Mowing ..

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by Rallye Sport

Tweaking your watering program might slow it down. Most retic shops give out or supply catch cups for a few dollars. Ramp it down over a month or so until its holding colour but not growing too quickly. Mines down to two, 7mm waterings a week. Seems to be my sweet spot between presentation to maintenance input.
Saying that I'm slowly getting rid of my front lawn and planting natives. I put all that water, fert and labour into it just so I can wash my cars on it so I don't feel so bad about wasting the water, strange psychology that

I dont water it. We are under water restrictions anyway. But it rains often enough. I just want to keep it under control. With working 5 to 6 day weeks, a bit here or there if its in check is way easier then finding the effort after a hard week to do the lot in 1 go when its getting out of hand. Also not letting garden equipment sit helps with reliability i have noticed.

[danzvtil]

Ok, kinda combining this thread and the what made you feel good today one, I’ve picked up a new client, today was his second mow, ultra modern house, not a leaf out of place, but today his missus was there with their young child. So now I have 2 lawn visits with very tidy ladies offering me coffee while we chat. Both are still wearing slinky night gowns at that hour of the morning ��
Yes, I’m here to cleen zee pool!

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by danzvtil

Ok, kinda combining this thread and the what made you feel good today one, I’ve picked up a new client, today was his second mow, ultra modern house, not a leaf out of place, but today his missus was there with their young child. So now I have 2 lawn visits with very tidy ladies offering me coffee while we chat. Both are still wearing slinky night gowns at that hour of the morning ��
Yes, I’m here to cleen zee pool!

Reminds me a tiny bit about this spectacles advert ..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTIWjR2GpFo..

[deesun]

Well if that's the case, "what makes me feel good" is walking out my front door looking at my front lawn which is the same green every day of the week. You see our lawn used to basically be a dust bowl. I'm not a gardener and I want some more time on weekends so we had fake grass laid. OH Lordy Lordy Lordy is it great, we love it. No mowing no watering, yes it gets hot but my wooden back deck gets hotter. Shame the council wont let us lay it on the nature strip so the Mrs still has to mow it and whipper snip. Love my fake grass.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by deesun

Well if that's the case, "what makes me feel good" is walking out my front door looking at my front lawn which is the same green every day of the week. You see our lawn used to basically be a dust bowl. I'm not a gardener and I want some more time on weekends so we had fake grass laid. OH Lordy Lordy Lordy is it great, we love it. No mowing no watering, yes it gets hot but my wooden back deck gets hotter. Shame the council wont let us lay it on the nature strip so the Mrs still has to mow it and whipper snip. Love my fake grass.

Dangerous ground here mate mentioning fake grass on a mowing thread, wish I could get some.

[.:4:.]

My place being a battle axe, off the street you cant see anything but driveway, so provided the driveway is presentable, the place looks good. Having said that. Im really pleased with how the whole yard looks currently. As a whole, yes ive put in a lot of effort, but not in 1 go. So a bit here or there over a few weeks and now its really easy to maintain. Im down to the list of things ive been putting off for years. So last week after 10 minutes of mowing a section of grass just to keep it in check, i trimmed the lower limbs off my reputable trees. Yesterday after work i spent 10 minutes mowing the useless area thats in constant shade where my fuse box is. The meter reader has been there more times then i have. But in that area there is 1 reputable tree and 3 weed tree things. Ive known about those for years but never got around to doing anything about them. So i attacked the biggest with the wrong tools (i dont have a wood saw, so a hacksaw was my weapon of choice). Chopped the best part of it back then almost gave up on the main trunk. I have a cracked rib so upper body stuff hurts. So i grabbed my drill with a 51mm holesaw and felled it with that. Got half way into the next but my mate next door popped over and i agreed that going to the pub was a better idea. And it was. But he passed comment that the place is looking good. And prior so has the bloke who rents my granny flat. So im happy that all the work put in shows.

[Tassie f100]

Hey 4 what is a reputable tree??

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by Tassie f100

Hey 4 what is a reputable tree??

