Lawns Hub

A lawn mower starter can be man’s worst enemy. There, I said it. These infernal little necessities rank somewhere around computers for sheer irritation value. The worst case scenario has it thusly: You wheel your mower out to commence a mid Summer mowing before the heat comes up. Bending down, you give your starter a crank with a mighty pull, yet it won’t catch. Pulling again, you feel a twinge in your lower back, ripping that sucker out this time with a bit more force. Still no luck. Finally, you give a mighty heave, feeling a certainty that your effort plus luck itself will get her going and you hear a “snap!”……….whoa, the cord is broken! Your day now consists of trying to rewind the cord (perhaps driving down and getting a new one) and challenging you already limited Mr. Fixit abilities. What a nasty start to a fine day.

Well, I can only help a little. One secret now possessed by people who use motors daily, starting and stopping many times, is to make certain of a few needful items before commencing. One, the spark plug is something of a Holy Grail for starter cords. These get fouled in may ways, sometimes by age and sometimes by the contaminates in those gas tanks we store for weeks at a time. Insuring a good spark plug is a necessary factor in success against the whims of machinery. Be sure you know how to replace them, when necessary and have an extra one around. Making sure you have clean, uncontaminated gas is next. Water in gas can kill a spark plug and foul a carburetor. This you want to avoid like a plague.

Both these small checkups can save a lot of grief. But what saves more is having an automatic ignition system, lol. Imagine using a pull cord to start your car! My advice here is to either get a battery powered electrical engine or an electronic ignition for true relaxation over starters. Both are available and while neither is particularly “Macho”, both are pretty daggone satisfying.

The truth about cats dogs and lawn chemicals is not as unpleasant as one might fear. There had indeed been some input into the hazards of animals in the vicinity of chemical applications after some horrible events made this entire study necessary. These are unpleasant as they can be and there is undoubtedly more to come.

Having said that, there are increasing numbers of benevolent chemicals and substances that can be used for the same purposes in a much safer way. As well, when we use these chemicals, the written instructions which too many people ignore to their and their animals’ detriments should be strictly observed and adhered to. For example, many chemicals which are toxic from the bag or spout require watering into substrates of the soils they effect. Had this been done properly, rather than relying on unpredictable rainfall to supply the leaching effect, many animals would be healthier today.

More organic and animal-friendly substances are being developed to supply maintenance chores to act as pesticides and lawn illness remedies. There is constant study in these substances owing to a new concentration on “green” and more environmentally-friendly substances. Some of our very best scientists and young horticultural testers are finding solutions to agricultural and horticultural problems by their researches using natural products. The truth about cats dogs and lawn chemicals is that we need to be more circumspect ourselves and respect those products we use in the smartest possible way.

Thinking lawns is thinking green. And in that area, sharing some thoughts on my mind today.

Lawn care products pollution can be a scary look at a potential problem. The tendency to urbanize has pushed people closer together and created situations where this massing can produce any number of effects, among them, unfortunately, a tendency for lawn care products pollution. Frequent uses of machines generating gas-powered carbon monoxide emissions spew from those gas powered machines we all love to maintain our lawns and gardens with. Pesticides and fertilizers can also create a witch’s brew of poisonous run off, especially so when irrigation practices include over watering. Mowing for an hour is the pollution equivalent of driving a car 20 miles. Spreading 40 pounds of a petroleum-based fertilizer is the equivalent of pouring 2.5 gallons of gas on your lawn.

These represent some scary facts when one considers the sheer volume of thier usage. Having said all that, you often need to drive 20 miles. 2.5 gallons of gas will get a normal car about 40 miles. These are all actions within a certain reason and are only alarming when considering a vast and compressed scale of usage. Help is on the way for these things as remedies are appearing, especially considering herbicides and pesticide usage,factors which I have not yet dealt with here but which could well be far more dangerous in terms of soil and water contamination.

There are abundant examples where we can do better. And I, for one, feel we will gradually become less dependent on these inorganic methods, especially when one considers the number and quality of folks now bending their backs into the science of finding alternatives. Some of the more promising findings yet involve genetic manipulation of grasses and more drought-tolerant plants and crops. These can also be made more disease and pest-resistant.

