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Anyone else out cutting the lawn today, or yesterday? Really warm down here in Reading, and the grass did look a bit of a mess - it just kept on growing last year and it could really have done with at least one more cut before the mower went into hibernation.
So did mine this afternoon, and guess what - the (electric) mower has come out in sympathy with my PC and is also on the blink; you have to hold the cable at a certain angle where it goes into the on/off thing on the handle. Have been thinking about getting a new one though, as it's only a smalli-ish Qualcast Easi-Trak 320 and it only takes a a few widths of the garden to fill up the grass box. Strangely Mrs F wants us to get a petrol, but I think that would be OTT. She never does the cutting BTW.
Garden looks a lot better now :)
Last edited by: VxFan on Fri 29 Mar 13 at 20:00
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Mine too, it's been a beautiful day and we've cut all the dead tops off the perenials, and given the Bottle Brush a drastic trim as I can't decide whether it's dead or not.
Grass isn't too bad yet but things are shooting lovely under the debris of winter.
Got the garden furniture out of the shed and sat in the warm sunshine and had cheese and biscuits for lunch on the patio:)
I'm sure the bones won't want to work tomorrow but that's tomorrows problem and today has been perfect.
Pat
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Pruned the grapevine yesterday, and gave the lawn its first haircut of the year.
Today we went for a walk on box hill.
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With perfect timing returned from a fortnight of sunshine in La Palma in the Canaries yesterday evening to wake up to a perfect early Spring day in Norfolk. All seems right with the world.
I see that there has only been one flounce while I have been away too!
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"...given the Bottle Brush a drastic trim as I can't decide whether it's dead or not."
£5 says it's dead, Pat, if it's been outside all winter.
I'm a sucker for exotic plants and have spent a fortune on heating my conservatory this winter, after what happened in 2010-11, when I lost my banana, bougainvillea and most of my canna - in the conservatory, but without heat.
My understanding is that callistemon comes in a number of varieties, but only a few unusual , tougher ones can be described as frost-hardy.
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I fear you may be right FP but last winter was far colder and it's survived four winters outside now.
It's on a south facing wall and I think that has helped but the one day with temperatures of -13 degrees here may have done it.
The stems still look green when cut so it's got a month to shape up or it will be dug out and replaced.
I really fancy a passion flower in that spot but I know it may suffer the same fate.
I took all the bubble wrap off the greenhouse too and started the overwintered plants into life again..
Pat
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I'm amazed you have kept your bottlebrush that long, Pat - but perhaps there's a bit of heat-leakage through the wall that keeps the frost off.
My neighbour has one in a pot just ourside the front door, also against the wall, but that looks pretty dead now.
My understanding is that Passiflora (if you select the hardy varieties) will stand a lot more cold than Callistemon - so go for it, I'd say. I've seen passionflower successfully grown against a sheltered wall in Cambridgeshire.
Last edited by: FocalPoint on Mon 12 Mar 12 at 14:23
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We have a passionflower against a west facing fence. Lasted ten years so far with no protection or anything, and fruits every year too. Fence is at the back of a border is all, with shrubs.
Regulars will know we are firmly in Cambridgeshire. (Due to an inept posting error at one point, sharp eyed regulars will know the house. Sigh.)
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Agree Passion Flowers are relatively hardy. Have had one growing up a South facing wall here in Norwich for past 10 years. An intriguing flower with a long flowering period but they don't make much of a show as you only get two or three flowers open at any on time. The thing they really hate is wet cold soil so make sure the drainage is good when you plant
Bottle Brush plants can also be quite hardy if given a little protection like a south facing wall. Had one in a large tub for many years which used to move near house in winter. I eventually moved it to the garden in the Autumn of 2010 and it succumbed to the low temperatures that winter. Amazing how big they will get if the conditions are right. Visit Madeira to see some truly impressive specimens1
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Mine is (was?) about 10' high and covered at least 12' of bare wall but the ground it's in is really dry.
We originally laid the patio to withing 4'' of the house wall and then decided to take one row of slabs up to have a flower bed there.
Maybe a Passion flower would like those conditions.
I'm a bit attached to the Bottlebrush so I'll give it a couple of weeks to decide to live or die, mainly because I know the roots will have gone under the patio and be a job to remove!
Pat
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"Maybe a Passion flower would like those conditions."
Probably would. You need to duplicate the conditions of the High Andes which are a little bit different to the Fens!
"In the wild, Passion flowers grow where the ground is exceptionally well drained - the slopes of the high Andes, the rainforest floor, even (as with P. incarnata and P. lutea in roadside rubble in quite arid areas. Therefore the ideal compost is free-draining soil-based mixture of equal parts sharp sand or gravel, medium or coarse peat and loam, rather than a peat-based compost which can easily become waterlogged.
By the same token, plants grown outdoors in your garden need well-drained dryish soil which warms up quickly in spring."
www.passiflora-uk.co.uk/cultivation.shtml
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Thanks CG, that's very interesting.
Pat
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T'will be minus 10c in a week or two!
:}
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Filled the 20 litre Jerry-can yesterday evening in anticipation of the event - too damp here today - leave it until next week, needs doing though !
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Did the lawn earlier in the week...
Spent the afternoon traipsing about between hospital and care home and back to the hospital.
Getting really old and poorly is a bad job,.. M I law
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I like the lawn to get a bit of length on it before the first cut of the year, and I did re-seed a large area last year that could do with thickening up before a haircut.
Every other so and so on the street thinks different though, and at 2 o'clock this afternoon, the drone of lawnmowers was deafening. The question is, if I can tell by the noise from a hundred yards away that somebodies flymo is unbalanced, why cant the bloke using it ?