One thats not a weed. Like my bottle brush trees. Theyre native and not an invasive thing. The ones ive cut down are weeds. They're called a wondering something. Cant remember the name, but they arent a good thing to have theiving the ground from real plants.

[.:4:.]

And cutting them down doesnt solve the issue. So 3 trees is one thing. But theyre an invasive weed that has a common root system, so 3 trees is the same weed. So progress on my behalf? Sort of, but its a battle which it looks like i have won, but its a war i have not conquered.

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

And cutting them down doesnt solve the issue. So 3 trees is one thing. But theyre an invasive weed that has a common root system, so 3 trees is the same weed. So progress on my behalf? Sort of, but its a battle which it looks like i have won, but its a war i have not conquered.

Drill hole. Insert Roundup. No more Tree.

[Work Horse]

Originally Posted by GasoLane

Drill hole in Cambium layer*. Insert Roundup. No more Tree.

*Google 'Cambium layer' to understand the best place to driil a hole to get the tree to take up Glyphosate.

[.:4:.]

Poisoning parts doesnt rid the issue. It may kill part of the section of root. But being that of a weed, its crafty and like a virus, it just turns into sections. I have previously dug up and ripped out a section of the runner. Problem being the bit i pulled i couldnd go any further as it went under my turning circle. Im not breaking up concrete just for a wandering anything.

[Rallye Sport]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

Poisoning parts doesnt rid the issue. It may kill part of the section of root. But being that of a weed, its crafty and like a virus, it just turns into sections. I have previously dug up and ripped out a section of the runner. Problem being the bit i pulled i couldnd go any further as it went under my turning circle. Im not breaking up concrete just for a wandering anything.

The best way is drilling and poisoning before the tree is cut down and leaving it until it dies. That way it's still photosynthesizing and pumping sap, spreading the poison to every area.
We deal with some stubborn ones, jap pepper, wild olives and yes if you cut then poison the roots just sucker and it makes the problem even worse. Your also killing any seeds that could drop when you lop it by poisoning first.

[.:4:.]

After for lack of anything to do as all the good parts of my yard are looking good, i spent maybe 40 minutes in the ex pool area. Thats the work in progress, but nobody sees that anyway. There is one bush/tree that annoys me in there. Its a reputable bush, but serves no purpose. So tomorrow i want to off it. Anyhow i left that alone and set to chopping up the pile of weed tree in my driveway. My ancient hedge clippers are blunt, and i dont even own a wood saw, so i half gave up. By half i mean went and bought new hedge clippers and a wood saw. And just to make it easier, i bought the cheapest 2 stroke chainsaw they sell. So $99 for that, $12 for chain spooge. Havent tested it yet. For what i want to cut, 90mm trunks at the largest, it should atleast last for the 3 things i want it to. I have started it and it does run. After it does what i want ill throw it over the fence. Not literally, but next door want to cut a few small trees down. Im happy to supply the equipment, just not the labour.

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

After for lack of anything to do as all the good parts of my yard are looking good, i spent maybe 40 minutes in the ex pool area. Thats the work in progress, but nobody sees that anyway. There is one bush/tree that annoys me in there. Its a reputable bush, but serves no purpose. So tomorrow i want to off it. Anyhow i left that alone and set to chopping up the pile of weed tree in my driveway. My ancient hedge clippers are blunt, and i dont even own a wood saw, so i half gave up. By half i mean went and bought new hedge clippers and a wood saw. And just to make it easier, i bought the cheapest 2 stroke chainsaw they sell. So $99 for that, $12 for chain spooge. Havent tested it yet. For what i want to cut, 90mm trunks at the largest, it should atleast last for the 3 things i want it to. I have started it and it does run. After it does what i want ill throw it over the fence. Not literally, but next door want to cut a few small trees down. Im happy to supply the equipment, just not the labour.

I've got an old Poulan 2100 from 1994 or 95 so it's around a quarter of a century old now . Can't remember what I paid for it but it was a fairly cheap saw at the time . It's only for smallish jobs and only has a 14" bar and used it a fair bit initially and since then from time to time. Still goes okay and will start after a fair bit of tugging and choke manipulating if it's been a while since the last time .

