Has anyone found an electric grass clipper that actually cuts grass instead of chewing it? Haven’t found anything to beat the hand clippers and they take too much time and effort.
Lawn Care Thread
We had our Davey Tree guy here yesterday to look at the progress of the treatment of emerald ash borer. It felt great when he said, “Your lawn looks awesome!”
The darker green band before the hill in this photo is the grass I’m switching over to. It’s a turf type tall fescue blend.Besides the colors, it holds up well when things dry up.
The darker green band before the hill in this photo is the grass I’m switching over to. It’s a turf type tall fescue blend.Besides the colors, it holds up well when things dry up.
FatChance
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When we sold the Pain in the Butte Ranch in Durango, I gave away our 20 year old Honda mower and sold the Honda track drive snow blower. Our new home in Sedona has a small crushed granite gravel "lawn" and I don't even own a snow shovel.
In my old age I realized that if you water a lawn to grow grass, you have to mow it. Rinse, repeat, over and over. Never again for me!
In my old age I realized that if you water a lawn to grow grass, you have to mow it. Rinse, repeat, over and over. Never again for me!
Your lawn does look nice. The fescue has deeper roots from what I understand and why it's more drought resistant.
I just came in from throwing some milorganite down. Now that the temps are heating up, it's easier to see the weeds where everything was just green before. I'm not sure I want to mess with feed and weed. I don't really mind some mixed in, I just don't want the bare spots. Hoping mowing it at 3" will keep the grass healthy enough to take over.
Buckeyegolfnut
Well-known member
I'm with you. In fact, I wondered how "lawn care" could possibly be grouped under "Hobbies Outside of Golf"! Since when is lawn care a hobby?
The landscaper that installed sod quoted me a price of $140 a month for weekly yard care. Everything except trimming trees and they haul the debris away which potentially means not having to pay for a trash can for yard debris. I never thought I’d pay someone to do my yard but I’m giving it some real thought.
Just curious how big is your yard?
That would be under $20/hr just for my mowing time alone, so I can see why you're considering it. For the moment, it's exercise and therapy for me, so I know the day is coming. Does their price also include trimming shrubs and fertilization/weed control? If so, that's even better.
With the new concrete additions and patio design, I can cut, trim and blow my yard in 25 minutes. It’s not a big yard, but man that’s convenient. And with the electric mower, I can do it at anytime of day and not disturb the neighbors.
FatChance
Well-known member
Indeed. It is more like the "hobbies we hate the most"! I would rather hang drywall than manicure a lawn! What a waste of time, water, effort and money, but to each their own. At some time comes wisdom and experience...
A lawn is an organic, living thing that can be nutrtured to the degree you wish. On the other hand, snowblowing, hanging drywall, and solderi8ng plumbing are pure evil for this DIYer.
The mix was in fact called "Drought and Wear" before it was renamed "Summer Green Supreme." Milorganite is good stuff. I was just a little (probably excessively) concerned about heavy metals in it, so I limit my use to puttign it down around shrubs as a deer and rodent repellent over the winter. If your lawn is mostly bluegrass, a treatment containing fulvic acid will help the bare spots fill in.
Last Fall I seeded with a mix called Old English which, I believe, had perennial ryegrass, a couple of fescues, and Kentucky bluegrass. I'm going to see which grass does the best this summer and probably over seed with that type of grass. Right now, it's not looking too good and there are large areas where the seed didn't take. I just need to get the sprinkler system going to keep what I have and then seed again in the fall.
I look at others' beautiful lawns and know I'm probably not going to put enough effort into it to get to that level, but I can at least get the soil a bit healthier. I'll probably test it again next year to see where I'm at. I do enjoy the entire process though as well as mowing and trimming. Some days it's a chore, but for the most part it's therapeutic.
FatChance
Well-known member
Certainly a fair point. For me, I wish to nurture our grass to the degree that it does not peek up through the landscaping plastic barrier under our crushed granite gravel "lawn" before I douse it with a grass and weed killer. Lawn grass is just a non-native, water sucking invasive weed down here in the desert that costs a lot of time, water, effort and $$$ to deal with, all of which I choose to avoid. I probably spend on the order of less than 10 hours and $10 a year maintaining our yard. YMMV, of course.
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Yesterday we did GG’s new car. Today it’s the lawn and I’m looking forward to getting it cropped and putting down some nitrogen before the rain comes later this week.
Anyone out there own a newer Snapper mower? I'm in the market for a new walk behind and am curious how they compare to Honda's - which are hard to come by right now.
I have a 4 year old Snapper 725 EX and it's been bullet proof. Change the oil once a year and only run non ethanol gas in it.
I had a high vac from the early 80's and it was the same way. I finally gave it away in the mid 90's and it was still running strong. The Briggs engines that come with them seem to have plenty of power. I don't know if they're still assembled here in the US but I might take a closer look at them.
Not that it's a fair comparison, but I still own a 2004 Snapper Snowblower with a 10hp Briggs. It's still running strong after 16 Northern Michigan winters clearing a very large driveway.
Still a Briggs and Stratton engine and mine was assembled in the US.
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I had such bad experiences with Snapper growing up. I cannot bring myself to ever own one again.
I’ve lost the front yard and side yard facing south. Won’t be long until I have chocolate grass.
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S I got lazy and decided to spray round up in a few places to kill the weeds in the mulch bed. Of course, I got it on my shoes and then walked in the grass and spilled a little. I am so anal with the yard and these little things just drive me insane!
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I am going to give this stuff a try this summer. It’s supposed to be like malorganite on steroids.
I had intended to do a complete front lawn overhaul this spring.
Wife ended that idea: "Sometimes the kids play on that grass"
Didn't dethatch it. Didn't aerate it. No fertilizer.... nothing.
Just as well, we haven't had a lick of rain all year. Even if I did put in the work, I would need to be watering 24/7 in this stupid heat.
Wife ended that idea: "Sometimes the kids play on that grass"
Didn't dethatch it. Didn't aerate it. No fertilizer.... nothing.
Just as well, we haven't had a lick of rain all year. Even if I did put in the work, I would need to be watering 24/7 in this stupid heat.
i’d like to see picturrs. That 6% iron should really green up the lawn. You may be able to pick up your grass clippings with a magnet.