmful for the grass, here are some reasons why you want to try to avoid mowing wet grass.

• Disease spreads quickly when the grass is wet.  Fungi and bacteria love nothing more than water for moving around.
• Your mower can get clogged.  This can have a number of consequences, including a part breaking and/or injuring you.
• You can compact the soil.  If it is really wet outside and has been raining for a while, the soil may be especially prone to compaction.

If You Must Mow Wet Grass

There are some tips and techniques that can help you do it safely-for your sake and the sake of the grass.  Here are some tips for mowing wet grass:

• Mow high.  This will allow you to remove less wet grass, and to avoid scalping or further damaging the grass.
• Make sure that the mower blades are sharp before mowing.
• Instead of mulching or bagging, use the side discharge on the mower, if possible.
• Mow again later in the day or the next day, which will help break up any grass clumps and allow you to reduce the grass height a little more.
• If the blades become clogged, let the mower die before you clean off the blades.  NEVER clean a mower that is still running.  That is a recipe for disaster-for you and the mower.
• Run the mower blade at a slower speed to reduce the strain on it.

Wet Grass Myths

There is a lot of information and mis-information floating around out there on the internet.  There are a few “wet grass myths” that we need to clear up here so that you do not harm your lawn if you have to mow it while it is wet.

• Don’t mow with a push and pull motion.  Rotary mowers are not made to cut when you are gowing backwards.  In addition to dulling the blade, you can also slip and fall and injure yourself.
• Don’t bag your clippings if you can help it.  Wet grass is heavy, and this tip is as much to save your back as it is to save the condition of your mower.  You can let the clippings blow out the side of the mower, and then go back and rake them up or chop them up after they dry.
• Don’t spray your mower blades with synthetic motor oil.  It is never a good idea to put oil on your lawn unless you want to kill the grass.

If possible, it is always better for the lawn for you to wait until the grass has dried before mowing.  You can mow wet grass, just keep the above tips in mind.

“This is the way to mow the lawn, mow the lawn, mow the lawn. This is the reel way to mow the lawn, so early in the morning!”  Every homeowner is faced with the chore of keeping the lawn neat. You don’t want to let it get too high, but alternatively, you don’t want to cut it too short. The lawn care specialist say not to cut the grass more than 1/3 its height, but what is the best way to accomplish this? There are 4 basic types of mowers: the walk behind, the riding mowers, the rotary mower, and the reel mower.  While each of these have their pro’s and con’s the mower most environmentally friendly is the reel lawn mower.

A push reel mower is hand pushed and does not require electricity or gasoline; it is so simple to use that anyone old enough to follow basic safety precautions and can walk behind the reel push mower is capable of operating it. One reason a reel lawn mower is better for the environment than a power mower is that it doesn’t require gasoline. Consequently, there are no hydro-carbon emissions (the average gas mower emits 10-12 times more hydro-carbon than an automobile). Additional advantages in swapping to a reel mower are:

• They are light, weighing in at 16-32 pounds, come in widths ranging from 14-20 inches has 4,5, or 7 inch blades, and either 8 or 10 inch wheels.
• A push reel mower is better for your grass (rotary mowers tear grass, a push reel mower cuts the grass into small pieces).
• Due to their lightness, a reel mower is easy to push.
• A reel mower is relatively maintenance free.

Now that you have decided to switch to a reel mower, you may be wondering how to choose the one perfect for you. To help out with your reel push mower selection, consider the following:

• Do you want a battery powered, electric or manual reel mower?
• How big is your yard? If your lawn is more than 8,000 square feet, you may want to consider an electric or battery powered rotary mower.
• What type of grass do you have? Most reel mowers cut grass to a height of 3 inches. However, a heavier mower is best suited for Zoysia, St. Augustine, or Bermuda and for people who live along the east or west coast and the northern half of the US; a lighter reel mower is recommended.
• How much the reel mower weighs vs. how much you can push-An electric reel lawn mower weighs more than a battery mower which will be heavier than a manual push reel mower.

It is important to understand that changing to a reel lawn mower does not mean that grass cutting will be problem-free. There are a few minor disadvantages.

• A reel mower does not work well on tall willowy weeds like dandelions or buckhorn.
• If your grass is too tall (6 inches or more) the mower is more difficult to push and not as effective.
• A reel lawn mower takes longer—you will add an extra 10-15 minutes to your cutting time.
• The blades on a reel mower are difficult to sharpen and should be taken to a professional.

Cutting grass is a part of life, but it doesn’t have to involve breathing in harmful fumes and wearing earphones to protect your ears. A reel lawn mower offers the best way to have a well cut lawn and keep the air safer for everyone.