I have an embankment 60 metres long. The slope is approx 45deg. The height varies from zero to 4.5metres, but is mostly 4 metres. The slope is grassed, the grass having been planted the year before last. I now have the problem of mowing. I've done it once with a strimmer and a ladder, but never again! I've heard that it can be done with a hover on a rope. Has anyone any good idea about this, other than mountain goats?
Bill
A Gravely 2 wheeled tractor (walk behind) with dual wheels is what I used to use for steep mowing. I don't think I ever had to do 45º though. If I had to do that, I'd probably try it angled to the hill rather than sideways.
The dealer who sold me my Grasshopper ZTR mower had a bank behind the shop that was darn near 45º and he mowed it sideways - in the morning when there was still a little dew on the grass. It was an incredible demo. I wouldn't have the courage to do it myself though.
RWL
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well - it's not as technical as the other reply but my uncle upstate (who's almost 80 now) has a front yard with a severe slope. He (and everyone that lived on the hill) just did it with a rope. Doesn't sound like fun to me!
Buy a scythe?
I vote for the mountain goats...sounds alot less complicated, LOL!
Angie in the Boonies of East Texas
Consider replacing the grass with red fescue (Festuca rubra). Unmowed, it is still attractive. You can also have it mowed once or twice a year; for those few times, you can call in a professional lawn service.
Yup, perfect for a groundcover or three. Don't know what the soils and rainfall patterns are like where you are, but using a variety of species tends to protect slopes that might otherwise slide off in a heap during heavy rainy seasons. The varying root structures appear to be key to avoiding
Is this a cut slope or a fill slope or natural? Has anyone looked at the angle of repose for this soil?
Kay
" have an embankment 60 metres long. The slope is approx 45deg. The height varies from zero to 4.5metres, but is mostly 4 metres. The slope
is grassed, the grass having been planted the year before last. I now have the problem of mowing. I've done it once with a strimmer and a ladder, but never again! I've heard that it can be done with a hover on
a rope. Has anyone any good idea about this, other than mountain goats?"
This is potentially VERY dangerous. There is no way you should even attempt to mow this slope. Hire a Mexican to do it instead.
Your friend, Betty Harris
352 Distin Avenue Juneau, Alaska 99801
Nice. Instead of accepting the risk yourself, you would thrust the risk on someone else merely because he was born in another nation (a nation that occupied much of the U.S. south-west and Pacific coast until that area was seized in an act of war).
No, my ancestry is not Mexican; it's east European. But I know that Spanish was spoken here in California long before English was spoken. Even Russian was spoken here before English.
If you live in California, Arizona, New Mexico, or Texas and meet someone whose ancestry is Mexican, remember: His or her family might have been living here long before your own family crossed the Atlantic.
And they had better be bonded, and have workers comp insurance, or you can kiss any equity in the property good-bye in the inevitable lawsuit when they get hurt on your property following your direction.
Once upon a time, when I worked in landscaping, we used small, light lawnmowers attached to rope. We'd lower the mower down steep slopes and pull it back up. That was before weed whackers.
Of course I was young and stupid back then, so what did I know? They told me to do it and I did. It actually worked pretty good. I really can't say as to how good of an idea it is.
I don't think I'd do it today, but then I'm older, wiser, and woosier now.
Swyck
Is a hover is like a Flymo? No wheels? I have done this and it is a reasonable solution. Stand on top of the slope and swing the mower back and forth. Slow but it works
I wouldn't want to have to mow an area like that. I wonder if a reel-type mower would be safer than a regular one?
I'd try to get rid of the grass and replace it with something that didn't have to be mowed. Or i'd get out there with a pair of grass clippers that you use by hand.
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