How Mow do you Go?

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I just spent two hours on the riding mower. Now, the children need a nice big yard, yes, but how much is enough? I am mowing about two acres, what about the rest of you? Do you let some sections just grow up into tundra? I have abandoned anything near the old grainery. Aside from pasture, how much do you declare as wildlife sactuary?

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), June 29, 2000

Answers

Of course, I meant "sanctuary" (for you correct-your-spelling folks) and also, I shamelessly don't trim around the trees and buildings, either.

-- Rachel (rldk@hotmail.com), June 29, 2000.

We live in what some call a very small town----we mow over 5 acres & it is all divided up. Some is in orchards, some is around our warehouse buildings---some is around our barns, garages, house & guest house, & we have tons of trimming! The geese & ducks do a great job where we move their portable pen around the yards. We were going to finish up all the yard fence--then a storm came through & we are now haveing to replace one side of our garage, the roof to our garage & house roof & trim & cut down trees the storm took down--so we can't finish the fence until all the other work is done now. So we can't turn all the livestock loose until we get all the fence up. It seems like we are always about 2 beats behind! I'm on a mower, or pushing one most of the time in the summer. When, we get the fence all in, part of the land is going to be planted in wild flowers, & flowers all around the fence, outlined with herbs. Our yard is in layers now with rock retaining walls, I'm getting herbs, & flowers started in all the rock walls. Maybe in 10 years if we don't have another storm put us behind I'll have the fence in & my flowers moved & herbs moved & my water garden in-----but who knows? Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), June 29, 2000.

Sounds like you have the same problem I do - you need a bigger mower! My kids have 3/4 of an acre of "lawn", plus the grass around the outbuilding, the orchard, etc.

-- Eric in TN (ems@nac.net), June 29, 2000.

This year we (daughter & I) decided to not mow the areas near the garden & silos & the edges of the property near the crops. We only have a push mower and decided to mow just what we consider "yard", probably an acre. But, my husband is complaining that all the tall grass is keeping hordes of mosquitos around. I think I'll just get him an extra-large bottle of "Off". Besides, there are lots of pretty grasses & wildflowers mixed in.

-- Jean (schiszik@tbcnet.com), June 29, 2000.

Second mowing this year took me 5 hours. Subsequent ones take about 3. (first for some reason is only a couple). I have a Honda power push mower and a lot of obstacles (so no riding options...anyway this is one way I stay in shape). I have put temporary fencing up (electric) and tried pasturing the sheep on the lawn (I use no pesticides!) but they then have access to my new fruit trees and blueberry bushes. Trust me, that was a bad idea! I have pastured them on the drainfield, but the only access is through the gated vegetable garden, which is off limits this time of year!

My only plan is to eventually get rid of all this lawn (w. washington grass grows just unbelievably fast). I mow about every 10 days (and it looks like it) unless it's raining, which is often! I hate "wasting" all this good feed, but at least the chickens turn it into compost for me (I empty the basket into the wheelbarrow, then dump in poultry yard when full)..

one of these days, one of these days.....

-- sheepish (rborgo@gte.net), June 29, 2000.



Free ranged my chickens last year, and part of my flock this year...I have NO grass to mow. I've got about a 20' x 30'area where chicken resistant weeds are starting to flourish. Not worth cranking the tractor/bushhog for.

-- phil briggs (phillipbriggs@thenett.com), June 29, 2000.

I have a portable electric fence I move around to the areas I want "mowed" by my horse. Other then her not eating the weeds, she does a good job. Husband gets to mow the front yard.

-- Dee (gdgtur@goes.com), June 29, 2000.

Rachel,

Depending on who does it, how much time we have, how bad snakes and ticks are at the time........between 1 to 5 acres. If the ticks and snakes are bad, I feel safer if the grass is short. If it gets really bad, I can get hubby to go over it with the brush-hog. I'm not very consistent. Some days it looks great, and some days it looks like a mess. I will even confess that if I only have a little time, I just mow paths to where I need to go. One of the things I love about living in the sticks. I can do it however I want.

-- Mona (jascamp@ipa.net), June 29, 2000.


We have maybe four acres of grass-weeds. One old push mower. One over worked husband. One wife with asthma who is very allergic to ragweed. Or so they say that is what is. Any way we mow approximately one acre of yard getting smaller all the time and about two feet around the garden. Then we pay a little old man down the road to bush hog twice a year. Before and after haying time.Things do seem to close in during the summer. Just depends on weather you want it mowed and how bad you want it mowed.

-- Bonnie (josabo1@juno.com), June 30, 2000.

God and mowing, Imagine the conversation The Creator might have with St. Francis about this: "Frank you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there on earth? 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 attracted 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." "It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great extent to kill them and replace them with grass." "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?" "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." "The spring rains and cool weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy." "Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it - sometimes twice a week." "They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?" "Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags." "They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?" "No, sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away." "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?" "Yes, sir." "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." "You aren't going 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." "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." "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 have them hauled away." "No! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and keep the soil moist and loose?" "After throwing away your leaves, they go out and buy something they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves." "And where do they get this mulch?" "They cut down trees and grind them up." "Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. Saint Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?" "Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about..." "Never mind I think I just heard the whole "A desk is a dangerous place from which to watch the world." -John LeCarri

-- Grant Eversoll (thegrange@earthlink.net), June 30, 2000.


