Pro tips for mowing the lawn?
February 20, 2010 8:05 PM Subscribe
Tips from lawn care experts?
I've got half an acre of terraced and/or steeply sloping lawn to look after. Mowing it is a chore, so I am looking for any tips to make it easier or better. Some examples? I have taken to mowing on a diagonal to minimise the up and down of one section, but I mowed it for years straight up and down before I thought of it. Another example, I was suffering more and more from hayfever after mowing, but now find a bandana tied cowboy style eliminated 90% of the problem. What is your tip Mefi?
I've got half an acre of terraced and/or steeply sloping lawn to look after. Mowing it is a chore, so I am looking for any tips to make it easier or better. Some examples? I have taken to mowing on a diagonal to minimise the up and down of one section, but I mowed it for years straight up and down before I thought of it. Another example, I was suffering more and more from hayfever after mowing, but now find a bandana tied cowboy style eliminated 90% of the problem. What is your tip Mefi?
If you're sticking with grass, raise your mower deck as high as it'll go.
It may not look as manicured as a golf course, but it'll be healthier and require less water.
posted by madajb at 8:49 PM on February 20, 2010
It may not look as manicured as a golf course, but it'll be healthier and require less water.
posted by madajb at 8:49 PM on February 20, 2010
Also, ear protection. A gas mower is pretty damn loud.
posted by madajb at 8:50 PM on February 20, 2010
posted by madajb at 8:50 PM on February 20, 2010
Hire teenagers to do it for you.
posted by netbros at 8:56 PM on February 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by netbros at 8:56 PM on February 20, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Cut with a sharp blade; you'll create a lot less "dust" than cutting with a dull blade produces, and you grass will be healthier (not develop torn and beaten blades, from being whipped and not cut by dull blade). You can sharpen a mower blade manually with just a file and perhaps a bench vise to hold the blade, or buy various power grinders and sharpening devices; another technique is to buy a number of extra blades for your machine, and change them in rotation, dropping off dull ones at a mower shop for professional sharpening. Cut not more than 1/3 of the desired mown height of the lawn, i.e. if you are cutting to the usual 2 and 1/2" mow height for bluegrass variants, then cut when the lawn has grown to about 3 1/2", max. Do measure your lawn height, and adjust your mower for longer cutting during heat stress in July-August.
If your mower can do it well, mulching is appropriate and beneficial for many grass and lawn types, particularly on slopes and hills, where the mulch can help slow water runoff. You may also save money on clippings disposal if you pay separately for lawn waste removal, and there is some benefit to your soil provided by the mulched clippings as they rot.
Keep your mower tuned and well maintained (fresh oil in the engine every 20 hours or so, clean air filter, good gas). Small engines don't have oil filters and pumps of automotive engines, and rely on frequent oil changes to clear out metal wear particles and sludge. Also, most small engine oil does not have detergent additives used in automotive oils, which means that small engine oil isn't as effective in keeping sludge in suspension between oil changes. Small engines also have minimal air filters, many of which are sucking dusty air a few inches above ground level, unlike automotive air filters. A small lawn mower or lawn tractor engine will drop power and RPMs quickly if basic maintenance is ignored, resulting in slower blade speed, less "air lift" action being created by the mower blade, and visibly worse cutting action.
posted by paulsc at 12:47 AM on February 21, 2010 [3 favorites]
If your mower can do it well, mulching is appropriate and beneficial for many grass and lawn types, particularly on slopes and hills, where the mulch can help slow water runoff. You may also save money on clippings disposal if you pay separately for lawn waste removal, and there is some benefit to your soil provided by the mulched clippings as they rot.
Keep your mower tuned and well maintained (fresh oil in the engine every 20 hours or so, clean air filter, good gas). Small engines don't have oil filters and pumps of automotive engines, and rely on frequent oil changes to clear out metal wear particles and sludge. Also, most small engine oil does not have detergent additives used in automotive oils, which means that small engine oil isn't as effective in keeping sludge in suspension between oil changes. Small engines also have minimal air filters, many of which are sucking dusty air a few inches above ground level, unlike automotive air filters. A small lawn mower or lawn tractor engine will drop power and RPMs quickly if basic maintenance is ignored, resulting in slower blade speed, less "air lift" action being created by the mower blade, and visibly worse cutting action.
posted by paulsc at 12:47 AM on February 21, 2010 [3 favorites]
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posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:20 PM on February 20, 2010