What is your mowing "technique"?

[jmurray01]

I usually just go from one side to the other, turn around, then go back again, and work like that.

My lawn looks like a golf course (if I do say so myself), so I must be doing something right :laughing:

 

[oldyellr]

My lot is half an acre and the lawn is back yard and front yard split by the driveway. Mowing takes me about an hour going round and round. If I was going to do fancy stuff like diagonals and parallel stripes, I'd have to allow at least 50% more time, if not double. Going clockwise without a mulching plate just piles the clippings towards the centre, making it hard on the mower and leaving a mess. So, the way I would do it is once around the fence line clockwise, then continue counterclockwise, blowing the clippings to the outside. The next time, I'd put on the mulching plate and do it all clockwise. Then, last year, when I thought I'd broken the axle on my 34" JD RER, I bought a used Honda 30" RER. Well, it turned out I could fix the JD (just a broken axle flange weld), so now I have a different system. I mow alternately with the Honda counterclockwise and with the JD clockwise with a mulching plate. The 4" difference in cutting width ensures I'm not driving in te same tire tracks every time.

 

[Parkmower]

I do 2 laps around the perimeter chute aimed in. Then stripe back and forth changing direction next time I mow.
Or I do the 2 laps chute aimed in then reverse direction to chute out and continue the laps until finished.

Most important thing is not the same way every time.

 

[oldyellr]

Yeah, I'd love to be able to stripe back and forth, but neither of my mowers can turn in their own width and making a hundred 3-point turns would wear me out and be way too time-consuming. I enjoy mowing and that would take the fun out of it and at my age, time is also important.

 

[sss]

i just mow up and down it leaves good stripes...

 

[Black Bart]

I change the way I mow but my goal is to leave NO stripes or markings of any kind.
I hate the look of them.
After mowing I can see where I went but 24 hours later you can not it is just all smooth and no patterns just green and it all looks the same. :thumbsup:

 

[benski]

I usually alternate the heading that I mow at every other week by roughly 45*. It cuts down on the ruts, and makes an interesting cross-hatch design.:wink:

 

[Craftsman13]

I say just mow it but occasionally mix up the pattern.:smile:

 

[Dangeroustoys56]

Depends, usually i mow different patterns each time - keeps the grass from being cut the same way and looking bad - also i dont use a bagger - i leave the clippings on the yard and spread em around if too heavy.

I let the yard get pretty tall, then mow it still somewhat at a tall height, not scalping the yard - also run around with a spike areator before a good rain comes in, helps get water down to the roots easier.

 

[bones66]

Changing your mowing patterns can help prevent the creation of ruts and/or compacted soil in your yard which leads to an uneven appearance and can eventually thin out or kill the grass.

Many years ago living in a rural area mowing your lawn was a chore, something that got taken care of after regular farm work. Appearance or direction wasn't even thought of other than freshly cut. It was usually done the fastest and easiest way. Most had push mowers but my neighbor had a IH Cub Cadet. He was one of the few who had such a mower. He took care of his very large lawn and it looked nice. A very neat and meticulous man in every way. Autos were spic and span, home maintained. He wore the fancy leather gloves when ever he did anything. Remember the ones with the little leather strap with the little red ball on the end the cinch them tight. Always mowed parallel to the roadway with no variation. He's no longer with us an now and elderly friend of my family owns that property. I have the chore mowing this lawn (freebee) and you can feel the jar each time your tires cross the trails as he went back and forth over the years. Save someone some abuse and do it the right way.