by Pa Rock
Mulcher of Leaves
Just because fall has officially arrived, the trees are shedding their leaves, and we have had our first frost of the season, does not mean that mowing has ended. I used my handy push mower last Sunday to mulch the leaves that were drifting across the front yard. The mower (actually a mulching mower) is amazing. As it crosses the yard, the leaves are chewed up and just virtually disappear onto the ground. It is like they have been attacked and eliminated by a big eraser.
Yesterday I watched a neighbor mowing his yard with his riding mower. Actually, he too was addressing the leaves issue. He began mowing along the right edge of his yard, blowing the leaves to the left with his big non-mulching machine. Some of the leaves were chopped by the big rider's blades, but most continued to be blown to the left. I didn't watch the whole process, but I suspect that when had had finished blowing all of the leaves leftward, he either then bagged or burned them.
Another neighbor has one of those noisy leaf-blowers that he cranks up every Saturday morning. He blows the fallen leaves into piles and then burns them.
But I hate to waste perfectly good leaves by throwing them away or burning them. My way, the mulching, takes the nuisance leaves and chops them into a nice additive for the soil. I will probably mow/mulch my front yard two more times this year. My last pass in 2014 was in mid-December.
I drove from West Plains to Kansas City this morning, and much of that nearly five-hour drive occurred in the rain. As I was nearing Cabool, Missouri, on Highway 60, I came upon a state vehicle with a flashing sign the read "Mowers Ahead." Right, I thought. Who would be out in this wet mess trying to mow? But, sure enough, I soon came across three large tractor mowers being operated by state employees in a pounding rain. Thirty miles or so down the road near Mansfield, Missouri, along the same highway, I came across two more hearty souls mowing the state's right-of-way. And then, not to be outdone by the rural areas, I encountered one more state mower at work in the rain north of Harrisonville, Missouri, as I neared Kansas City.
Being a former State of Missouri employee my own self, and a bit of a cynic, I wondered if the highway department might be in a rush to get its current budget spent so that they could expect a full serving of tax=payer dollars for the next fiscal year.
To paraphrase Steve Martin, today was not a great day for a mow!
Mulcher of Leaves
Just because fall has officially arrived, the trees are shedding their leaves, and we have had our first frost of the season, does not mean that mowing has ended. I used my handy push mower last Sunday to mulch the leaves that were drifting across the front yard. The mower (actually a mulching mower) is amazing. As it crosses the yard, the leaves are chewed up and just virtually disappear onto the ground. It is like they have been attacked and eliminated by a big eraser.
Yesterday I watched a neighbor mowing his yard with his riding mower. Actually, he too was addressing the leaves issue. He began mowing along the right edge of his yard, blowing the leaves to the left with his big non-mulching machine. Some of the leaves were chopped by the big rider's blades, but most continued to be blown to the left. I didn't watch the whole process, but I suspect that when had had finished blowing all of the leaves leftward, he either then bagged or burned them.
Another neighbor has one of those noisy leaf-blowers that he cranks up every Saturday morning. He blows the fallen leaves into piles and then burns them.
But I hate to waste perfectly good leaves by throwing them away or burning them. My way, the mulching, takes the nuisance leaves and chops them into a nice additive for the soil. I will probably mow/mulch my front yard two more times this year. My last pass in 2014 was in mid-December.
I drove from West Plains to Kansas City this morning, and much of that nearly five-hour drive occurred in the rain. As I was nearing Cabool, Missouri, on Highway 60, I came upon a state vehicle with a flashing sign the read "Mowers Ahead." Right, I thought. Who would be out in this wet mess trying to mow? But, sure enough, I soon came across three large tractor mowers being operated by state employees in a pounding rain. Thirty miles or so down the road near Mansfield, Missouri, along the same highway, I came across two more hearty souls mowing the state's right-of-way. And then, not to be outdone by the rural areas, I encountered one more state mower at work in the rain north of Harrisonville, Missouri, as I neared Kansas City.
Being a former State of Missouri employee my own self, and a bit of a cynic, I wondered if the highway department might be in a rush to get its current budget spent so that they could expect a full serving of tax=payer dollars for the next fiscal year.
To paraphrase Steve Martin, today was not a great day for a mow!
1 comment:
I'm going to purchase a mulching mower. Thanks for the info.
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