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>> the (electric) mower is on the blink; you have to hold the cable at a certain angle where it goes into the on/off thing on the handle.
Broken or loose wire. A doddle to fix if its held together with screws.
Holding off cutting the lawn as long as possible as I know once I start, then it'll be a weekly job right up until October.
I finally got on top of the moss problem in the lawn toward the end of last season, only to find its all come back again. Sob. Another job once I start cutting. Raking out the moss and treating the lawn once again with lawn feed and moss killer which encourages the grass to grow even quicker!!
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Spent two hours on the touchline shouting at son first training and then playing Rugby this morning. Took the dog for an hour's walk along the canal. Cup of tea and then had a hour out on the bike before coming back to watch France very nearly beat England...
Lawn looks like something surviving from Beirut on a bad day but I blame the dog. It will be attended to in due course. Easter weekend probably.
:-)
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We took the hound for a stroll in the lovely sun earlier, when we got back i nipped round the garden checking for ponies.
Once done i too decided to cut the grass, so checked the oil and syphoned a gallon of petrol out of the car for the mower. Good old Hayter, fired up first time, unfortunately the cutters found a couple of ponies that i'd missed...;)
Was going to do a bit of evergreen trimming up but couldn't be bothered, so had a bottle of cold something instead.
Going to get my new summer tyres fitted to the wheels tomorrow hopefully, if so i'll put them on the car, that should guarantee a return to the depths of winter within days.
Life's good.
Expensive month this month though, 2 MOTs 1 full service, painter and decorator for 2 weeks, plus kitchen refurb and scullery rebuild and redoor/window.
Bang goes that Chrysler 300C she, under my guidance..;), fancied.
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Replaced a rotted off post, and 5 larch lap fence panels this weekend, in among. Quite pleased with myself, never done any fencing and the contractors charge a fortune. The original posts are in concreted holes and seem OK apart from the one I banged the Metapost repair socket into.
Grass is looking a bit untidy but with luck she'll do it this week while I'm at work. She's been moving the chicken ark round the back garden so they've scratched up the moss for us!
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>> Was going to do a bit of evergreen trimming up but couldn't be bothered, so
>> had a bottle of cold something instead.
just consumed a bottle of "Shere Drop" that I purchased while out gambolling with the dog
www.surreyhills.co.uk/
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Waiting for the arrival of a 6x8 greenhouse then can have fun fitting that up and stocking it.
Next job to order 40ft of reclaimed stone for a small wall project.
Then to dig up the lawn which is now full of cement and replace with nice new top soil and seed it for a fresh new lawn.
Im a busy lad......................Need a beer.
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>>Raking out the moss and treating the lawn once again with lawn feed and moss killer which encourages the grass to grow even quicker!!
I think iron sulphate will kill the moss without starting a jungle.
Don't spill it on slabs tho because the brown stains are a pita to clear up.
Last edited by: Lygonos on Sun 11 Mar 12 at 20:24
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>> I think iron sulphate will kill the moss without starting a jungle.
I've still got a bit of Evergreen moss killer and lawn feed in the shed, and also a huge bucket of Arthur Bowers lawnsand from Tesco at a third of the retail price just prior to them closing their garden centre dept last Oct.
Last edited by: VxFan on Mon 12 Mar 12 at 01:23
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>>Anyone else out cutting the lawn today, or yesterday?
Not me.
Ffirst cut was a couple of weeks ago and I think the next will be tomorrow.
Then get the paper shreader going so I can mix the output wih the grass and leave it to brew in the compost bin.
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Back got first trim last weekend - Saturday before the rains came. Will keep the cut height well up until middle of next month though. Next door's took years to recover from the previous owner's default 'number one' from March to October.
Early April for the feed/weed/mosskill as well.
Front was a weak strain of turf from word go and suffers even in an average summer. Still weak now but go a light pass yesterday to catch the longest bits.
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>> Back got first trim last weekend - Saturday before the rains came. Will keep the
>> cut height well up until middle of next month though.
Have you thought of waxing?
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>> Then get the paper shreader going so I can mix the output wih the grass
>> and leave it to brew in the compost bin.
I was thinking of asking about that - thanks for the tip.
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We fed the Mallard Ducks, Canada Geese, Swans, Moorhens and Black Headed Gulls,Clumber Park, with 2 Aldi thick white loaves (49p each). A good 98p's worth of fun!
We arrived around 10:30 am and even then all the closer car parks were full.
An absolutely glorious day, with temperatures around 18C, I would guess.
The perfect end - La France 22, Angleterre 24.
A la bas les Bleus!
YAY!
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Strangely my neighbour's lawn was sprouting sooner than mine -lots of uneven growth. Gave mine a shave in a few areas today. Erm, can we do a lawnmower count game? Seems I have 3 petrol mowers at the moment, but I must tell you why, lest you get mower envy. My single Mum Doctor friend declared her cheapo B & Q mower dead 2 years ago and bought a new one before she told me. I fixed it in 30 mins and it's now used by wifey for a couple of cuts for some of her older gardening customers. Late last year Doc's new man says 'the mower's seized'. Now he's a lovely man but DIY just isn't his thing. Let's say academia is his area. He'd already purchased yet another new mower.....those little Briggs can be hard to turn over when you've put just as much oil as you possibly can in there!
The rest of the day was clearing away some rubbish and taking my little lad out with his radio controlled nitro buggy. Which I don't enjoy at all, you understand!
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>>First cut was a couple of weeks ago and I think the next will be tomorrow.
>>
I spoke too soon.
This morning I woke to London fog not Yorkshire fog :-(
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Haven't cut the grass yet, it's full of moss and needs a damn good raking before a cut. I did gave the patio a blast with the pressure washer though. A long and filthy job even with the attachment, but it looks much better now that the grey/green patina it attracts over the winter is gone. As usual, I'll be re-pointing bits of it next weekend if the weather is OK - another pita job.
