Manual reel mowing in the gradual garden

Reel mower (public domain photo)

A couple years ago we got a free manual reel mower when my sis moved to NY. At the time, I had been looking for one, so I felt pretty lucky. I still do. It has it's limitations. It's not a perfect solution. On the other hand, it's no worse than any other mower when cutting normal grass. The problem is, our backyard grass is far from normal. So, the reel mower has good points and bad. Here's a few of them.

No dirt clouds and flying rocks

Parts of our lawn were ignored by the former owners. For instance, there are several dusty, rocky areas that send up clouds of choking, itching, annoying dust when using a gas or electric mower. Even a weed whacker sends debris flying everywhere. Not so with the manual mower. It's wonderful for getting rid of growth over sand and gravel without choking to death in the process.

Our backyard is weed heaven.

Dandelions, stickers and broad-leaf abound. It's what I refer to as a hairy mess. It really is crazy with weeds of all kinds. We're experimenting to find natural methods of weed removal for all of them. Meanwhile, we have to mow them down occasionally. The manual lawn mower will keep the weeds down to ground level, however it's a real pain. We can use it in a pinch, but we have to run over the lawn several times to get the job done. We come back to the house drenched in sweat, sun-burned and cursing. The Denver sun is no joke. So, for the back yard, we prefer to use our gas mower, even though it's not exactly a green proposition.

The little push mower cuts regular grass smoothly.

It pushes easily. Actually, it's lighter than the gas and electric mowers I've used in the past. In fact, if I had to rate them according to ease of operation in normal use, the manual reel mower would come out on top. I have to tell you this, because it surprised me. I actually have a lot of fun with the reel mower on regular grass. It's child's play. In fact, so far, it's like a new toy. Which is good, because it encourages me to mow more often.

The front lawn is smooth sailing with the reel mower.

The old home owners apparently placed the front lawn high on their maintenance list. Sort of. There are still a few areas that could use some work. There's also some dandelions that need pulled. Dandelion stalks have to be run over in several different directions or hand pulled. It's not as bad as it sounds, though. All in all, the reel mower does an awesome job on well maintained grass.

The manual mower has other strengths.

There's no pollution, for one. You don't have to worry about it starting or not. You don't have to run for gas every time you want to mow. I already mentioned the lack of dust clouds and smooth operation. Plus, it's fun to use. It's kind of like the "adult tricycle" I bought. It's conversation inspiration for the neighborhood. Everyone wants to talk about it. When I use it, I get to know my neighbors. I'm like a celebrity in my own yard. So, overall, I'd say having the reel mower has been a positive experience.

Portions of this post were previously published by this author on Yahoo! and Examiner. It has been updated and re-written for Gardening Gradually.