The summertime lawn is healthy, green and thick as high pile carpet; however, the time has come to mow the lawn, edge the gardens and walkways, and trim the hedge. But what lawn care equipment is available if one should wish to implement eco-friendly lawn mowing and maintenance practices? Before spending hours at the local garden center, it is helpful to understand the basic about the types of tools available.
Lawn and Garden Equipment Described:
- Reel Mowers- This type of mower uses blades on a revolving cylinder and is powered by either engine or muscle.These make the healthiest, most even cut and is ideal for lawn mowing, unfortunately the blades can be difficult to sharpen and should be brought to a professional.
- Rotary Mower-This achieves green lawn mowing by using flat horizontal blades controlled by an engine mounted on the mower deck; sharpening of the blades is a fairly simple and can be done by using a mill file and a rotary bench grinder; however, if not kept sharp, the blade will rip the grass instead of cutting it.
- Walk Behind- This is green lawn mowing at its best! The mower is powered by gas, electric, or by pushing the mower. The walk behinds are environmentally friendly, require little maintenance and one gets an extra workout with every use.The only drawback is that the user needs to be strong enough to push them.
- Ride-on Mower- Available in a array of sizes, styles and have a variety of add-ons for convenience and ease of use;these are great for large yards. In addition a an be fitted for environmentally friendly engines or electric motors. Conversely,they are expensive and heavier than other mowers which causes soil compaction.
Additional Lawn Care Equipment Includes
- Ear & eye protection- Keep your eyes safe from dust or debris by weary safety goggles. The National Institute if Deafness and Other Communication Disorders recommends that one protects the ears from sounds that are over 85 decibels— the majority of trimmers and mowers exceed this number.
- No-spill gas cans- Help keep one’s family, pets, and the environment safe and clean.
- Watering utensils-hoses, rain gauges, sprinklers, etc.
- Wheelbarrows- one of the simplest yet most useful pieces of lawn garden equipment
- Rakes- A leaf rake, a metal rake, a bamboo rake and (optional) a landscaping rake
- String trimmers
Benefits Of An Electric Mower
The majority of the lawn care equipment is, or can be converted to being, eco-friendly, so the choice for cutting grass is vital. Owning a green lawn mower is the best option. If a gas powered motor is owned and one would like to make it environmentally friendly, there are conversion kits that will retrofit gas mowers to electric.
- They are cleaner
- They are quieter
- They start with just the touch of a button
- In some states, there are special rebates when a gas mower is traded in for an electric one.
Quick Guidelines For Green Lawn Mower Selection:
- Powered or manual? If the yard is less than 2000 sq. ft., go manual
- Decide if it should be a mower with or without a bag for debris
- Determine whether a rotary blade or a reel mower will best suit the situation
Lawn care equipment doesn’t have to be scary. Know what will work best for one’s needs and budget, take time to consider the choices, then go out and hit the green!
Sources
- The Organic Lawn Care Manual; Paul Turkey; Storey Publishing, 2007
- The Green Guide: The Complete Reference for Consuming Wisely; the editors of Green Guide Magazine; National Geographic, 2008
J. Marie Cunningham-Slagell - Whether I am writing about diabetic health care, mobile phone companies or visiting a new state, I take time to research my topic ...