Discovered that I'd left the water timer outside and it doesn't like sub-zero temperatures :-(
Put up another bird box too while I had the extension lead out. The bluetits have been squabbling over the one under an old climbing rose so there's now another one about 30ft away on the same wall under a similar rose.
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I feel left out, I don't have a lawn. Next door was out doing his yesterday.
I wouldn't take the winter tyres off the mower yet, though.
Ted
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My back lawn slopes downhill to the North and is bordered on each side by 8ft tall hedges with a 5ft fence across the far end, so today was the first time it received enough sunshine to half dry it out! I'd fettled the mower and set the height up high before putting it away in the autumn, so today I only had to plug it in and walk back and forth levelling the bushy bits with the more snow-flattened patches. It looks so much better for it.
Must dig the beds over this week, and decide what to plant.
Last edited by: Dave_TDCi on Sun 11 Mar 12 at 23:05
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Did a third earlier in the week using the flymo, as the repair shop still have not got round to doing the one left there some time ago. Got rid of the higher clumps but still looks pretty ropey after months of two dogs racing around on it! Scarifying (sp?) due shortly.
This lovely weekend was better spent driving daughter to Hamble for first racing event in the season, walking the dogs on Hinchelsea Moor and pottering in the garden, while youngest son was glued to the Rugby after spending Saturday morning fishing with friends.
By the bye, we can start casting clouts as the May be out - first saw small clump out by Fordingbridge last Monday but lots out hereabouts now.
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"...we can start casting clouts as the May be out - first saw small clump out by Fordingbridge last Monday but lots out hereabouts now."
Are you sure it was may blossom? May blossom is the white flower of the hawthorn (sometimes called the whitethorn), usually appearing at the beginning of May, giving its name to the month.
The white blossom that is very plentiful this year at the moment is blackthorn, the flower of the sloe tree, which appears during March or earlier, but well before the whitethorn.
In any case, I thought the proverb "Ne'er cast a clout till May be out" means that you don't leave off your winter clothes until the end of that month. But I gather the meaning is the subject of dispute.
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My patch of grass at the caravan will need a cut when I open up for the season, probably this weekend.
It looks OK from a distance, as in green, but up close there's load of moss and other garbage in it.
The patch is shaded by trees and the caravan, and is on a riverbank, which I reckon is poor conditions for grass.
Going back to the OP's mower, I had a corded rotary but have now gone cordless.
Big difference, I can get the job done in half the time, and the battery mower is easier to chuck about the twisty bits than a petrol.
www.mowermagic.co.uk/acatalog/BOSCH_Rotak_37Li__Cordless_Lawnmower.html
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Mowing is an all-season job now - grass never stops growing. I judge whether it's mowable or not by how wet the ground is.
Many of the signs of spring are losing their significance. Our frogs have been busy spawning since last autumn, and we had daffodils out at Christmas.
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>> Going back to the OP's mower, I had a corded rotary but have now gone
>> cordless.
>>
>> Big difference, I can get the job done in half the time, and the battery
>> mower is easier to chuck about the twisty bits than a petrol.
>>
>> www.mowermagic.co.uk/acatalog/BOSCH_Rotak_37Li__Cordless_Lawnmower.html
£336?? I could get a new PC for that :)
How does losing the cord make it (so much) quicker Iffy?
Last edited by: Focus on Mon 12 Mar 12 at 08:47
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...How does losing the cord make it (so much) quicker Iffy?...
Faster to get going - no getting out the cable/extension.
Faster doing the job - no need to step over and manage the cable while going up and down.
Faster finishing - no rewinding the cable, putting away the extension.
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>> ...How does losing the cord make it (so much) quicker Iffy?...
>>
>> Faster to get going...
Fair enough - not too bothered about setting up/take down times, and don't have much trouble with the cable, but I can see it all helps.
I think if we did change I would probably forgo the speed increase (and a cm in width) for a saving of £220+:
www.charliesdirect.co.uk/products/bosch-rotak-36-mower
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I have the rotak. Its a good mower, on its third year now.
The mains lead is a bit stiff and likes to curl.
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>> I have the rotak. Its a good mower, on its third year now.
Reading the reviews on Amazon it is rated highly, although there does seem to be a fair few Bosches whose motors have failed after not that much use.
Our current Qualcast uses a Bosch motor and seems ok, but is too small. This one (RM37) at Argos is 37cm with a 40l grass box, similar to the Bosch Rotak, but is only £85, reduced from £130 allegedly. It doesn't say it has a Bosch motor, so presumably is hasn't. Any opinions?
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>> >> This one (RM37) at Argos
>>
>> Whoops: www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/7304929.htm
Not sure why but Mrs F is adamant we need a petrol mower. But I refuse to spend more than £100 on one, so the choice is somewhat limited; just reserved one of these:
tinyurl.com/cln7cal (Argos)
Think it'll last the summer? :)
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'Think it'll last the summer? :) '
Should do. I've just sourced a second hand, self propelled one for Mothers garden. Different badge but its the same. Seems a reasonably sturdy bit of kit. Only real issue is it prefers a level lawn. Seems to make hard work of little divots. In hindsight something with a rear roller would have ridden the undulations better.
Don't be fooled into buying the RCD adaptor they are offering - its petrol. :-)
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>> Don't be fooled into buying the RCD adaptor they are offering - its petrol. :-)
I was tempted... :)
Approx how many litres of petrol do I need to buy, assuming I can find any?
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One of those small plastic cans with a spout should be more than adequate. Not sure what they hold 4 - 5 litres?. But that depends on the size of your lawn and how much you are going to use. Finding a jerrycan could be a bigger issue than the juice.
