Greenegarden.orgEco Friendly Gardening Information

Reduce Your Lawn Footprint

Mole

You have probably seen them on your lawn, long runs and/or mounds of dirt on your lawn.  While this looks bad, are moles really harmful to your lawn? The answer is absolutely not. The fact is that their co called “damage” is purely cosmetic and temporary. In the long run, no pun intended, their digging is actually quite beneficial to your lawn though it may not look it after they make a fresh run. You see, as they dig, they are actually aerating your gras, allowing air and water to into the soil.  They are also ridding your lawn of harmful pests like grubs.  Since for the most part they are strict insectivores, they do not disturb your grass’ roots. I have yet to see a lawn turn yellow or die from moles digging beneath it. On the contrary, I have seen grass come back stronger, greener and lusher in areas where they dig. Another benefit is fewer pests such as Japanese Beetles.  We had moles on our land for the first time this year and miraculously, had the fewest Japanese Beetles we have ever had since moving into this property.

Another common myth is that people think their lawn will be taken over by them. That they will reproduce and pretty soon your entire lawn will be over run by moles. This is NOT TRUE. Moles are solitary creatures and are very territorial. Aside from mating, they like to have a rather large area all to themselves.  They even drive out their young once they are old enough to fend for themselves. On small lawns, it is highly unlikely that there is more than 1 mole. On larger lawns, you may have 2-3 at most at any given time.

So if they are beneficial, why are they hated so much? I believe it’s due to lack of education. People see their runs and automatically think their lawn is somehow being damaged. The fact is that your pets relieving themselves on your lawn cause much more damage to it than moles ever could.  I have seen an entire small lawn be killed within 2 years by 2 small dogs.  Yet we don’t kill our pets do we?

In short, the best way to control moles is to do nothing at all! About the only problems you will run into is your lawn mower blade hitting some of their runs or mounds.  This is a simple matter of just stomping those down right before you mow.  About the only time I would recommend doing anything about moles, is if they get into your garden beds. While they wont eat your plants or vegetables, they will create tunnels that can then be used by mice or voles that will definitely eat them.  Even then,  I have noticed that this is but a temporary inconvenience since they tend to leave the area  after a short time.  All I have ever done about that is just continually stomping down the tunnels.

In conclusion, if you have have a mole “problem”. Don’t panic, they aren’t going to kill your lawn or anything like that. If you can live with them, great! That is my preferred method and your lawn will actually be more healthy for it.  If you find that you really cannot live with them, consider trapping them live instead of killing them.  A pitfall type trap, such as the one below works great.

Mole Pitfall Trap

Suburban Lawn

You see it everyday, Joe homeowner mowing his postage stamp size lawn with a clunky gas mower. What’s even worse is the homeowner mowing his little lawn with a riding mower! Did you know that the average homeowner lawn is 1/5 of an acre? That is about 8000 square feet or an 80′ X 100′ lawn. Of course, suburban lawns are even smaller than that. So why contribute to the 5% annual pollution contributed to mower engines when such a small lawn can easily be managed with a either a corded or cordless electric mower?

Of course pollution concerns aren’t the only reason to go electric on that suburban lawn. How would you like to mow your lawn at 6am on a Saturday morning without disturbing your neighbors? You can’t do that with a gas mower but you certainly can with an electric. So are you a suburbanite still gas mowing? If so, ditch that loud and obnoxious gas for a quiet and efficient electric.

Even if you aren’t ready to let go of that gas mower and are still using a gas weed eater, then you should at least consider switching over to an electric. The fact is that electric weed eating is just down right better than gas weed eating a small suburban yard.  Everything from starting them to maneuvering them is just easier and more efficient on electrics.  Consider that that average gas trimmer weighs 15-20 pounds, compare that to the less than 5 pounds on the lightest 18 Volt trimmer.

Black and Decker grass trimmers (about 200,000) are recalled  Tuesday due to serious safety concerns.  The Black & Decker Grasshog XP has been in trouble in the past after approximately 700 reports of incidents and over 50 citing real injuries in July of 2007.

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Black and Decker Grasshog can cause “serious” lacerations and burns.  These are not light problems that Black and Decker has to face including future losses due to the massive recall.  Reports indicate the spool cap and other pieces of the unit can can become loose and be shot out from the unit at high speeds causing serious injuries to the operator and others including children.

This report comes at a time where consumers are trying to make good decisions based on the environment and the economy and now 200,000 Black and Decker grass trimmers are being pulled from store shelves around the country.  Black and Decker used to be a trusted name in garden tools and other but with a second incident, experts indicate they are going to have to work very hard and struggle to get their reputation back on track and get Americans to trust in their products again.

Look at other alternatives here
Unfortunately, the entire industry is getting a bad rap however there are still plenty of reputable, durable, and efficient power tools to consider.  Take for example the 21.6 Volt Cordless Lithium String which converts from trimmer to edger for a very economical price.

When deciding which electric lawnmower to go with, you have one critical choice: cord
or no cord. As with most things, convenience and affordability are king. Not having the cord is obviously convenient however having a cord ensures continuous power to your lawn mower and can ensure
a faster job.

Consider the Following:

• Price
• Power
• Convenience
• Ease of use

Cordless Lawnmowers
The cordless mower may cost quite a bit more than a corded mower but you get a huge advantage in that you can mow a more expansive lawn without being tethered to a power source. Due to recent advances in battery technology, a cordless mower can have up to 4 hours of run time on a single charge. They are also quite powerful, with 36 volt models having up to 4hp power motors. As with anything, there are some drawbacks, the main one being having the extra costs of replacing batteries. Another drawback is that mowing long or wet grass will put more strain on the battery and reduce continuous run time.

Corded Lawnmowers
Corded lawnmowers are perfect for those who have a typical small suburban lawn. You get continuous run time without having to worry about batteries. Maintenance costs are virtually 0 and the mowers are quite inexpensive. Another big plus is that they only cost about $5 a year (the cost of 2 gallons of gas) in electric costs to run. So the mower will pay for itself in no time versus a regular gas mower. The obvious disadvantage is the cord. While not a big deal on small lawns, the biggest concern here cord damage from accidentally mowing it over. This can be overcome with a little bit of care however.
Get FREE SHIPPING on Selected Electric Lawn Mower Orders at GreenGardenTools.com

Making the leap to electric powered garden tools is a serious decision.  How and when to do it requires planning and thought.  The best time to go green and change from gasoline power to electric is usually during the summertime when the garden requires more care and maintenance.

But I already have a gas powered mower and other tools….

Here is the tough part.  What do you do if you really want to go green but already have existing tools in working condition.  This is a sacrifice you need to make and retire your older tools for newer more efficient and earth friendly tools.  Just like changing light bulbs to more energy efficient ones, you actually have to eliminate the old and go with the new.

Should I donate the old tools?

At first, this seems like a perfectly logical solution but if you’re serious about going green and are ready to invest a few hundred dollars, you don’t want to give your problem away, you want to eliminate it.  Here is where you can reuse an old lawn mower or other tools by turning them into other useful things such as ornaments or re-purpose them  to serve a different function.  We have heard of people reusing the metal or turning the metal in for scrap and actually making money!

It is clear that going from gas to electric is a big and serious decision and one that will make a huge difference in your life as well as the planet’s.