This Is Clever Tree Cutting, But A Bit Risky!
I came across this clever tree cutting video a few years ago and I thought I would share it just for a bit of fun!
I have cut down many trees, but I certainly wouldn’t contemplate doing what this man has done, take a look at the video below and feel free to comment!
Would you do it?
In this blog post, I’m going to be writing about mulching lawn mowers and are they worth buying? With so many lawnmowers on the market sometimes it is difficult to know what to choose, I hope that this article will help to answer some of your questions.
You can see a short video that I have created on mulching lawnmowers below. Please feel free to comment on this video and to subscribe to our channel.
I think there are many of us who really enjoy cutting the lawn, however, many of us don’t enjoy having to continually empty the grass box. We all know what it’s like when the weather is unsettled and we have been away for a couple of weeks and the grass has become very long, we seem to have never-ending boxes of grass to empty, especially if it is the peak growing season.
The great thing with a mulching mower is that there are no grass clippings to collect, they are just mulched and allegedly disappear, which in principle is a great idea. Just remember that for a mulching mower to work really effectively grass really needs to be cut at least once a week.
With most lawnmowers the grass clippings are given an exit point where they can leave the mower quickly and efficiently if clippings can’t escape from the cutting deck, the engine will quickly lose power.
However, with a mulching mower, the idea is to keep the grass within the cutting deck for the longest period possible, in this way the clippings should be broken down into mulch. Something to remember with a mulching mower is that they do take considerably more power than a traditional mower with a collection system due to the fact that they are keeping the clippings within the mower deck. It is also of great importance to try and cut your lawn on a regular basis for maximum efficiency. You can still use a mulching mower on slightly longer grass, for example, if you have been away for a couple of weeks. But just remember the finish won’t be so good and to mulch grass efficiently it needs to be carried out on a regular basis.
There are many different types of mulching lawnmower, from push models to powered models and to ride on machines. I particularly like the articulated ride on mulching mowers as they are exceptionally manoeuvrable and very efficient at mulching your grass clippings.
There are also machines that are actually designed for mulching and there are other manufacturers that have converted their machines to mulch. In general and in my experience I have found that the best mulching mowers are the ones that are actually designed to mulch rather than an afterthought.
Our very cheapest mulching mower starts at £189 and is an electric mower that includes a mulch plug. I have to say that I don’t know if a mower like this really has enough power to mulch efficiently, I would personally go for a petrol machine as I’m fully aware that mulching does take power.
If you would like more details on the AL-KO 40E Comfort Electric Lawn mower (incl. mulch plug) please go here for more information.
Our cheapest petrol mulching lawnmower is a Stiga 18 inch (45 cm) machine which comes with a five year manufacturer’s warranty and sells for just £249. Just remember that you need to have this machine serviced annually for warranty purposes. Having a five year warranty gives me great confidence in this mulching lawnmower.
On the other end of the scale, we have our most expensive walk behind mulching mower which sells for £899. You can see the Weibang Virtue 53 SMP Self-Propelled Mulching Mower here.
This is a machine that I have had experience with and a machine that I strongly recommend, it comes with a three year commercial warranty and five year domestic warranty which to me brings great peace of mind.
You can see the rest of our pedestrian mulching mowers here.
Now we come onto our out front ride on mulching lawn mowers, these machines are obviously in a different league, but the articulated steering system makes some of the most manoeuvrable ride on mowers on the market and no grass to collect either.
Here we have the AL-KO Solo FC 13-90.5 HD 2WD Front Deck Ride on Lawnmower selling at £3999 this machine comes with a five year domestic warranty which once again gives peace of mind to the owner.
Our top of the range out front four-wheel-drive ride on mulching mower is the Stiga Park Pro 740 IOX 4WD Out Front Deck Ride On Lawn mower, this is a great machine if you want something that’s going to last. It comes with a 10 year warranty which means the manufacturers have a huge confidence in their product.
You can see more similar ride on mulching lawn mowers here.
Please feel free to comment below. Hard
Today my blog post is entitled is it worth buying a strimmer or brush cutter? As you probably know I’m someone who likes to make life as easy as possible and having the right piece of equipment can make so much difference in the garden. I’ve seen far too many people making their life exceptionally hard due to using poor equipment and not having the right type of equipment. So I hope that this article will help you choose the right strimmer or brush cutter and give you a greater understanding of the products available.