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>> Approx how many litres of petrol do I need to buy, assuming I can find
>> any?
>>
Syphon half a gallon...none of that foreign litre tat..;)...out of the car, simples.
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Gallons or litres, still tastes awful :-S
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...Think it'll last the summer? :)...
The owner of the caravan next to mine has something similar.
It's done several seasons so far and shows no signs of giving up.
Some chatter among gardeners about petrol 'going off'.
I would be inclined to slop whatever's left into the Focus at the end of the summer, and start with fresh fuel each season.
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My experience may be limited, but in approximately 55 years of using and fettling petrol and two-stroke engines of various types, I have never, ever, had a problem that I could attribute to petrol going off.
Is it an urban (or even rural) myth?
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...Is it an urban (or even rural) myth?...
Almost certainly.
It might have something to do with rusty bits getting into the fuel when metal cans were common.
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I have. I left some fuel in the tank of an old bike I had, when I fettled in 2010 I found that the UL fuel in had "gelled" - no good. New fuel and it started ok, modern fuels are more susceptible to going off to the full fuels of yore I reckon.
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Thanks for the advice chaps. I picked it up yesterday evening - just; carrying >22kg in a big cardboard box back up the stairs to the car park wasn't easy! And managed to find some petrol for it (and the Focus) on the way back. Now just need some oil, and for the grass to grow a bit more...
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>> Now just need some oil, and for the grass to grow a bit more...
Gave Mrs F instructions to get some SAE 30 oil from Halfords for the (4 stroke) mower, as specified in the instructions, but she's come back with '2 stroke garden engine oil'; no mention of SAE 30 on the bottle. No good?
Last edited by: Focus on Sun 15 Apr 12 at 15:35
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...No good?...
Not really, what Mrs F bought is the oil to mix with the petrol for a two stroke engine.
You want oil to put in the sump of your mower's four stroke engine.
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Thanks Iffy. I was aware of the difference in usage, but wondered if perhaps the oil might be the same. I guess it's unlikely.
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...but wondered if perhaps the oil might be the same...
Oil is oil to a point, and I dare say the engine would run OK with the right amount of almost any oil in the sump.
But no point in testing the theory when you have relatively easy access to the correct stuff.
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>> But no point in testing the theory when you have relatively easy access to the
>> correct stuff.
Indeed. Although irritatingly Halfords, which is about a mile from home, don't appear to do an SAE 30 oil. Neither do Wickes, who have just opened opposite Halfords where the Focus DIY used to be. It would have to be a trip to B&Q, 5 miles away.
So I'll save myself a journey, as well as £2 on the cost of the oil, and buy it on ebay instead.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GRANVILLE-4-STROKE-LAWNMOWER-OIL-SAE30-1-L-LITRE-3850C-/290680816131
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I would've thought any multigrade that brackets the 30W would do.
A thought just occurred to me. Anyone ever used 'R' in a mower? The smell of freshly cut grass and burnt 'R'.........................
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>> I would've thought any multigrade that brackets the 30W would do.
As it's a cheapo Argos mower, I reckon there's a not insignificant chance it won't work. In the hopefully unlikely event that's the case, I would feel a lot happier (and less guilty at the Argos customer services desk) if I'd followed the instructions to the letter.
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> A thought just occurred to me. Anyone ever used 'R' in a mower? The smell
>> of freshly cut grass and burnt 'R'.........................
>>
Many years ago I ran my first quickish Mini on "R" for a while - just for the smell!
Soon changed back to Duckham's Q 20/50 - even for competition.
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>>Many years ago I ran my first quickish Mini on "R" for a while - just for the smell!
Soon changed back to Duckham's Q 20/50 - even for competition.
Why? I understand it's still one of the best lubricants for older competition stuff.
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>> Soon changed back to Duckham's Q 20/50 - even for competition.
>>
>> Why? I understand it's still one of the best lubricants for older competition stuff.
Castrol R, even in the 1960s was expensive!
Last edited by: Roger on Mon 16 Apr 12 at 09:47
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What a wonderful nasal experience that would be!
...off to swap the electric mower for a petrol one now.
Pat
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You can buy the stuff in most petrol stations.
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>> You can buy the stuff in most petrol stations.
Fair enough, although I suspect it will be more expensive than the one on ebay. I'm not in a hurry - won't be giving it a go until next weekend now. Quite looking forward to firing up that mighty 149cc beast...
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...Quite looking forward to firing up that mighty 149cc beast...
Worth doing in case it doesn't work.
Argos are usually reasonable to deal with, but the longer you leave it, the harder it will be to get an exchange or refund.
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Well it works, and has the added bonus of a smoke screen generator for secret mowing:
s969.photobucket.com/albums/ae173/focushj/?action=view¤t=DSCF0807.mp4
:)
I don't spend a lot of time under the bonnet of my car but would I be right in suspecting an oil leak? A couple of pics of the engine:
i969.photobucket.com/albums/ae173/focushj/DSCF0800.jpg
i969.photobucket.com/albums/ae173/focushj/DSCF0805.jpg
i969.photobucket.com/albums/ae173/focushj/DSCF0806.jpg
The oil level is below max BTW.
If you leave it running, it starts misfiring, and this gets worse until it eventually stalls. Taking out the spark plug you can see oil in the gap; clean it out and starting again gives you another 5 minutes or so before the next stall.
I'm going to email customer services just to give them a chance to come up with a miracle cure, but I suspect it'll be back to Argos next weekend. I'll try another one, as when it worked it seemed to do a good job.
Last edited by: Focus on Sun 22 Apr 12 at 14:44
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well it sounds awful, terminal even. Broken oil control ring at a guess.