Outdoor lawn and garden furniture is another of those areas which have burgeoned into a massively-popular and amazingly diverse area with the modern advent of a culture far more invested in the outdoors, their landscaping and the peaceful and relaxing benefits of home and garden ownership. There are nearly as many firms specializing in them now as there are items themselves which in itself opens an amazing research and development system dedicated to providing the newest and most affordable “next best thing”.

From a period when chaise lounges and a few mass-produced tables were the overriding items of lawn and garden furniture, we now find ourselves amid a dizzying riot of possibilities, from self-suspending hammock arrangements to and assortment of finely-woven Rattan pieces, made by actual artisans. Indeed, a trip to almost any craft show will illustrate the “off-market” creativity of humans who also love and adore sitting and relaxing in a garden of their own. The newer and cheaper import world delivers yet another quantitative burst of furniture, from the Swedish designed metals to Oriental possibilities it was once an exotic and rare thing to see.

Outdoor lawn and garden furniture also made a quantum leap in terms of durability with the newer sun-resistant paints and powders, but the alloys now cheaply produced lend a permanence not only to the furniture itself, but even to the colors.

Outdoor lawn and garden furniture is such a wide field in fact that it now requires subcategories, it has expanded so widely. Hammocks, chairs, tables, kitchen units, bar b quing equipment, swings, sculptured furniture, the list goes on and on. The sheer volume of the items also means the cost goes down substantially as well, making what once was considered exotic now imminently possible to enjoy oneself.

Anyone with an interest in lawn decor has lawn furniture in mind too. I’ll be sure to address this topic again in the future.

Ever wondered what that is? Allow me to shed some light…

A lawn tractor grader is a device used on the front or rear of a lawn tractor which is used to either move and spread topsoil or to skim the top of existing lawns in order to spread soil, amendments or other products requiring a universal application. They can also be used to skim grass OFF a lawn, when, for example, one decides to reseed or resod.  Their primary use is almost always  in grading out soil, in a sort of installation phase, for a lawn or garden, at least in strict terms of garden applications.  They can also grade any other thing needing grading, such as gravel driveways and the likes. Let us not forget either their Winter roles as snow-moving equipment! These units sure beat the heck out of using a shovel.

These are most handy units for any lawn and garden over an acre and even for some of marginally less size. As mentioned elsewhere, these devices are generally interchangeable with other attachments for a tractor as well. Grading, including removal, combines two uses for the same attachment, as does the finishing aspect and perhaps even the lugging in of the aforementioned amendments of soil product.  I love me a grader unit.  Lawn tractor graders are an underutilized tool that allows a homeowner the luxury of considering changing vast areas of his lawn into beds, or the equally-rewarding task of changing beds into lawn.  These units do the work of many men in a short time.

Discount lawn mower parts are not exactly an exact science. There are some clearinghouses where discounted parts are found for almost anything motor-driven. It take some serious searching at Craig list or eBay for such items, but the results can pay off. Needless to say, for items that are cheaper, I recommend walking or driving to your local dealer for the parts you seek, yet, for those out of range, some research can save some money beyond doubt. Its not like discount lawn mower parts grow on trees; but as I say, bargains can indeed be found with some work.

Knowing your part number is huge. Obviously, knowing the brand is as huge, but the number is like a Holy Grail in shortening a search. Most parts are easily accessed via the part number online or at a warehouse. That is the currency of modern inventory control.

Another gold mine can be a place that recycles motors and small engines. These are often referred to as “junkyards”, simply put, and some are far better than others. Lawn mower repair facilities, shops and the like can often have parts lying around they won’t mind selling at all. Providing they don’t have an urgent need for the part, the lure of cash or immediate payment looks large in the motivations of all these places. They can easily reorder the part and have it available for work later, if not necessary immediately.

Well, the jury has returned with its verdict in the constant quest for an easier method of mowing one’s lawn and, as yet, they are not entirely convinced. It’s pretty humorous, the entire thing in a way. Personally, I am convinced it is an issue not of efficiency and not of hoping for some relief to American males with a high degree of love/hate volatility regarding their grass lawns. No, I am totally convinced it is the inner child asking - no, begging - for a new toy! Sitting back with a Bud Light, soaking up sun, our typified man gazes securely out at his robot taking care of the “grass business” as he ponders the more pressing issues of the day. His smugness includes a look over the fence at his beleaguered neighbor, once a competitor in the greenest, lushest lawn competition and now relegated to the commonness of doing his own lawn mowing. It doesn’t get much better than this!