The one you bought will probably do a good job for around the house and home . Only accessories I have is a good quality fuel mix bottle and a file set. I have a very old pair of chaps and gloves , ear protectors , mesh face guard and stuff that I also wear when I do a lot more frequent brushcutting ..
Not sure if or when I'll replace my old saw but if I ever do I might look at a battery one because some of them now are getting pretty useful for the home owner . Also pole saws are pretty handy too . No hard starting and only requiring chain oil fluids sounds pretty good to me .

I've used a spade bit to drill several holes with a brace and bit and whacked in diesel into the odd larger tree stump but the round up method is good too but with small wattles and such I've just dug out the tap root and ripped them out . Good ol' mattock and probably way too much elbow grease...and stupidity too I guess in my case .. Enjoy the new saw and clippers without any frustration ..

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

I've got an old Poulan 2100 from 1994 or 95 so it's around a quarter of a century old now . Can't remember what I paid for it but it was a fairly cheap saw at the time . It's only for smallish jobs and only has a 14" bar and used it a fair bit initially and since then from time to time. Still goes okay and will start after a fair bit of tugging and choke manipulating if it's been a while since the last time .

The one you bought will probably do a good job for around the house and home . Only accessories I have is a good quality fuel mix bottle and a file set. I have a very old pair of chaps and gloves , ear protectors , mesh face guard and stuff that I also wear when I do a lot more frequent brushcutting ..
Not sure if or when I'll replace my old saw but if I ever do I might look at a battery one because some of them now are getting pretty useful for the home owner . Also pole saws are pretty handy too . No hard starting and only requiring chain oil fluids sounds pretty good to me .

I've used a spade bit to drill several holes with a brace and bit and whacked in diesel into the odd larger tree stump but the round up method is good too but with small wattles and such I've just dug out the tap root and ripped them out . Good ol' mattock and probably way too much elbow grease...and stupidity too I guess in my case .. Enjoy the new saw and clippers without any frustration ..

Gave the new chainsaw a run today. I had no expectations as ive never used one before. Compared to a decent one its probably crap, but all i can compare it to is a wood saw. So for the stuff i did today it would probably take 3 hours by hand. The little 12 inch homelite took all the physical effort out of the work and did the same work in about half an hour. So that was cutting a few small stumps lower and sectioning part of the pile of tree on the driveway. So its already payed for itself. Had to tighten the chain a couple of times in the initial few minutes, but that would be the new chain stretching as it stayed tight after that. So i do not regret buying it at all. I did doubt the purchase last night, its another thing to go wrong. But it made light work of what i bought it for.

[roddy1960]

Good thing ...Sounds like a useful item to have ..You'll probably use it more than you expected .. Don't do what I do and leave old fuel in the tank for too long ..Buggers to start if old 2 stroke sits for too long IMO.. Cheers

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

Good thing ...Sounds like a useful item to have ..You'll probably use it more than you expected .. Don't do what I do and leave old fuel in the tank for too long ..Buggers to start if old 2 stroke sits for too long IMO.. Cheers

After doing my stuff, ended up lending a hand to my neighbor and fell a 10m tree. In sections of course, and using rope to control where things fell. So my mate next door was on the saw. His mum was saying she got quoted a couple hundred to rid that tree. So the chainsaw has paid for itself a few times over in the first day. I

[Fed]

If your talking about Wandering Jew rip out as much as you can by hand then use roundup every couple of weeks until it's gone.

[.:4:.]

Again its not lawns but im after ideas on this one. I havent said yes to doing it. Need a plan first. But theres only a few minor things i want to do that i dont really need the chainsaw for, and its paid for itself so its now up for lending. But without saying yes to doing the work, but offering to lend ladders, ropes and my chainsaw eddy (it likes to cut), next door have a tree they want gone. Yesterday we offed a 10m thing and that wasnt bad. But the other one is 12m high, forks low so 2 tall enough trunks. My concern is even with a 12 foot ladder, being uneven ground, being 9 steps up is a bit sketchy. My 8 footer is better for this, but roped and cut in such a fashion to direct the fall, its a big section considering the upper limbs on both trunks cant be lopped first. A cherry picker would be ideal, and i rent those all the time for work and take them home overnight, but theres no access to their yard. So making it fall away from the peson cutting it is the most important. Making it fall away from my grannyflat and the new fence are the next most important things. Once the tops are gone the rest can ve done in managable pieces. A rope and pulling that away from the cutter and property is so far my best idea, but im not sold on that given the size of the tops

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by .:4:.