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>> well it sounds awful, terminal even.
That was when it was running ok (apart from the smoke)!
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Are you running it on two stroke fuel? Or maybe it was built without any piston rings.
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Might look like it :) But no, standard unleaded in one tank and 4 stroke SAE 30 oil in the other.
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I once had a petrol mower similar to yours which would smoke for a while after you turned it onto one of its sides to clean it. I can't remember if it was the carb or exhaust side.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Sun 22 Apr 12 at 15:43
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Mmm... it hasn't been on its side, and it was like that all through cutting the lawn yesterday (with about 5 stops to clean the plug). Still the same today.
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Still ain't cut my grass yet, I even bought a new blade for my 18" Honda Izzy over a month ago!
www.flickr.com/photos/43576259@N04/6956309284/
Might leave it to June (Hi June!)
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...Taking out the spark plug you can see oil in the gap; clean it out and starting again gives you another 5 minutes or so before the next stall...
The choke isn't on all the time is it?
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>> The choke isn't on all the time is it?
A good question - no, it isn't. I used the choke initially, but it was starting fine on the normal position.
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>> I used the choke initially, but it was starting fine on the normal position.
If it has a choke, but starts well without it from cold, then the carb is running too rich probably. That can lead to problems or poor running when it is at normal running temperature.
The air filter gets choked quickly in lawnmowers and chainsaws. That causes rich running.
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>> If it has a choke, but starts well without it from cold, then the carb
>> is running too rich probably.
Thanks for the suggestion AC. However I did talk to a knowledgeable chap in customer service on Saturday when I was having trouble starting it (turned out to be oil in the plug), and he said he only used the choke when both the engine and weather was cold.
Presumably even if the engine was running rich, that would only affect the fuel supply, not cause oil in the chamber/plug?
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Has the mower got a total-loss lubrication system? If so perhaps the oil feed is too wide open or something...
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>> Has the mower got a total-loss lubrication system? If so perhaps the oil feed is
>> too wide open or something...
That I wouldn't know, but I've emailed customer services, with links to the videos/pics; I'll let you know what they say. Z's suggestion (above) sounds like a good one, although I don't know what that means either :)
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>> >> Has the mower got a total-loss lubrication system? If so perhaps the oil feed
>> is
>> >> too wide open or something...
>>
>> That I wouldn't know,
I don't think it was designed that way, but it is now!
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Took the smoky mower back to Argos yesterday and exchanged it for another (hopefully less smoky) one. Went in armed with the footage on the camera and the nice young lady at the customer services desk agreed that there was A Problem.
Second time lucky...?
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>> Second time lucky...?
Yep - cut the grass with the replacement on Saturday and not a puff of smoke to be seen.
And it was quick. Not just because of the bigger grass box - with the old leccy mower the lead/extension was shorter than the length of the garden so I had to do it in 2 halves (there's sockets in the shed at the end of the garden). That meant doing widths.
Now I can do lengths, with about half as many turn-arounds, and as a bonus the grass looks more stripey too. £100 well spent :)
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>> Now I can do lengths, with about half as many turn-arounds, and as a bonus
>> the grass looks more stripey too. £100 well spent :)
Dr Hessayon's "Be Your Own Lawn Expert" would have you alternate widths/lengths to avoid the 'corrugated' look. Works OK for me but managing the flex lengthways is a minor pain.
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>> Dr Hessayon's "Be Your Own Lawn Expert" would have you alternate widths/lengths to avoid the
>> 'corrugated' look.
Actually Bromp if you saw our lawn you'd realise that would be the least of our problems :)
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how have you managed to have a lawn dry enough to mow?
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Much the same up here, been able to leave it for a couple of days to dry. For some (as yet undiagnosed) reason the John Deere wouldn't re-start after stopping to unload the hopper. Battery as flat as the proverbial. It would be an uphill 40 meter push back to the shed....anyway managed to connect to 30m extension leads together, plugged into the bike's Optimate - soon got it going...really odd.
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>> how have you managed to have a lawn dry enough to mow?
Ah well with a mighty 149cc internal combustion engine under the hood it doesn't need to be dry.
Under normal circumstances I might have left it longer, but it was starting to get a bit lush, and I did want to test out the replacement to check I hadn't got another duffer.
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>> Faster to get going - no getting out the cable/extension.
>> Faster doing the job - no need to step over and manage the cable while
>> going up and down.
>> Faster finishing - no rewinding the cable, putting away the extension.
But if the battery goes flat half way through cutting the grass then an 'x' wait time until the battery is charged enough to complete the job, whereas if the mower ran out of petrol you just add some more petrol or get a longer extention lead for the elecy one.
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Faster - no rewiring when you cut through the cable :-O
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Highest temp. yesterday was in the Ham of Notting = 18.6c ... amazing!
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I cut our grass first time 2 weeks ago. My 40 year old Hayterette started first time: (I spent 1 hour the previous day resetting the throttle cable so it would.. it has strange method of setting up the throttle using the attachment for the cable end..
Sorry I exaggerate: not 40 years old: manufactured in 1973...
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Well, spurred on by this thread, I cut the front lawns (pocket handkerchief size x2) using my wife's legacy Bosch electric mower - the 3/4 acre back garden is still a little too moist so that will have to wait - the tractor is cleaned up ready to roll though. See how things develop.
Found that the snow scoop I bought for 4.99 before the winter is an ideal bit of kit for use as a long handled oversized dust-pan to get the grass cuttings off the drive ! Just need to find an use for 800 quids worth if Winter Tyres now !
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First Cut on Saturday morning , I had four hours solid gardening including cutting lawns front and rear with Flymo ( what else ) followed by strimming of edges , digging over of front flower beds , then scarifying with my electric scarifier......had to stop eventually because green waste bin was absolutely full.