A strimmer or brush cutter is a machine that for general use has a nylon cord that rotates on a strimmer head. The size of the nylon cord can vary greatly depending on the machine that you’re using and the type of job that you’re doing. For general purpose strimming jobs I find that a 2.4 mm nylon cord works well, it’s heavy enough not to break too easily and strong enough to strim down nettles and tougher grass.
Brush cutters are really heavy duty strimmers that have the option to have a blade attachment, these blades come in all shapes and sizes, from circular saw type blades to hexagonal blades, you can see the various types of brush cutter blade here.
Traditional trimmers and brush cutters have an engine at the top of the machine, this can be a two-stroke petrol engine, electric or cordless type of machine. The engine is attached to a long shaft which then goes down to strimmer head. Most strimmers have straight shafts, but there are a few that have curved shafts. I would go for a strimmer with a straight shaft as the curved shaft models can have a greater tendency to break, I guess being bent over there is a greater strain on the shaft.
There are two types of strimmer and brush cutter handles, some have loop handles and some have the cow horn type handles, these are normally fitted on the heavier strimmer’s or brush cutters and also come with a shoulder strap. Personally, although I have a reasonably high-powered strimmer, I prefer the loop handle for ease of transport and for ease of use. The cow horn handles can become an obstacle depending on what you’re doing, I also prefer not to use a strap to support the strimmer as I feel it gives more freedom in use. However, a lot of the petrol strimmer’s come with a strap if you have loop handle strimmer, it’s optional if you want to use it.
If you have a lawn or even any grassed areas with trees, borders, paths etc, I would say that a strimmer or brush cutter is definitely for you. They really can save hours of time, it doesn’t actually seem that long ago when people were going around the edge of the lawn on their hands and knees with garden shears! I know that there are long handled shears available which make life slightly easier, however, a strimmer or brush cutter can do so much more than a pair of garden shears!
So if you have a lawn and you have areas and edges that you can’t get to a strimmer or brush cutter could make your life much easier!
Strimmer’s and brush cutters are available in all different sizes, from small electric strimmer’s, rechargeable battery strimmer’s and two-stroke petrol strimmers, I believe the Honda also make a four-stroke strimmer.
Our cheapest electric strimmer starts at £26.31, you can see the Bosch ART 23 SL Electric Grass Trimmer here.
Our cheapest rechargeable strimmer comes in at £65.99 find out more about the Cobra GT3240VZ Cordless Line Trimmer (no battery/charger) here.
Now we come onto my preferred type of strimmer which is powered by a two-stroke petrol engine, no cord or batteries to charge, in general, the petrol models have more power. Our cheapest petrol strimmer starts at £124.99 you can find out more about the Cobra BC260C Loop Handle Petrol Brushcutter here.
The other type of strimmer or brush cutter which is available are the heavy duty wheeled type strimmer’s, these are great for rough areas or overgrown areas as there is no blade to break or damage, just a replaceable nylon cord, very simple. These wheeled trimmers are available in push models and powered models.
Our cheapest wheeled trimmer starts at £295 you can see more information about the Tondu HWTL Petrol Wheeled Trimmer here.
I have given you the cheapest options above for strimmer’s and brush cutters, but once again I would say try and buy the best you can afford.
I have used strimmer is commercially which have literally had hours and hours of use, some of these have lasted up to around seven years. If you purchase a decent strimmer or brush cutter you could have many many years of trouble-free service.
If you are looking for second hand is always worth taking a look at eBay.
Please feel free to comment below.
Today we are going to review the Bosch Rotak 36 Push Mower, as you may know, I am someone who likes to have a petrol or diesel engine on a machine! However, I want to give an honest review of this Bosch electric push lawn mower, you may be pleasantly surprised!
Last year I was cutting my elderly mother’s lawn with her Bosch Rotak 36 Push Electric Mower, I have to say that I was looking for every opportunity to run this mower down as the thought of using an electric lawnmower with the cable getting caught up in every unthinkable obstacle definitely didn’t excite me!
