Cutting Edge
Hey, Rod Dreher of the Morning News wrote an article this morning about his purchase and use of a non-powered reel mower, a subject we’ve discussed on this blog extensively. Check it out.
I think we’re seeing the wave of the future here, and even the Morning News is catching up.
14 Comments to “Cutting Edge”
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Don’t know if Mr. Dreher has St. Augustine grass, but I do know from experience that self powered reel mowers do not work well with it. I prefer my B&D electric which was about $10 more than the cheapest gas version at HD 5 years ago. He should have done more research on the lawnmower repair shops, there are several, and would keep his old mower running, keep them in business and eliminate to buy something new.
oops- should read “eliminate the need to buy”, my mistake for not editing!
We discussed this a great deal last week on Charles’ post. But the links I gave were dated. But my basic message still holds. With St. Augustine, you need a HEAVY (25-55 lbs.) model. This I verified by calling a website that specializes in green lawn maintenance. (http://www.composters.com/green-mowers/heavy-duty-silent-reel-push-mower_70_5.php). And for sure, the more blades the better. NOTHING LESS THAN 6 BLADES. The above link will take you to the perfect model for St. Augustine. It is also the exact model that I’ve been using for the last 3 years. Unfortunately, this model has a 2 to 3 week lead time before delivery.
Let’s itemize the above for those who don’t want to wade through the above copy:
1. A heavy version is a must. (55 lbs-best, 25 lbs-ok)
2. 6 to 7 blades, which will need sharpening every other year or so.
3. Shop on-line, not at the local hardware biggies, because they carry dweeby versions that don’t work on our kind of grass.
The above link didn’t turn active, let’s try again.
http://www.composters.com/gree.....r_70_5.php
Thanks, Gadfly, that’s good information. I’d love to see your mower in action sometime.
The boyfriend bought a reel mower a few months back and people in the neighborhood are almost as obsessed with it as he is. If you buy a reel mower, be prepared for lots of questions.
Kristiana, does it work? The mower, I mean.
Captcha: Balkan career. That seems to describe me.
Kristiana, if neighbors are fascinated and asking questions of your boyfriend, then he does not live in the Park Cities. After 3 years of using mine in broad daylight in the middle of UP, not one neighbor has showed the least interest in my mower. For example, my neighbor has only one patch of grass in the front that is about 10 feet x 4 feet and a smaller patch out back. Does he follow my example? NOOOOOOOO! He goes out and buys this huge red gas thing the size of his hummer. WTF?
“showed” should have been “shown”
Oh yeah! And he can’t that big red thing through his backyard gate without a lot of cussin’.
The mower works, but he has to mow frequently in order to keep it manageable.
The neighbors aren’t fans of the push reel mower (even though I told one guy that using a typical mower for an hour pollutes the air almost as much as driving 100 miles, he didn’t buy it: http://www.sciencedaily.com/re.....234907.htm) . Most just point and stare, and want to know why we bother with such an antiquated method of lawn maintenance. Their backward logic: they’re old and won’t have to live with the state of the environment 50 years from now. Nice.
Kristiana, concerning mowing frequently, every other week works beautifully. St. Augustine should be kept at 2 to 3 inches. But most folks—in Dallas especially—buzz their grass down to the brown base. So much so, that for 2 days after the mow job, it looks fried. Not only does this look bad, it is just not healthy. Grass needs its green blades to produce healthy root systems and continue to spread and grow, especially if it is struggling in a lot of shade (like my north front lawn). So what if it gets a little uneven between mow jobs. For me, it’s a perfect fit for my shade cottage garden.
Seems that Charles’ story is catching…
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200.....s4IA0DW7oF