I definitely felt I had earned my seat in front of the Rugby and a couple of glasses of Shiraz on Satuday afternoon...
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>> Anyone else out cutting the lawn today, or yesterday?
Nope.
Managed to resist cutting it again. Plan is to start from April.
However, I did try and get the petrol mower ready at the weekend. Wasn't quite so lucky as last year where it started on the 2nd pull. I eventually got it started with lots of curses and swearing, along with cleaning the plug several times.
Now just got to sharpen the blade.
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>>Managed to resist cutting it again. Plan is to start from April<<
+1
Bought a new 18" blade though for my Rhonda Wizzy.
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Cut our grass Saturday.Nice sunny day here today.Blackbirds in the garden lovely birds.>:)
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>>Blackbirds in the garden lovely birds<<<
That reminds me! - wont be long now `till I get this years "crop" of Rook Squabs.
A local farmer friend has (for several years) been awarded the job of "thinning" the Rook population in the Churchyard. His wife keeps a few and passes the surplus on to us and we have he "Traditional" Blackbird pie!
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Rook Squabs? Blackbird pie? I mention it to my wife she is a vegetarian.
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>> Plan is to start from April.
Change of plan. Cut it yesterday. Got fed up with the nagging ;o)
Now the ongoing battle to get the moss and weeds back under control again.
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Top tip re moss on today GQT on R4 - don't cut the grass too short as the longer the blade is the more shade their is for the moss so it doesn't thrive...
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...don't cut the grass too short as the longer the blade is the more shade their is for the moss so it doesn't thrive...
Makes sense to me.
The scraggy patch at the caravan looks more grass-like with its winter growth.
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>> Top tip re moss on today GQT on R4 - don't cut the grass too
>> short as the longer the blade is the more shade their is for the moss
>> so it doesn't thrive...
Are you sure about that? I thought moss thrives in the shade, that's why North facing lawns generate so much of the stuff.
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"...moss thrives in the shade..."
Yes, well, relatively speaking.
The advice not to cut the grass short to help control moss is good, but for a different reason. Grass that's cut short is weakened and takes longer to regrow between cuts. If the grass weakens the moss will take over. Strongly-growing grass will keep the moss at bay.
The problem with lawns is that monoculture (i.e., growing just one species to the exclusion of everything else) is unnatural. There will always be a tendency for other plants to get in. Moss is a great opportunist in lawns - that's why it's so widespread. It grows well in winter, when the grass doesn't. It's difficult to kill completely. Even if eradicated, it will come back.
Unless you're going to be a complete lawn freak it's best to aim to keep things under control rather than expect perfection. Treat the lawn with moss-killer and grass-feed, spring and autumn as well, if possible. When the moss-killer takes effect, scarify the lawn to rip out the dead stuff. Aerate the lawn once a year. Do not cut the grass too short, especially in hot, dry weather. Make sure the blades on your mower (yes, even rotary mowers) are sharp, so the grass is cut cleanly, not bruised (and thereby damaged).
If you do that you'll get a pretty good lawn - not perfect, but pretty good.
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>> Treat the lawn with moss-killer ..........
I use sulphate of iron, bought in a 25kg sack.
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Still haven't cut mine yet, I was looking at it today mind, and it ain't getting any shorter!
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Done mine today - boy does it look tidier.
Had my spring hair cut yesterday also, boy does it look ...........
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Lots of moss in the lawn this year. Have one of those electric lawn scarifiers, raking it out by hand is really hard work. Took 15 sacks of the stuff down the tip yesterday. I normally composts all my green waste but moss takes for ever to rot away.
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but moss is nice and green....
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>>I normally composts all my green waste
Best way moi lover, av you got a loight boy?
:-)
Sorry, couldn't resist...Archers addict see...
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"Archers addict see'
Not sure I agree with Brian's view that with European producers set to move out of pork, and new welfare regulations coming in that this is the right time to invest. Annabelle doesn't seem convinced - what say you Humph?
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To be honest CG, either Debbie's on drugs or she's out to ruin Brian.
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Josh is growing out of Ruth’s beekeeping suit.
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And the Prof has been watching Chris' Tits ;-)
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Not when it dries out it's not. It chokes the grass, stops air and water getting to the grass roots and together with the thatch of dead grass eventually smothers the grass. Scarifying the grass works wonders.
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Still have a thing for Shula's voice...
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"I wouldn't mind having a bit of Moss on me lawn, actually."
I wish you wouldn't do that just as SWMBO walks in the room and says "What you doin' on the computer" and I reply (lamely) - just on Car4Play Forum!
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>I wouldn't mind having a bit of Moss on me lawn, actually.
Have you tried Weed and maybe some feed?
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I was weaned on Red Leb.
:)
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Well the bait sounds good enough so I'm a bit baffled why you haven't got Moss on your lawn.
You are keeping the Cristal at the right temp aren't you :-(
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She probably believes "crystal" is cool enough!
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We've all thought it so I had to say it !
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2nd cut this afternoon. So warm I wore my shorts while doing it.
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Did you scare the neighbours skinny white legs or fat hairy ones.>:)
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Probably wondered why he was messin with his (camera) tri-pod!!
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No cuts here (vote 4 me!)
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No cuts here either, the lawn has been treated with feed, weed and moss killer and we're awaiting the spurt of growth!
Pat
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>>No cuts here<<
Local farmer bringing a few sheep around next week?
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Sheep?.....we only grow tates and sugar beet here being so deep in the Fen!