The grass was quite long as it had not been cut for several weeks, I really didn’t think that this little electric mower would cope with such long and thick grass. The grass was around 4 inches (10 cm) tall and it was thick lush spring grass.
I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at how well this electric mower coped with the long thick grass, it actually seemed to cope better than some semi-commercial petrol mowers that I have used, and that’s saying something!
I had to empty the grass collection box very frequently because of the length of the grass, the amazing thing is that this little electric lawnmower didn’t clog the grass chute at all. There are some petrol mowers that I have used and they can block very easily especially if the grass is a bit damp, however, this Bosch lawnmower beat all my expectations!
The Bosch Rotak 36 Push Mower is a very lightweight machine, which is ideal for older people who may not have the strength to push a heavier machine and of course there is no fuel or oil to check. Unfortunately, with electric mowers, you have the convenience of low maintenance, but you have that electric cable dragging behind you all the time, something that I have never liked! However, I’m sure this is something that can be overcome!
I would rate this machine very high due to its cutting efficiency and ability to cut long grass and it actually left a reasonable finish. I like to see a machine that is well-engineered something that you can take pride in, however, this type of machine is in a different type of league and for what it is, it performed very well and I know this type of lawnmower would suit people with a postage stamp sized lawn.
If you have a slightly larger garden and like me, you prefer something with a petrol engine on, it may be worth taking a look at the Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower. This is a machine that costs slightly more money at £149, but it has no electric cables to deal with and has a two-year warranty.
The Bosch Rotak 36R Electric Rotary Lawnmower is powered by an electric 1400 Watt motor which almost produces 2 hp of power. The cutting width is approximately 15 inches (36 cm) and the weight is just 12 kg which makes it extremely easy to push, especially with the easy push handle design.
The grass collector capacity is a generous 40 L which is good for another of this size. There are six cutting heights between 20 and 70 mm, it’s always good to have a range of cutting heights, especially if you’re grass has become a bit long. I always tell people not to cut the grass too short, I see too many people cutting their lawn far too short which is the perfect way to ruin a good lawn.
The machine also has the ability to leave a striped finish.
The Bosch Rotak 36R Electric Rotary Lawnmower comes with a two-year manufacturer’s warranty.
Here is a review of how a garden chipper shredder can help you in your garden.
Did you know that everything that we take out the garden can literally be put back into your garden? I am very keen on composting garden waste as much as possible, I also compost kitchen waste and use poultry manure when I kept chickens and use horse manure when the opportunity comes along.
Prunings and wood from trees can often be a problem to compost, obviously, anything will rot down in time but obviously, things like tree branches cannot be composted in the normal way. Traditionally people would burn their prunings, but today this can often cause problems with neighbours, especially if the wind changes directions unexpectedly!
This is where a garden chipper shredder can be a great asset.
Chippers and spreaders come in all different shapes and sizes and different capacities. A chipper works by literally shredding and chipping your waste prunings up to about 4 to 5 inches in width for domestic chippers. However, if you want to talk about commercial chippers, then they can vary between 5 to 12 inches (12 to 30 cm) in normal terms. Or if you want to go even bigger there are even whole tree chippers, although these are probably not suitable for the average garden!
Branches and prunings are made into shreds or chips which can then be composted or even spread on borders as they are created. I must admit I prefer to compost my chippings for a couple of years and mix them in with the rest of the compost. I have seen heavy soils dramatically changed through composting regularly if you want to make your life easier this a great thing to do in the garden.
Shredders and chippers are available in petrol and electric models.
The smallest chippers are normally powered by an electric motor, however, if you have any amount of prunings to chip, I would definitely go for a petrol machine, not only because I like machines with an engine on but the petrol models are far more powerful and have a much greater capacity and no electric cable trailing around.
Our cheapest shredder starts at £769.99 which is The Handy Petrol Chipper/Shredder is powered by a well proven Briggs & Stratton IC engine, this machine is ideal for keen gardeners who want make their prunings into compost quickly.
The Apache chipper is slightly dearer at £1099, this machine is powered by a Briggs & Stratton 6.5 hp engine and once again is suitable for the keen gardener who wants to shred and chip garden prunings. This machine will chip prunings up to 2 inches (5 cm) approximately. The weight of the machine is 51 kg.
