Reel Mowers

[Philip G.]

Graham - the more I use and consider the tool, the more pros I am finding.  I am next going to improve the tires.  Because, when you are pushing on grass, which powers the blade, if the tires slip, the blade stops cutting as well.  And, the wheels are normal mowing wheels, and those do not offer much grip.  So, I am going to screw some knobby mountain bike tires around my wheels.  That should improve the cut.  I am excited about it. 

I will give you another pro I think may be occurring.  A mulching mower shreds up the cut grass in the top of the mower.  And, my guess is that once the blade of grass is so small the suction no longer works to keep it above the blade for shredding.  That is when it falls and turns into "mulch" in the lawn.  With a reel mower, that does not happen.  And, if you know anything about composting.  You will know that an unprocessed weed(grass included) composts best.  It has the perfect combination of green and brown.  But, when processed/cut into smaller finer pieces, it no longer has the suitable balance of green and brown.  And, a brown is now required.  So, mulched grass requires a brown in order to compost.  So, that means that gas powered mulch will not break down as well, and that contributes to thatch.  One of the reasons to rake or de-thatch is to allow oxygen to penetrate to the soil.  One of the reasons the blade of grass in the gas mulcher no longer gets mulched is because the suction no longer keeps it.  Invert all of that, and finely mulched grass will not let air penetrate it as it " " composts in the lawn.  Which, is why it doesn't really compost.  With a reel mower that is different, and improved.  There is less processing of the blade of grass, and the mulched product decomposes in the lawn better than a gas mower.  This is of course so long as you have not scalped the grass.  Then you will see all of those blades of grass from the reel mower sitting on the surface just asking to be raked.  This all leads to less thatch with a reel mower, and improved health of the lawn.  Combine that with the snipping of the blade as opposed to the tear, and the reel mower becomes a real winner.