The mole is back though:(
Pat
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>> Probably wondered why he was messin with his (camera) tri-pod!!
you can see me and my tripod in this video...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3_VU2e79Og
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Wooden tit be a good idea for you Cecil Z. DeMille's to state what camera y'all are using.
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>> Wooden tit be a good idea for you Cecil Z. DeMille's to state what camera
>> y'all are using.
Everyone knows I use the Fuji HS10. Besides, I am in that video, so its not shot with my camera.
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>> Everyone knows I use the Fuji HS10. Besides, I am in that video, so its
>> not shot with my camera.
>>
Are you the ugly bloke, or the good looking one?
;-)
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>>Everyone knows I use the Fuji HS10<<
I couldn't remember whether it was the HS10 or the HS20
>>Besides, I am in that video, so its not shot with my camera<<
Hitchcock??
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>>you can see me and my tripod in this video...
Is that you on the end of the opposite platform? - with Nicole and Nicorette?
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>> >>you can see me and my tripod in this video...
>>
>> Is that you on the end of the opposite platform? - with Nicole and Nicorette?
Yes, No & No - No idea who they are.
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Oh OK, wouldn't fancy getting stuck in a lift with you and Westpig then, especially if there were no emergency pies available...
:-)
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Anyone who got stuck in a lift with Zero and Westpig, even if they were both in a good mood, might easily get seriously injured in the crossfire by the time the doors opened on the fourth floor...
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Needs must, the rest of you can starve.
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I thought that must be you! - you`ve even put your "logo" sign up infront of you!!
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Yes - I put it up where ever I go.
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You might have put on a decent pair of kecks before identifying yourself to the forum.
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>> You might have put on a decent pair of kecks before identifying yourself to the
>> forum.
They are clean jeans!
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>>Yes - I put it up where ever I go<<
Bit like Bad Dave then.
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>> >> >>you can see me and my tripod in this video...
>> >>
>> >> Is that you on the end of the opposite platform? - with Nicole and
>> Nicorette?
>>
>> Yes, No & No - No idea who they are.
>>
No oil painting!
;-)
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I cut a dashing fine figure of a man on the platform, I do tend to gather a pile of unattractive riff raff around me tho, dull moths to a bright flame I guess.
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>>No oil painting!<<
They can carry out fool face transplants now, we hear.
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>> you can see me and my tripod in this video...
Too much information.
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First cut this morning, a bit late really. I got 1/4 of a wheelie bin full off an area about the size of half a tennis court.
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First cut yesterday. More moss than grass left.
Went to dump today with the cuttings amongst other things. Despite being midweek there were queues like I hadn't seen for years. Much worse than the petrol stations!
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Don't s'pose weed and feed stuff is good for dogs? Bit wary of putting any on the lawn this year
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Most of it is safe, just be wary that if you use any coper sulphate stuff, the dog will walk it in and brown paw prints will appear in your carpet days later, that you will never get rid of
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Ok thanks, no carpets to worry about. One has tiles and wood of course, odd mock Persian here and there natch...
:-)
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a final check on the pack will be required. SOme required the dog to be off for a few hours.
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Second cut today!
(I blame Green Thumb for making the bally stuff grow!)
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"... if you use any coper sulphate stuff, the dog will walk it in and brown paw prints will appear in your carpet..."
I've no experience of using copper sulphate as a moss-killer. Does it really stain carpets brown? Don't copper compounds produce a bluish stain?
Now ferrous sulphate I have used as a moss-killer and that does stain everything, including concrete paths, brown. The stains are in effect rust.
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>>> Now ferrous sulphate I have used as a moss-killer and that does stain everything, including
>> concrete paths, brown.
When I get sulphate of iron stains on our paving slab paths I just sprinkle the solution all over the paths.
Last edited by: L'escargot on Wed 28 Mar 12 at 09:38
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My 90 yr old neighbour asked if I could cut her lawn moss today as her son is too busy lazy to do it for her.
Nearly 3 hours later I finished and had 3 wheely bin sized bin liners of cuttings.
In contrast I then cut my own lawn again and it took me 30 mins and the cuttings fitted in a Tesco carrier. Same size garden as neighbours. Boy, was hers in a right mess.
Last edited by: VxFan on Sat 31 Mar 12 at 20:20
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It surprises me that y'all grass is growing considering the drought conditions, I still haven't cut my grass yet and I reckon I can hold out until Easter, by which time it'll probably be too wet to cut.
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First cut March 10th, second cut March 24th and third cut today. I think it will be every week now until November.
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Herself is planting stuff at the moment. She's got a bad back so she makes me water various pots, seedlings and vegetable beds every day as the sun goes down.
It's still a bit like the Somme after the battle out back, but the lawns in front have been mowed at least three or four times. No sign of yellowing yet, the grass is still green. And rain is promised.
Still, it was supposed to be getting grey and cold by today. No sign of anything like that, it's hot and sunny as usual in March. This March anyway.
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Sun 1 Apr 12 at 15:24
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I know duckie. I wondered who would be first to bite.
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Two Scottish ducks on a tandem
Duck at the front says "quack!"
Duck the back says, "Ah cannae go any quacker!"...
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Glaswegian ducks ? (not that I'm calling you ducks of course)
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Told you you'd start going a bit odd. Time to get back over Offa's dyke before it's too late I'd say...
:-)
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They were flying over Belfast in the version I was told (by a Southern Irishman)... 'Hong on a minute can't ye, etc.'
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Tried out my new flame thrower type thingy bought from Lidle or was it Aldi (they are right opposite each other). Rather handy for sorting out those little weeds and tufts of grouse sprouting round the pavers. Beats getting on hands and knees and tugging them out sometime leaving the roots. Spark her up and away you go. Bigger infestations will need some weedkiller of course.
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>>tufts of grouse!!!