Now it’s time to go upmarket to the DR Pro XL ES 21.00 Rapid Feed Petrol Chipper / Shredder, this petrol Chipper shredder sells for £4299 and this is DR’s largest machine, suited for the very keen gardener and professional.
This machine DR chipper shredder is again powered by the popular Briggs & Stratton, electric start, 420 cc overhead valve engine. One of the best things about Briggs & Stratton engines is the reliability and because there are so many of these engines around there is a great parts network, should you require any spare parts.
The chipping capacity of this machine is 5.75 inches which is approximately (14 cm) so with this capacity, you can normally chip anything you want and anything larger would normally be logged for firewood.
The DR chipper shredder is a great investment for the keen gardener and is the type of product that although it is not cheap it could give you many years service, so definitely a good investment.
Sometimes it’s worth looking out for a decent second-hand chipper or shredder, depending on what your budget is or maybe you want something a little larger or different from what we offer. It’s worth taking a look at eBay as they have many different types of chippers and shredders.
Please feel free to comment below.
The MTD 463 3-in-1 petrol chipper/shredder is a popular choice for keen gardeners. MTD Lawnflite makes a wide range of various chippers/shredders.
The MTD 463 is no longer available to purchase new, however, various MTD machines can be found second hand on eBay. You can see a review of the MTD chipper shredder here.
The Mtd Lawnflite Brand first came into the United Kingdom, back in 1976. Lawnflite is a trading name of E P Barrus Ltd, a Great British Company founded in 1917. Barrus has an unrivalled reputation for marketing and manufacturing quality machinery for a wide range of markets. Barrus is the ‘Power Behind many Brands’.
They have many different garden machinery products to suit every need of the gardener and professional landscaper.
Looking at the garden shredder reviews for the MTD look quite good and it seems like parts are readily available. You can see our various spare parts section on our website here.
When purchasing an MTD chipper shredder, try and find a machine with a known engine brand. There are a few engines that for example may look like a Honda, but are a type of Chinese copy. These engines can sometimes be problematic and have carburettor issues. It’s always important to have a machine that spare parts are readily available and of reasonable quality. It’s also much more convenient to have a petrol chipper rather than an electric chipper as they can be used anywhere in the garden without having to worry about a power supply.
This superior-quality chipper-shredder from MTD is fantastically well-engineered and offers three feed-in options: there is a 46cm x 46cm chipper-chute for branches up to 50mm in diameter; a shredder-hopper for dropping-in armfuls of leaves etc; and a rake-in chute that will spare your back as you won’t have to keep bending down to pick-up debris.
The MTD 463 3-in-1 Petrol Chipper-Shredder is equipped with two hardened-steel chipper-blades that turn branches into ideally sized woodchips; and 12 reversible and replaceable flail-hammers that pound less woody material until it is the perfect consistency for speedy composting (the reduction ration is an impressive 10:1).
It is powered by a 5.5hp overhead-valve engine from Briggs & Stratton, so dependable and fuel-efficient performance is assured; and the housing is made from 13-gauge steel, so accidental impact won’t prove a problem. Other key features include a very large-capacity collection-bag, which, when the reduction-ratio is considered, will take a huge amount of mulch; and large wheels with pneumatic tyres for easy transport and stability during use.
Today we are looking at the Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower, which is one of our budget petrol wheeled lawnmowers on our website! It sells for just £149 which I find absolutely amazing that they can make a petrol mower for this price!
I have also created a video review on this Mountfield lawnmower, you can see the review below.
I have to say the majority of garden equipment that I have used has been commercial and professional equipment. Although having said this I have used a lot of domestic equipment over the years. I recently used the Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower I have to say that I was really pleasantly surprised!
For a start, for a £149 lawnmower. I really didn’t expect much at all, but for the money, I was really impressed. Personally, I would much prefer to have a small petrol lawnmower. Rather than an electric mower where you have that cable trailing behind you all the time and generally getting in the way. To me, this little petrol lawnmower is a great option.
Obviously, this machine is not like using something like a Honda, Hayter or Weibang. However, we have to remember that this machine is a budget lawnmower and it really does do what it says on the box!
The Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower comes with a 100 cc petrol engine with recoil start. The cutting width is 15 inches (39 cm) which although this is not a massive cut it’s surprising and you can cover the ground. It’s also good for doing those small fiddly areas in your garden. This particular machine is a push model, there are similar machines that drive, like the Mountfield SP414 Self Propelled Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower, however, the push model offers simplicity and very little to go wrong.
Believe it or not, this machine has a height adjuster on each wheel which in some ways to me is unnecessary. However, if your grass is slightly longer it is useful to be able to lift the back wheels up slightly as this makes for more efficient collecting. The height adjusters offer five different heights from 25 to 70 mm.
The grass box capacity is a generous 40 L which is quite good for a mower of this size. The handles fold down for storage which is extremely useful or if you happen to be transporting your lawnmower in the back of the car, a very useful feature.
The weight of the machine is 19.5 kg and the deck is constructed of polypropylene. The recommended maximum cutting area for a machine the size is 250 m² or more if you’re feeling particularly energetic!
I am very surprised that the Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower has a two-year warranty. I wouldn’t normally expect this on a budget machine. However, it does suggest that Mountfield have faith in this particular product. From my experience, this machine is very basic but at the same time very functional.
I have to say that I really was impressed with this lawnmower. I really didn’t expect very much for £149, but it achieved everything that I wanted.
On one particular area, the grass was quite long and thick and although I had to empty the grass box very frequently. I didn’t manage to clog the grass chute up which can potentially easily happen! The good thing is with four-wheel rotary mowers is that the grass is directed straight into the box. Whereas with a roller rotary the grass has to be pushed over the roller which makes roller mowers slightly easier to clog the grass chute.
The finish that this lawnmower left was also pretty good, although it doesn’t actually have a roller. I was almost getting a slightly striped finish just due to me going up and down. I guess the deck was just pushing the grass over slightly which help to make a striped finish. However, if you really want to striped finish you need to buy a roller rotary mower.
In one simple answer, I definitely would! If I had a small garden I would much prefer to have a small petrol mower rather than a hand mower or electric mower. To be fair with a two-year warranty you can’t go far wrong. Even if the machine only lasted two years and it will last longer if you look after your lawnmower. It would only cost £75 a year!
Obviously, this machine is not the Rolls-Royce of lawnmowers. However, if you want a budget petrol mower that cuts your grass this machine is definitely worth looking at. I always say buy the best machine that you can afford, it pays off in the long run.
You can find out more about the Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawnmower here.
Please feel free to comment below
It’s springtime and the grass is growing, in this blog post, I will bring you a selection of our various lawnmowers for 2019 from budget machines to top of the range lawnmowers.
I always say to people, buy the best machine that you can afford, most of us have to set a budget when we are buying a product, so we need to be careful. I can give you an example of the difference between buying a cheap product and a more expensive product. My late father purchased a Ransomes Ajax 12 inch push mower around 60 years ago, he treated this mower with great respect, cleaning and oiling it after every use! This mower is still working today! I have no idea how much he paid for this machine, but he certainly got his money’s worth! This particular machine was a very well engineered product and I know we cannot always afford to buy the best, however, there are many quality machines out there that will last you many years if you look after them.
You can also watch my video on the subject of lawnmowers below
Our cheapest lawnmower, The Webb H12R Hand Push Cylinder Lawnmower costs just £79.99, it’s a basic push lawnmower, but sometimes basic is good! No engine to go wrong, no fuel to buy, no batteries to buy and no cable to annoy you, just a bit of human energy required!
This lawnmower is what we would describe as a traditional lawnmower, it comes with a 12 inch (30 cm) five-bladed cylinder which can give your lawn a great finish, just remember that you need to cut your lawn regularly with a cylinder Lawnmower. In case you don’t understand what a five-bladed cylinder is, the more blades the finer the cut, so for example on a bowling green you may use a 10 bladed cylinder as you are just cutting a fraction of grass off at a time. One thing you need to remember with a cylinder mower is that it is a very precision cutting action and you need to take utmost care to keep your lawn free of any debris like stones and twigs, failure to do this can bring your cylinder out of line and make the cutting efficiency inefficient.
