Summer weather means you can throw all the horsepower
you can muster at weeds and brush. While the high-powered
tractors are mere toys in the hands of many men, sometimes
a little less torque will do the trick.
There is a trend this year toward cutting lawns
with a manual mower. (And, this is the year of “Live
Earth” and green communities.) I seriously doubt that
my children have ever seen a human-powered push type,
reel mower. I recall seeing my first one as a child,
since my grandfather’s offspring had the chance to
help cut their small city yard in Statesville. Mowing
a weedy fescue lawn wasn’t high on the list of pleasurable
summer vacation activities at the grandparents. Of
course, those were the days before video games. But
I do remember the chore well, and how strenuous the
project seemed that young age.
There is only one reel mower manufacturer
in the country, the American Lawn Mower Company in
Indiana. More than 340, 000 manual push mowers were
sold last year by this business. The recent predisposition
toward ditching gas-powered mowers is due in part to
a growing environmental consciousness. Saving petro
and lessening noise pollution are justification for
going manual.
Reel mowers are frequently the choice for homeowners
who opt for warm season lawns instead of tall fescue.
Both zoysiagrass and bermudagrass make wonderfully
green lawns in hot weather with fewer weed problems
since they are mowed at low heights. Subsequently,
bermudagrass is the most drought tolerant turfgrass
for piedmont yards, a perfect match for a sunny yard
where rainfall is the only source of moisture.
Clearly, if you abandon your power mower, you will
need to allow a little more time on lawn maintenance.
The development of garden tractors and two-cycle engines
was welcomed whole heartedly decades ago by a hurried
society that was all to ready for a reprieve from yard
work.
Loppers and hedge shears were put to good use last
week as we descended on the overgrown boxwood hedges
surrounding the Fragrance Garden. Arboretum groundskeeper,
John Rominger, took advantage of the dry, summer days
to sculp these hedges and remove unruly twigs. Anyone
considering a final pruning job on their evergreen
shrubs should begin now in order to allow re-growth
before fall weather commences.