Argh!! - don`t burn them, wait till later in the year then harvest the Whisky!!!!
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Surely a systemic weed killer would be better than a flame thrower because the latter has no effect on the roots.
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I like moss, weeds and so on. I'm more of a hobbit than a regimental sergeant-major. But I have met many a wild-eyed psychopath intent on spraying deadly poisons on these charming, beautiful and harmless spontaneous growths. They make me scowl a bit.
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The average garden centre contains enough chemicals to arm a small dictatorship. Funny how gardening for some people equates to mass destruction of all things living from dandelions to insects to moles.
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I've learnt to love my little mole....
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>> I've learnt to love my little mole....
>>
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fePU5CIHpas
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>> The average garden centre contains enough chemicals to arm a small dictatorship. Funny how gardening
>> for some people equates to mass destruction of all things living from dandelions to insects
>> to moles.
Yeah, its the only thing that makes gardening fun.
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Yeah, its the only thing that makes gardening fun.
You're right It's in same league as snapping old trains
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Except of course you won't have killed the roots, just burnt off the top growth. Flame guns sound like a good idea but are fairly useless in practice. It's weed killer or weeding i'm afraid.
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Should I take my 'grouse' killer back to Aldi then? :-]
Last edited by: Fullchat on Sun 1 Apr 12 at 19:51
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Third cut last week. Cut neighbours as well.
We both treated lawns for moss in time for the rain expected tomorrow.
About the only chemicals I use in the garden apart from tomato feed and thymol for the bees... and path weedkiller .. and paraffin for greenhouse heater - and petrol for the lawnmower - and slug killer and err....
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I spose I'm the only one that hasn't cut their grass yet, I was going to do it at Easter but I'll leave it for as long as I can get away with it.
Its not like your manicured turf anyway as it used to be a paddock up until a year ago, a benefit of not cutting it is that y'all get wild flowers coming up where it would otherwise be scalped.
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Just leave the gate open and the Ponies will do the rest?
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She (previous oc) kept ponies as it appens - amazing just how short they nibble the green stuff.
Pity dogs don't eat grass (this one used to smoke it though!)
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Theres n old "Farming" saying that "Nothing nibbles grass shorter than a horse, except a stone" - probably because horses are the only grass-munchers with top teeth!
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"Nothing nibbles grass shorter than a horse, except a stone"
Geese do.
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>> Pity dogs don't eat grass ............
Dogs do eat grass! tinyurl.com/3pcqd9e
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Hehe! - of course they do (in small amounts) my dog used to eat the ornamental grasses in our other house,
and then vomit it up sometime later, maybe upto a day later, he wouldn't eat until he's puked it up on the carpet,
or outside if I caught him and put my toe up his ah ha!
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I was in our local Dobbie's today and saw my ideal lawn. Polypropylene green (and some brown) stuff cunningly woven into a backing.
Three grades from luxury to basic.
Blooming ideal and very lifelike.
Last edited by: Roger on Mon 30 Apr 12 at 14:10
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...How much does it cost?...
A lot to do properly.
Brother paid about £3K to have his back garden done last year.
Detached house on a newish estate, so the garden's no bigger than one might expect.
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"Polypropylene green (and some brown) stuff cunningly woven into a backing."
It goes very nicely with stone cladding and gnomes I believe.
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You could clad the house in it and become teletubbies.
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Faux lawn to go with Faux Tudor?
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>> You could clad the house in it and become teletubbies.
>>
Well, SWMBO says I'm the right proportions.
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I bought some of this ere fake turf a few years ago to cover up a sceptic tank area when I was selling an owse.
I sent orf for loadsa samples before finally choosing a 'natural looking' product,
it looked better than the real thing in the end!
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Sceptic, eh? So was I ...
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>> I sent orf for loadsa samples ...
I know someone who wallpapered a room using that method. ;-)
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I feel a patchwork quilt coming on.
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Someone will grass you up...
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You should be turfed out for that.
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Or have your stripes removed.
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I still haven't cut it yet! flic.kr/p/bDgus3 if I had Lud's sort of money I'd pay someone to do it.
Ha ha :o)
Last edited by: VxFan on Sat 5 May 12 at 00:04
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God said:
Frank, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there in the Midwest? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.
ST. FRANCIS: It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers "weeds" and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It's temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.
God: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.
St. Francis: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it -- sometimes twice a week.
God: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?
St. Francis: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.
God: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
St. Francis: No Sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
God: Now let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
St. Francis: Yes, Sir.
God: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.
St. Francis: You aren't going to believe this Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
God: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of life.
St. Francis: You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.
God: No. What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?
St. Francis: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.
God: And where do they get this mulch?
St. Francis: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.
God: Enough. I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have they scheduled for us tonight?
St. Catherine: "Dumb and Dumber", Lord. It's a really stupid movie about.....
God: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.
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>> I bought some of this ere fake turf ............
One athlete asked another whether he preferred grass or fake turf. The second athlete said he couldn't say because he'd never tried smoking fake turf!
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On Tuesday I rushed out last thing in the afternoon as the grass was drier than of late.
Just got the majority of the back lawn cut and got mower problems.
Engine runs but no drive to blades or roller. AAAARGH.
It is not an old mower so a bit surprised at its problem.
At least its raining again :-(
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And ... I still haven't cut my grass yet, mind you - its starting to look like LONG!
:o}
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I managed to get my second cut in on Tuesday.
Tried to dry some washing outside today. No chance. Now pis.sistantly raining.
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>>Engine runs but no drive to blades or roller. AAAARGH.
>>
I have just visited a helpful local back street mower repair man.
The good news is that it seems that It is a DIY no cost repair.
Now I need a break in the rain to get at sorting it out.
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First cut - Pat