The web cylinder mower has a rear roller and gives a nice striped finish and comes complete with an 18 L grass collection box. This is a simple traditional lawnmower at a great price and is definitely worth thinking about if you have a small lawn.
Another machine worth looking at is The Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawn mower, this petrol lawnmower costs only £149! To be fair, I don’t know how they can make this machine so cheaply, especially a petrol lawnmower! Having said this, I have used one of these machines and although it’s not a luxury mower, it does actually cut the grass and collect at the same time in a reasonable way.
The Mountfield HP414 Push Petrol 4 Wheel Lawn mower is a 15 inch (39 cm) with a 100 cc petrol engine, complete with a 40 L collecting box. The machine can be used with or without the box, for example, in hot weather sometimes it’s good to leave the grass on the lawn as it almost acts as a fertiliser, or see if the grass is too long you do not want to do this.
To be fair this is a budget petrol mower at a fantastic price and it does the job, it’s not the Rolls-Royce of mowers, but if you want a cheap budget mower, this could be the one for you.
Another budget mower is the Flymo HoverVac 280 Electric Hover Mower, this electric hover mower sells at £79.99 which again is a great price for a budget lawnmower. I have to say that I’m not keen on electric mowers, the biggest things for me is having that electric cable continually being in the way, I much prefer to have something with a proper engine on! However, if you’re looking for a budget mower and like the idea of an electric lawnmower, this could be your answer! Of course, the great thing is with an electric mower, there is no engine to start, no oil to change and no fuel to add, simply plug in and go!
The Flymo HoverVac 280 Electric Hover Mower floats on a cushion of air making it very easy to push. It comes with an 11 inch (28 cm) cut and is designed for a small garden. The mower comes complete with a 20 litre integral box and has four different cutting heights.
If you don’t want to spend too much money on your lawnmower but at the same time want a semi decent lawnmower, here are a few examples to help you choose.
The Hayter Spirit 41 Push Petrol Rear Roller Lawn mower is a small push roller rotary lawnmower that will give your lawn that’s very British striped finish! Hayter have been making lawnmowers for many years so by purchasing a Hayter you have a great spare parts network.
This machine has a 41 cm cut, leaves a striped finish and comes complete with a large 55 L grass collection box. The Hayter Spirit 41 Push Petrol Rear Roller Lawn mower is powered by a well-known and proven Briggs & Stratton engine which has a 1 L fuel tank. This machine costs £313.50 p
Here is another midrange lawnmower, the Snapper NX-40 16 inch Self Propelled Petrol Lawn mower costs £349 and is a self-propelled machine, so minimal effort is required to cut your lawn!
This is a 16 inch (42 cm) for wheeled lawnmower which will cut your grass with ease, it’s small enough to move around obstacles, but at the same time can cover your lawn fairly quickly.
The good thing is with four-wheeled rotary mowers is that they normally have a reasonably efficient grass collection system as the grass is blowing directly into the collection box at the rear of the lawnmower, these type of machines are great for cutting small paddocks around buildings.
Now the sort of machines that I will discuss here are quality lawnmowers that are suitable for the keen gardener and contractors, they will give you many years of service providing that you take care of them.
The Weibang Legacy 56 Pro 3 speed Self-Propelled Rear Roller Lawn mower is a great roller rotary lawnmower that sells at £1349. This is a great machine that I have personally used many times, it comes with a five year domestic warranty and three-year commercial warranty. The only catch is that you have to have this machine dealer serviced to keep the warranty valid, but in my mind, this is well worth it.
The Weibang Legacy 56 Pro 3 speed Self-Propelled Rear Roller Lawn mower has a 22 inch (56 cm) cut and is powered by a Kawasaki engine. The mower drives itself through the rear roller and has a three speed solid gearbox.
This is a machine that I really do recommend, it leaves a great striped finish and is a very solid lawnmower, the fact that this lawnmower has five years warranty suggests something to me.
If you are looking for a quality machine and for that perfect bowling green look then The Allett Buckingham 30H s/p 76cm Cylinder Mower Honda 6.5hp GX200 Engine may be an option for you. This is the most expensive cylinder lawnmower in our range, it sells for £4359, however, this is a professional machine and if it is looked after properly it could literally last you a lifetime. As I always say, it’s cheaper in the long run to buy a quality product!