Again its not lawns but im after ideas on this one. I havent said yes to doing it. Need a plan first. But theres only a few minor things i want to do that i dont really need the chainsaw for, and its paid for itself so its now up for lending. But without saying yes to doing the work, but offering to lend ladders, ropes and my chainsaw eddy (it likes to cut), next door have a tree they want gone. Yesterday we offed a 10m thing and that wasnt bad. But the other one is 12m high, forks low so 2 tall enough trunks. My concern is even with a 12 foot ladder, being uneven ground, being 9 steps up is a bit sketchy. My 8 footer is better for this, but roped and cut in such a fashion to direct the fall, its a big section considering the upper limbs on both trunks cant be lopped first. A cherry picker would be ideal, and i rent those all the time for work and take them home overnight, but theres no access to their yard. So making it fall away from the peson cutting it is the most important. Making it fall away from my grannyflat and the new fence are the next most important things. Once the tops are gone the rest can ve done in managable pieces. A rope and pulling that away from the cutter and property is so far my best idea, but im not sold on that given the size of the tops

About a week ago our boss asked us to go and visit a nearby neighbour to the school where I work to assess a job . My workmate is a fully qualified tree faller, bushman , seed collector for Foresty Commission and now works part time as our groundsman and there were two big gum trees really close the blokes property adjacent to our blackwood plantation . Wayne had to have a good look to see what the risk was to bring these trees down . Would require extra care as one of the trees had a twin trunk that had potential to have a mind of it's own if things were not ideal.

Wayne did some other checks and reported back to the house owner and the boss of course to decide on best options. Both these trees will require excavator work to brace them as they are felled .

Now the issue is who pays for it because they are impeding building approval from the local council as the bloke wants to extend his garage and the council thinks the trees are too close to the boundary fence where the extension will end. Trees are great but they can be a nightmare to deal with sometimes ....especially when bloody Councils are involved .

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

About a week ago our boss asked us to go and visit a nearby neighbour to the school where I work to assess a job . My workmate is a fully qualified tree faller, bushman , seed collector for Foresty Commission and now works part time as our groundsman and there were two big gum trees really close the blokes property adjacent to our blackwood plantation . Wayne had to have a good look to see what the risk was to bring these trees down . Would require extra care as one of the trees had a twin trunk that had potential to have a mind of it's own if things were not ideal.

Wayne did some other checks and reported back to the house owner and the boss of course to decide on best options. Both these trees will require excavator work to brace them as they are felled .

Now the issue is who pays for it because they are impeding building approval from the local council as the bloke wants to extend his garage and the council thinks the trees are too close to the boundary fence where the extension will end. Trees are great but they can be a nightmare to deal with sometimes ....especially when bloody Councils are involved .

Not the sunday just passed, the sunday before, we did take down the 1 of 3 trunks that was leaning away from property. Being up the ladder i could see not ending well, so my 30m anchor line was around the top, and my mate was on the saw. So i was on the rope and well away so we felled that bit in 1 go. My little chainsaw struggled, but i only bought it for my small stuff. Its been awesome for small stuff. The other 2 trunks need more thought. Deffinately need to be sectioned and roped. My mate wants to climb the tree for that but, yeah nah. I wont allow it. A cherry picker and my rope would be ideal, but even though i bring 12m trailer mounts home often enough, there is no access to either next doors yard or the yard behind to back one in. My yard has access, but those lifts will not extend far enough sideways, and even if they did, you sacrifice too much height. The other stupid argument is, my mate wants to buy a stihl. Yes, that will do the job better. But for 1 tree? And it doesnt matter. Still no solid plan. Also the expectation is my donation of premix and bar oil. I do keep pre mix as i do my own lawns. But for a 1 off, just borrow or rent a good chainsaw once a plan that wont involve serious injury is hatched.