Of course, our hero had to take his dog inside for the task. It does seem that Fido resents this interloping package, strutting around his own turf like some busy little suck up to his Master’s affections. Naturally, he rolled it over and attacked it like the unwelcome cur that it was, biting at the battery pack and catching a nasty cut on his paw while cowing it back to its natural order. Those things bite back! Fido looks out the window, biding his time. His day will come.

Our subject did have to bury a cable around the perimeter of his lawn, in precisely the right places, which took a few days. And he had to bury it for the beds in the middle of his lawn as well, so that the little sensor would catch the drift and not knock down the wife’s daffodils. And, yes, it can take 3 days to mow a 4,500 square foot lawn, with the necessary rebooting of the battery pack after 1,500 square feet or so. He will even grant that the $3,400 price tag (2008) was a bit steep. There is also of course the fact that the little demon-machine needs an absolute absence of curious kids nearby owing to its limb-snaring capacity. Nevertheless, he will soldier on, extremely delighted at breaking the High Tech lawn barrier. Onwards and lawn-wards!

The fact is, items designed to reduce the amounts of walking and actual manual hand work come in other forms as well. You can buy a remote controlled device with a typical gamer’s set of toggle switches, if you are more budget-conscious but still have that high tech urge. Naturally, as always, the unattended machine will draw a crowd, animal- and kid-wise. So it is always best to keep the remote handy and workable. If the battery were to die in the controller, who knows when it would stop? You could always ask your neighbors. They will know.

There is a cute little gas-powered machine currently on the market which actually shows some promise. With gas empowerment, you get more power. It is not that difficult to imagine that we would have sufficient technology to enable this, either. Currently, remote controlled and sometimes even automated large machinery are displayed at construction-related conventions, operating flawlessly in the huge spaces they need. Laser technology for these determines the grade and automated blade-setting placements for such things as bulldozers and large grading machines.

In the realm of the lawnmower, I have seen demonstrations of a fairly beefy little machine which can be operated by hand from a remote setting. Yes, I can actually see some fairly important relevancy here; say for the handicapped for example. It does indeed seem to operate correctly and the cut, as always, is more determined by the sharpness of the blades than anything else. Needless to say, there would be a learning curve but I can see some promise out of this high tech baby.

Currently the costs of the completely automated system look like a wonderful fantasy. In the end, it’s one of those situations where we need to wait until the technology - if there is any demand - takes off and becomes realistic. On the other hand, the hand held remote controlled units do show promise of helping those who might either require it and for those big boys who love their toys. Just watch out for Fido. He’s mad as heck and he’s not going to take this spurning happily!

Just in time for spring! Let’s talk about birdhouses!

Lawn and garden decor birdhouses add a statement about a property. It says “We really like birds!”. Not only that, it can, at its best, also state the following: “We love the art of birdhouses!” The numbers of people who can readily admit this is off the charts. Birds are admired for many reasons: their gorgeous sounds; their miniature size and the care we show in loving them; their so-important role in the food chain and in the general environmentally-sound tasks they perform daily. Birds have always been a vital and mostly very appreciated species which have fascinated humans for centuries or, better, eons.

Birdhouses have now developed to a level where there are just absolutely fascinating structures abounding. People have responded to a substantial market of bird and birdhouse lovers by producing birdhouses which sometimes defy imagination with their beauty, or which may also simply give a warm, delighted sense of caring and of “home”. Human generosity is at play here and the results are some true magnificent hotels and motels for our feathered friends. The craftsmanship and utter beauty of modern birdhouses is a srtiking testament to the level of adoration we pay this noble species.

Don’t forget either that our love for the smaller and more needful plays a role as well. There is a lot about the human heart a birdhouse says. And that, my friends, is all good. Lawn and garden decor birdhouses add to a supportive and productive human legacy in Nature. The fact that they can be as simply gorgeous as they are, merely adds another plus to life in general and reveals a healthy humanity.

There are so many designs you can choose for, to enhance any lawn decor theme. Check out these creative and sometimes funny samples including a retro trailer, a lighthouse and more, by Amazon.com - you can click on any of them to get to the product page -