Top Lawn Mower

Owner’s respond

Luscious front lawns are the hallmark of a good-looking home. But how do neighborhood green thumbs keep their yards so perfect year-round without spending the big bucks on expensive lawn care services?

According to lawn-care experts, admittance into the Ivy League of lawns doesn’t require a glowing transcript or supervised experience. The basic tools necessary to achieve lawn nirvana are a mower, a fertilizer spreader, an edger, a weed eater and a blower.

First and foremost, mowing is the initial step to a better-looking lawn. “Mow at the right height,” says Harold Enger, lawn-care expert of Spring-Green Lawn Care based in Plainfield, Ill. “Don’t get caught in the golf-course syndrome!”

Rod Smith, a Las Vegas lawn professional who has a degree in Ornamental Horticulture Landscape Management and is certified by both the University of Georgia and the International Society of Arboriculture in Turf Grass Management, describes lawn care as an art. Finessing ferns and shaping shrubbery into something truly fantastic is achievable if done on a regular basis.

Watering properly is also a vital piece of the lawn-care puzzle. Smith says watering more infrequently is actually beneficial to the plant, by forcing the root system to seek out ground water. “You strengthen the plant by stressing it out sometimes,” Smith says. “When you water frequently and heavily, the root system gets lazy.”

Beside water and mowing, general tidiness is valued in an attractive yard. However, trimming trees, bushes and shrubs is designed to be a discriminatory process, not an all-out cut fest. “What is recommended is selective pruning. It takes longer, but it’s healthiest for the plant,” says Smith.

Paramount to cultivating a green thumb is learning about the lawn and its plants, says Enger. Armed with the right information, homeowners can avoid confusion and won’t waste money on products that aren’t right for their yards.

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You may not realize it, but your lawn mower needs routine maintenance in the same way that your car does. Keeping your lawn mower in top shape will not only make it run better, it will also make it last longer!

You should give your lawn mower a good tune-up every spring. If you don’t use your lawn mower a lot, you may be able to skip a season. But, whether you use it a lot or not, it’s been sitting all winter and really needs a little care!

There are only three main steps to getting your lawn mower ready for a hassle free season! You should change the oil, the spark plug and the air filter. With very little tools and time, you can keep your lawn mower running at it’s best!

To be extra safe, remove the spark plug wire anytime you work on your lawn mower. It’s highly unlikely that it’s just going to start and run on it’s own, but better safe than sorry!

Choosing the right type of oil and filters is very important. It’s also important that your spark plug is gapped at the right specification for your model. Spark plugs are usually pre-gapped at the factory, but it may not be set for your exact lawn mower.

A gapping tool is very inexpensive, usually under a couple of dollars. If you don’t already have one, pick one up when you buy the plug, the same tool can be used on your car’s spark plugs!

If you’re not sure about the information for your lawn mower, you can check your owners manual, ask a salesperson or even search your model and make online.

Before removing the spark plug make sure that you clean the area around it. An old rag will work, but it’s better to use a small brush. You don’t want any old grass or dirt to fall inside the motor!

Then use a socket wrench to remove the old plug. You’ll have to have a deep welled socket that will fit over the plug. Check the new plug to make sure it’s gapped correctly and then just screw it into place! If you’re done working on your mower, remember to replace the plug wire!

Your lawn mower will either require a paper air filter or one made of foam. To replace a paper air filter, just remove the cover and replace the old filter with the pleats facing outward.

A foam air filter is inside a filter unit, but it’s still just a matter of unscrewing the cover. However, the unit is removable and you’ll need to clean it thoroughly. Usually a little kerosene will remove all of the old sludge from the unit.

The new piece of foam will also need to be soaked in clean oil. Once it has completely soaked, use an old rag to squeeze out the oil. Insert it into the unit and replace the cover.

The first thing you’ll want to do when changing the oil is to use an old rag to clean any dirt or debris off of your oil tank. You may even need to use an old toothbrush, you want to make sure that nothing falls into the oil tank.

There will be a small plug on the bottom of your oil tank. Before unscrewing the plug, you’ll need to have a container to catch all of the old oil. Removing the dip stick will provide air for the oil to completely drain.