[danzvtil]

Spent 4 hours cutting cocos palm logs into planter boxes and stools for the child care centre, the huski chainsaw was stellar, although chews thru the 2 stroke at full tilt. It’s booked in for next weekend to take down a 5 mtr white cedar, so happy times.
In other news, I’ve added a Mitsubishi express van to the gardening fleet, as the Magna wagon was bursting at the seams. It is so basic and agricultural, I’ve never been happier driving a POS.

[DFB FGXR6]

I spent some time at the end of my day with some overdue maintenance on the Rover. I have been hammering this old thing over winter, wet grass doesn't really mulch well so I have been using this in catcher mode instead of the Mulchmaster. It has also been used to hoover up fallen leaves during the autumn.





New blades and she is ready for Spring.

[.:4:.]

Originally Posted by DFB FGXR6

I spent some time at the end of my day with some overdue maintenance on the Rover. I have been hammering this old thing over winter, wet grass doesn't really mulch well so I have been using this in catcher mode instead of the Mulchmaster. It has also been used to hoover up fallen leaves during the autumn.

image

image

New blades and she is ready for Spring.

How good are new blades when the old ones have gone dull over such a long time you dont even notice. I did the blades on my victa a few weeks back and its a night and day difference. Especially since i didnt think they needed doing but i did them anyway.
I will say though, since ive been back able to be more consistant with the garden maintenance, and showing the lawn equipment a bit of maintenance love, everything starts easy and runs well. Added bonus of my grass bin didnt get knocked over by the staff 2 doors down this morning either.

[.:4:.]

Im really happy with the progress with my grass. With the little bit here and there maintenance its turning into a lawn. So after i scalped it as due to injury, it wasnt maintained, it started to come back. With the recent rains, its come back nicely. So i have been keeping it in check mowing high just to take the top off, no carnage, its been quite happy. So no brown or yellow patches as things havent gotten out of control. Last week i did the lower backyard, no need for edges as they were good l, yesterday i spent 5 minutes on the side yard, again edges were good. Today, i did the driveway. 2 out of 6 edges needed minor attention, the grass was a tad longer then the rest of my place, but not a jungle. So knocked that off and its looking good. And reliable equipment makes such a difference. I disregard the starting procedures. The manufacturer wants you to be optimus prime. My snipper recomends 10 primes then full choke, 6 pulls or untill it trys, if not, another 10 primes. Yeah nah. The primer bulb was empty, 1 prime to get fuel in, 1 more to get a bit more in. 1 full choke pull, and 2 half choke pulls and the mosquito in a tin can was running. Mower, optimus no prime. First pull. A 2 blade 18 inch deck victa with a briggs 158cc motor may not be the most epic mower ever, but it certainly has never not wanted to start. Well there was that one time it wouldnt, i wanted to throw it in the creek. And yes, it was simply out of fuel.

[DFB FGXR6]

Mowing season is upon us.



I'm back to a regular cutting schedule and now that grass is having a chance to dry out during the day the Mulchmaster is getting regular use again.

[roKWiz]

Posted these for all the grass freaks here.

[roddy1960]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Posted these for all the grass freaks here.

image

image

So many great posts here ....I love reading and looking at all the great gear you guys operate and have a passion for but I can't believe I missed a few fairly recent posts !!!!... roKWiz....So much fantastic early model stuff there ....Wow , what a collection...That looks like fun. Congrats on preserving a little bit of history like that ..Apologies for missing it til now. Cheers..

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by roddy1960

roKWiz....So much fantastic early model stuff there ....Wow , what a collection...That looks like fun. Congrats on preserving a little bit of history like that ..Apologies for missing it til now. Cheers..

Hey roddy,
wasn't my stuff, I took the pictures at a truck and machinery show of all places but knew you guys would appreciate it.