Basic HTML Version
2012 HOME & GARDEN MAGAZINE. LINCOLN DAILY NEWS.com May 25, 2012
14
MOWING and KNOWING
:
The Scent of a newly cut lawn
Jim & Jan Youngquist and Derek Hurley
T
here’s nothing like the look and smell of a newly mown yard of grass.
And no matter whether you have a multi-acre yard or just a small patch,
there are new mowers that can help you do the job more efficiently and
with less effort.
Mowers come in three different varieties: walk-
behind, ride-along and none-of-the-above.
We are all accustomed to walk-behind mowers
but may not realize there are three options available
today:
1. Reel-type mowers are engineless
and make you supply all the power.
2. Push mowers have an engine
for the cutting, but you supply all the
motion.
3. Self-propelled mowers supply
the power to cut and the power to
move.
You might be asking why
anyone would want a mower that
doesn’t have an engine and makes you do
all the work. There are two reasons to use these.
First, reel-type mowers, with a sharp blade, make
the best-looking lawn. They cut with a scissor-
like action rather than a whacking motion, and
each blade of grass is green to the end instead of
shredded and brown. The second reason to use a
reel-type mower is the good exercise you get. In
most cases reel-type mowers are usually used on
smaller lawns because they tend to take more
time than mowers with engines and certainly
more human energy -- something some
people are in short supply of.
Standard walk-behind push mowers are
usually the least expensive option for
mowing, often less expensive than even
engineless reel mowers. They don’t
have any other benefit to offer except
mowing at a low purchase price. They
usually wear out faster because their
construction matches their price --
cheap.
Self-propelled mowers offer
the user some exercise without
wearing you out entirely. Newer
models provide speed that matches
the user’s walking speed: slow when you
walk slowly, fast when you want to go faster.
Walk-behind mowers are generally less
expensive than riding mowers and are
generally used on lawns less than an acre.
They allow you to get close and personal
with your lawn, and you get some physical
exercise.
Riding mowers offer the convenience of
getting the grass cut with much less physical
exertion. They generally have larger decks
and wider blades and can get the job done
in less time than a walk-behind mower.
The single downside to riding mowers is
that they tend to compress the soil they run
over, and compressed soil hampers deep-root
development for grass.
Riders come in two varieties: traditional
and zero-turn. A traditional riding mower has