The Allett Buckingham 30H s/p 76cm Cylinder Mower Honda 6.5hp GX200 Engine comes with a six-bladed cylinder for that perfect fine finish. It is powered by a Honda 6.5 hp petrol engine and has the option to have a roller seat attachment, so no walking!
We have many more lawnmowers on our website, but here are a few to look at for starters.
Please feel free to comment below.
I am one of those people who like to make life easy, I have seen far too many people struggling in their garden, so in this blog post, we are going to discuss if a tiller, cultivator or rotavator can help you in your garden? If you don’t like digging too much, then a rotavator or tiller could help to make your life much easier.
I have always had an interest in garden and agricultural machinery and I really like to find ways of making life as easy as possible and having the right piece of machinery for your garden can help you big time! Why struggle when you can make your life easy?
You can take a look at my YouTube video or read the blog post below, or both!
Most garden rotavators are petrol powered with a four-stroke engine, there are two-stroke engines fitted on the mini tiller’s and the larger wheeled rotavators are powered by mainly diesel engines although some do have petrol engines.
Personally, I would definitely recommend a diesel engine on this type of machine, they are so economical, they can literally run on a tank full of fuel all day, whereas, in my experience, a petrol machine will use a lot more fuel. In my experience, a diesel engine on a rotavator can work well even at low revs whereas the petrol engines need to be revved higher, therefore using more fuel.
There are a few electric machines available, I have to say I’m not a fan of electric cultivators or having to deal with a cable behind me! Some people like the idea of not having an engine to start or maintain, electric power is instant.
One thing to remember is to make sure that spare parts are available, there are lots of cheap machines where it can be difficult to source spare parts, sometimes with a well proven older machine the parts are still readily available, check before you buy!
Over the years I have owned various types of rotavator, most of these have been wheeled driven rotavator’s, in other words, the rotavator has a pair of driving wheels with the rotor blades behind the driving wheels, this type of machine is for the keen gardener and commercial landscaper.
With a wheeled driven machine you have much more control, for example, if you are trying to make an onion seedbed, you can use the rotavator in a very low gear and have the giving blades turning quickly which in turn, if the conditions are right, will make you very fine onion type seedbed. A wheeled rotavator also has the ability to reclaim ground. For example, in the video below, from a few years back, I am reclaiming some meadow ground and preparing it for more of a lawn area. This type of machine can dig down to depths of 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) depending on conditions.
Here is an example of a two-wheeled rotavator, the Apache RTT3 Petrol Rear Tine Tiller is an example of a two-wheeled rotavator at a good price.
I would normally refer to cultivators as rotor driven machines, these are great for making a good seedbed in the springtime, they can also help you incorporate compost into your garden by spinning it into the soil and breaking the soil down at the same time. Obviously the conditions have to be right for using a cultivator if the ground is too wet it will just make a sticky mess, however, if the conditions are right you really can save yourself a lot of time and effort.
A rotor driven cultivator drives itself by the rotors, they normally have detachable transport wheels to push the machine to the job, these wheels are then removed before you start digging. The speed of the cultivator is determined on how much pressure you put on the handles, they can jump around a bit depending on ground conditions, but after a few minutes you will get used to how they work.
Here is an example of a classic rotor driven cultivator, the Cobra T60RB 24″ Petrol Powered Cultivator is a mid range cultivator.
Two stroke mini tillers have became popular over the last few years, I have seen people using them almost like a garden hoe to run up and down the rows in their vegetable patch, which helps to keep your veg patch nice and clean and reasonably weed free.
The same principal can be applied to flower borders, these machines in most cases are small enough to get between plants. If you have the right upper soil or if you regularly compost your beds then a two-stroke mini tiller can be a great time saver. Obviously this type of machine isn’t going to break rockhard ground, but used sensibly on a regular basis it can be a very useful tool in your garden.
Here is an example of a small two-stroke mini tiller, the Cobra 44cc 2 Stroke Mini Tiller is a very compact tiller that can save you lots of backdating work in your garden, you can see more mini tillers here.
