What is the fascination with mowing?

[goatchops]

I grew up in a small Ohio farming town and moved away about 30 years ago in search of the bright lights of big cities. As I recall, the farmers in my community had very little lawn, which was usually mowed by my buddies- thier sons- but most folks had huge gardens and it took all their time and energy to tend whatever crop they were growing that year.

I finally realized that fame and fortune wasn't all it is cracked up to be...

Fast forward to today: I bought a small farm in Michigan and I'm enjoying retirement with my lovely wife and daugthers and living a simpler lifestyle similar to that which I grew up with. I've got about half an acre in garden, planning an orchard, keep sheep, goats, yaks & poultry and I keep a neat city-sized lawn maintained around the house. Mowing was a joy when I lived in the city but only because it was often the closest I came to having my hands in the dirt. But now, being on the farm there are so many more things I'd rather be doing than mowing the lawn and commuting.

I can't, for the life of me, understand why my neighbors spend thousands of dollars for equipment and dozens of hours mowing 1, 5 even 20 acres every week. A guy up the road from me was telling me he doesn't keep a garden because he has no time to tend it ... after all, he has 10 acres to keep mowed. When I pointed out the irony in that statement he laughed with me... but fired up his lawn tractor nonetheless and continued his daily 'commute'.

I tell my neighbors that I thought lawns were for city-folk and they laugh uncomfotably and appear annoyed but I'm serious. Can anyone here explain why? I don't expect everyone to be just like me but I sincerely want to understand the drive to use so much time, energy and money for a LAWN?!

Peace-

[tinknal]

I haven't mowed in years. Luckily I'm far enough off the road that no one cares.

[newfieannie]

I dont have a care in the world when i'm sitting on my mower. i mowed yesterday for 4 hours. then i came into the city and mowed the bit i have in here. when i'm mowing in the country i'm usually singing to my heart's content .just riding along forgetting everthing and everyone. i try not to sing in my city garden though. ~Georgia.

[highlands]

Originally Posted by goatchops

I tell my neighbors that I thought lawns were for city-folk and they laugh uncomfotably and appear annoyed but I'm serious. Can anyone here explain why?

I don't know. Our geese are fascinated with it. They keep our grass around the pond and house trimmed short, not wanting any of it uneven. Crazy birds. The sheep and pigs are out there in the fields mowing every day too. I just don't get it. Fortunately it is acceptable to eat them. People would look askens at me if I started eating the neighbors although they mow their lawns too... :} One guy has about eight acres of lawn that he mows on a big John Deere tractor. He's not even making hay. That would be too useful. Crazy bird.

[Mike in Ohio]

We mow a fair amount at the farm but it's not like it's a weekly thing. Under the nut trees we like to keep it somewhat mowed, especially in the fall when we are collecting nuts.

There are other areas we mow becuase it keeps the weeds (particularly multiflora) down. The hay pastures get mowed (and baled) once a year.

Having said that, we ride our riding mowers around the farm instead of ATVs - mow as you go to keep the trails clear <G>.

Mike

[CherieOH]

I'm not fascinated with mowing. But since I live within the city limits now, city ordinances demand I keep grass under 8" tall and fences and shrubs under 3' tall and only approved short trees if they are within 7 feet of the roadway.

Even when we lived in the country, we kept the area around the house mowed to discourage ticks. We also liked being able to see what varmints were sneaking up on us before they actually arrived. It's kinda scary seeing the grass move, knowing "something" was coming towards us, but not knowing whether it was just our cat or a skunk or worse! But I would never want to mow acres and acres of grass when it could be put to better use.

[nehimama]

I'm not fascinated with mowing, either. Too much other important stuff to do. HOWEVER, if I don't keep it mowed around the house & buildings, I'm just asking for rats & snakes to move up close by!

[Jennifer L.]

Gets people out of the house and feeling like they are doing something productive. Also gives you time to think as you go around and around.

Jennifer

[Harry Chickpea]

A neighbor is like that. I'm more of a wait until the seed heads start to form and mow or bushhog them. Otherwise thistle and sagegrass take over.

[peri_simmons]

Mice,snakes, ticks, chipmunks,frogs, and wildcats eating all the aforementioned I have found less than 20 ft from the front door. I hate lawn, but with the circle of life fighting and dying so near the front porch in the grass. I have to mow, just to push it back a little.

But we are trying to plant more food and mow less lawn every week.

[Wayne02]

I've found the exact opposite, the farmer neighbors seem the most serious about mowing their lawns and keeping them looking nice. They also do all the other farm stuff including gardening and what not. [shrug]

[tnokie]

We are in a yuppy,back to the farm area which is nothing more than a subarb of Nashville. The habit here is to build on the back of the property,weather it be one,five,or ten acres and then mow the entire front to the road! I haveing only an acre and wanting more for more animals drive by and think "Why" "look at all that pasture going to waste!"I would much rather watch animals graze than look at a flat,boring yard with nothing but grasshoppers!

[plowjockey]

Mowing time is like a nice quiet weekly vacation - without the family.

[deb]

We mow because of the ticks and to reduce fire hazard. We and the dogs get fewer/no ticks when the grass is low. We tend to get dry periods in summer and the grass becomes tinder dry. There have been some large fires started accidentally in our area from campers, garbage fires, freight trains, that have spread over many acres. So we prefer to keep the grass on the shorter side.

That said, I should note that we only mow once a week. Our closest neighbor has a fancy zero turn mower and he mows every other day. His lawn is shorter than a golf course!


deb
in wi

[Cornhusker]

I just like the looks of a freshly mowed yard.
We even mow one of the horse patches once in a while just to keep the weeds down they don't eat and keep the weeds from overtaking the grass.

[TedH71]

When you have kids, you'll mow so the kids don't miss seeing snakes and getting bug bit.

[texican]

I have an old fashioned 'dirt yard'... not a blade of grass grows under the canopy of trees around the house... between goats and free range chickens, not a chance.

Haven't sat or pushed on a mower in over 30 years. Hop on the tractor with the bushhog regularly... does that count? A lawnmower would choke on the trees I mow down.

[Joshie]

My dad is in his 70s. His parents always mowed a lot. There are lots of areas on a farm that cannot be gardened. Heck, you neighbor certain can't use 10 acres in garden. Now, if I was him I'd have someone mow it for hay. But there are many larger parcels of land that can't really be used and are mowed for looks.

[tallpines]

85 year old mother mows 1/2 acre with a walk behind mower.

She LOVES mowing her lawn and mows it 3 times a week whether it needs it or not!

Tops it off with a can of beer.

[Shrek]

I mow a 20 foot radius around my house , garden and kennel. The rest of my 2 acres gets mowed and raked twice a year tops on a rotation cut schedule to go into the worm beds for compost.