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Post by colly0410 on Jun 25, 2014 10:54:33 GMT -5
Mother-in-laws lawn is a large (about 1/3 acre) oblong shape. I use the longwall method to mow it. When I mow it I do a long cut up the left side, (the main gate) across the top then, down the right side, (the tail gate) then go side to side taking a slice each time like a shearer. (or is it trepanner) I've tried the retreat method coming towards the house but I almost ran over the cables (I use 3 extension cables) so I use an advancing longwall method with 2 pre-advanced gates. When the grass box is full the face stands, that's when I could do with a conveyor system, we have to use the council garden rubbish wheely-bin. No problem with ventilation on subsidence though. There's 2 gaffers hanging about to cause trouble: MIL the big boss & SWMBO her deputy. No M&Q act to bother about though..  |
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Post by John on Jun 25, 2014 13:17:32 GMT -5
Mother-in-laws lawn is a large (about 1/3 acre) oblong shape. I use the longwall method to mow it. When I mow it I do a long cut up the left side, (the main gate) across the top then, down the right side, (the tail gate) then go side to side taking a slice each time like a shearer. (or is it trepanner) I've tried the retreat method coming towards the house but I almost ran over the cables (I use 3 extension cables) so I use an advancing longwall method with 2 pre-advanced gates. When the grass box is full the face stands, that's when I could do with a conveyor system, we have to use the council garden rubbish wheely-bin. No problem with ventilation on subsidence though. There's 2 gaffers hanging about to cause trouble: MIL the big boss & SWMBO her deputy. No M&Q act to bother about though..
My bosses are the buzzards circling over head watching for mower kills, the odd snake or the odd Box Turtle. I do get the odd insect eating birds follow me, as I scare a few bugs up. |
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Post by dazbt on Jun 27, 2014 6:48:22 GMT -5
Mother-in-laws lawn is a large (about 1/3 acre) oblong shape. I use the longwall method to mow it. When I mow it I do a long cut up the left side, (the main gate) across the top then, down the right side, (the tail gate) then go side to side taking a slice each time like a shearer. (or is it trepanner) I've tried the retreat method coming towards the house but I almost ran over the cables (I use 3 extension cables) so I use an advancing longwall method with 2 pre-advanced gates. When the grass box is full the face stands, that's when I could do with a conveyor system, we have to use the council garden rubbish wheely-bin. No problem with ventilation on subsidence though. There's 2 gaffers hanging about to cause trouble: MIL the big boss & SWMBO her deputy. No M&Q act to bother about though..
My bosses are the buzzards circling over head watching for mower kills, the odd snake or the odd Box Turtle. I do get the odd insect eating birds follow me, as I scare a few bugs up.I have to admit that I found all that grass cutting and gardening malarkey more than a trifle boring, not to mention time consuming, I believe that selecting the right estate manager to have been one of my better decisions, totally worry free now, he deals with everything from hiring the appropriate ground staff type persons to managing the peacocks, deer and such like, pity it isn’t quite so easy to find the same quality sort of chappie to oversee the old Marbella property, although I do find some pleasure in taking the old microlight up and spraying the neighbourhood with lashings of Glyphosate during the summer months, it tends to keep the weeds and pesky local peasants at bay, for a while at least. |
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Post by smshogun on Jun 28, 2014 14:22:20 GMT -5
With my few acres I found it simpler to get a Mchale grass cutter and stick it on the back of the tractor, no trailing cables, no Longwall method, just me with the door closed so I cant hear the gaffer and the climate control on and CD blasting out my favourite tunes.
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Post by tygwyn on Jun 28, 2014 17:36:30 GMT -5
Ain`t you boy`s heard of livestock,eat the grass and eat them,
Bouncy damn tractor,just open the gate and let em at it.
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Post by John on Jun 29, 2014 6:12:19 GMT -5
Ain`t you boy`s heard of livestock,eat the grass and eat them, Bouncy damn tractor,just open the gate and let em at it. |
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Post by smshogun on Jun 29, 2014 8:11:01 GMT -5
Its been mechanised just like the mines.
We let a herd of goats out when I bought the land as it was overgrown and they cleared it in a fortnight, now several acres are planted with veg and we have a swimming pool, pond for the swans and geese to settle on, so couldn't let animals on it now. We need the food not the animals.
Company in Derbyshire now fences off overgrown areas and brings a herd of goats/sheep to clear scrub and overgrown areas. |
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Post by John on Jun 29, 2014 8:42:16 GMT -5
I used to breed "automatic, 4wd lawnmowers in California, AKA African Pygmy Goats to keep the grass and scrub down. We lived in a very fire prone area in the foothills of the sierra mountains. We sold kids off at $50 each.
They did a fine job, the bucks kept the "ladder" fuel down too. Ate everything from chaparral to poison oak, we even gave them the rose bush clippings.
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Post by smshogun on Jun 30, 2014 20:13:25 GMT -5
Apparently they do a good trade, they breed sheep and goats and two lorries turn up, one with livestock and one with temporary fencing.
They set up the temporary fencing and fence off an area, let the goats out into the pen, they then set up a second pen.
Goats do their thing in the first pen and clear it, are then moved to the second pen, the first pen is dismantled and moved to a new location while they clear the second pen, and so it goes until the ground is clear.
Saves on manpower and machines so is cost effective, animals don't need feeding so a saving for the breeders, and no chemical poisons are used so environmentally friendly, particularly in sensitive eco areas. |
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Post by colly0410 on Jul 1, 2014 4:49:44 GMT -5
Like the natural lawn mowing stories, I could just imagine Mother-in-law screaming blue murder when the goats have chewed up her washing, it'd be a good laugh though, of course I'd get the blame, just like I do for everything else. When I lived on Thompson Street in Langley Mill next door had a pet sheep, we used to let it on our lawn to scoff the grass, spent hours fussing George the sheep, soft as sh*t he was. |
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Post by smshogun on Jul 1, 2014 19:48:51 GMT -5
Could tell you about one in Bulwell, house next door to my Grandma's was empty and these were large houses (Grandma's had 9 bedrooms and was once the cottage hospital many decades ago) with equally large gardens was empty and up for sale, the new purchasers had a couple of goats so they fenced the yard off and let them loose as it was totally overgrown with grass 8' high, after a few hours they found the goats wandering around and they appeared drunk and unsteady on their feet; so into their livestock trailer and to the vets who could find no explanation as to why they were acting this way, so an overnight stay at the vets and home again.
This happened a couple more times and the vet couldn't find anything wrong with either of the goats.
The fourth time it happened they had a locum vet who was young and decided to get to the bottom of this mystery and ran a lot of blood tests; next thing the house was besieged by police and the new occupants were questioned, the police were happy they weren't involved in any crime and informed them the goats had been eating cannabis and this got them high, these were walled gardens and couldn't be overlooked and the police cleared the garden and found loads of cannabis plants trained all around the edge of the garden and they were being trained up the garden walls, so it all became clear.
The goats were eating everything and as the gardens were massive (about 1.5 acres) and as they munched their way through so much vegetation they were eating the cannabis plants which weren't far of harvesting, so mystery solved; they actually arrested the previous occupants and they admitted to growing cannabis.
But at least they got their garden cleared for free by the police and the goats lived a long and very happy life. |
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