Content
Mowers and Lawn Mowing
- Old cylinder mower - should I keep it or part exchange it?
- Ripples in the lawn after mowing
- When can I mow new turf?
- Using a hand cylinder mower on new grass
- Thinning grass
Old cylinder mower - should I keep it or part exchange it?
I've decided to take your advice and buy a rotary mower to replace my old cylinder mower. Is it worth keeping or should I use it as part-ex change?
thanks, Ted
I can't make that decision for you other than to say that keeping the old mower means you've got a spare mower if you ever need one. If the cylinder mower has a scarifying cassette as well then you've got two good reasons to keep it.
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Ripples in the lawn after mowing - what are they?
Anthony – This is more common with cylinder mowers
Either the grass is too long, too wet or the mower is blunt or underpowered. Any one of these causes excess resistance on the blade as it rotates. This results in variations in the blade speed and therefore mowing quality causing ripples or a wave like appearance. Sort your mower or mowing practices.
There could be another cause however and this can happen with rotary mowers as well if it has a rear roller. By mowing always in the same direction you can cause the turf or underlying soil to get minor ripples in it. As you keep mowing week in week out these little ripples cause the mower to undulate causing bigger ripples to the point where you feel the mower bouncing! The moral of this story is to change grass cutting direction at least once a month.
When can I mow new turf?
I had a new lawn laid down in early November 2010, when should I give it a first cut and at what height?
David, there is some information at the bottom of the page in the Creating a New Lawn topic. The following guidelines should also help:
- Mow when it gets to 6 to 8cm; in this case chances are April time
- Mow with newly sharpened blades on a dry day
- The first cut should be around 5cm high
- Keep the cut high for the next few cuts
- In the first year be prepared to keep the cut high if weather becomes dry
- First feed should be after about 6 months
When can I use a cyliner mower on new grass?
I'm guessing the first cut should probably be with long handled shears but what I cannot see in your advice pages is guidance as to how long I should leave the grass to establish before it is considered safe to use a hand propelled cylinder mower with a rear roller.
Patrick - good question
As we're now coming into July you'll need to keep a reasonably high cut now until next year. Here are some pointers:
- Shears or a sharp rotary mower on a high cut for 4-8 weeks
- Start lowering the cut until you come into the mowing height of the cylinder mowers highest cut - another 4-8 weeks
- Do NOT use minimum mowing heights this year - next year is your target
Information in the previous FAQ may help
Thinning grass
I laid my lawn last year and was the best quality turf according to the turf grower. The grass is made up of was looks like brush hairs, very slow growing. I only have to cut it once a month during summer.
The grass is also what I can only describe as baldy all over and wont grow in a couple of shady areas in the garden. What I am looking for is a very dense growing grass which I can overseed with or should I start from scratch again?
David
The best quality turf often means turf without rye grass. Your turf is therefore all fescues which are bristle or brush like grass blades as you refer. We sell the same seed as Ornamental and if you read the details you will realise it is very demanding and needs fequent mowing, generally twice a week. Infrequent mowing will cause it to thin so do read our mowing advice.
If you are not prepared for the demands of an ornamental lawn then scarify it in August to thin it out even more and over seed with Classic Lawn Seed which will give you something a little less demanding as long as you mow every 7 to 10 days on a medium high cut.
Hope that helps