Once you’ve got the container in place you’re ready to remove the drain plug. You can use a pair of vise grips to loosen plug and then remove it with your fingers.

If the oil is really dirty, or it’s became thick and clumpy, clean the drain plug and the dip stick. Replace the drain plug and just tighten it to a good snug fit.

Although most lawn mowers don’t use a oil filter, there are some that do. If your model requires an oil filter you will want to change that as well.

It will be one of two types of filters, the screw on type like a car uses or a canister filter. Just wait until you’ve drained all of the old oil before removing the filter.

The screw on type is simply screwed off and replaced the same way. The canister type will be inside a housing, there will be a bolt in the center of the housing that holds it in place.

Just remove the bolt and lower the housing a little to remove the old cartridge. Place the new cartridge inside the housing and replace the bolt and tighten it back up.

Now, your ready to fill it back up with clean oil! Before adding the new oil just remove any blocks that you used to raise the lawn mower and make sure it’s sitting nice and level!

Anytime that you change the oil, you should start your lawn mower and let it run for a little while. Watch around the oil tank and oil filter to make sure there aren’t any leaks. If you do notice a leak, just tighten them a little more!

Mowing the Lawn with a Reel Mower
I know some of you are still in “snow shovel” mode, but down here in sunny Virginia, we’re gearing up for Spring and things are starting to blossom! The daffodils are up, the trees are budding and the grass is starting to grow. Quickly.
So before hubby could even fill up the tank on the gas-powered pushmower, I trucked myself on down to Home Depot and picked up a good old fashioned reel mower. (I tried to find one on freecycle or craigslist first, but had no luck.)
Anyhow, we used to have one of those people-powered puppies at my grandmother’s camp and I remember it did a fine job of keeping her 12′ x 40′ patch o’ green looking neat. The question is — would it work on our slightly larger and much more inclined yard? The second question, of course, would be — is hubby going to poo-poo the idea as another wacky green scheme that is destined to fail?
Turns out the answers are ‘yes’ and ‘no’. To both questions.
Yes, the mower did work on our lawn. It was no more difficult to push than the gas mower, in fact, I thought it was much easier to maneuver. It sure as hell was easier to start! It makes no noise and I’m able to use it in the front yard while the kids pick up pinecones, play on the steps or dig for worms.

The downside is that sometimes it’s just as likely to bend the grass over as it is to cut it and a small twig or piece of mulch caught in the blades brings the machine to an abrupt stop. Personally, I thought it did a good enough job to satisfy the neighbors, but would definitely not pass muster as a par 3 golf course. The good news is, our yard isn’t listed on the tour, so I think the reel mower will do just fine.
Hubby grumbled a bit at first, saying that he didn’t think it would do the job. I think he thought I wasn’t being reelistic. Then he tried it and was actually impressed at the ease of use. He didn’t heartily endorse it, but didn’t say it was crap either. He thought it would be great to use for a once-a-week cut, but feels certain the yard will still need a “thorough mowing” every now and again.
I’m betting that once the heat of summer hits full force, he’ll be happy to have my slap-dash REEL mowing (performed by me in the cool mornings), rather than his ‘wait-until-he-gets-home-after-work-when-it’s-a-hundred-degrees-out’ REAL mowing. We’ll see. In the meantime, let’s see what this little change means for the environment.
According to the EPA, more fuel is spilt each year filling up garden equipment (e.g. lawnmowers, string trimmers, chipper/shredders, etc.) than was lost in the entire Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska. - Yikes. Also, mowing an average 1/4 acre lawn produces more air pollution than driving a new (i.e. 1995) pickup truck round-trip to NY from Washington D.C. - Double Yikes.
So from here on out, I’m going to be sticking with the reel deal, my friends.

Savings:
I couldn’t find good estimate online for how much gas we use when we mow the lawn. So I asked hubby and he estimates it takes about a half gallon of gas per mow. We try to maintain a quasi-presentable lawn, so we mow it every week. Here in Richmond, we start mowing around mid-March and stop in October. At a half gallon per mow, that’s roughly 16 gallons of gas we will (hopefully) be skipping this year. And, at $3.15 a gallon, that amounts to over $50 in dollar savings. One more season and the reel mower will have paid for itself!

