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(Page 2) Lawn Care - Helpful Reminders Before you engage in mowing your lawn make sure that you are wearing the proper attire. This includes shoes that will provide you with traction and protect you from hard or sharp objects that may be hidden in the lawn. I once attempted to mow a small portion of my yard barefooted. Little did I know that the Osage orange tree that had shed its branches was filled with very sharp thorns. A quick lesson learned in proper foot ware! In addition to proper foot ware you should also protect yourself by wearing close fitting pants or long sleeve shirts to prevent scratches or small objects being thrown at you by the mower blades. Obviously, you may need to consider the time of day that you conduct this work, as it may be too hot to dress this way in the middle of the day. Early morning or later in the evening when things have cooled down might be better options for you. Last but not least is the use of goggles. I know these sometimes don't "look" good on persons but this isn't about fashion design. It's about safety as it's very easy for small blades of grass or particles of dirt to be discharged and propelled towards your face. Mowing Preparation - Points You Should Consider One of the biggest causes of mowing accidents involves poor traction or slipping as a result of wet grass. You should always plan to mow during the daylight hours, as grass will usually be dry during this time. A good rule of thumb to follow when cutting grass is to see whether your shoes get wet when walking across it. If they do, chances are you are likely to slip when mowing. This also holds true for mowers or tractors as they may be unstable and may flip over exposing you to the running blades. Push, don't pull hand mowers! This may sound like a pretty common sense rule but the reason behind it is that there is less likelihood of slipping and pulling the engaged mower blades over your feet. I once observed a neighbor who tied a rope to his mower to cut a very steep hill. I can't tell you how many times he slipped and almost got injured. An accident waiting to happen! If you have areas in your yard that are steep or difficult to mow consider a rock garden for these areas! Another safety consideration when mowing a wet lawn with electric equipment is the potential threat of being shocked or electrocuted. Also, be sure to check the cord so that it is in good working condition without frays and never remove the three point grounding plug. You may require assistance with keeping the electric cord out of your cutting path. Your options if the grass is wet are to either wait during the day when the grass has dried or consider mowing another time. You should never disconnect safety-related features to any lawn equipment. These safety items are designed for one purpose - Your Safety! Though they may be a little annoying at times or an inconvenience, they may very well prevent a serious accident from happening. Make sure that you know how to properly handle the equipment before using. This may require you to review the owner's manual but you should never proceed to start and use equipment without familiarizing yourself to the various equipment features. One of the last things you want to find out is how to properly operate an equipment feature in the middle of a project. Being an avid pet lover myself the last recommendation is to make sure that all pets are securely out of your mowing area. I once had a puppy that ran up to me while cutting grass only to be hit by flying debris from the mower blades. Luckily, he was not seriously injured. Oh, by the way KIDS apply here too! Make sure they're out of the way. The following questions should be reviewed before starting:
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