Some of the multitool manufacturers also offer a tiller attachment which can be a very useful add-on to your attachments. Here is one example, the Tanaka Smart Fit Mini Cultivator Attachment, see more multitool and Kombo tools here.
I have purchased new and second-hand rotavator’s over the years, just recently I purchased a second hand Dowdeswell 650 rotavator, these are often known as the Howard Gem. These are great machines but unfortunately, they are getting quite old, if you can find a good one then all well and good. Just a word of warning, these are fairly heavy rotavator’s to use but they also great fun and do a fantastic job, you can see me using a Howard Gem in the video below.
It’s worth taking a look on eBay if you’re looking for a second-hand machine, there are lots to look at. Some of the machines that I would recommend are Merry Tiller (if you can find them) Honda tillers, Howard, Dowdeswell, BCS, Camon etc.
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Today we are going to discuss the subject of, “do I really need a ride on mower”? I’m not trying to put you off buying a ride on lawnmower as a ride on lawnmower can be a great time-saving asset, potentially, I just want to help you make the right choice.
We have to remember that in general walk behind machines give a more superior finish to your lawn and that sometimes you’re better putting your money into a quality walk behind machine rather than a cheap ride on lawnmower!
You can have a look at my video below or read the rest of this blog post for more tips or even both!
As you will often hear me mention, it is so important to have the right machine for the right job, I have seen far too many people struggling in their gardens due to having the wrong equipment!
Ride on mower’s can potentially save you a lot of time and make your mowing very pleasurable and quick, but before you buy, do you need a ride on lawnmower?
If your lawn is full of obstacles and paths I would really consider having a good quality walk behind lawnmower as it is often far quicker to use a walk behind machine then it is a large ride on or even a small ride on mower if you have lots of obstacles. I have proved this point many times when a customer has asked me if I want to use their ride on mower, but I know full well that I can get the job done quickly with a decent walk behind mower.
The problem is with many ride on lawnmower’s is that they are very bulky and cumbersome, especially if you have a large collector on the back of your mower and some of the front wheel steer mower’s take quite a bit of manoeuvring to turn them around. With a walk behind mower, you could have probably been up and down a couple of times, whereas with a ride on lawnmower you could still be turning around, I’ve seen it happen and I’ve been there!
To buy a decent ride on lawnmower costs a lot of money, a basic ride on mower start at around £1300 and can go up to 5 figures depending on what you’re buying. For £1300 you could potentially buy a very nice professional walk behind mower like the Weibang Legacy 56 Pro 3 speed Self-Propelled Rear Roller Lawn mower for a similar price, this machine comes with a three-year commercial warranty and five-year domestic warranty. This basically means that you will have a machine that will cost you zero pounds for five years, all you have to do is to pay for the regular servicing costs. Whereas, unfortunately, with a cheap ride on lawnmower the maintenance would be much higher.
I have had personal experience with the Weibang range of lawnmowers, these are machines that I really do recommend, the fact that they have a three-year commercial warranty and a five-year domestic warranty says a lot to me.
With all the various pretty looking ride on mowers on the market, it is always difficult to know what to buy, one option I would definitely look at is an out front cutting deck articulated lawnmower, these ride on lawnmowers are unbelievably manoeuvrable and there is no grass collector required as these mowers mulch.
The AL-KO Solo FC 13-90.5 HD 2WD Front Deck Ride on Lawnmower is a manoeuvrable articulated mulching mower that is ideal for going around trees and obstacles, another option may be the Stiga Park 120 2WD Out Front Deck Ride On Mower with 85cm Deck, both of these machines offer great manoeuvrability and mulching. You can find more ride on lawnmowers here.
If you’re looking for a machine with a collector on it’s worth looking at the Honda HF2315 HME Ride On Lawnmower (Hydrostatic Transmission) I have actually used Honda ride on mowers and I have also ways like the compactness and the collection system works very efficiently. This particular machine blows the grass into the collection box through a large central rear hole between the wheels which helps to minimise blockages, it is far more efficient than having long tubes for the grass to go through.
As always, if you want a machine to last, by the best you can afford. It makes a huge difference to the life of your machine if you keep it regularly serviced and do not abuse it!
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