Difficutly Level: 1 out of 5
Personally, I prefer the reel mower to the gas machine. Let’s face it, the gas mower is a mother-thumpin’ bitch to start, it’s noisy as hell, hard to push and you simply cannot use it when the kids are outside, for fear that they’ll get hurt. The reel mower, on the other hand, is light, simple to operate, quiet as a mouse, and can be used around the kids. Although it should NEVER be used on the kids. It gives a very sloppy hairut.
Just kidding. In all seriousness, though, the kids shouldn’t be allowed to touch it — after all, those are big friggin’ blades and they’re sharp!
We’ll see if I’m still still in love with the reel deal come June, when the lawn is thicker! Be sure to ask me then…. but in the meantime, remember: Reel men don’t use gas mowers.

Trash it or Compost it? Bag it or Rebag it?

by Billie A Williams

Compost improves soil drainage and water retention — we all know that as organic gardeners. But it makes a difference what you put into that compost heap. So what is the idea recipe?

Three parts carbon-rich brown matter like wood chips, shredded newspapers the dead leaves from your fall raking and plants you’ve culled from your thinning process in your garden.

You need to mix that with one part nitrogen-rich green matter, which can be grass clippings – that is one good reason to have a mower with a grass catcher. Green leaves and fruit and vegetable waste such as peels, cores, bruised or damaged spots from your cooking. You may also add coffee and tea grounds/leaves, egg shells just about any kitchen scraps except meat and meat by products.

Your compost pile should be at least three cubic feet – that’s three wide, three high and three deep – think a cube of soda and you will be able to visualize that cube. If you are using a barrel composter, you mound isn’t’ in direct contact with the earth so you will need to inoculate your mound with garden soil, finished compost or fresh manure. The smaller your ingredients the faster they become compost. You could use a leaf shredder, or your lawn mower or even run your tiller through your compost heap to make it break down quicker. You should turn the pile no more then once a week and keep it moist but not soggy. A useful analogy is to think of a sponge that is wrung-out, it is still wet, but it doesn’t drip when you pick it up.

Compost takes nine to twelve months to fully mature; if you add to your heap regularly, use a screen to sift out finished compost. It’s ready when it looks and feels like moist chocolate cake crumbs and smells like fresh-turned earth.

Contrary to popular belief in some areas, your compost heap when done properly will not have an offensive odor.

Which brings us to what to use when you go grocery shopping, when they inevitably ask you paper or plastic? Give this some thought.

Paper bags are made from a renewable resource, obviously trees. They are recyclable and biodegradable. On the negative side, chemicals used to manufacture paper bags pollute air and water.

Plastic bags require less energy to manufacture, equaling less air pollution and industrial waste, but they are made from nonrenewable petroleum or natural gas, and are non-biodegradable—toxic chemicals are also used during manufacture.

The best solution – recycle by bringing your plastic bags back to the store for more groceries when you shop – or — and this is the best, bring your own cloth bags to fill when you shop. This may be a little inconvenient for a major shopping trip, but if you could recycle or reuse, bring your own cloth you are saving at least some of the environment we will be leaving to the next generation.

 Mow late in the day - To reduce the amount of ozone that will form, mow after 7pm. Avoid mowing altogether on Ozone Alert! days. The harmful ozone causing fumes emitted by mowers are nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC). These are more likely to form harmful ozone when the weather is hot and sunny. Mowing in the evening will help reduce the amount of ozone that forms.

Keep your equipment well-tuned - Well tuned equipment runs more efficiently, uses less fuel, and emits less pollution. Keep your blades sharpened, too. This simple practice will not only benefit your lawn making it more resistant to disease, but you will mow quicker and that means less air pollution and less wear and tear on your body, too!

Avoid gas spills -  Save money and protect the air we breathe by using a funnel or a spill-proof can.  Americans spill and estimated 17 million gallons of gasoline each year refueling small engines such as lawn care equipment. The vapor from gasoline spills is also a cause of air pollution.

Spill proof gas cans are available in stores.