Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

permaculture - Re: [permaculture] motorless mowers

permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: permaculture

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: MGS <mgs2369@attbi.com>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] motorless mowers
  • Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2003 10:07:29 -0700

Michele asked about push mowers.

We use a Scotts reel mower, the one with the wider cutting bar (of the two models available here). We bought the bagging attachment but never use it. Cut it high, let it lie. Especially since the previous owners of this house bagged all clippings and threw them in the woods, then poured water and seeds and fertilizer on the ground, wondering why the grass was so wispy and discouraged.

We don't mow all the grassy areas at our place--just the front lawn (so the more suburban neighbors don't freak) and paths thru the back field.

It was inexpensive, and it works great. It's quiet and clean, and Darth and I can walk along and talk, one of us pushing, one of us watching for little snakes or native molluscs. It's light but great aerobic exercise pushing the thing, with more or less resistance depending on the grass height and how fast we go, and even strolling, we move faster than our neighbors on their riding mowers. Reel mowers also have a huge, controllable variability in power--push harder or easier for more or less oomph--which you can't say for internal combustion ones.

We bought the Scotts at our neighborhood hardware store. Probably could have saved $15 to $20 buying at Home Despot or Lowe's or some other huge place, but when we need something after hours, the owner of the corporate outposts won't help us out.

This being the Puget Trough subregion of Cascadia, there is a major early spring flush of grass growth that gets past what the Scotts can handle, particularly if lingering rains keep us from mowing on key days. For that reason we have in reserve a Black and Decker 18" electric mulching mower. It is quiet, solid, well engineered. I don't mind dealing with the cord--the unit has a pushme-pullyou feature where you can release the handle and flip it over on alternating passes, so the cord is always on the same side of the cutting assembly. Besides, awareness of the cord is more Buddhist. :^) We haven't been able to discern any change in our electric bill, which is already low.

Here, the turfgrass goes dormant in June, so the mowing season isn't all that long, and the reel mower meets our needs 90 percent of the time. In two years we haven't had to sharpen the blade; apparently the Scotts is designed to be self-sharpening overall. If we need it sharpened, we can easily throw the cutting unit into the trunk of our small Toyota and take it to the hardware store mentioned earlier. Good excuse to talk with the owner. Several of the main beams of his store, which has been in Oly forever, were scavenged from the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse before it was decided to make the crap that fell in the water a National Historic Landmark.

I would have preferred to share the purchase of the B&D with neighbors, but they all have gas riding machines and have learned to correlate noise and stink and costs with efficiency. Also there's that guy thing, where making stinky noise and riding in circles fills up a weekend day--the hypnosis of noise and motion--kind of like NASCAR. Two neighbors have already asked about the B&D, so we may win converts/tool-poolers yet.


peace
mish




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page