Grant, you are so funny! A perfect illustration of the pointlessness of suburbamania.

We have three acres my husband calls lawn that he will mow when he gets time and the mower is running I call it pasture and have every foot of rope and clothesline strung from posts and trees for a "fence" so the horse can mow and fertilize. She is so careful about not eating my flowers.

-- Laura (gsend@hotmail.com), June 30, 2000.


If you are going to let part of it go back to nature, consider planting it in black walnut trees instead. Check with your local ag agent on spacing. I would plant them inside old tires filled with mulch after planting. As the trees grow, trim off lower limbs shooting for a mature tree with a clear bore up to about 20'. Trees like this have sold for $10,000, and one very large one went for $25,000, since they are veneer quality. That's for a single tree. Who knows what prices will be in say 50 years, but it should at least keep up with inflation as good trees become scarcer.

-- Ken Scharabok (scharabo@aol.com), June 30, 2000.

We push mow about an acre and a half. Around our 5 flower gardens, gazebo, playhouse and 3 vegitable gardens.

-- Abigail F. (treeoflife@sws.nb.ca), June 30, 2000.

My husband is a "mowing nut"! He mows the grass EVERYDAY when he gets home from work, whether it needs it or not. We have 5 acres, many out buildings, 2 large ponds and a half acre garden. He weedwhips if the grass is too wet or if it's raining out when he gets home. I truely believe he does it to unwind from work or it does something to apease his sense of order. The kids, who are now teenagers, have never had to cut the grass in their life. The one time I had them do it before he got home, he re-did it. I never had them do that again. I'd think it was some sort of compulsive disorder, except he doesn't seem to go crazy in the winter when there is no grass to mow. (BTW- he doesn't do it for the "work out" factor....it's a riding mower or the tractor with the bushhog.)

More envy for you ladies....he's also that way with dishes, I haven't washed a dish in 19 years. Of course he's still a man, he couldn't pick up his dirty clothes off the floor if his life depended on it.

-- Peggy Adkins (adkinsonthefarm@hotmail.com), June 30, 2000.


I actually only mow about 200 square feet. My house, garden and orchard is actually inside the pasture field and is fenced to keep the livetock out. They do the rest of the mowing.

-- Marci (ajourend@libby.org), July 03, 2000.


We mow 1-2 acres. Lawn around the house (mostly so we have someplace to relax in our lawn chairs and can wade out to the clothes line), part of the area around the garden (again so we can wade out there), paths to the chicken coops etc. (only 'cause I'm scared of snakes), an area where we work on vehicles and other large stuff, an area around the currently working woodpile (we've got wood laid in 4-5+ years ahead) so we can unload,split and stack more easily. We also mow that stinking squirrel tail whenever we get the time. Eventually we'll beat it. How often we mow depends on how much time we have and how much rain we're getting-very little this year. We try to keep the area around the house mowed to keep the neighbors a bit happier. The rest of it gets done when and if it gets done. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), July 03, 2000.

The previous owner mowed the whole yard-about 9 acres-and raked it by hand until he died at 83 or so. They wanted to play golf on it. Right, more suburbanites from St. Louis. When we first looked at this place, my husband asked if I planned to mow it. I told him I planned to put a goat yard on the east side of the driveway (just under .2 mile to the public road) and raise hay on the west side. It's worked pretty well since we've been here. The rest of the yard I mow as I can. I have a bagger on the mower and I use the clippings as mulch, compost or animal feed. Well, I use the bagger if the grass isn't as tall as it is now because we have had over 12" of rain in the last 5 weeks after drought since June '99. And right now we are under a flash flood watch with 5"-6" rain predicted tonight. Feast or famine--that's Missouri's weather for you.

-- marilyn (rainbow@ktis.net), July 04, 2000.

Our homestead is only on 1 1/2 acres. It runs rectangular away from the road. We have besides our home, a 3 stall barn,attached hen house, chicken coop, 10x12 storage shed and a pig pen area. The fenced in dog yard has now become a small horse pasture when it grows back up and we just got through putting cow panel around the back piece so the horse will have more grazing area. Cuts down on alot of extra work and keeps him busy and occupied. We rotate our grazing areas. If I were you, I'd fence off more areas.

-- Pat (pmikul@pcpros.net), July 04, 2000.

We have 6.5 acres and we mow about 2.5 which is around the house and the stable and our garden. I use the push mower when I want to collect the grass for mulching in my garden or dumping on the compost pile and we use the rider all the rest of the time. The rest of the acreage we let our neighbor graze their three horses in. This helps him rotate his own pastures better and saves him money on feed. I figure it keeps the snakes away from our house and he mows the pasture in the spring and fall with his tractor. This has helped our pastures stay in nice condition, not allowing scrub to grow up and overtake them. Since I eventually want to have chickens and sheep, it is important to me to keep the pastures in good condition.

This system works well for both families.

-- Colleen (pyramidgreatdanes@erols.com), July 05, 2000.


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